On Thursday, the Braves missed a golden opportunity with a failed suicide squeeze attempt and ultimately lost to the Mets in an error-riddled extra innings game.
Outfielder Ramon Laureano was down 3-2 after overrunning Jeff McNeil’s walk-off hit, but Jarred Kelenic failed to bunt on a ball that was well out of the zone and was caught between third base and home plate, giving Laureano his second out in the top of the 10th with the score tied.
“Honestly, I don’t know what it was,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said when asked about Laureano’s read. “You’ll have to ask them. I didn’t have anything. Normally you don’t bunt in that situation, but I was looking to score and I thought we had two pretty good hitters up to bat.”
“That’s unacceptable.”
Laureano and Kelenic attempted a squeeze play, seemingly on their own, with one out and a runner on third base and Austin Riley, Marcell Ozuna and Matt Olson following behind.
Kelenic was ready to take a pitch from Mets relief pitcher Phil Maton, but Maton threw a pitch high and outside that would have made a fair bunt very difficult, if not impossible.
But on a safety squeeze, Kelenic should at least attempt to make contact to prevent the runner from being caught in no man’s land, which is what happened.
“I think it’s pretty simple,” Kelenic said. MLB.com“I just need to swing the bat there. I was trying too hard. I think that’s it.”
Laureano looked like he had a chance to return to third base, but he hesitated to throw the ball back to third base, resulting in a run.
During the rundown, Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez protested a shot to Laureano’s shoulder, but neither side became overly infuriated after the play.
The baserunning blunder was the second in a row for the struggling Braves.
In the ninth inning, free agent acquisition Whit Merrifield was called out while attempting to steal third base, but the Mets broadcast booth disputed the umpire’s call.
“You can’t get out on a base like that unless you score,” Snitker said.
Laureano, an outfielder who was a Gold Glove nominee in 2020, made a miserable night even worse in the bottom of the inning by overrunning McNeil’s game-winning single with a fly to right field.
“It’s tough to score one run on the road and win,” Snitker said. “When you’re not scoring runs, you’ve got to play clean baseball.”
It was the Mets’ fourth straight win and third against a team expected to make the playoffs, but neither the Yankees nor the Braves are playing particularly solid baseball at the moment.
The Reds had just won a two-game series against Atlanta, which had now lost five straight.
The Mets (54-48) are on a winning streak and are within a half-game of Atlanta for the top wild-card spot with three games remaining in their final four games.
They’ll have a chance to overtake the Braves on Friday when they send Kodai Senga to the mound to make his first appearance of the season opposite Charlie Morton.
