The host Atlanta Braves are hopeful that Allan Winans can replicate the same effort against the New York Mets that he produced just over a week ago after being called up when the two teams open a three-game series on Monday.
The two National League East rivals are meeting for the second time this month. The Braves won three of four games against the Mets in New York from Aug. 11-13. Division-leading Atlanta has won five of its last six but dropped a 4-3 decision to San Francisco on Sunday. The Mets lost 7-3 to St. Louis on Sunday but has won six of its last eight games.
Winans will be recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett to face visiting New York in the series opener. Left-hander David Peterson (3-7, 5.45 ERA) will start for the Mets.
Winans (1-0, 1.59) will be called up to make his third career start. On Aug. 12 he was added to the big-league roster for a doubleheader against the Mets and pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing four hits, two walks and striking out nine. Atlanta won that game 21-3.
The right-hander was drafted and played in the Mets‘ organization, but New York lost him in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft in 2021.
“I think any time you get called to the big leagues, it’s pretty special and it’s pretty cool,” Winans said. “I’m happy where I’m at, that’s for sure.”
Winans has spent most of the season in Triple-A, where he is 8-3 with a 2.79 ERA in 20 appearances (15 starts). He will be making his first appearance at Atlanta’s Truist Park.
Peterson will be making his fourth straight start since rejoining the rotation. He had been working out of the bullpen and is in the process of being stretched out.
In his most recent appearance last Tuesday, Peterson pitched 3 2/3 innings and allowed one run on three hits, a career-high six walks and struck out five against Pittsburgh. He threw 91 pitches.
“The body has kind of responded well to the uptick in the workload and it was actually good to go over the pitch count and really try and get through that fourth inning,” Peterson said. “The walks made that higher and a couple long innings there doesn’t really help, but it feels good to be back to full strength pitch-count-wise.”
Peterson will be making his 10th career appearance (ninth start) against the Braves. He is 3-4 with a 4.83 ERA versus Atlanta. In his last start against the Braves on April 28, Peterson gave up four runs in five innings.
Atlanta played without center fielder Michael Harris II on Sunday. He fouled a ball off his right foot on Saturday and was held out of the game with a contusion as a precautionary measure.
New York’s Pete Alonso hit his 39th homer on Sunday and now has 94 RBIs, leaving him behind only Braves first baseman Matt Olson, who leads the National League in both categories. Olson has 43 homers and 108 RBIs but was only 1-for-12 with one RBI in the three-game series with San Francisco.
Atlanta’s Marcell Ozuna went hitless on Sunday to end his 16-game hitting streak, which matched his career long.
—Field Level Media
