Braves' leaky bullpen cause for concern entering series vs. Mets

The Atlanta Braves' recent struggles may be spilling into the bullpen, an area of the team that has been solid for most of the season.

Atlanta, which will open a four-game series on Friday night against the visiting New York Mets, saw its relievers melt down on Thursday and allow eight runs in an 11-5 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Braves have lost 14 of their last 19 games to see their lead in the National League East shrink to 2 1/2 games over the Philadelphia Phillies.

New York, which is in last place in the division, did not play on Thursday. The Mets lost a three-game series at Toronto and have dropped 10 of their last 12 games.

The Atlanta bullpen, which posted a 2.14 ERA in June, finished the final four innings on Wednesday without allowing a hit.

It was a different story on Thursday.

Dylan Lee, who entered the game with an 0.95 ERA, allowed three runs in one-third of an inning and saw his ERA grow to 1.64. Reliable Tyler Kinley gave up three runs in two-thirds of an inning, and Ian Hamilton and James Karinchak each gave up one run.

"Dylan has pitched a lot, so it's something we've got to keep an eye on," Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said. "We always talk about trying to keep those guys strong all the way through. (Lee) was good to go, and he's been virtually untouchable this year."

Atlanta setup man Robert Suarez is out with right elbow inflammation and won't return until after the All-Star break.

This will be the second series between Atlanta and New York this season. The Mets won two of three games from June 12-14 in New York.

The Mets will send Christian Scott (2-0, 3.20 ERA) to the mound on Friday to face fellow right-hander Grant Holmes (4-4, 3.96) of the Braves.

Scott will make his second start since spending two weeks on the injured list with a hip impingement. He returned on Saturday to start against Philadelphia and threw 4 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on three hits while striking out six in New York's 6-2 victory.

"I feel great," Scott said afterward. "Felt like I attacked the zone pretty well for the most part. Just established my off-speed stuff early in the game and then kind of just rode the wave off of that."

Scott, who made nine starts as a rookie in 2024, missed all of 2025 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Since his return this spring, Scott has been reliable. In 10 starts, he has allowed more than three runs just one time -- when he gave up four in 4 2/3 innings against St. Louis on June 11 before going on the injured list.

He has made one career start against the Braves, taking a loss after allowing three runs over six innings in 2024.

Holmes has made 15 starts, but his inability to pitch past the fifth inning in four of his last five starts caused the Braves to temporarily move him into a long relief role. In his last appearance against San Francisco on Saturday, he allowed just one hit over four scoreless innings in his team's 5-0 loss.

Holmes has made two career starts against the Mets, going 0-1 with a 2.00 ERA and striking out 13 in nine innings.

--Field Level Media