Unlike in the series opener, Saturday's game between the Mets and Braves contained no drama.
In this case, that's not good for New York.
The Mets were uncompetitive. Right-hander Michael Wacha struggled, another concerning sign for a pitching staff that is, for the most part, sputtering. Meanwhile, the bats were silent a night after scoring double-digit runs.
The Braves defeated the Mets, 7-1, at Truist Park on Saturday. New York (3-6) has lost four in a row since winning both games in Boston.
It might seem early, but the Mets are already through 15% of the shortened season. They've established zero consistency and they might be spiraling. They must quickly figure it out.
To begin his second outing as a Met, Wacha struck out Ronald Acuna Jr. looking before getting Ozzie Albies to fly out to left field. Wacha seemed like he would breeze through the first.
Then he walked Freddie Freeman.
The next batter, Marcell Ozuna, sent a homer over the fence in center field.
This is the way it has gone for the Mets, who continue to be haunted by walks, or adding extra outs. They've struggled attacking hitters and have often lost command.
In the second inning, Dansby Swanson singled off Wacha. The Mets' starter then earned consecutive outs as he looked to escape unscathed.
Tyler Flowers doubled, scoring Swanson. Acuna followed with his own double, then scored on an Albies single.
Again, the Braves scored two runs with two outs against Wacha.
They led, 4-0.
By his outing's end, Wacha had been charged with five earned runs over four innings. It could have been worse, though.
In the third inning, he served up consecutive singles to the first two batters of the inning before escaping. In the fourth, he issued a two-out walk.
Wacha helped lead the Mets to victory in Boston five days before, but in Atlanta, he was not sharp. Because his teammates were unable to pick him up, his performance sank the Mets.
The Mets on Friday experienced their best offensive performance of the season. They hit multiple home runs. Multiple players drove in runs. They lost, but it was not the offense's fault.
The exact opposite occurred a night later, when they were lifeless. They only scored in the fifth inning, when Robinson Cano hit a sacrifice fly.
They only collected three hits off Braves starter Touki Toussaint, who held them scoreless for four innings before multiple bullpen arms did the same.
Once again, they missed opportunities to record timely hits. In the third, Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil worked consecutive walks but the Mets could not plate either. Michael Conforto and Cano hit back-to-back singles to begin the next inning, but the Mets came away with nothing.
The Mets' 11 strikeouts did not help, either.
All spring and summer, everyone in the organization praised the lineup's depth and versatility. They discussed how it featured power hitters, contact hitters and speed.
While the Mets seem like a talented offensive team, the results often have not come.
The lone positive of the night for the Mets might have been right-hander Franklyn Kilome, who made his major league debut. He allowed two runs in relief of Wacha, but the more important part was that he pitched four innings.
The Mets called him up to give them length out of the bullpen, and he provided it. He saved arms, which was important on a night the Mets were never really in the game.
Kilome had not pitched since 2018, when he played in Double-A. He underwent Tommy John surgery and missed all of last season.
