Morton untouched despite career-high 7 walks as the Braves beat the Mets again, 7-0

Updated Aug. 12, 2023 12:00 a.m. ET

Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Eddie Rosario had three RBIs and Charlie Morton won despite issuing seven walks — his most in 345 career starts — over five-plus innings as the Atlanta Braves beat the New York Mets 7-0 on Friday night.

Austin Riley finished a triple shy of the cycle and had two RBIs for the major league-leading Braves, who are 6-1 this year against the Mets and need one more win to clinch the season series for the sixth straight season. Atlanta is 57-36 versus New York since 2018.

Ozzie Albies added a run-scoring single for the Braves.

“The guys put up a lot of runs even though they had to do a lot of standing around out there,” Morton said.

Morton (11-10) gave up three hits and struck out four. He had just one 1-2-3 inning but limited the Mets to one hit in 11 at-bats with runners on. The 39-year-old right-hander became the 11th starting pitcher in big league history to throw exactly five scoreless innings while walking at least seven.

“Trouble finding a release point, especially my four-seamer and my curveball,” Morton said. “My changeup and my cutter were there a little bit and two-seamer (was) OK, but my bread and butter just wasn’t there.”

Morton is the third starting pitcher this season to win while walking seven, joining Jack Flaherty (April 1) and Dylan Cease (Aug. 7).

“He got a win, we got a win,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “That’s the main thing.”

Morton entered Friday having walked six batters in a game just once — on June 9, 2018, when he was pitching for the Houston Astros against Texas.

“I stopped counting after three or four,” Morton said.

Pete Alonso drew three walks for the Mets, who finished with nine walks and seven hits but stranded a season-high 14 runners. New York, blanked for the 12th time, became the first team since 1900 to get shut out in a nine-inning game after collecting at least nine walks and seven hits.

“Nine walks and seven hits — to not score a run, it’s pretty obvious we had people out there and couldn’t get a hit in those situations,” manager Buck Showalter said.

Rosario, who entered Friday hitting .188 over the first seven games of Atlanta's road trip, snapped a scoreless tie with a two-run single in the fourth off Tylor Megill before adding an RBI double in the sixth.

“I feel like second time through the lineup, I was able to choose a good pitch to swing at,” Rosario said through an interpreter. “Felt like I needed a good game and I had a good game.”

Megill (6-6) gave up six runs (five earned) in 5 1/3 innings.

LINDOR’S STREAK ENDS

Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor was scratched because of soreness on his right side about 30 minutes before the first pitch, ending his streak of consecutive games played at 223. He is scheduled to undergo testing Saturday.

That left nine players who have played in all of their team’s games this season — including four Braves: Riley, Albies, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Matt Olson.

SEVEN WISHES

Morton was the eighth Braves pitcher to walk seven batters without giving up a run and the first since Damian Moss in May 2002. The Mets were blanked despite drawing at least seven walks for the seventh time and the first time since J.R. Richard walked 10 over 10 scoreless innings for the Astros on July 6, 1976.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Braves: LHP Dylan Lee (shoulder inflammation) worked a scoreless inning in his third rehab appearance for Triple-A Gwinnett.

Mets: Lindor is scheduled to undergo testing Saturday. He was sidelined for five weeks in 2021 due to a right oblique strain. … OF Tim Locastro (back spasms) is with the Mets but has not yet been activated. … RF Starling Marte (right groin) began increasing activity.

UP NEXT

The teams play a day-night doubleheader Saturday, with the first game a makeup of an April 29 postponement. Mets RHP Denyi Reyes (0-1, 6.14 ERA) and Braves RHP Allan Winans (0-0, 4.15) will each be called up from Triple-A to start the opener. New York LHP José Quintana (0-3, 3.42 ERA) and Atlanta RHP Spencer Strider (12-4, 3.94) will pitch the nightcap.

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