New York Mets Series Preview vs. Atlanta Braves April 10th-12th
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Can Mets Keep It Going?
Apr 9, 2015; Washington, DC, USA; New York Mets catcher
Travis d’Arnaud(7) hits a single against the Washington Nationals during the sixth inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit:
Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
Mets manager Terry Collins has been using a different lineup that people expected him to use, as he has installed Curtis Granderson as his lead off man. It was met with skepticism, but it is hard to argue with the results thus far.
Granderson may have only one hit in 10 at-bats, but he has gotten on base a total of five times, as he has taken four walks. At the top of the order Granderson has to be in the mindset to work counts and get on base any way possible, not look to hit home runs and score. He seems to be taking well to it thus far, and it will be interesting to see how long that lasts for the Mets because they seemed intent on using Juan Lagares as their leadoff man in Spring Training.
Another encouraging sign from the series against the Nationals was the play of Travis d’Arnaud. He was solid behind the plate, and came through big time with the bat. d’Arnaud came away from the opening series with a .455 batting average, including a triple, and four RBI. Those are strong numbers for a player that struggled so mightily during the spring.
One thing to keep an eye on during the series, other than if he can continue coming through with the bat, is how he will respond behind the plate. The Braves will assuredly be more aggressive than the Nationals were on the basepaths, led by former Met outfielder Eric Young Jr. The Braves will more than likely put pressure on and test d’Arnaud to make good throws when they attempt to steal bases. The Nationals attempted zero steals against the Mets; expect the Braves to change that in the first game of the series.
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