ATLANTA - Matt Harvey's season-high 115th pitch on a sweltering afternoon reached the inner half of the plate at 96 mph. The best pinch-hitter Pedro Ciriaco could do was catch a piece of it an inch or two away from the barrel of his bat.
The contact produced a faint crack, perhaps from a broken bat. But these days, that's all it takes to beat the Mets.
Sure enough, Ciriaco's seventh-inning looper landed well in front of centerfielder Juan Lagares, the difference in the Mets' 1-0 loss to the Braves on Sunday.
DatabaseMatt Harvey's career starts
At no point this season have the Mets looked more overmatched.