Final Score: Braves 5, Mets 3 - Chopped and Fried

Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports The Mets dropped the series opener to the Braves 5-3 tonight in Atlanta. It was clear from the bottom of the first inning that Zack Wheeler did not have his best stuff tonight, and was pitching both behind in the count and with men on base all night.

The Mets appeared stymied by Braves starter Max Fried, and only started to make a real comeback against former Met bullpen arms Jerry Blevins and Anthony Swarzak. Jeff McNeil, Juan Lagares, and Michael Conforto all drove in runs in the losing effort.

To add insult to injury, in his final at-bat, McNeil came up limping and holding his thigh after attempting to run out a ground ball for a single. No initial diagnosis…