Braves can’t recover from 5-0 first-inning hole in another loss to Mets

Bichette was called out trying to steal second on the pitch — a pitch that appeared to be a strike but was called a ball — resulting in a walk that put runners at first and second with one out. Elder quickly tapped his head to signify he wanted to challenge the pitch, but home plate umpire Cory Blaser didn’t see the challenge signal.

“I think it was just kind of a knee-jerk reaction,” Elder said. “I think if I would have really stood my ground and tapped my hat longer, then maybe (Blaser) would have seen me. But, yeah, I didn’t. So we got to make better pitches.”

A single by Jared Young loaded the bases before Elder struck out Marcus Semien for the inning’s second out. Brett Baty then delivered the inning’s big blow, a two-out grand slam to deep right that put the Mets up 5-0. It was Baty’s first career grand slam, coming off a first-pitch slider.

The challenge call that wasn’t turned out to be a pivotal moment as the night grew darker.

Crew chief Andy Fletcher explained to a pool reporter after the game that because of Blaser’s focus on the action of the play in front of him, Blaser was not looking for an Automated Ball-Strike challenge. Had Blaser seen it, Fletcher said, the challenge would have been accepted.

Sean Murphy, who caught the pitch and then immediately fired to second, took the heat for not challenging the pitch himself.

“I didn’t see (Elder) signal in the moment. I was coming up to throw, but obviously I should have challenged it,” Murphy said. “In the moment, my eyes didn’t tell me it was a strike. But I was watching the video back, it was 100% a strike. I feel horrible for (Elder) because that’s my responsibility, and I didn’t challenge it.

“Obviously I wish (Blaser) had seen it, but that ultimately falls on me to challenge it. So that needs to enter my head quicker, and I need to be looking for that more on those plays.”

Said Braves manager Walt Weiss: “The fact that most pitchers don’t challenge, it’s not mandated, but a lot of teams communicated that to the pitchers. Their success rate is not good. It’s mostly left up to the catchers. I didn’t see (Elder) do it, but I think he kind of half-heartedly did it and was motioning to ‘Murph.’ The umpire’s attention doesn’t go to the pitcher. They’re looking at the catcher to challenge because 99% of the time that’s where the challenge is coming from. It was an action play, a lot going on, you’re watching the throw down to second to see if he’s going to be out. Just a lot of moving parts on that play.”

The Braves did respond in their half of the first, loading the bases with two outs after Ozzie Albies was hit in the jersey on the 11th pitch of his at-bat. Mets starter Christian Scott threw a first-pitch fastball to Mauricio Dubón, who rolled a two-run single into left, cutting the score to 5-2.

That gave Dubón 29 RBIs this season when batting with two outs and runners in scoring position.

In a sign of things to come, though, Austin Riley’s inning-ending strikeout left two runners stranded to end the first frame.

Elder continued to struggle in the second, allowing another run — on a Jared Young RBI single — and three more hits along with a two-out walk that loaded the bases. A grounder to first allowed Elder to escape that jam.

Francisco Lindor made it 7-2 in the third, sending a 3-2 cutter 420 feet out to right and into the second level of the Chop House. Lindor’s 11th homer of the season came with two outs.

Drake Baldwin and Ronald Acuña Jr. had back-to-back RBI singles with two outs in the fourth to get the Braves within 7-4. And in the fifth, Michael Harris II scored on a wild pitch with two outs, making it a 7-5 ballgame.

That would be as close as the Braves, who dropped to 4-7 this season against the last-place Mets, would get.

Elder (8-7) persevered through five innings despite allowing 10 hits and surrendering seven earned runs. The right-hander’s ERA rose from 3.69 to 4.03 after a season-high 105 pitches.

“I think if I don’t put one on a tee there for (Baty), it’s a whole different conversation,” Elder said. “We can look at the challenge and look at this and look at that, but at the end of the day, I got to make a better pitch to Baty there and we’re having a different conversation.”

In his past five outings before Monday, Elder had given up just eight earned runs combined. His rough start Monday ended a streak of 18 straight games in which Braves starting pitchers have allowed three earned runs or less.

Braves reliever Brent Suter allowed one hit and walked one over three scoreless innings to help keep his bullpen mates fresh the rest of the series.

Víctor Mederos followed Suter and immediately loaded the bases on a single, walk and hit batter, respectively, in the ninth. The Mets came away with their final run on a Young sacrifice fly to center field.