Will Atlanta Braves Torment New York Mets Again This Weekend?

It's nearing the middle of June. The New York Mets aren't very good, but they're not irrecoverably bad, either. They have a chance, with a decent stretch, to get back into an underwhelming National League playoff race.

Just as long as they don't have to face the Atlanta Braves anytime soon.

*record scratch*

The Braves Ended The Mets' 2023 Season…In June

The presence of the Braves in town this weekend is a reminder of June 2023, when Atlanta authored a three-game sweep that provided a neat summary of the misery the Mets have endured against the Braves for more than three decades now.

The Mets entered the series 30-30 and two games out of the last wild card spot, but the sweep basically ended their season. The Mets went 7-19 in June and never got back above .500 before Buck Showalter was fired on the final day of the season by Billy Eppler, who was ordered to take out the skipper by David Stearns one day before Stearns officially took over as the Mets' president of baseball operations. At least things have gotten better since then!

The Mets made the wrong kind of history during the sweep, becoming the first team ever to lose three consecutive games in which they led by at least three runs.

The finale, when Ozzie Albies hit a walk-off three-run homer that might still be traveling through the Georgia air, was broadcast by Braves icons Jeff Francouer, Tom Glavine, Chipper Jones, and John Smoltz, none of whom could contain their glee.

Because if there's one thing that bonds generations of Braves, it's that beating the Mets never gets old for them, no matter how often they do it. Which, again, is A LOT.

How Have the Mets Done Against the Braves?

Not great, Bob! The Mets went 5-8 against the Braves last season, which marked the 24th time they've lost the season series in the 32 seasons since 1994, when the Braves moved to the NL East.

With the Mets missing the playoffs by a game in 2025, a case could be made that losing the season series to the Braves - who finished 76-86 - marked the seventh time Atlanta either cost the Mets a playoff berth, hurt their postseason seeding, or ended their season in the playoffs.

• 2022: The Mets and Braves finished tied for first in the NL East at 101-61, but the Braves won the division and got the first-round bye by virtue of winning the season series 10-9. Atlanta clinched the series by sweeping New York on the final weekend of the regular season. The Mets then fell to the San Diego Padres in a best-of-three wild card series.
• 2008: The Mets collapsed in September for the second straight year and missed the playoffs by one game. They lost four out of six to the Braves after Sept. 1 and finished 7-11 against Atlanta, which finished 72-90.
• 2001: The Mets went 25-6 from Aug. 18 through Sept. 22 to climb back into the NL East race - a stretch that included Mike Piazza's titanic go-ahead home run against the Braves Sept. 21 in the first New York sporting event since the terrorist attacks. But with a chance to close out a sweep of the Braves and pull the Mets within 2 1/2 games of first place, Armando Benitez blew the save in the ninth inning of a 5-4, 11-inning loss.
• 2000: The Mets earned the NL wild card by going 94-68, but they finished a game behind the Braves, who won the season series 7-6. At least the Mets made the World Series, possibly because the Cardinals knocked Atlanta out in the NL Division Series.
• 1999: The Mets went 97-66 but just 3-9 against the Braves, who won the division by 6 1/2 games while the Mets had to beat the Cincinnati Reds in a one-game playoff in order to clinch the wild card. The Braves then outlasted the Mets in six games in a uniquely torturous NLCS. Atlanta raced out to a three games to none lead, but the Mets mounted dramatic comebacks in Games 4 and 5 (the latter was capped by Robin Ventura's Grand Slam Single) and overcame a six-run first-inning deficit in Game 6, when they blew leads in the ninth AND 10th inning before Kenny Rogers issued the season-ending walk-off walk to Andruw Jones in the 11th inning. Hey at least Jones is in the Hall of fame now!
• 1998: The Mets missed the playoffs by one game after a season-ending three-game sweep at the hands of the Braves. Following the finale, Chipper Jones said "We knocked Top Step off the top step" in reference to Mets manager Bobby Valentine.

Can The Mets Avoid Another Collapse Against The Braves?

Here in the second weekend of June 2026, the Mets are once again in a potentially season-altering spot heading into a series with the first-place Braves. The Mets have steadied themselves after their awful start and are 5 1/2 games out of the last wild card spot. But they're also in last place in the NL East and just 4 1/2 games ahead of the Colorado Rockies, who bring up the rear in the Senior Circuit.

"We have an opportunity here to do something," Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said following Thursdays 5-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.

It's probably asking a lot to sweep the Braves, who have the best record in the majors at 45-23. But can the Mets just not get swept themselves and fall further into the abyss?

More MLB:

• James Wood is one adjustment away from being the best hitter in MLB
• The New York Yankees' 6 Worst Trades of Brian Cashman Era
• Jacob deGrom's Hall of Fame Case Gets More Compelling After Milestone

Given the penchant for the Braves to torment the Mets in unique ways, it's worth pointing out this weekend marks the first time Braves first base/baserunning coach Antoan Richardson and pitching coach Jeremy Hefner and are opposing the Mets since Stearns dumped them as part of his offseason overhaul.

The Braves have stolen just 39 bases under Richardson, who got a 30/30 season out of Juan Soto last year before he and the Mets couldn't agree on a new deal. But the Mets have only 36 stolen bases and are succeeding at a 67.9 percent clip after going 147-for-165 - a success rate of 89 percent - in stolen base attempts last year.

Hefner, who spent more than a decade with the Mets as a pitcher and a coach, seemed to take his exit far more personally. During an interview in spring training, Hefner referred to the Mets as "…that other team up north," which, on a scale of 1 to 10 on the pettiness level, was at least a 15.

Braves pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said "that other team up north" in reference to his former employer pic.twitter.com/FC5u3twoA6

— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) February 12, 2026

Under Hefner, the Braves lead the majors with a 3.20 ERA. While Chris Sale (2.30 ERA) continues to perform like a Hall of Famer, Atlanta is being boosted by the surprising likes of Bryce Elder, Grant Holmes and journeyman Martin Perez, who have combined for a 3.20 ERA.

The Mets, who ranked 10th in the majors in ERA from 2019 through 2025 under Hefner, are eighth this season with a 3.88 ERA. But they still can't figure out what's happened to David Peterson, Sean Manaea and Kodai Senga, whose struggles down the stretch last season contributed to the collapse that cost Hefner his job.

The Braves, despite their litany of ace pitchers, haven't thrown a no-hitter since 1995…though they did come within one out of doing so at Citi Field in 2024. So you know what's on the table this weekend!

Related: Winning Road Trip Still Triggers Mets 'Lost Season' Fears

Copyright 2026 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

This story was originally published June 13, 2026 at 7:09 AM.