Canning (Achilles) latest Mets starter to fall before 'pen steps up mightily

NEW YORK -- The 4-0 victory over the Braves on Thursday night put the Mets in sole possession of first place in the National League East. But being on top was bittersweet for New York.

Right-hander Griffin Canning, one of the Mets' winningest pitchers this season, left the game in the top of the third inning because of a left Achilles injury. Canning is scheduled to have an MRI on Friday.

Canning became the third Mets starting pitcher -- joining Kodai Senga (right hamstring strain) and Tylor Megill (right elbow sprain) -- to go down with an injury during the month of June.

With one out and Eli White on second, Nick Allen hit a routine ground ball to shortstop Francisco Lindor, who was able to throw out Allen at first base. As the play was going on, Canning stepped off the mound and fell to the ground in serious pain. He had to be helped off the field.

“Horrible,” said Mets manager Carlos Mendoza. “It sucks. You hate to see it, especially the way [Canning] went down right away. When you get there, you are asking, ‘What’s going on?’ ... I feel sorry for the guy, especially how big he has been for us and the way he has been throwing the ball all year. He has been pretty consistent. It’s unfortunate. You hate to see it. You feel for the guy. We just have to wait right now.”

With Canning out of the game, Mendoza was wondering how his team was going to get through nine innings. The bullpen, however, was able to shut down Atlanta for 6 1/3 innings while striking out eight batters.

It started with right-hander Austin Warren, who held Atlanta scoreless for 2 1/3 innings. Warren was recalled on Thursday and was shocked to see his close friend go down early in the game. Their friendship goes back to their days with the Angels starting in 2021.

Suddenly, the adrenaline kicked in for Warren while he was thinking about his good friend.

“First off, I pray for Griff and that he is all right,” Warren said. “... We hung out a few times. Griff is a great guy. I hated what happened to him tonight. When I saw him go down and not get up, I instantly jumped up, got moving around, and sure enough my name was called. I got as much time as I needed out there, which I didn’t think I took that much time because the adrenaline took care of it.”

Warren ended up being the winning pitcher. It was his first victory since 2023, when he was with the Angels.

“I’m glad I filled it up. The defense played well behind me. I had a couple of punchouts. It worked out,” he said.

The Mets took the lead in the fourth and added on an inning later against right-hander Grant Holmes. In the fourth, Juan Soto scored the first run of the game on a sacrifice fly by Tyrone Taylor. An inning later, Pete Alonso drove in the second run when he singled to left-center field to send Lindor home.

New York added two more runs in the seventh on Jeff McNeil's single off reliever Dylan Dodd.

After Warren left the game, the rest of the Mets’ bullpen -- Dedniel Núñez, Ryne Stanek and Edwin Díaz -- pitched four shutout innings and struck out six batters.

"To have a bullpen for [6 1/3] innings, you want to be able to do a little more. Warren threw well. We clearly couldn't get anything going," Braves first baseman Matt Olson said.

Although they've lost three starting pitchers to injury, don’t expect the Mets to feel sorry for themselves. They are determined to stay in first place until it’s time to play in the postseason.

“... There is no panic. Yet, there is a sense of urgency of how are we going to get better," Mendoza said. "What do we need as a group, individually, to go out there and get out of this stretch? Little by little, we will continue to do the things we need to do. Obviously, we have to be healthy, but as far as the group goes, they are consistent. They are resilient. They fight. They compete and have fun.”