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Braves look to go up 4 to 2 on Mets

Smoltz aims to go 3-0 against Glavine
By Mark Bowman / MLB.com

John Smoltz has already had the pleasure of competing against his good friend Tom Glavine. When he steps on the mound at Shea Stadium on Sunday afternoon, the Braves’ veteran pitcher will be much more concerned about how he’ll attack the mighty Mets lineup.

“Not to beat a dead horse, but it’s more about facing a lineup than it is about facing the other pitcher,” Smoltz said. “It’s about how you’re going to do whatever you can to beat that other team. I know he’s going to do that and I will, too.”

For 15 seasons, Smoltz and Glavine were teammates in Atlanta. When they oppose each other on Sunday, they’ll just be a pair of good friends doing whatever necessary to improve their teams’ positioning in the National League East race.

Smoltz has won both of his previous two career starts against Glavine. The most recent matchup came on April 7, when he allowed two earned runs over six innings and helped the Braves register one of the three victories they’ve recorded in five games against the Mets this year.

With Saturday’s win, the Mets set up the rubber match in this three-game series and moved one-half game ahead of the Braves in the NL East standings.

Though he hasn’t yet shown his usual dominance, Smoltz has started this season in fine fashion. He’s provided a quality start in each of his first four outings and his only loss came on April 12, when he allowed the Nationals two runs in eight innings.

“I see him doing well and I see what he’s done, and the adjustments and changes he’s made in his career because of injuries, and it’s pretty remarkable,” said Glavine, who is seven wins shy of the 300-win milestone. “I’m doing what he’s doing now, kind of the same thing. I want to try and keep up with him so at the end of the year I have something to match up with his numbers.”

Glavine’s only loss in his first four starts this year came on April 7, when the Braves touched him for five runs—two earned—in 5 1/3 innings. The 41-year-old southpaw, who pitched for the Braves from 1987-2002, is 3-10 with a 5.55 ERA in 13 career starts against his former employer.

In his last nine starts against the Braves, Glavine is 2-3 with a 2.76 ERA.

“We look forward to another epic battle between Smoltzie and Glav [on Sunday],” Chipper Jones said.

Pitching matchup
ATL: RHP John Smoltz (2-1, 3.12 ERA)
Smoltz is 9-8 with a 3.06 ERA in 31 career appearances (19 starts) at Shea Stadium.

NYM: LHP Tom Glavine (3-1, 2.70 ERA)
Glavine is 30-27 with a 3.42 ERA in 81 career starts at Shea.

Player to watch
Mets first baseman Carlos Delgado has hit .345 (10-for-29) with four homers in his career against Smoltz.

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