SPENCER STRIDER

Max Scherzer tied a season high with 11 strikeouts over seven innings and the New York Mets beat the sloppy Atlanta Braves 6-2 to complete a doubleheader sweep.

The MLB trade deadline gave baseball's deck a thorough shuffle, but now the teams will have to play their hands as is. So with deals in the rearview and the stretch run up ahead, who has the best team going forward? With the Padres’ huge trade deadline, the Braves’ perpetual winning and the general powering up of the Mets, the Dodgers will certainly have competition in October. You can never be sure a team will win a World Series, but the Dodgers being in the hunt is becoming a near certainty. The Braves did more at the trade deadline to bolster their chances, but the Mets' ultimate edge still comes down to the health of one Jacob deGrom.

Looking to replicate the deals that helped carry them to a World Series title in 2021, the Atlanta Braves have pulled of a flurry of trades ahead of the deadline.

Bryson Stott homered, doubled and drove in five runs to lift the Philadelphia Phillies to a 6-4 comeback victory over the Atlanta Braves.

Max Scherzer pitched seven strong innings, Luis Guillorme homered and drove in two runs, and the New York Mets beat Max Fried and the Atlanta Braves 4-1 in the opening game of their National League East showdown.

Sure, it’s been a wild NASCAR Cup season, with seemingly everyone in the field capable of taking the checkered flag.

Braves Nationals Baseball Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Spencer Strider throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Wednesday, June 15, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass) (Nick Wass)WASHINGTON — (AP) — Austin Riley homered twice, rookie Spencer Strider allowed one hit over 5 2/3 innings, and the Atlanta Braves won their 14th straight game, 8-2 over the last-place Washington Nationals on Wednesday night. Riley, who also had a single, hit two-run blasts in the seventh and eighth innings, giving him 18 homers this year. With the Braves leading 1-0 in the fourth, Michael Harris II extended his hitting streak to eight games with a two-run single. Corbin, seeking his third straight win, is 3-3 with a 4.05 ERA in 10 starts versus the Phillies since joining Washington in 2019.

Austin Riley homered twice and the Atlanta Braves won their 14th straight game, beating the Washington Nationals 8-2.

Pirates Braves Baseball Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Spencer Strider (65) delivers in the first inning of the team's baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday, June 10, 2022, in Atlanta. Strider (2-2) allowed only four hits with eight strikeouts and one walk in 5 2/3 scoreless innings. Strider, making his first home start and only his third overall, pitched into the sixth inning for the first time. Contreras (1-1) had seven strikeouts, including four in his first pass through the Braves’ lineup, in his fourth start. Braves: Stephens stayed in after Reynolds’ grounder hit his right knee in the eighth.

Spencer Strider outpitched Roansy Contreras in a matchup of hard-throwing rookies, Dansby Swanson had three hits, including a two-run homer and the Atlanta Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-2 for their ninth straight win.

Dansby Swanson scored the tiebreaking run in the fifth inning on an excruciating defensive sequence by the Phillies, and the Atlanta Braves beat Philadelphia 8-4.

Ronald Acuña Jr. had two hits and the Atlanta Braves beat the Miami Marlins 5-3.

Braves Padres Baseball San Diego Padres starting pitcher Yu Darvish delivers during the first inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves in San Diego, Sunday, April 17, 2022. (AP Photo/Kyusung Gong) (Kyusung Gong)SAN DIEGO — (AP) — Yu Darvish rebounded from the shortest outing of his career by dominating into the seventh inning and the San Diego Padres beat the Atlanta Braves 2-1 Sunday night despite having just three hits. His gem allowed San Diego to split the four-game series. Padres closer Taylor Rogers retired the Braves in order in the ninth for his fourth save, closing out a four-hitter for San Diego. He is day-to-day and San Diego does not anticipate he will have an IL stint.

Yu Darvish rebounded from the shortest outing of his career by dominating into the seventh inning and the San Diego Padres beat the Atlanta Braves 2-1 despite having just three hits.