Ronald Acuna Jr. and Dansby Swanson each had three hits and three RBIs and the Atlanta Braves hit three home runs in a 13-1 win over the visiting New York Mets to open a four-game series on Monday.

The Braves recorded their seventh straight victory and cut the Mets’ lead in the National League East to 4 1/2 games.

Acuna went 3-for-5 with three doubles while Swanson was 3-for-4 with a double and a stolen base. The home runs came from William Contreras, Eddie Rosario and Travis d’Arnaud.

The winning pitcher was Spencer Strider (7-4), who allowed one run on three hits and one walk with four strikeouts in five innings. The Mets had knocked Strider out after 2 2/3 innings in his previous start.

The Braves scored three times in the second inning, starting with back-to-back homers by Contreras and Rosario. Contreras’ 16th of the year traveled 445 feet to straightaway center, and Rosario followed with his fourth, a 372-foot fly that hit the top of the fence in right-center and bounced over.

Atlanta tacked on another run when Mets left fielder Mark Canha lost Acuna’s high fly ball, which fell about 15 feet behind him for a double, allowing Michael Harris II to score from first base.

That’s when a hard rain began to fall and caused a 55-minute delay. Mets starter Carlos Carrasco returned to the mound and got the final out of the second inning, but he was holding his left side when he returned to the dugout and went to the clubhouse.

Carrasco (13-5) exited the game at that point, having allowed three runs on four hits and one walk with one strikeout.

The Braves broke the game open with an eight-run sixth inning that featured d’Arnaud’s 12th home run, a three-run shot. The game got out of hand when New York relievers Adonis Medina (six runs, five earned, in 1 1/3 innings) and Mychal Givens (three runs in one inning) could not slow the Braves.

Mets outfielder Darin Ruf pitched two scoreless innings to finish the game.

–Field Level Media