By BEN WALKER
AP Baseball Writer
   
    NEW YORK — Eric Hinske came into the game after a scary injury to rookie Jordan Schafer and later hit a tie-breaking home run in the ninth inning Friday night that sent the Atlanta Braves over the New York Mets 6-3.
    Schafer was hurt when he fouled a bunt off his face in the fifth. He was struck squarely around his upper lip and nose, wobbled off the field with a towel pressed tight to his face and went to a hospital for X-rays.
    Old Mets nemesis Chipper Jones began the Braves' comeback from a 3-1 deficit with a leadoff home run in the eighth. Later in the inning, a two-out error by shortstop Jose Reyes let the tying run score.
    Earlier, about 800 fans gathered on a pedestrian bridge beyond the right-center field wall to cheer Reyes and urge Mets management to not trade the All-Star. By the end of the game, the Citi Field crowd was booing another late collapse by the Mets.
    The Mets set a dubious major league record: Their last six home losses all have come in games in which they led in the seventh inning. A day earlier, they pulled off their biggest comeback in 11 years when they rallied from a seven-run deficit to beat Pittsburgh.
    Rookie Freddie Freeman had three hits. His two-run double in the ninth gave the Braves extra insurance.
    Craig Kimbel closed for his 17th save in 21 tries. His save total is the highest for an NL rookie before the All-Star break, breaking the mark that Yhency Brazoban set for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2005. Boston's Jonathan Papelbon holds the big league record in this category with 26 in 2006.
    Jonny Venters (4-0) pitched a scoreless eighth for the win. Francisco Rodriguez (1-2) was hit hard by the Braves in the ninth.
    Schafer squared around to bunt to start the fifth and Jonathon Niese's pitch tailed in toward him. The ball deflected off his bat and hit the center fielder flush. Schafer was down for about a minute as a Braves trainer attended to him, and was helped off the field.
    Hinske finished the at-bat and struck out. But with one out in the ninth, his drive barely over the right-field wall put Atlanta ahead 4-3.
    Jones launched his 441st career home run, connecting against Niese to get Atlanta within one. Still booed because of all the big hits he delivered at Shea Stadium, Jones was batting under .200 at Citi Field when he homered deep to left field.
    Jason Isringhausen relieved with two outs and walked slumping Dan Uggla. After a wild pitch, Alex Gonzalez hit a grounder that skipped past Reyes for the tying run.
    Reyes opened the fourth with his major league-leading ninth triple, barely beating a strong relay — Jones and Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez disputed the call. Carlos Beltran, Daniel Murphy and Angel Pagan hit RBI single off Derek Lowe for a 3-1 lead.
    Joe Mather's single put Atlanta ahead 1-0 in the second. Lowe was up next, and his bunt resulted in Gonzalez getting tagged out in a rundown between third and home.
    NOTES: Jason Bay is 0 for 17 lifetime against Lowe after going hitless in two at-bats with a walk. ... Alex Gonzalez lost control of his bat in the fourth and it helicoptered three rows into the seats, sending a man's beer splashing and showering the fans around him. ... With none on in the second, Lowe threw a wide ball to Murphy that sailed to backstop and ricocheted nearly all the way to the mound. Lowe picked up his own pitch and tossed it out of play.