A half-game out of first place in the NL East on July 29, the Braves have gone 18-30 since then to fall 15 back of Washington. Atlanta was eliminated from the wild-card chase when Pittsburgh beat Milwaukee 1-0 earlier Sunday.
The Braves lost for the 14th time in 18 September games as deGrom struck out 10 in six innings to extend his impressive streak since June 21.
In his last start, de Grom (9-6) tied the single-game major league record by striking out his first eight batters. Against Atlanta, the shaggy-haired right-hander struck out eight of the first 11 batters he faced.
