NEW YORK -- Unlike New York Mets right-hander Matt Harvey, left-hander Jonathon Niese spends no time managing his public image or becoming embroiled in innings limit debates engendered by his agent.

And on Monday night, Niese had no problem cleaning up the mess Harvey helped create Sunday.

Niese allowed three hits over six innings and combined with three relievers on a shutout as the Mets edged closer to the National League East title by beating the Atlanta Braves, 4-0, at Citi Field.

Niese, who made his major league debut in 2008 and is the longest-tenured member of the New York rotation, restored some normalcy to the Mets' universe a night after Harvey's early, mandated exit — he threw five innings of one-hit shutout ball before being pulled so that he doesn't shoot too far past 180 innings in his first season following Tommy John surgery — spiraled into an 11-2 loss to the crosstown rival New York Yankees.

"We needed this one bad," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "There are big wins. This one is a big win for us right now. Kind of rights the ship a little bit, especially after yesterday and all the things that have taken place."

With their second win in six games, the Mets (85-65) increased their division lead over the Washington Nationals to 6 1/2 games and reduced their magic number to seven. The Nationals' game against the Baltimore Orioles was rained out.

"Your veteran guys step up and take over this time of year," Collins said. "You have a tough game, they have the knack and the know-how to say, look, you know what, it's my time to get this done."

Niese did so in typically understated fashion. While Harvey flirts with triple digits on the radar gun, dates supermodels, "writes" columns for Derek Jeter's website and endorses products by the armful, Niese gets by with a southpaw arsenal that is as vanilla as his personality.

But the blend of 90 mph fastballs and off-speed offerings was more than enough Monday, when Niese walked two, struck out two and induced 13 ground ball outs — including eight in a row to start the game.

The Braves generated their only threat with two outs in the third, when right-handed pitcher Shelby Miller walked, right fielder Michael Bourn singled and Castro reached on an error. But first baseman Freddie Freeman lined out to center to end the threat.

Asked if it meant more to get the skid-stopping win as the elder statesmen of the staff — he has made 167 starts for the Mets, 36 fewer than the rest of the starters combined — Niese offered a nervous laugh.

"I mean, I guess," Niese said with his a hat hung lower over his head. "I just go out there and give it my best effort. It's good to get the win."

Right-handers Addison Reed, Tyler Clippard and Jeurys Familia combined to allow two hits over the final three innings.

Left fielder Michael Conforto, who was honored as the Mets' minor league player of the year before the game, hit a solo homer in the second. He is hitting .285 with eight homers and 23 RBI since being recalled from Double-A Binghamton on July 24.

"Awesome day, couldn't have gone any better," said Conforto who hit STUFF HERE at two levels prior to his promotion. "Really cool to get the award and even better to get the win today."

Second baseman Daniel Murphy (2-for-4) delivered a two-run double in the seventh. Right fielder Curtis Granderson scored two runs and center fielder Yoenis Cespedes had three hits.

The Braves (60-91) had a three-game winning streak snapped as they scored two runs or fewer for the sixth straight game and the 32nd time in 62 games since the All-Star Break.

"It's hard to win when you don't score any runs," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "We won three games back home with just scoring six runs. But with this team here, you've got to score runs."

The season-long bad luck continued for Miller, whose winless streak reached 23 starts -- the longest for a Braves pitcher since the team moved to Atlanta in 1966. Miller, who is 5-16 despite a 3.00 ERA, allowed two runs on seven hits and four walks while striking out three and throwing a season-high 113 pitches.

"Obviously I've had some ups and downs," Miller said. "But at the same time, you learn from those things and you take the positives and develop yourself into a better pitcher and person and teammate."

NOTES: Mets INF Juan Uribe (chest contusion), who was injured diving for a ball on Sunday, underwent an MRI that showed no serious damage. He was unavailable Monday and is day-to-day. ... Mets manager Terry Collins said RHP Jacob deGrom, whose turn in the rotation is being skipped Tuesday, will likely start during a four-game series against the Cincinnati Reds that begins Thursday. DeGrom has a 6.31 ERA in his last five starts. ... Braves RHP Mike Foltynewicz, who was hospitalized due to blood clots Sunday, underwent surgery Monday to remove the anterior half of the first rib. ... Braves RF Nick Markakis (sore trapezius) was out of the lineup for a second straight day. Manager Fredi Gonzalez hopes he can return Tuesday.