Another series, and more frustration for Braves fans. Yesterday's game was an excruciating loss after a somewhat improbable comeback, which was capped off by a questionable managing decision on Fredi Gonzalez's part. I thought before the at bat that Matt Kemp should be walked, and after depositing an 0-2 offering over the left field wall, I still think he should have been walked. Andre Ethier ends the game when he touches home plate, so what is the harm in putting a guy on first behind him to set up a force at every base and a double play? What if I told you the guy you should be walking was hitting .411/.488/.644 on the young season, and the guy you'd face behind him was a free swinger who isn't terribly fast and isn't immune to hitting the ball on the ground. I just think you have to walk the guy in that spot to set up force plays and double plays, and to also face a much weaker hitter. Missed opportunity, and Uribe may have come through anyway, but in order to maximize your chances of getting out of the inning, I think an intentional walk has to happen in that spot.
The Braves have been an unlucky team this season, and that stands to rebound after this rotten stretch, losing 11 of 16. The team BABIP stands at a major league low .256 as of today (tied with the Nationals). Their run differential stands at +2 despite being 4 games under .500, another sign a turnaround could be coming. Atlanta Brave hitters in the number nine hole (pitchers, pinch hitters, or guys who have double switched there) have 3 hits all season, and they all came one game, two of them in the same inning. Braves opponents have made 3 errors all season against Atlanta. The Braves are 1-4 in one run games (1-5 if you include the extra inning game, which I think is somewhat valid as it was a last at bat victory), and one run games are notoriously volatile, showing no correlation to bullpen strength or any other tangible factor. I still think this is a good baseball team, and it is only a matter of time before they start showing it. Unfortunately, they get to travel up the coast to face the defending world champions next, but let's look back first at some good contributions from players.
Brandon Beachy- Kid was outstanding on Tuesday night, going six strong innings with 7 strikeouts, while also recording more ground outs than fly outs. He has struck out over a batter an inning this season, always a good sign when you are able to miss bats. There is a lot to like with him, and we can only hope the 24 year old will continue to improve like his age suggests he will.
Freddie Freeman- The California native returned home and made an impact, hitting 2 big homers in 4 days, while also adding a double, single, and 4 walks to the ledger. Being on base 8 times in 17 plate appearances along with 3 extra base hits is doing work, and he contributed a big time positive to the cause over 4 days. Season line now stands at .254/.362/.475, which are numbers I would take for an entire season from a 21 year old first baseman. And he is a dead ringer for Buzz from Home Alone, which has to be a positive too. I think.
Nate McLouth- He put up a bagel in the finale, but he had six hits in the series and was on base 8 times in 17 PAs for the series. Also added 3 doubles as well. I pleaded for him to hit in the last series recap, and he didn't let me down. More of that from him would be lovely.
Jair Jurrjens-It wasn't always pretty yesterday, but he battled through and gave the Braves 6 more really good innings. He fanned 6 and only walked 2, a very solid ratio for any pitcher. Still would like to see more ground balls out of him, but his command has been pretty good to this point, so we can't complain too much.
Goats
Jason Heyward- 0 for 14 with no walks in the series. Ouch. He has been fighting it recently, although he has still been an almost league average hitter to this point despite hitting .188 on the season. That is how talented he is, but even the most talented hitters go through slumps like this one, and Heyward is no different. Unfortunately, it comes at a time when most others are struggling too. A .163 BABIP means he should bounce back fairly soon, but for now, we can only hope his off day yesterday will help him out.
Derek Lowe- It was death by a thousand cuts for Lowe on Wednesday, surrendering 8 hits in the 1st 2 innings, with only 1 of those balls being hard hit. In fact, the Braves hit 3 line drives (by my count) in the 1st two innings to triple the Dodgers total in that same time frame, but the Dodgers had 5 runs to show for it. Still, Lowe was fighting his command and was falling behind in the count to most hitters. He wasn't sharp, and will want to put that outing behind him.
Tim Hudson- He has gotten smoked in the 1st inning in most of his outings, and it is starting to become a disturbing trend. However, I think he is fine, as he has dealt in every other inning but the 1st, which continued again when he gave up 2 hits in the five innings that followed with no walks. The Braves need Hudson to be sharp from the first inning on with the way the offense has struggled.
Scott Linebrink- Seems to be feast or famine with this guy, as he had been dealing going into this series. However, he almost lost the game on Tuesday night before Jonny Venters put out the fire, and he gave up a crucial go ahead home run to 79 year old Casey Blake in the 7th inning on Thursday. There isn't many things worse than having a bipolar reliever, and Linebrink has been that guy to this point. His K to BB numbers are excellent, but got to keep it out of the middle of the plate.
What to Watch For-
Braves head to San Francisco tonight for a 3 game set, and it will not be easy. The Giants are loaded with talented pitching, and two of them will be left handed this weekend, which has also caused the Braves to struggle this year and last year too. Oh, and the other guy they are facing is Tim Lincecum, who is a decent pitcher too. The Braves did a little bit better job working counts in Los Angeles, and that needs to continue this weekend. Madison Bumgarner has had serious command issues this season, and Jonathan Sanchez is inconsistent with his command as well. Work some deep counts, get an extra baserunner or two, then hope a hit or 2 falls in (its bound to start happening eventually). Also, let's keep an eye on the first inning, as the Braves pitchers have really struggled then. When your hitters are struggling, I don't think they want the added pressure of having to come from behind. A couple of easy first innings could help the Braves out.
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