Morning Chop: Atlanta Braves News 4/27/14
Check out the scores from last night’s game, as the Atlanta Braves took it to the Cincinnati Reds, with good pitching from David Hale, and great bats from the rest of the Atlanta crew. Boxcores courtesy of Baseball Reference.
| Batting | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OPS | Pit | Str | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jason Heyward RF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .191 | .575 | 16 | 11 | |
| B.J. Upton CF | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .209 | .575 | 13 | 9 | |
| Freddie Freeman 1B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | .352 | 1.068 | 14 | 8 | HR |
| Justin Upton LF | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | .321 | 1.021 | 13 | 7 | HR,SB |
| Evan Gattis C | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | .308 | .959 | 11 | 8 | HR |
| Dan Uggla 2B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .207 | .576 | 6 | 4 | |
| Chris Johnson 3B | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .250 | .630 | 10 | 7 | |
| Andrelton Simmons SS | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .300 | .797 | 8 | 5 | GDP |
| David Hale P | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .000 | .000 | 8 | 7 | |
| Craig Kimbrel P | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||
| Team Totals | 31 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 5 | .258 | .830 | 99 | 66 |
| Pitching | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | BF | Pit | Str | Ctct | StS | StL | GB | FB | LD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Hale, W (1-0) | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2.31 | 27 | 102 | 66 | 38 | 10 | 18 | 13 | 8 | 1 |
| Craig Kimbrel, S (8) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2.61 | 4 | 21 | 17 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 1.00 | 31 | 123 | 83 | 47 | 14 | 22 | 14 | 8 | 1 |
Power Rankings? What are those? Oh! Those are those cool stats that point out how totally kick&%$ a team is doing with pop off the bat! Bill Evans of South Jersey Times points out that the Braves are now top spot in power rankings. Take a look…
MLB Power Rankings: Atlanta Braves move into top spot
"Following is the Major League Baseball Power Rankings chosen by South Jersey Times baseball writer Bill Evans. New rankings appear every Sunday.1. Atlanta Braves (14-7)Freddie Freeman has a 1.038 OPS.2. New York Yankees (13-9)Nova done for season, Pineda done for 10 days."
via Ledger-Enquirer
Check out Sports Network’s recap of last night’s game, as reported via the Ledger-Enquirer.
Recap: Atlanta vs. Cincinnati
"Atlanta, GA (SportsNetwork.com) – David Hale allowed one run over eight innings to lead the Atlanta Braves to a 4-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday in the second test of a three-game series.Hale (1-0) gave up two hits and walked two while striking out four. Craig Kimbrel worked around a one-out walk in the ninth to pick up his eighth save of the season.“He kept the ball down and out of the strike zone, he mixed his pitched well, he used alot of offspeed, he really didn’t give much to hit. His game is obivously to get groundballs and make you chase and he did it today,” said Bruce about Hale."
USA Today picked up the AP story on how David Hale was absolutely dominant in what could be his final start for the Atlanta Braves this season (at least for the time being). David Hale made the case for staying in the rotation when Mike Minor returns, but that puzzle has yet to be solved.
Braves rookie pitcher David Hale dominates Reds
"ATLANTA (AP) — Rookie right-hander David Hale allowed only two hits over eight innings in a performance that may not be enough to save his spot in Atlanta’s rotation and the Braves beat the Cincinnati Reds 4-1 on Saturday night.Freddie Freeman, Justin Upton and Evan Gattis each homered off Cincinnati’s Mike Leake (2-2)."
David O’Brien gives us an update on the timetable for Mike Minor’s return to the Atlanta Braves. With the current rotation pitching so exceedingly well, and David Hale going eight and showing good command last night, no one envies the decisions Atlanta is having to make.
Minor could join Braves rotation late next week
"It’s safe to say Mike Minor never felt as good after giving up four home runs in a game as he did after his fifth and likely final rehab start Friday night for Double-A Mississippi.Minor gave up five runs and 10 hits, including four homers, in seven innings of a 5-1 loss at Pensacola, Fla., where by all accounts – from fans on Twitter to team executives — the wind was blowing strong and steadily out to left field. That’s where all the home runs were hit, including three that Minor said were “pop-ups.”"