Morning Chop: Atlanta Braves News 5/22/14
Hot, cold, warm, sad… all adjectives that can describe most teams in the course of a season, but as Atlanta Braves’ fans, it always seems doubly worse doesn’t it? After playing well and taking the first two games of the series, the Milwaukee Brewers snapped out of it on sketchy pitching by the usually adept Ervin Santana. Take a look at the boxscores from last evening’s loss, courtesy of Baseball Reference.
| Batting | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | BA | OPS | Pit | Str | PO | A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jason Heyward RF | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .235 | .654 | 18 | 12 | 3 | 0 |
| Ramiro Pena 2B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .189 | .623 | 15 | 11 | 3 | 3 |
| Freddie Freeman 1B | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .310 | .925 | 9 | 6 | 11 | 2 |
| Justin Upton LF | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | .299 | .972 | 12 | 8 | 1 | 0 |
| Chris Johnson 3B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | .255 | .612 | 14 | 12 | 1 | 5 |
| B.J. Upton CF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .197 | .592 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 |
| Andrelton Simmons SS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .279 | .740 | 14 | 9 | 1 | 2 |
| Gerald Laird C | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | .178 | .475 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 1 |
| Ervin Santana P | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .150 | .300 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 |
| Luis Avilan P | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Jordan Schafer PH | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .111 | .385 | 6 | 4 | ||
| Anthony Varvaro P | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Team Totals | 32 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 10 | .156 | .375 | 116 | 85 | 27 | 14 |
| Pitching | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | ERA | BF | Pit | Str | Ctct | StS | StL | GB | FB | LD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ervin Santana, L (4-2) | 7 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3.42 | 33 | 100 | 60 | 36 | 6 | 18 | 12 | 15 | 7 |
| Luis Avilan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4.30 | 3 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Anthony Varvaro | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2.40 | 4 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| Team Totals | 9 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 6.00 | 40 | 124 | 79 | 49 | 7 | 23 | 14 | 18 | 8 |
via Miami Herald
I don’t know that I’d call the last few wins by the Atlanta Braves a streak (Ray Stevens), but certainly as small as it was it has come to an end after the loss in the third game to the Milwaukee Brewers. Atlanta Journal Constitution’s David O’Brien shares his thoughts about the end of the, uh hum, streak.
Braves’ winning streak ends
"ATLANTA — Giving up a grand slam to Mark Reynolds before recording the second out of the game was bad enough for Ervin Santana, but here was another indication that things just weren’t right for the Braves pitcher Wednesday night: He walked pitcher Kyle Lohse with two out in the fourth inning.On four consecutive balls. After a called first strike.Upon giving Lohse a free pass, Santana served up a home run to Carlos Gomez on the very next pitch, a two-run shot that gave Milwaukee a five-run lead en route to a 6-1 rout at Turner Field that ended the Braves’ three-game winning streak."
Despite the nay and doomsayers who feel as though Atlanta just doesn’t have what it takes this year to see another NL East Title (admittedly I’m one of them), certainly the Atlanta Braves are finding ways to win and get the job done, despite injury, lethargy, and poor RISP stats. Mike Bauman of MLB takes a look at how Atlanta has thrived, despite the hurdles.
Braves find a way to thrive despite injuries
"Back in Spring Training, when it became apparent that the Atlanta Braves would open the season without 60 percent of their projected starting rotation, there were some obituaries written about their chances.Those pieces were, it now appears, somewhere between premature and completely inaccurate. No question, the Braves were in a difficult situation. And again, without debate, the primary opposition in the NL East, the Washington Nationals, had pitching all over the place."
Despite the Milwaukee Brewers’ struggles of late, I figured they would be a tougher test for the Atlanta Braves, particularly in view of how the Braves themselves have really struggled. They’ve played well in that series though, for the most part, and soon will face what could be an even tougher test in the next series against the Colorado Rockies. David Miller of Rant Sports takes a look.
Resurgent Atlanta Braves to Face Tough Test in Colorado Rockies
"Even though the Atlanta Braves lost the third game against the Milwaukee Brewers, it is easy to see that they are playing much better. That game of that series came down to two good swings and Kyle Lohse pitching well on the other side. No one should expect the Braves to have a let-up game to end that series or to begin the series against the Colorado Rockies. They are one of the toughest teams in MLB to beat right now."
Todd Salem, featured columnist for the Bleacher Report, gives us a run-down on some of the latest news regarding the Atlanta Braves.
Atlanta Braves: Latest News and Notes from Turner Field
"Just a week or so before Memorial Day and roughly two months into the 2014 Major League Baseball season, it is a perfect time to take stock and see how things are developing for the Atlanta Braves. Let’s take a look at some news and notes."