Atlanta Braves Even Series In Philly; Win 5-2
By Dan Horton
BRAVES WIN!
The Atlanta Braves get back in the win column and snap a 4 game skid with a win at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. There were noticeable changes for the Braves tonight. The biggest, a lineup makeover.
The Lineup
Fredi Gonzalez apparently has been reading our posts lately. Could happen, right? Anyway, in a serious shake up of sorts, Fredi G mixed it up once again. This makes the 17th different lineup in 17 games for the Braves skipper. This time, I think he got it right.
After getting next to no production out of the lead-off and number two spots, Fredi moved bodies around. Nick Markakis led off and Andrelton Simmons hit in the second spot. Freddie Freeman followed in the three spot and A.J. Pierzynski was hitting cleanup. Jonny Gomes was at five, Kelly Johnson in the six hole and playing third. At the seven and eight spots were Jace Peterson and Eric Young, Jr., respectively. Shelby Miller rounded out the lineup in the ninth spot.
It would take a couple of trips through the lineup for it to click, but when it clicked, man was it beautiful to watch.
The Game
Everything was flowing smoothly as Miller and Phillies starting pitcher David Buchanan would keep it scoreless through 3 and half innings. Things got a little bumpy for Miller in the bottom of the 4th. Phillies right fielder and former Braves fan favorite Jeff Francoeur slashed a one out double.
With Francoeur standing on second, Ryan Howard would come up and proceed to deposit an 0-1 pitch in the center field lawn to put the Phillies up 2-0. Miller would compose himself nicely to get out of the 4th without further damage.
For Buchanan, his night was going brilliantly. hurling a one-hit shutout through 6, he would hit a wall in the 7th. That wall was Andrelton Simmons. Simba would send the first pitch over the left-center field wall for his first home run of the season.
A leadoff home run to start the inning was apparently what the Braves needed. After a couple quick outs by Freeman and A.J., Gomes would draw a walk and Kelly Johnson would follow suit. Buchanan’s night was done.
Jake Diekman would come on for the Phillies and proceed to give up a pinch-hit single to Chris Johnson. The Braves lead the Majors with .263 AVG going 5-19 prior to Johnson’s single. That single would tie the game as Gomes would come around to score from second without a throw.
Eric Young, Jr. would keep the line moving with a double down the left field line, his first hit from the right side of the plate this year, scoring Kelly from second. With Miller now in line for the win, Gonzalez would send Philip Gosselin in to pinch-hit. Gosselin would strike out looking to end the threat.
In the bottom half of the 7th, the defense showed up. Cody Martin would replace a very efficient Miller who only threw 71 pitches. After getting the first batter to fly out, Carlos Ruiz would send a double to left … or so we would think. After playing the ball off the wall perfectly, Gomes would air mail a throw from the warning track to nail Ruiz trying to get in to second.
The Phillies challenged the call of out, but to no avail. It was clear in the replay that Kelly Johnson made a tremendous effort to stretch out for the tag. As Ruiz slid in, he would pinch the glove of Johnson. Gomes’ defensive gem would save the day for the Braves. Martin got the next hitter on a grounder to Simmons.
Still sitting at 3-2 Braves in the top of the 8th, lead off man Nick Markakis would come through again. His single set the Braves up in fine fashion to tack on more runs. And tack on they did. After a Simmons fly out to center, Freddie Freeman would shoot a rocket to Howard at first. Howard couldn’t handle the ball and instead of getting a double play, had to settle for the out at first. This would workout in the Braves favor.
Pierzynski continues to swing a hot bat, and now facing a lefty he would reach out for a looping single to center that would allow Markakis to score from second; 4-2 Braves. They weren’t done. Still with two out, Gomes would bloop a soft single to right putting A.J. at second. Next up was Kelly Johnson and after working to a 2-2 count, would send a liner to right allowing A.J. to score; 5-2 Braves.
Troubled reliever Jim Johnson would come in for the 8th. He would quickly surrender back to back hits to put the tying run at the plate. After this scare, he settled down and go the next three hitters to retire the Phillies in the 8th.
The ninth would see Jason Grilli come on to try for his 7th save in 7 chances. He got the Phillies to go down in order to secure the win and even up the series.
Notes
Today was the birthday of the Philly Phanatic. Happy birthday Phanatic, sorry to hang a loss on the board … Nope, not really.
Apparently, there’s a competition observed for visitors in Philadelphia. The competition? How many Philly Cheese-steaks does the visiting club consume? I am happy to report that the Braves are now champions again. 443 consumed. They have yet to be beaten since 2011. That’s quite a streak!
Shelby Miller picks up his third win on the season. He has an ERA of 2.05. David Buchanan gets the loss. He is now 0-4 with a 7.52 ERA
Braves go back over .500 at 9-8. Phillies fall to 6-12.
Closer
The Braves look to take the series from the Phillies tomorrow afternoon for a 1:35 PM (EST) start. On the hill for the Braves is Trevor Cahill (0-2, 9.95 ERA). For the Phillies, Jerome Williams (1-1, 3.71 ERA).