Braves Prevent A Sweep Take Game 4

Aug 2, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher

(49) pitches during the first inning of game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports

On a sunny Sunday if Philly, the took game for of the series and prevented the dreaded sweep by the NL’s worst team.

No Sweep For You

There wasn’t much to cheer about on this road trip or in the first three games of the series but this afternoon things were different as the Braves won game four 6-2 and stopped the sweep.

Julio Teheran took the mound and the fans had a right to be worried. The Phillies had beaten Braves pitching mercilessly in the first three games and Teheran hasn’t been good on the road. Today however Teheran looked like the 2014 version, his fast ball had hop and his slider was working well. He got in trouble only twice, once in the fifth and again in the seventh, both times wiggling out of it without real damage.

The Phillies scored a run in the second when Ryan Howard lifted a sky high  fly ball into the sun in right . Eury Perez playing today to give Nick Markakis a day off, lost it in the sun and Howard ended up on second with a double Teheran then hit Dominic Brown with a fastball and Freddy Galvis laid down a beautiful sac bunt to move the runners to second and third.

Cody Asche singled through the right side scoring Howard to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead. Teheran buckled down and struck out Rupp and Morgan to end the inning.

The Braves had runners in scoring position in the first four innings without breaking through but in the top of the fifth things changed.

The Fifth

Cameron Maybin led off with a walk but the next two batter fit fly balls to right for outs. It looked like Morgan would get out of the inning but a balk moved Maybin to second and Chris Johnson dumped a single behind first base scoring Maybin and bringing the Braves back even with the Phils.

Noticeably rattled after the balk. and Johnson’s single, Morgan walked Jonny Gomes and after going 2-0 to Jace Peterson he grooved a belt high fastball the Jace planted  deep in the right field seats to put the Braves up 4-1.

Ryan Lavarnway stroked a single into right center but  for some reason decided he was fast enough to stretch it into a double and was out by ten feet when Oduble Herrera threw a strike to Cesar Hernandez at second.

The Phillies tried to mount a two out rally in the bottom half when Hernandez hit a ball to deep right center that Maybin couldn’t track down. It bounced into the bullpen area or Hernandez could well have ended up on third. Maikel Franco followed that with a single to score Hernandez and Howard smoked a ball down the first base line but Freddie Freeman knocked it down and Howard was out at first to end the inning.