Atlanta Braves reduced to rubble in dominant outing for Matz and Mets

Matz sizzles, Braves fizzle, Fredi gets the boot?

One night after it all came together in a 3-0 Braves win that embodied everything Atlanta fans are hoping the future will be like, Wednesday’s matinee against the New York Mets offered a stark reminder that the present is still a little bumpy.

Jhoulys Chacin surrendered a trio of two-run homers to the Mets, another solo shot to Lucas Duda (who cranked two on the day and remains, if not a Braves killer, then at least a thorn in the collective side) and languished on the mound long after a normal manager might have mercifully pulled the plug. Fredi Gonzalez, possibly rabbit-eared by Ken Rosenthal’s prediction on MLB Central that Thursday may be it for his managerial tenure in Atlanta, is not a normal manager in the best of circumstances and, aside from perhaps hoping Mother Nature would end this day prematurely, allowed Chacin to be beaten to a pulp for reasons best known to him.

Or, since Chacin also had the Braves only hit through the game’s first seven innings, maybe Fredi was just hopeful to get back around to him in the lineup and maybe generate some offense? Of course, Fredi’s idea of a stabilizing influence who could eat up some innings also happened to be the guy ranked second on this ignominious list:

So nothing ideal really happened. Bud Norris (2.1 innings of one-hit ball) was not only the brightest spot, Erick Aybar (1-for-3 with a couple of nice plays to keep Curtis Granderson off the basepaths) was the clear runner-up. No Brave managed to make it past first base.

That’s because Steven Matz was very very good. Matz worked the Braves like a speed-bag—quickly and without mercy. The lefty pitched with a fast pace that many Braves hitters seemed uncomfortable against. His sinking fastball was the go-to pitch, and he used that record four of his eight strikeouts and boast an incredible 10-1 groundout/flyout ratio. He scattered two hits over 7.2 innings and made the Matt Harvey–Noah Syndergaard–Jacob deGrom-Matz future look pretty enticing if you happen to be a soulless abomination Mets fan.

Yesterday, Wisler’s eight innings of one-hit ball registered an 82 according to ESPN.com’s GameScore, 12^th-best in the majors in 2016. Or was, until Matz posted (if my math is correct) an 83 to move into a tie for 10th—the best performance by a Mets hurler this season.

Oh hey, and this broke during the game:

Bad news all the way around.

If you happen to think allowing Fredi to coach out the string (my God, we’ve got 125 games left and I’m talking about ‘the string’ like we’re in September) is fine, that’s okay. It’s a free country and you’re welcome to be wrong. But if (as reported) Bud Black is the target for 2017 and beyond, may as well pull the trigger and get him on board now. Never can tell if a contender may falter down the stretch and decide to make a godfather offer to him.

Black, of course, could still be enticed by a promising future that features the game’s best farm system, the No. 3 pick in this draft and (if Fredi sticks around to the bitter end) the pole position on the No. 1 spot in 2017. That’s the goal here, after all: bottom out, build up, bust heads (in 2018).

You know what? This has been depressing. Let’s leave on the celebration of Ozzie Albies game-winner in the 12^th for Gwinnett against Toledo earlier today.

Next: Braves Looking to Buy Draft Picks? With What Money??

An off day (that could spell the end for Fredi) awaits Thursday, with Zack Greinke and Aaron Blair set to square off Friday at the Ted (7:35 p.m. ET). Revenge game for Blair?