3 Takeaways as Atlanta Braves offense remains on fire
By James Kunkle
The Atlanta Braves mashed again Monday night. They obliterated the New York Mets 12-3 behind another offensive clinic.
First off, the Atlanta Braves bats could not be silenced once again. They recorded 16 hits and had a home run from Ronald Acuna, Brian McCann, and Ozzie Albies.
Right now, the Braves have the most potent lineup in the entire game.
Josh Donaldson didn’t hit a home run but he stayed hot recording 2 hits in the process. Every Braves player reached base at least once and the before mentioned Donaldson was the only one not to score a run.
Enough about the offense for now though, let’s move on to something else to start this off…
3. Defense is critical
Lost in the shuffle of all this offense is the fact that the Atlanta Braves defense is playing really well. In Monday’s game, you could tell how much a good defensive team matters as the Mets did not play good defense at all.
They made an error in the first inning allowing a second run to the Braves. Later in the game, they made two cutoffs on throws to the plate in the infield that may have cost them two runs in the game.
Little miscues on defense eventually add up and cost teams a few games throughout the year. Games that one cannot afford to lose.
On the other hand, the Braves defense, particularly the infield, has been superb lately. We have all documented on how well Josh Donaldson has played at the hot corner this season.
Dansby Swanson and Freddie Freeman have also played extremely well but most of us are not surprised by that. They both have played Gold Glove-caliber defense for a few seasons now.
For all the love we give Freddie, it amazes me that his picking at first base is still underappreciated.
Again, let’s not overlook the fact that the Braves defense has played well in this recent hot stretch as well.