Braves Report

After getting swept by the Marlins, the Braves hoped to turn it around and beat up on the Pirates. Unfortunately, that wasn’t meant to be. There were two problems that the Braves mainly faced last year, which, once again, manifested themselves tonight. What were they? The bullpen and the…offense? Ah, yes, the offense. I’m beginning to think that this is starting to become a problem. So, let’s get on with this.

Jurrjens started this game and on any other day wouldn’t have been credited with the loss. He pithced really well: 6 and 2/3rds innings, 4 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, and 7 strikeouts. If one thing has certainly changed from last year it’s the number of strikeouts the starting staff has been getting. Moylan relieved him after Jair had thrown 120 pitches, and subsequently ended the inning. Gonzalez came in to pitch the 8th in a non-save situation against his former team and would give up a 2-run homer in the process. Overall, not too bad of a night for the pitching staff.

The offense, however, just couldn’t get it done. They managed 6 hits, which is as many as the Pirates did, but, unlike the Pirates, could never execute when they needed to. This includes not plating anyone with the bases loaded and nobody out in the 2nd inning (hello 2008!).

Once again, Francoeur led the hitting barrage with 3 hits, raising his average to an impressive .350. I guess his new stance is really taking effect, maybe he should teach it to the rest of the team? The other hits in the game were earned by people who don’t usually play: Infante, Prado, and Jurrjens. Again, just not that spectacular of a night for the offense.

Braves fall, 3 – 0.

Next game: Saturday @ Pirates.

12:35 PM EST. Reyes vs. Snell. C’mon, Jo-Jo, end this losing streak.

Getting swept is always rough, especially this early on in the season. But all you can really do is chalk it up to bad luck and soldier on. Hopefully the Braves will be able to rebound in the next game and learn from their mistakes. I’d be more upset with this game if Kawakami hadn’t pitched, but, he did, and it’s interesting to see what he’s going to do.

Kawakami’s outing wasn’t necessarily too good, but it was still impressive. What I mean by that was his line was a little lackluster: 6 innings pitched, 5 runs (4 earned), 3 walks, 7 strikeouts. But it’s still great to see 7 strikeouts from a new pitcher. Bennett followed him with 2 innings of work, striking out 2 and allowing 2 hits. Campillo pitched the 9th and gave up a run on 2 hits. Kind of what we expect from the team at this point.

[Image: Yahoo! Sports]

The offense did a better job than it has done in this series at getting hits, but only managed to plate 2 runs. These came courtesy of a Francoeur double and single, which raised his batting average to .306. Also coming through for the offense were Garrett Anderson and new pitcher, Kenshin Kawakami (pictured above), with two hits each. Other than that, it was a quiet day for the bats.

Braves drop the finale and get swept, 6 – 2.

Next game: Friday @ the Pirates. They should win this series.

7:05 PM EST. Jurrjens vs. Maholm.

As I mentioned yesterday, the problem of the bullpen still seems to linger from last year. Well, once again tonight’s game bore witness to that. More interestingly, however, is the question of how the Marlins are 7-1 this season? Maybe it’s the shoddy play of their opponents? I guess we’ll find out in this recap. Onto the game.

Derek Lowe, the Braves’ new ace, had his worst outing of the season tonight, although it wasn’t that terrible: 5 innings, 7 hits, 4 earned runs, 5 strikeouts, and a lot of walks (5). Not the greatest, but with the way this team’s offense has been, it certainly didn’t put the game out of reach.

[Image: Yahoo! Sports]

(Pictured above: a 9-foot tall Derek Lowe
expresses dissatisfaction for the Marlins)

Well, at least not until the end of the game. Buddy Carlyle followed Lowe and pitched a perfect inning, including a strikeout. Moylan came in the 7th inning and would end up walking in the game-winning run. On an exciting note, he lowered his ERA closer to the drinking age without going over in his 2/3rds of an inning of work. O’Flaherty relieved him and struck out the following batter to end the inning. Soriano then came in and pitched an inning without incident. Then things got a bit out of hand. Blaine Boyer started the 9th, but was wholly ineffective. He walked the first batter he faced, hit the next one, and gave up two singles while only recording an out. This was compounded by another defensive miscue in left field, which is starting to become a concern. Campillo closed out the inning while giving up another 2 singles and a run (unearned). Boyer would later be charged with 4 earned runs.

The bats were mainly kept in check tonight, which isn’t good when the pitching is struggling. Leading the charge was Omar Infante, who singled in a run and also had a sacrifice fly. Casey Kotchman doubled in a run. Prado would also pinch-hit into a fielder’s choice for a run. The only other really notable appearance by the offense came from Jeff Francoeur, who had two hits, raising his average to .281. Unfortunately, once again, the bullpen blew it and the offense just didn’t have enough to come back.

Braves drop another, 10 – 4.

Series finale: Thursday vs. the Marlins.

12:00 PM EST. Kawakami vs. Sanchez.

There were a few fundamental problems with the Braves last year that seem to be resurfacing again, in part, during this season. I’m speaking mainly of the bullpen and the offense. Although the starting pitching wasn’t necessarily consistent last year, they seem to be doing pretty well now. Unfortunately, it’s the other problems that still plague the Braves.

Javier Vazquez started this game and gave what I can only describe as a pretty solid outing: 6 innings, 5 hits, 3 earned runs, a walk, and an astonishing 12 strikeouts. The 3 runs came from one “bad” inning, but it was enough for him to be tagged with the loss.

[Image: Yahoo! Sports]

Moylan relieved him and was perfect in an inning of working, halving his ERA to nearly my age. After that, the bullpen problems started. Bennett was mostly ineffective, giving up 4 hits and 2 runs (1 earned) while only recording an out. O’Flaherty followed and got an inning ending double play. Boyer pitched the 9th inning without incident.

The bats weren’t really prevalent in this game, which is disappointing because of the way they have been all season long. Unfortunately, they only managed one run, which came from a Kelly Johnson homer. Francoeur, Schafer, and Prado were the only other men to reach base by the power of the bat. In the end, the 4 hits just weren’t enough.

Braves lose, 5 – 1.

Next game: Wednesday vs. the Marlins.

7:00 PM EST. Lowe vs. Miller.

The Braves completed a sweep of the winless Nationals. The Braves have come out the gate as if they are Friesian Fire. Starting the year off at 5-1 for the first time since 2007, when the team started off 7-1. The hitting was the star today.

The offense was led by Jeff Francoeur, who went two for four with a pair of triples, a pair of runs and a RBI. Omar Infante, who started in place of Kelly Johnson, also had a big day, going two for three with a pair of runs. Chipper also had a good day, with a pair of base knocks and RBIs. Escobar, McCann, Diaz, Prado, and Kotchman each added a hit.

Jair Jurrjens got his second start of the year. It was an average one at best. He went five and a third, struck out only one, and gave free passes to five Nationals. He gave up 5 hits, 4 runs, 3 of which were earned. Bennett came into to relieve Jurrjens. He went one and two-thirds, he allowed three hits, struck out a pair, while allowing no one to score. Then O’Flaherty came in. He struggled, walking one, giving up a hit and a run only in a third of an inning. Carlyle came in to clean up O’Flaherty’s mess and was successful. Pitching two-thirds, allowing a hit and striking out one. Soriano came in for the save in the ninth. He nailed the game down flawlessly. Striking out two in the ninth including getting Josh Bard looking to end the game.

Braves win 8 – 5.

Next game: Tuesday vs. the Marlins.

7:00 PM EST. Vazquez vs. Volstad.