Atlanta Braves Morning Chop: Slugging, Swanson, and SPLOST

In a flip from recent practice, the bats get busy, yet early pitching woes leave Braves behind Bucs, losing 8-5.

The Atlanta Braves banged out two homers in a game for just the second time all season – that being the opener against Max Scherzer – and 9 hits all told, but failed to push across enough to overcome a large early hole.

Starter Williams Perez didn’t look anything like the pitcher who owned Philadelphia last week (8 innings, 2 hits and 1 run).  Last night he struggled to last until the sixth, getting pounded for 9 hits and 6 earned runs at the hands of the Pirates, ballooning his ERA to 4.78 on the season.

In this case, it wasn’t so much the long ball as it was a death by 1,000 cuts.  In the first inning, Pittsburgh got 3 runs via a Walk, 3 singles, a groundout, and a wild pitch.  In the third, it was two runs via 3 singles and a groundout.  A two-out triple after a single was the only extra-base hit off Williams… and truly, it was the kind of offensive output that we’d been hoping to see from the Braves all year:  sustained rallies without a lot of power.

Instead, once the Braves finally got on track, it was the power that fueled their efforts:  a Freddie Freeman double was followed by a Jeff Francoeur home run in the 6th.  In the 8th, they exploited Cory Luebke with a single, double, groundout RBI, and home run.

Unfortunately, it was the early opportunities that failed Atlanta.  In the first inning, Nick Markakis was stranded at third base.  In the second, Tyler Flowers ended up there… after Kelly Johnson had been forced out at third previously.  In the third, a double from Markakis ultimately had him stranded at third base again.  In the 4th, Chase d’Arnaud tripled … after a double play ahead of him.  He was likewise stranded there.

All told:  4 innings, four runners left at third base with no runs scored in the first half of the game.  Hopefully that will sink in for the rest of the series and get some better results.

The Braves are now 9-28, falling below .250 and the only team in the majors without 10 wins.  Aaron Blair will be on the hill tonight vs. Juan Nicasio… a good matchup (on paper) for Atlanta.

Here’s your box:

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