Atlanta Braves: Bullpen falters in late innings as Braves fall short in Game 1 of NLDS
By Steven Teal
The Atlanta Braves took the field on Thursday afternoon against the St. Louis Cardinals for a very important first game of the 2019 NLDS.
The Atlanta Braves looked to change their playoff luck on Monday at SunTrust Park. The Braves haven’t won a playoff series since 2001.
Game 1 was imperative for Atlanta to win if they had any shot of beating the Cardinals in a best of five series. No offense, but Miles Mikolas is much less intimidating than Jack Flaherty for opposing hitters.
Atlanta started the game on the right foot as Keuchel pitched a 1-2-3 first inning with 3 straight ground balls. The offense did their job during the bottom of the first as they drew 2 walks and scored a run.
Ronald Acuña Jr. led off the inning with a walk but was caught stealing by Yadier Molina. A risk you’ve got to take in the postseason but you’ve also got to be perfect if you want to beat Molina.
Ozzie Albies then drew a walk and was followed by single off the bat of Freddie Freeman that advanced Albies to third base.
Josh Donaldson came to the plate looking to inflict some early damage on the Cardinals but would settle for an RBI on a fielder’s choice. That would be followed by two fly outs to end the inning.
Not the amount of damage the Braves were hoping for but early runs are huge in the playoffs.
The second inning was more of the same for Keuchel as he held the Cardinals at bay with one groundout and two lineouts.
It was an excellent and efficient start for Keuchel, who looked like the kind of pitcher who owns a Cy Young award. Unfortunately, that didn’t last as the command of his changeup eluded him.