The Braves began their 2024 playoff chase against the San Diego Padres on Tuesday evening. Despite a tumultuous season filled with injuries and underperformance, Atlanta found a way to get into the postseason.
In typical fashion, injuries followed them into the playoffs as the Braves scrambled to find a pitcher for Game One. Chris Sale was scratched from his start on Monday afternoon due to back spasms preparing for his start.
This left Atlanta looking to cover not only the final game of the season with Grant Holmes but they also needed to decide who would start the opening game against one of the hottest teams in baseball.
The Braves chose between Bryce Elder and AJ Smith-Shawver who were added to the Wild Card roster as starting options. Smith-Shawver got the call and the 21-year-old pitcher started his first-ever playoff game.
Pitching against MLB bats is already hard enough but it is amplified even more in the postseason. AJSS gave the Braves his best effort but it did not go the way he or the team hoped it would.
San Diego struck early as the young Braves RHP tried to get ahead in the count against Fernando Tatis Jr with a fastball that ended up right down the middle. That would be a mistake as he launched an absolute moon shot on the first pitch to put the Padres up 2-0 in the first inning.
He eventually escaped the inning but it was a continued struggle in the second inning as it began with a hit by pitch and a single. The Padres had runners on the corners and a sac fly scored the third run of the game. This ended AJ's outing after just 1.1 innings with three runs allowed on four hits with no walks and one strikeout.
However, as poor as his performance was, the Braves bullpen did an incredible job of limiting the damage. Aaron Bummer checked into the game and completed 2.2 innings of scoreless ball with one walk and one strikeout. He was followed by Jesse Chavez and Luke Jackson. Chavez completed 2 innings with no runs and a strikeout. Jackson went two innings allowing one run and two strikeouts.
Braves offense once again disappears when it matters the most in Game One against Padres
San Diego took Game One by a 4-0 final and it's easy to point the finger and say it is the fault of AJ Smith-Shawver. Many saw AJSS being chosen as a mistake but there were favorable options for the Braves to choose. And regardless of that, the Atlanta bullpen mitigated the damage to keep things close for the offense.
The #Braves struck out 15 times in dropping Game 1 to Padres.
— Cory McCartney (@coryjmccartney) October 2, 2024
They were just behind an 18-K performance in Game 3 of 1999 NLDS vs. Astros, and 19 in Game 5 of ‘99 NLCS vs. Mets.
Most for ATL is 21 in Game 1 of 2020 wild card vs. Reds. #MLBPostseason
pic.twitter.com/JvMse249Wy
The Braves offense has been consistent in one thing this season and it's not scoring with runners in scoring position. Michael King carved through the Atlanta bats with a seven-inning, 12-strikeout performance. However, the team had chances early on to score against the Padres ace.
Once King settled in, that was all she wrote. Atlanta was 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and they left seven runners on base. It's something this team just cannot seem to figure out when it matters most. That is the more glaring reason the Braves now face elimination from the playoffs with yet another early exit.
The team also continued to not take advantage when they had runners like Michael Harris II on base to steal on the basepaths to put some pressure on Padres' pitching. That's something they've just not taken advantage of this year.
Atlanta struck out 15 times against San Diego pitching and has to find a way to get things done. The one silver lining is they have Max Fried on the mound for Game Two on Wednesday evening. Hopefully, they'll put forth a much better effort on the offensive side this time around.