ATLANTA -- The Atlanta Braves offensive drought ended in a hurry on Wednesday afternoon, wrapping up a six-game homestand with a 7-4 win against the Philadelphia Phillies. Here are three observations from the game:
Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez was searching for lineup answers. He found them, at least for one game, in some unlikely places.
The Braves ran out one of their least imposing lineups of the season on Wednesday afternoon, due to a variety of factors: fatigue from a quick turnaround, Justin Upton's tricep injury and a little bit of Gonzalez reaching his hand into a hat and trying to pull off some magic. Anything would be better than the previous four games, in which the Braves scored just one run in 36 innings -- a low point they had not matched offensively since June 2007. They were no-hit by Cole Hamels & Co. and hit .044 with runners in scoring position over that stretch.
Something was bound to change on Wednesday, and when the lineup card came out, Upton, Evan Gattis and Phil Gosselin, three of the Braves' top five hitters according to weighted runs created plus (wRC+, a gauge for overall offensive production), were not mentioned.
That meant that the second-lowest scoring offense in baseball was sending out a patchwork lineup.
Atlanta's batting order against rookie David Buchanan slotted Andrelton Simmons in the 2-hole, Ryan Doumit at cleanup and rookie Christian Bethancourt and B.J. Upton at the back end. Overall, the average weighted runs created plus for the Braves' eight position players was 84.25. League average is 100.
Of course it scored three runs in the first two innings. Of course it scored four runs in the first four innings. Of course it finished with seven. Of course it did.
The Braves' first three runs were unearned, thanks to a Chase Utley fielding error on a Doumit groundball -- it was originally, and comically, scored as a base hit -- that was followed by a sacrifice bunt and line out, leaving Doumit at second base with two outs. He was driven in by Bethancourt on a misplayed single, followed by a two-run homer from B.J. Upton. It was an unexpected turn of events: the Braves catching a break and capitalizing on it.
Runs would later come on a groundout, two singles and a wild pitch.
"That's always the key," Gonzalez said of manufacturing runs. "And I know it's hard for our club because we strike out a lot, but it seems like when we win we have -- I think (earlier in the season) we had some wins and did not have any home runs. ... We can do it. We can do it. It was a great win today. After scoring one run in four games, going out and scoring seven. It was a good win."
(It also helps to go against Buchanan, a 25-year-old Atlanta native who, while improving lately, was pulled after just four innings of work and now owns 3.95 ERA and 4.41 FIP this season.)
The Braves ended the day with seven hits and nine walks, and that's with a couple hits stolen away from Phillies outfielders Ben Revere and Grady Sizemore. The team's nine walks tied a season-high (hit three times previously, but not since May). They also hit .333 with runners in scoring position and still stranded 10 base runners.
They challenged the Phillies lineup at practically every turn.
"We didn't hang our heads after the last two days," said Upton, who finished with a home run and two walks on the day. "We've put some ABs together, we just didn't get the knocks to get the guys in. We've been battling, we've been putting together good ABs. That's all you can do."
Christian Bethancourt drew rave reviews from Gonzalez after starting 13 games for the big league club in the middle of the season, alternating games with Gerald Laird while Evan Gattis missed time with a back injury. The Braves posted an 8-5 record in those starts and Bethancourt's defensive presence and maturity at calling games played a role. The oncoming 2015 position battle behind the plate looked imminent.
All told, though, his offensive numbers weren't up to snub, and as previously mentioned the Braves desperately needed Gattis's bat whenever possible. Bethancourt, on the other hand, needed at-bats.
(Fangraphs rated Bethancourt below replacement level during his 13 games, although 13 games is an extremely small sample size and catcher defensive value is difficult to measure. His Wednesday line should at least pull him back to WAR's ground level.)
Before receiving his second straight September call-up, he completed his Triple-A Gwinnett season with improved results: hitting .283/.308/.408 with eight home runs and 48 RBI. When I spoke with Gwinnett hitting coach Gary Ingram back in early August, he mentioned Bethancourt's consistency in his approach had improved as the season went on. In fact, he rode a hot streak back to the majors, carrying .342/.354/.500 August splits with him from the minors. Bethancourt insists the consistency never went away.
"I never changed," Bethancourt said. "I was always the same guy, on and off the field and my work. I've never changed my work. I was always doing the same routine, the same approach, the same stuff I do in the batting cage before the game, and that's the stuff that I've been doing for the past four or five years. And I think finally it's showing some progress."
It looks like he hasn't cooled off.
Bethancourt matched his career high with three hits against the Phillies on Wednesday, driving in two go-ahead runs in the process. He's now hitting a respectable .278/.316/.296.
This opens up some interesting possibilities for Gonzalez if he wants to keep Bethancourt behind the plate defensively while simultaneously riding the hot bat. Could we see Gattis manning some left field down the stretch? Although he played 48 games there last season, it'd be surprising, since he hasn't played anywhere other than behind the plate this season. But it's crunch time for this Braves team. All bets should be off. Getting the best-possible lineup behind a strong pitching staff is imperative -- and if that means Bethancourt, with the way he's been swinging the bat of late, then so be it.
"There is no question in my mind that defensively this kid is ready to play in the major leagues," Gonzalez said. "Offensively, he's gonna hit and, like every young player, when they see enough of him, he's gonna have to make some adjustments," Gonzalez said. " ... Here's a guy that may be better off for it in the long run by staying two years in Double-A, two years in Triple-A. Instead of some of the guys that need to learn to hit at the major league level."
Perhaps you've heard of Ervin Santana's slider. It's been one of the most effective pitches in baseball over the past few years, and it's one of the key reasons behind his mid-career turnaround. It's the same pitch that added some credibility when Santana helped Mike Minor through some of his grips when the Braves skipped his second August start -- a move that paid immediate dividends.
Since 2008, Santana has saved 109.9 runs with his slider, and no other pitcher comes close. C.C. Sabathia, Francisco Liriano, Clayton Kershaw and Edwin Jackson round out the top five, though not a single player comes within 20 saved runs of Santana.
By saving 100-plus runs over that span, Santana's slider sits in rare pitch-specific company with Kershaw and Cliff Lee's fastballs and Cole Hamels and Felix Hernandez's changeups. Not bad.
Santana didn't have a great day against the Phillies, though, and his slider wasn't untouchable. He went just six innings and allowed four earned runs with four strikeouts. It wasn't a terrible outing, but hit ERA and FIP certainly didn't benefit from it.
"He had a little bit of struggle with a few pitches," Bethancourt said. "He was not having big issues. He was just barely over the plate, barely outside the plate."
Santana threw 19 sliders on the day, and the results weren't overwhelming. The Phillies posted hits on three of his sliders, including a double and Sizemore's two-run home run, and he threw it for a ball another seven times. Just an off day for him with his favorite pitch.
The good news: It didn't result in a loss, as so many four-run outings before would have.
