ATLANTA — After yet another come-from-behind effort, this one coming in dramatic ninth-inning fashion, the Braves dropped a 15-inning thriller to their NL East rivals Saturday night. Here are three observations from the 8-7 loss the Nationals:
After 18 pitchers and 110 at-bats, the Nats walked off the field with their first extra-innings win against the Braves this season, and it wasn't easy. In fact, it was downright strange. Both teams burnt up their bullpens and were forced to throw starters (Kris Medlen, Dan Haren). Both teams burnt up their position players and had to bat pitchers in the 13th and 14th innings with the game on the line. To say the least, both teams were depleted after the game.
"It's just a weird game, the whole way it started," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said.
With Medlen, who was set to start on Tuesday, on the mound, Washington first baseman Adam LaRoche sent a 1-2 curveball soaring into the right field bleachers for the go-ahead run. Overall, Medlen and the bullpen threw 13 1/3 innings, allowing just four runs after starter Mike Minor's early exit (more on that in a minute).
It was just the fourth time the Nationals have beaten the Braves in 15 meetings this season.
For a while, however, it looked as though the Braves were going to outlast the Nationals once again. One night after Justin Upton walked off, his outfield mate Jason Heyward provided some of the game's biggest fireworks. With a first at-bat homer already to his credit, the team's newfound leadoff extraordinaire took on his ninth-inning, two-out plate appearance against Rafael Soriano with force: belting a two-run shot to tie the game and shake the ballpark. As in actual shaking.
It was the fifth multi-HR game of Heyward's career
In the 20 games he's batted in the No. 1 hole, Heyward is now batting .375 with five home runs. In other words, he's been the best leadoff hitter in baseball.
"I would say numbers are going to speak for themselves," Heyward said of his production. "It took some time. It took some DL time. It took some at-bats and failures, but for me I just try to stay consistent, try to keep learning from everything. As always, not being complacent or look around right now. I want to continue to do better, continue to improve. For me, that's my second homer at home in a big situation like that to tie a game. Situations like that, you wanna be in."
After the long-winded loss, Gonzalez said the organization will evaluate the roster tomorrow to determine whether or not a roster move needs to be made. Of course, with Medlen throwing three innings, some rotation tinkering is expected.
Nationals players and coaches were clear in their pregame statements regarding Bryce Harper being plunked three times by Braves pitchers over the past two series: They were not happy. Not at all.
Judging by the reported comments, their vitriol is still primarily aimed toward Julio Teheran -- the Braves rookie hit Harper in Washington after he "slow-trotted" a solo home run -- but after Alex Wood and Luis Avilan beaned the 20-year-old outfielder on Friday night (not to mention Scott Downs pitching him a little tight inside), the Nats made their intentions clear as well.
A Braves player was bound to get hit on Saturday evening.
As Washington manager Davey Johnson told reporters before the game: “I never order a pitcher to go after anybody. But we have a way of protecting our own.”
That "way" Johnson might have been referring to -- again, according to his pregame statements, he took no part in the decision-making process -- was putting a 97-mph fastball from Stephen Strasburg into Justin Upton's hip during the first inning. Upton, of course, hit the 10th-inning, walk-off home run on Friday night, so the choice was rather predictable. And it must be noted: Upton laughed at Strasburg's blatant message.
"It was bound to happen almost," Minor said. "Not that we try to hit anybody the other day. But we thought maybe it was gonna happen. And when it did it was just over with. There was no thought of retaliation or anything like that."
However, in the second inning, Strasburg earned his first career ejection for throwing three-consecutive wild pitches, two of which just happened to be thrown behind shortstop Andrelton Simmons. It was an odd, almost surreal scene: Schafer scoring easily from third; Simmons untouched, but looking rather confused; Strasburg emotionless. Home plate umpire Marvin Hudson, who had issued a warning after the Upton plunking, obviously had seen enough, though, sending both Strasburg and Johnson (who argued the ejection) to the clubhouse early.
"It's just weird the way … (he) kinda spikes a couple balls on (Jordan) Schafer and then he wasn't even close on Simmons. I couldn't comment on that. I don't know if there was something else going on there, but the umpires have to do what they gotta do," Gonzalez said. "I don't think (it had ill intent). I don't think so, I don't think so. I think it's just one of those situations, from my point of view, it's over with.
"I don't know if there was something wrong with him physically at that point. I just didn't look right."
Saturday's ejection continues an odd trend for Strasburg, one of the most effective pitchers in the National League since his 2010 debut (2.90 ERA, 2.70 FIP). In his past four starts at Turner Field, he's exited the game for heat exhaustion, arm shaking (?), a strained right oblique and an ejection, respectively. He's averaged three innings pitched over that stretch.
Overall, Strasburg is just 1-2 with a 5.79 ERA in the Braves' ballpark.
It might also be important to note here that Harper did not start due to a bruised tricep, a result of Avilan's eighth-inning HBP the night before, but he did grab two pinch-hit at-bats (0-for-2) … and that, with Teheran taking the mound for the series finale, Saturday might not be end of this fiasco.
Over the course of the 2013 season, Mike Minor has been Atlanta's most productive starter. But August has not been kind to the 25-year-old lefty and Saturday provided its low point (to date): Minor recorded just five outs against the Nationals before manager Fredi Gonzalez pulled him. In that short span, Minor threw 67 pitches, allowing four earned runs on four walks and four hits.
It was the shortest start of Minor's four-year career.
"I felt good going into the game," Minor said. "I felt like they were really patient. I got a lot of the calls with two strikes -- 1-2, 2-2 count -- and they just took. I wouldn't they were very good pitches, but they were a lot more patient tonight."
Minor's biggest trouble came on his breaking stuff, where he said there was little to no sharpness to his pitches. Location, as should be apparent by four walks and tallying nearly 70 pitches to log five outs, was also an issue.
"It doesn't feel good. We're here all night, would have been great to get a win," Minor said. "Felt like I should have done something more but I'm sitting in here second inning and I can't do anything. I didn't help out the team at all."
Before the game, Gonzalez once again deflected the "ace" talk that has followed Minor around this season, refusing to tip his cap to a starter's hierarchy. Given the rotation's recent stretch of success, top to bottom, it's understandable -- Braves starters were 15-4 with an MLB-leading 3.02 fielding-independent pitching (FIP) since the All-Star break. In fact, Minor's start might just be the team's worst of the season.
At a certain point, Atlanta is going to start (if they haven't already) setting up their rotation's postseason order, and Minor's 6.14 August ERA can not make that decision easier. If Gonzalez and the Braves truly do believe all of their starters are on a relatively even playing field, then these next few months could decide who gets the imminent Game One start in their opening playoff series. Last season, Atlanta rode the hottest arm (Kris Medlen) against St. Louis in the one-game wildcard playoff. Would that same theory apply to, say, Teheran or Wood? Probably not, but it's worth discussing.
Anyways, in case you missed ejection-heavy note above: Minor and Strasburg combined to pitch just 2 2/3 innings on the night. Not exactly the Battle of No. 1s it looked like on paper.
The Braves improved their record at Turner Field to 44-17, the best mark in the majors.
Prior to his seventh career All-Star nomination, McCann's 2013 numbers were eye-opening for a guy coming off the disabled list for shoulder surgery. In just 53 first-half games, he hit .291/.374/.536 with 12 home runs and a team-best 0.72 walk-to-strikeout ratio. Had he produced like that over an 75- or 80-game span, he might have challenged Yadier Molina for the dibs on the NL's starting spot.
But while the 29-year-old's second-half production has fallen off those rates -- he was hitting .220/.281/.439 in 22 previous games -- Saturday night provided a prime example as to why he's a staple in the lineup's Nos. 4 or 5 spots. McCann finished the night with three hits, including a two-run homer to right that cut Washington's lead in half (6-4).
It was McCann's first game with three hits or more since July 7.
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