The Atlanta Braves finished off a much-needed sweep of the New York Mets on Sunday afternoon to bring their record back to .500 and to close the gap in the division race, winning 1-0 in a pitcher's duel. Here are three observations from the game:
1. Julio Teheran outduels Matt Harvey to complete three-game sweep
Prior to this season, news that Julio Teheran had out-performed an opponents' No. 1 starter brought little to no shock value. It was normal for one of the National League's top young pitchers. He tended to rise to the occasion.
That hasn't been the case in 2015.
The prospect of Teheran, clinging to an ERA above 5.00 and a negative wins above replacement, taking on perennial Cy Young candidate Matt Harvey was troublesome for a team looking to hit the .500 mark for just the second time since June 1. Then Teheran took the mound on Sunday, first flirting with a no-hitter and then cruising to a one-hit, seven-inning outing to best Harvey in the 1-0 win.
"I knew it was going to be a difficult day, a difficult game," Teheran said of going against Harvey. "I was trying to keep my team in the fight."
There was some deliberation as to whether Teheran should have been pulled from the game in the seventh, but recent history suggests there was merit to manager Fredi Gonzalez's call -- if only to preserve an excellent line for Teheran for the first time this month.
In two separate June starts (Pittsburgh, San Diego), Teheran carried strong outings through seven innings -- he held the Pirates to two earned runs and the Padres to just one entering the final two frames -- only to see the wheels fall off. The Pirates chased Teheran from the game with two earned runs in the eighth. Five days later, the Padres plated three to steal a win. Even accounting for Teheran's poor start in Boston, his underwhelming June numbers were largely the product of being left in games too long.
Gonzalez considered leaving Teheran in to hit during the bottom of the seventh inning (i.e. pitching the eighth), but catcher Ryan Lavarnway's double prompted a pinch-hit appearance from Pedro Ciriaco. Not only did that sequence provide the game-winning hit, but it guaranteed Teheran a dominant outing. The 24-year-old allowed just one hit and two walks against 23 batters faced, one of his best starts of the '15 campaign. He made it through those seven innings on just 78 pitches.
(That low pitch count certainly made the decision a little more interesting, but Teheran needed a confidence boost and it's hard to argue with an RBI pinch-hit.)
"Today the slider was huge for him. He didn't have much of a slider in Boston, and we kinda went away from it," said Lavarnway, who caught Teheran for the first time during the 9-4 loss in Boston. "Today the slider was there all day, the fastball -- he was locating both sides of the plate. He was terrific."
Teheran lowered both his ERA (4.67) and FIP (4.85) significantly, which could bring his overall numbers back to or above the replacement level. When you consider that, over his past four starts, five of his 13 earned runs came after the seventh inning, he could have walked away with a 2.63 June ERA were it not for some late-game hiccups. There's always going to be the need for Atlanta's starters to go deep to protect their problematic bullpen, but in this instance it seemed like the correct call.
And, as always, an update on where Teheran's extreme home-road splits now sit:
Teheran's outing completed an impressive three-game stretch for the Braves staff. The Mets entered the weekend looking to snap a lackluster stretch with Harvey, should-be All-Star Jacob deGrom and touted rookie Noah Syndergaard ... only to bested by a struggling Teheran, surprising rookie Williams Perez and prospect Matt Wisler in his MLB debut. Once again, the Braves staff looks to be on the right track.
"I think there was more focus trying to pound the zone, attack the hitters," Teheran said. "Every time I try to attack the hitters it's a different game."
2. Ciriaco providing production off the bench
As good as things went for Teheran & Co., Matt Harvey certainly wasn't off his game. Though he labored with his highest pitch count of the season, the Mets ace still carried his own shutout into the seventh frame after scattering hits across the Braves lineup. The Lavarnway-Ciriaco sequence was just the third time in the game the Braves reached scoring position.
While Teheran's early exit was the chosen topic of discussion, Ciriaco's production off the bench has been key as the Braves fight back to .500. He logged five straight hits during the homestand, including three RBI and a double, and he's now hitting .304/.306/.435 in 49 plate appearances this season.
In some ways, the 29-year-old's emergence as a utility contributor -- coupled with the acquisitions of Jace Peterson and Juan Uribe -- allowed the Braves to trade Phil Gosselin to Arizona for yet another top pitching prospect (Touki Toussaint), although Atlanta's front office would have likely jumped at the asking price regardless.
Still, it allowed for some added flexibility. Ciriaco has developed into a solid contributor off the bench.
"Every hitter when he feels good at the plate, we have confidence," Ciriaco said. "Right now I feel good at the plate. I think working with the hitting coach (Kevin Seitzer), I have a good plan. Not trying to do too much. Trying to see the pitch and hit it hard."
3. Freeman's absence notable on scoreboard
Freddie Freeman, the team's ironman who watched his majors-best streak of 234 consecutive games played end on June 18, sat for the fourth straight game with a wrist injury, leaving his lineup shorthanded against one of baseball's top pitchers. The two-time All-Star took swings on Sunday but experienced soreness and could undergo an MRI if things do not progress.
Freeman suffered the injury in the previous Mets series, but re-aggravated it against the Red Sox and was forced from the game. The obvious hope for Atlanta is that Freeman will either not require an MRI or that an MRI will reveal no further damager â if there's one bat Atlanta can ill-afford to lose, it's the everyday No. 3 hitter putting up near-career numbers.
Freeman left the Red Sox game boasting a .299/.367/.520 with 12 home runs, good enough for the sixth-best WAR (2.1) among MLB first baseman. In terms of offensive production, only his 2013 All-Star campaign -- the one prior to the Braves' signing him to an eight-year, $135 million deal -- out-paces his current marks. Jace Peterson, Cameron Maybin, Nick Markakis and Juan Uribe have done well at the top of the lineup, but they are much more dangerous in complementary pieces around Freeman's foundation.
Though the pitching has found some answers, the Braves offense has now scored 11 runs in the four games that Freeman hasn't started -- three times being held under three runs. He remains the catalyst.
