We shall win, we shall win…and win we did after the most bizarre and wonderful game that ended in our favor with a magnificent defensive play at a quarter past midnight.
There was an excess of everything tonight – walks in particular which reached farcical proportions for the Braves, 9, the first two of which scored in the opening innings and nullified a smart lead we had created. And so it went throughout the evening, amazing ineptitude. Not going to attempt to replay the game digitally, far too much happened, will try and highlight things that registered.
Our pitching was ok – apart from the walks of course. After his silly start walking away a 2 run lead JT went 6 and earned back our respect. Neither side scored another run till the 8th, one each. We scored 2 in the top of the 10th primarily via a triple in the RF corner from Ender, so we lead 5-3 at that point. Half our lead disappeared almost instantly, they then had runners on second and third when Decalso smashed a ground ball up the middle, well to Swanson’s left, which would have won the game. He made a full out dive and just was able to glove it at full stretch, got up and aced a throw to the plate. Vincero, great stuff, what a play.
Some individual observations, pitching, we used 7 out of the pen. In order, Brach, good, one inning no nothing. Jonny, poor, one walk, one hit, one run in a third of an inning. Winkler blew the save with a hit and a walk, again just 1/3. Biddle 0.2, one walk. Sobotka threw 5 pitches, got the win, but, yes, one walk! Minter pitched a full 10th, got the save but was singularly unimpressive and saved from a loss only by Dansby’s miraculous play. 2 hits, one walk, one run no K.
Offense. Acuna, Ender Freddie looking better, Nick and Kurt both terrific, Kurt poor defensively. Dansby had a magnificent triple late that deserved a better fate than being stranded – his moment in the sun was about to come. Only Ozzie still looks lost until you count our so called bench, both K’d. WHERE IS RILEY?
Goodnight, my friends. Vincero!
This is the kind of moment when we say “thank you Dave Stewart, thank you Shelby!” And it will be quite cool if Touki wins tomorrow.
I’m definitely a pessimist by nature, and it would be sweet to win the division, but we’re going nowhere with this bullpen.
The bullpen failures certainly stick out. But keep in mind that Brach pitched a clean 7th. Venters gives up a walk-yes, but then induces a double play ball that they can’t quite turn and Sobotka closes out the inning. Biddle pitched around a Camargo error in the 9th.
The days of O’ventbrel are gone, we need the bullpen’s absolute best, and solid if not spectacular defense. but this team will go as far as the offensive starters can take us (and maybe Cluberson)
Odds Vizcaíno will be any good when he comes back? He’s supposedly close.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2018/09/09/freddie-freeman-atlanta-braves-playoff-run/1246140002/
@143 from prior thread. That is a good point. While incredibly frustrating, these games are not the blowout type of frustrating and they have all been close and winnable. I do not see any giving up in this team. The worst you can say is probably they are trying too hard – each trying to win games by themselves. That may be the exact reason why the walks have returned in force – overthrowing.
An interesting statistical note. We just passed the Fish for third most walks given up in MLB for the first time since May or June, I think. I recall in the Brewers series, after the first game (Gaus’ first win) we had crawled exactly even with the Brewers for most walks in the league (5th/6th something like that) because they walked 8 and we walked 0. We walked more than them the next two games and now we’ve walked 37 more than the Brewers since (who still walk a lot). And they have won more than us, too.
The first two weeks of August after the trade deadline were the height of what our bullpen was capable of. That was just before 22 games in 20 days. Since then exhaustion has set in. We survived the 22 games in 20 days, but our current state of affairs is the result.
There is no pitcher on our staff that is truly “fresh”. Even the callups have pitched lots of innings in the minors. But we have given virtually no innings to Wilson or Fried or Allard (yeah, I know). Some of our relievers could use multiple days off. Waiting for a few blowouts in a row to do it is not gonna work. We have a decent shot at taking the series from the D’Backs and the Giants have lost 7 in a row. At some point, we have to just close our eyes and throw a few young guys out there and hope they’re as good as their resumes and sit our entire regular bullpen for multiple days between outings along with sticking to the six man rotation.
Winkler needs like a week off. Biddle is getting there too. Snit has made this bed, and lying in it means he has to have the balls to put a rookie into a high leverage spot. He has no other choices.
@4 I think it’ll take him a few games to get in a groove. He may look iffy but he won’t give up too much (i.e. bad xFIP but good ERA). Having Viz as the freshest reliever on the team would not be such a bad thing in any case. Even when he was in the process of getting injured, he didn’t have any blowups.
They are rookies…
Yes it’s the walks. But the luck required to win this particular contest cannot be overstated. The balls that ended the 8th, 9th and 10th were all scorched and no one’s fielder placement is fine enough to count on those. And in the 8th and 9th, the pitcher was put in the position where he had to throw strikes…. bases loaded. And in the 10th he in essence had to throw strikes to Pollock as well.
If your only choices are to have players walk or hit line drives, so that line drives are your best option, then maybe walking guys on the hopes that they’ll swing at bad pitches may be your best play.
@9: Blowups? I guess not. But he has given up a hit in each of his last 10 appearances, and a walk or HBP in 3 of them. His last clean inning was May 27th against the Red Sox. He’s absolutely welcome, but he’s as nerve-wracking as the next guy at this point.
You know, I wasn’t expecting this, but over his last 11 starts Julio’s been pretty good.
Since the All-Star Break, he’s made 11 starts and twirled 66 2/3 innings (exactly 6 innings a start, like you’d expect), with 58 strikeouts and 28 walks, and a 3.24 ERA. Now, he’s doing it on smoke and mirrors, as his .207 BABIP would attest, and his 0.94 HR/9 over that period is nearly half of the 1.65 HR/9 he posted before the ASB. You wouldn’t want to bet the house on it continuing.
Still, it’s been nice to see the guy be relatively reliable out on the bump. I’d nearly written him off.
@13
You somehow just know when we get into the play offs and have to set a rotation Julio will be there and rightly so. No Newk. He’ll be in the pen.
Mets/Phillies just getting underway.
Dansby
he knew just where his hands had to be
turned a loss into a win
recap and bed, still the faint smell of gin.
RE: Dansby’s Heroics
That’s the type of play, like Inciarte’s Game Ender catch in New York a couple of years ago, that wins you a Gold Glove Award.
I’m told that defense doesn’t matter.
Mets pulled deGrom because of rain and put in Oswalt to intentionally lose to the Phillies. I wish someone would do that kind of favor for us.
@13 With all the hype over velocity, you’d have to think that most hitters are pretty good FB hitters. It’s the off-speed stuff that seems to clobber them. Julio can mix it up with the best of them. I don’t know if anyone’s noticed but the guys that are killing us on the D’Backs’ staff are not flamethrowers. Every starter has been throwing a low 70’s curveball (with changeups in the mid-80s). Greinke was even throwing eephus’ (60’s). None of them threw faster than 92 and Greinke had a hard time hitting 90. I am ultimately not convinced that the FB makes the pitcher.
Normal lineup today – no rest for the woolly.
In honor of Joe West.
https://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/joe-west-austin-davis-and-the-theater-of-the-absurd/
I can’t help but respond that – a horse is a horse, of course, of course.
Mets just hung a 4-spot on Velasquez to take a 5-3 lead going into the sixth. So they’re apparently not giving up the game outright.
On the question of Touki’s control problems can we please have someone in the booth state the obvious. Right HB none, LH Bats plenty
Walked leadoff again. But did not score. That’s first.
I think Touki’s just getting dialed in. The FBs and CB to Souza were outstanding – especially the CB.
Pitch 1 to Ahmed was a strike.
@22 Surprise!!! Go Mets. LOL…..
@19
Eephusi*
Phils are in the 9th down 3 runs. The preferred outcome there and a win tonight and we’re 4.5 up.
@14 I think you might be right about “no Newk”, blazon.
Mets win!
Phillies are doomed.
Love Ronald, but what a wrong-headed steal attempt there.
@32 I know but I’m still not going to criticize the aggressiveness. If he had made it then he would have scored on the DP. It would have been a nice run to have.
Yikes. 4 walks through not yet 4 innings.
I wonder what’s going to happen if Florence wipes out the Nats series? Might be a welcome break for the players, though.
And, to think, I thought sure they’d PH for Touki….. LOL. Nice solid hit.
ACUNA makes them pay!!!! WOW.
In Ron We Trust!
So, Andruw Jones’s career is basically Ronald’s floor.
Whoa now, Alex.
Time to get Touki outta there. NOW.
Don’t do this…. take him out. Always one batter too long.
This is awful what Snitker is doing.
So lucky that he got another out. But now there’s two guys in scoring position. Ugh.
104 pitches. Gotta pull him. This is bad.
They had an out at 2nd, dunno wtf that was. Now the tying run is in scoring position.
Touki gutted out a performance where he could only get 50% strikes. It was great pitching even if it was the greatest outing overall. He’s going to be great in the rotation next year.
@42 Dansby was too far from the base. Could not have gotten the force there so Ozzie got one out best he could.
Luke Jackson doing Luke Jackson things.
Ugh.
Bad pitch call and set up. They set up right in Ahmed’s hot zone. Luke pitched where it was called.
Luke Jackson again… why?
No he wasn’t, they didn’t have a double play, but he was gonna be out by 10 feet at second. That cost us an extra run.
Tyler calling for the high fastball worked well again, ugh.
I long for the day when there are enough quality bullpen arms to assure that Luke Jackson is only used in low-leverage situations.
They should have pulled Touki before the walk to Descalso. Just stupid. Getting Goldy out was the icing on Touki’s cake and that should have been enough. I blame this solely on Snitker not managing his rookie pitcher properly.
Man, relievers have a hard job. You could give up the wrong bloop single and be considered a failure. Starters can give up 10 of those and still pitch a shut out, in theory.
I personally like that they got 105 pitches out of Touki. That’s encouraging for the future.
C’mon, Jackson.
I think that every time the Braves have scored in this series, the D’Backs have scored in the bottom half. Maybe one exception, but damn near every time.
I’m really tired of all these walks.
You can’t walk a guy batting .164.
Leaving Jackson in against Peralta is a recipe for desaster.
“They should have pulled Touki before the walk to Descalso.”
Then Luke Jackson would have had to get more than one out, and it’s clear even one out is a massive struggle for him.
Now it’s on Jackson.
Well, defense doesn’t matter at this point. There’s no defense against Luke.
Ozzie and Dansby not turning two may not have been an error, but it hurts pretty bad right now.
@58 True, but he would have started with only a man on first instead of second and third.
This better be Jackson’s last hitter.
Why is Jackson still in the game? Wake up, Snit!
We’re warming up 2 relievers, and if either get in the game this inning it’s too late. And the guy that doesn’t get the call in the next inning will already have thrown a bunch of warm up pitches in the pen. Snit is so so so bad at this.
To some, especially on Twitter:
Put in Minter – Snit sucks
Put in Winkler – Snit sucks
Put in Brach – Snit sucks
Put in Venters – Snit sucks
Put in Biddle – Snit sucks
Put in Carle – Snit sucks
Put in Jackson – Snit sucks
Don’t put in Wright – Snit sucks
Put in Wright – You guessed it. Snit sucks.
Enough already.
At least the Phillies lost.
Jackson clearly did not have it tonight. Sure, there’s a good chance none of the other do either. Touki deserved better.
And I’m done.
It seems the longer the season goes on the less patience I have for this this team’s bullcrap.
“at least the phillies lost”
– we have heard this way too much over the past month
Why couldn’t this guy have come in before Jackson?
@71 He walks almost 6 per nine.
@72 which is actually better than the current average for Braves pitching it feels.
The 35-man active roster at the moment just means there are more relievers Snit “should” have gone to. Before today, we had a 6.15 bullpen ERA this last week. At the end of the day, Jackson needs to avoid walking somebody as terrible as Avila. Get an out.
THROW STRIKES. YOU STRIKE OUT 14 PER 9!
We’re just asking why Jackson was in, period. Rob you do have a point in that we’d be bitching no matter who it is, but surely Jackson and Freeman shouldn’t be the first guys out of the pen when we’re in a jam. Right?
@72: At this point, I don’t care.
I know Jackson has had to pitch well sometimes this year, but I swear every time I’ve seen him pitch this season, it’s the exact same scenario: A close game late, with Jackson giving up the tying/go-ahead/insurance runs, be they his own or inherited runners.
Every time Jackson is inexplicably trotted out in another close game, there’s just this palpable sense of dread that sweeps over me, and he justifies that despair every time.
Yeah, I would think bringing in Venters or Biddle to get Avila would have kept it from getting out of control. And he definitely stuck with Jackson one batter too long. But I just throw my hands up sometimes with the “shot or stabbed” arrangements that Snit finds himself in. Is any manager clamoring for Chad Sobotka to come in with runners on base?
The 6th starter being a bullpen day of 3 innings of some combination of Touki, Bryse, Wright, and Fried would seem to make sense. But man, we have about 872 pitchers and not a single shutdown reliever. I like Minter more than, uhh, some, but there’s not a single lights-out reliever in this pen.
What happened to all those top minor league arms that we called up? When was the last time Fried pitched? Do you really think they are all worse options than Luke or Sam?
Do you really think they are all worse options than Luke or Sam?
That is obviously what the Braves think.
@80 TINSTAAPP
I was kinda hoping our top-5 prospects were better than Luke Jackson. Oh well.
I 100% agree there needs to be some use created for Wright, Wilson, and Fried. That is just too much talent to use for a cumulative 4 IP in the last 9 days. But they clearly don’t think these guys are late-inning, one-inning guys. Wright and Wilson have been both used in long relief when behind, and Fried hasn’t been used at all yet. That’s why something of a bullpen day may make sense. At worst, pre-determined multi-inning roles regardless of situation (maybe at least start them in a clean inning).
But I don’t care; relievers need to get outs. Before today, Jackson had given up 2 ER in his last 6 IP. Freeman has been scoreless in his last 5.1 IP. Winkler, Venters, and Minter have a cumulative ERA of about 6 in the last two weeks. If Snit kept throwing those 3 out there, he’d be killed for that too. These guys need to freaking perform.
I guess it doesn’t go without saying that just because the Braves don’t think Wright is better than Jackson right now doesn’t make him bad.
It’s the end of the season. He’s young. It could just be that now happens to be a time where his mechanics are messed up and they’re trying to fix it or he’s nursing a small injury or something.
So one day they all might be as good as Luke Jackson. Cool, I feel better now.
If it weren’t for Ronald, we’d have no runs at all. Gloom, despair, and agony on me.
I mean, maybe tomorrow Wright is better than Luke Jackson, if they fix something in his delivery or if he feels better after straining something.
There’s just no way a fan could be in a position to have an informed opinion on virtually all of this. Rob has the correct take -> These guys need to freaking perform.
Of course, but the fans have watched this pen for the last month. We don’t need inside info to wonder why they aren’t trying a few new arms on a more regular basis. We have a pretty good idea what we have with the old arms. The bar for bettering that is absurdly low.
Winkler, Minter, and Freeman are our three most used relievers. Considering their youth, it’s not totally unreasonable for Winkler and Minter are struggling some this time of year.
Freeman is throwing a lot harder after taking that time off. Maybe the same will help Winkler, Carle, Biddle, and the other guys that seem to pitch every night.
I meant to say this the other day…Freeman is 31, and Winkler is 28 and converted from starting. Minter is 25, but at least he hasn’t thrown this many innings. Winkler and Freeman have no excuse.
Fried has a better history as a starter. Wright has come in and done OK a couple of times. Wilson has been given only one chance. They do need to be used more. And a two run lead in the sixth is about as close as we’re going to come to having a healthy lead to use them in.
I would have let Touki pitch to Goldy but take him out right after. Any of the relievers might have had an easier time with one out and no one on base. You have to set up your guys to succeed not fail.
Come on, Braves.
Arizona has played some little-league level defense this series. Let’s make them pay.
Of course, but the fans have watched this pen for the last month. We don’t need inside info to wonder why they aren’t trying a few new arms on a more regular basis. We have a pretty good idea what we have with the old arms. The bar for bettering that is absurdly low.
You know how every season there is some random guy in AAA who is doing really well and the team’s hardcore fanbase rends its garments over how come we’re not making plans around
Barbaro CanizaresLane AdamsMichael Reedwhoever?And whether these guys get the call or not, whether they start out hot or not in a small sample, it invariably ends poorly?
This is essentially the same thing, the same frankly annoying fan behavior that people can’t seem to learn from.
Yeah, it turns out, you don’t “need inside info to wonder why they aren’t trying a few new arms on a more regular basis.” You need that inside info to not wonder why.
The simplest explanation in the absence of inside info is, for whatever reason, they clearly don’t trust Fried or Wright right now to be better. And that could be the case for a variety of good reasons.
Otherwise, in the face of all kinds of contradicting information, you’re suggesting either the Braves are incompetent or they want to lose.
YES
ENDER!! Tonight’s hero!!!
Oh, baby! Ender!
I give that Chipgasm a 9.7
This team is just unbelievable.
Game. Ender!
yeah, I came back for the ninth….you’re welcome 😉
Thanks carl!
See. Arizona has the same problem. We have beat up on Boxberger at least one other game this series. And yet, he’s up again just when we need him.
So who’s pitching in the ninth then? Maybe create some Reitsma room first.
Game Ender is his Players’ Weekend nickname, after all.
This team just does not quit.
@96, Wright / Wilson / Fried / Allard aren’t AAA fodder though. At least one of them needs to be good for us. Comparing them to Michael Reed is apples/oranges.
Look, questioning in-game strategy is part of what makes baseball fandom fun. If the answer is “the team knows better, they are always right”…well, that’s no fun.
Reitsma room!
There’s some Reitsma Room, Timo, courtesy of Lucas Duda. There you go!
Guess who hit another home run? Duda, Duda.
I feel like we need to just keep talking about relievers. It’s made Lucas Duda mad.
They’ve found the spark again. DO NOT LET UP!
Where in the hell has this been?
What happened to the Braves’ offense? They all just simultaneously woke up.
The comeuppance is almost too much to bear. You couldn’t script this better, the way practically every franchise-level mistake has come back to end the Diamondbacks’ season.
@92 Extenuating circumstances on Winkler. He’s had some very bad injuries and he’s needed time to recover. This is first year ever of such heavy usage for him. It is perfectly reasonable for him to not have quite the stamina of others his age.
Lopez is the guy who hit Dansby in the face according to the broadcast. So this is deserved.
WOW. Just WOW. Good for Duda to wake up.
duda has done more in a couple of AB’s than Duvall, lol 🙁
and Camargo might end up with a better batting line than ozzie when the year is over, incredible to think that after april.
It’s funny how mad we were about bullpen usage for 3 innings when we had 2 XBH entering the 9th. Fortunately, that bigger issue was settled.
Is a 5-run lead big enough to trust to Wright or Wilson or Fried?
This is weird, Rog.
Bad Brach is our man. I feel like he should be able to get 2 outs before giving up 3 runs. After than, I dunno.
Extenuating circumstances on Winkler. He’s had some very bad injuries and he’s needed time to recover. This is first year ever of such heavy usage for him. It is perfectly reasonable for him to not have quite the stamina of others his age.
I’m just saying, he threw 145 innings in 2012 and 156 innings in 2013. I can buy that he’s an injury risk and perhaps our best reliever so it’s worth being careful with him.
Brach threw strikes. Braves win!
and markakis falling on his ass, this game truly had a bit of everything
To come back after that series and especially last game against the Red Sox is something seriously special. What a team.
What a great win. This team is unbelievable. I can’t remember the last time we had a 3-run HR. It’s been a long time. Taking 3/4 from the D’Backs is amazing no matter how it happens. We alsmost don’t have to do anything in SF and this would still be a successful road trip. If we can take 2/3 from the Giants, that will come very close to finishing this race off.
HRs fix everything. Let’s just keep doing that.
Dave Stewart has got to be the most hated man in Phoenix.
Taking three or four at Arizona is huge.
Ender’s homer reminded me of David Justice in Cincinnati in late 1991
“Braves Lead! Braves Lead!”
19 games remaining, and 6 of them against the Phillies.
#134
And Ender was so pissed after that strike-two call.
Duda vs RHP is the best pinch hit threat the Braves have had since Eric Hinske. We still need to find this team’s Matt Diaz.
Lucas Duda – the Smile of the season.
Ender Inciarte…the quintessential homer.
The Phillies almost have to sweep both series. They are closer to the Nats than us
The Phillies are pretty well cooked. Don’t forget: they’re a bad road team and they have to fly to CO to play four.
After 2011, I’ll wait until it’s officially locked up before celebrating.
Recapped.