For the 2nd Saturday in a row the Braves gave us a show, but the result was the same – they came up just a bit short. Austin Riley‘s 3 run blast in the 3rd accounted for the Braves scoring, but they were unable to push across a tying run in the 9th, despite loading the bases.
Allan Winans was solid on the mound in his MLB debut, but it may be fellow newcomer Forrest Wall who solidified a place on any hypothetical post-season roster. Down a run and with one away in the top of the 9th, Wall made his own MLB debut as a pinch runner for Eddie Rosario, and promptly stole 2nd and 3rd on the first 2 pitches, without drawing a throw. “Forrest Balls” reads the Saturday night version; may re-edit Sunday morning.
After an Orlando Arcia strikeout for the 2nd out, further drama ensued as Brewers closer Devin Williams walked Michael Harris II and Ronald Acuna Jr. However, Williams recovered to strike out Ozzie Albies to tie the series at 1 – 1. Williams threw 29 pitches; at least perhaps that will affect his availability on Sunday.
Winans threw 4 scoreless innings to start his career before allowing 2 runs in the 5th while recording only one out. At 71 pitches, he was not allowed to face the Brewers top of the order for a 3rd time. Michael Tonkin got out of the 5th, but a walk and 2 singles allowed the Brewers to tie the game off him in the 6th.
The Brewers took the lead in the 8th when Willy Adames hit a lead off double off Joe Jimenez, then reached 3rd with one out when Riley could not handle Arcia’s throw to 3rd on a grounder from Andruw Monasterio. It may have been better for Arcia to have taken the easier out at first base, which would have turned Sal Frelick‘s subsequent sacrifice line drive to right into an inning ending 3rd out (ignoring the butterfly effect.) Frelick is yet another player making his MLB debut, and his may be the most memorable of all. He went 3 – 3 with 2 RBIs and a run scored, and made spectacular plays in the 6th to rob both Marcell Ozuna and Arcia of extra bases.
Riley’s homer marked his 5th consecutive game with a long ball, and Acuna had 2 hits and stole his 45th base of the season. Winans allowed 5 hits and struck out 5 against a single walk. Adrian Houser struck out 10 for the Brewers in his 6 innings.
The decision to pull Winans in the 5th put some stress on the Braves bullpen. It will be really good if Bryce Elder can give more innings on Sunday than the 2 2/3 and 3 1/3 innings he provided in his last two starts. Our old friend Julio Teheran is scheduled for the Brewers at 2:10 Eastern, as the Braves try to expand their 11.5 game lead over both the Phillies and the Marlins in the NL East.
Julio has also been battling the regression monster of late, so maybe our offense can put up some runs tomorrow.
Daysbel Hernandez might be the call up today.
This is definitely not a big surprise
Ex-Braves announcer Chip Caray among least favorable broadcast crews in MLB | Yardbarker
https://www.yardbarker.com/mlb/articles/ex_braves_announcer_chip_caray_among_least_favorable_broadcast_crews_in_mlb/s1_16493_39043406
Yeah, that’s not surprising. Gaudin is so much better than Chip ever was.
Great recap, Rusty! The Arcia decision was a back-breaker, as was Sean not being able to come up with Acuna’s throw to the plate. Let’s get ‘em today!
Thanks Christian. Riley needs to make that catch and tag at 3rd. I get the decision to go for the go ahead run, but it would have been a much easier play at first in hindsight.