The very platonic ideal of a Good Bryce Elder start. Not the best Bryce Elder start – that’s the complete game shutout he pitched against Natspos in September 2022, and it will likely remain that one for some time. Nevertheless, it was likely the most Bryce Elder start: he gave up just one single and three walks, and while he only recorded four strikeouts, he induced four double plays. (Folk Hero Nicky Lopez was in the middle of all four of them.)
Shutting down the present 2023 Yankee lineup is not a feat of Herculean strength, but given what our starting pitching was producing a week ago, it was a wonderful sight to see. It was the third team shutout in six games against the Mets and Yankees. And while the five runs scored on offense were the fewest since the 7-5 loss to Pittsburgh on Thursday, it’s still greater than the average runs scored by 25 of the teams in baseball: only the Cubs, Rays, Dodgers, Rangers, and Braves are averaging five runs a game.
Tonight, those runs came as simply as could be: a three-run homer in the first by Marcell Ozuna, and a two-run homer in the fourth by Ronald Acuña, both off of Luis Severino, who was an ace in 2017-18, when he was 23 and 24, but whose career was stalled by injury and whose horrible year has mirrored that of his ballclub. The Braves loaded the bases in the seventh and failed to score, and outside of those three innings, there was not much offense by either squad.
Time of game: two hours, 18 minutes. What a diff’rence a clock makes!
This is too good. We do not deserve Ozzie
https://www.mlb.com/news/ozzie-albies-has-huge-aquariums-at-house
Elder is a gift from the gods… even though the Braves would likely be division leaders without him. He’ll be our #3 starter in the playoffs behind Fried and Strider. Add in our 1-9 line-up and things look good going forward to me.
Even if Elder hadn’t separated himself from Morton yesterday (and I suspect Morton will, uh, distance himself further today), I might’ve been inclined to start Elder over Morton in the playoffs anyway. Assuming the choice is between two 4.30ish xFIP starters, let Elder get the experience and hope the defense behind him holds up. I love and appreciate Charlie Morton and his deep playoff experience, but this has got to be his final ride.
Braves 56
Mets/Yanks 13
Runs allowed: 494 in 119 games.
Padres runs allowed: 490 in 120.
I didn’t see the Luke Williams transaction until late last night. It’s an odd one, for sure, but I have a theory that AA likes to give all his 40-man rostered players a piece of the pie as a good faith measurement. The list is long:
White, Tromp, Wall, Shewmake, Solak, Culberson, Grissom, Shuster, Winans, Young, Hearn, Heller, Shawver, Elledge, Williams, D-Rod, Daysbel, Dodd, Allard.
Particularly, D-Rod, Solak, Culberson, Williams, Young, White, Wall and Elledge seem to fit this criteria. All of them spent time on the active roster, but were no more than an emergency. All received MLB pay for riding pine. AA could’ve easily had 1 person fill the role and keep it that way but it seems like he’s spreading the wealth a bit and that’s pretty cool.
I hadn’t thought about it like that, Ryan, but you may be right. As to this particular transaction, it may just be that they want Wall to play regularly for a couple of weeks before the season is over, since he will never get that chance while on the big league roster. I’m guessing there is a very good chance Wall will be on the post-season roster as the pinch running specialist. Not a bad idea for him to run the bases and play some outfield for the next little while.
It’s really easy to pile up wins against teams who have mailed it in and run away with the division if there’s not another formidable opponent. So the question is whether or not Atlanta can rev it back up at this point for the postseason. That was the narrative in the 90’s and 00’s, right? We’d run away from the division and couldn’t rev it back up? Certainly the narrative with teams like the 2001 Mariners.
There is a lot of stuff that the boys are playing for on individual levels on the offensive side, so that helps. In the rotation, almost every spot, especially 1-4, has something to be working on over the next month and a half. But if the first round of the playoffs started today, I wouldn’t have any concerns that the Braves will raise the trophy.
6 off days is just long. Time off might have hurt them last year against the Phillies. But they should have learned from that experience and adjust.
The answer to whether a close race to the finish or running away with the division is better when you reach the playoffs: CRAP SHOOT.
There may be data that shows whether one is better than the other for your chances in October, but my guess is it won’t be clear. Anecdotally we can all recall seasons either way. In 1993 the Braves fought to the last day to win by a game, but got bounced by an inferior Phillies team. Come to think of it, 2022 followed that same script.
A related issue is the first round bye you get for being one of the top two division winners. Is that an advantage? To my mind of course it is but some folks say get you get flat after the week layoff.
My wife and I are at the park tonight. Watching Braves/Yankees on the date that Babe Ruth died.