Braves-Cardinals Came Down To Late Inning Relief, Hitting
I got this prediction right, but for the wrong reasons. The relievers, not the starters, hurt Atlanta’s chances Saturday and Sunday. St Louis also won the Braves-Cardinals series due to clutch hitting.
Kenley Jansen struggled to throw strikes Saturday, walking home the Cardinals Tyler O’ Neill as the winning run. O’ Neill also had the game winning home run Sunday off the Braves A.J. Minter. Minter’s line of 0.2 innings, 2 hits, 4 R, but only 1 ER is one of his worst of the entire season. Austin Riley’s error hurt him as well.
Jake Odorizzi Shows He Can Be Solid For Braves
Jake Odorizzi built off his strong start against the Pirates through the first five innings Sunday. St Louis got to him and knocked him out in the sixth, but before then he was having his best outing since being traded from the Houston Astros.
The start was important one for Odorizzi. Maybe he won’t be a starter in the playoffs but if he pitches well enough the rest of the season maybe he can eat up innings in long relief. Connor McHugh fills that role now, and having Odorizzi as another option would be a plus.
What’s Ahead For Atlanta
The schedule eases for Atlanta over the next eight games: home against the Colorado Rockies and Miami Marlins, and on the road to face the Oakland A’s. Their next tough comes September 9-11 at the Seattle Mariners.
The good news for the Braves is the New York Mets take on the Los Angeles Dodgers the next three games. Yes, their schedule may be the easiest in baseball after that, but that just means there may never be a better opportunity than the next three days to make up ground on them.
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