Bryce Elder, Braves clobbered by Dodgers for fourth loss in five games

Elder, who’s been plagued by walks in the past, issued a lead-off walk to catcher Will Smith. Third baseman Max Muncy followed with a homer, his first of three on the evening. An inning later, Ohtani obliterated a high-and-in 90-mph fastball.

Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages, who had four hits including the winner on Friday, homered off Elder to start the fourth. After two more walks, Ohtani’s hit to left prompted Braves manager Brian Snitker to make a pitching change to Dylan Lee. Both inherited runners scored, and the Braves were down 7-1 before four frames were completed.

“I thought they put some good swings on pitches,” Elder said. “I thought a couple of them could’ve been better pitches, but I think I threw some that they put good swings on. So tough lineup, obviously, not the way I wanted it to go.”

Elder was charged with seven earned runs on seven hits in 3-1/3 innings, walking four and striking out four. It was the second time in his career he’d allowed three homers (and the seventh time in 43 career games he’d allowed multiple home runs).

It was a stark difference from Elder’s outings against the Dodgers last season, one at home and one in Los Angeles. He allowed two earned runs over 12 innings, striking out 10 and walking five, in a couple victories. He’d surrendered only one homer.

2. What a bummer for Elder, who had a 1.50 ERA across his first two starts since rejoining the rotation. Despite earning an All-Star nod last summer, Elder hasn’t yet established himself as a reliable part of the rotation. Certainly, a night like Saturday adds more outside doubt as to whether he’ll become a steady presence.

This is a difficult lineup to face, one that punishes mistakes better than any. Ohtani, perhaps the best player in the world, beat Elder twice. But the Braves have been banking on their pitching as the offense sorts through its inconsistencies, and Elder missed his chance to continue building off what’d been a nice start to the campaign.

“I don’t think my stuff was bad at all,” Elder said. “Outside the walks, it was OK. But you get hit around, you just have to go on to the next one. ... I could’ve been better, obviously, but I think they put some good swings on them. I did miss some. Overall, I have to be better.”

Elder apologized to Lee, whom he “strung out to dry,” and Jackson Stephens, who pitched after arriving at 6 p.m. after getting called up earlier in the day. “That’s what upset me most,” Elder said. “I’m not happy with the result, but I hate to do that to the guys.”

Reliever Tyler Matzek also struggled, surrendering a homer to Muncy (who was slugging .323 in 31 at-bats against lefties) and was charged with three runs while recording only two outs. Matzek has a 9.90 ERA in 11 games (10 innings).

“It’s hard to pitch a guy once a week and have him get his velocity and get sharp,” Snitker said. “That’s kind of the situation we’re in because those other (relievers) are doing better. It’s a rough spot.”

3. The Braves’ offense has sputtered lately, especially against good pitching. It was bad timing to run into Tyler Glasnow. The Dodgers’ new ace cruised through seven innings, allowing two runs on five hits and striking out 10.

Elder needed to be at his best to keep pace with Glasnow, who leads MLB in innings and strikeouts.

“He’s rough, we knew that coming in,” Snitker said of Glasnow. “He’s really good. We saw him in spring training a little bit when he was with Tampa. We didn’t play him a lot, but I remember him when he was coming up with Pittsburgh, even. His stuff is really good. He knows how to pitch. It’s a rough ride. They have a good one with him.”

4. While the Braves won three of four at Dodger Stadium last September, that was an outlier. They’ve largely struggled at this venue, even during their recent successes. Since 2018 – when the Braves won their first of six consecutive division titles – they’re 6-17 at Chavez Ravine (including the postseason). The Braves will try to avoid getting swept here for the first time since 2019 on Sunday.

5. The Braves (20-11) lost while the Phillies won for the 15th time in 18 games, putting the Braves 1 1/2 games behind in the East. It’s the Braves’ deepest “hole” in the division since Sept. 25, 2022, when they trailed the Mets by the same deficit. It’s far too early to get caught up in the standings and scoreboard watching, but that fact shows just how consistent the Braves have been atop their division.

Much can change quickly, but perhaps the Braves are due for another tight division race like 2022, when they edged the Mets. The Phillies, at 23-11, have baseball’s best record.

Stat to know

5 - The Braves’ once-mighty offense has scored more than five runs just once in the past 13 games. It’s undoubtedly a frustrating period for a group that set a list of franchise records a season ago.

Quotable

“There are going to be nights where you get whacked around the yard. You just have to take it, learn from it and roll on. I think this is one of them.” - Elder

Up next

The Braves and Dodgers finish their series Sunday with the Braves’ Max Fried (2-0, 4.02) trying to continue his turnaround in his native Southern California against Dodgers lefty James Paxton (3-0, 3.51).