The Braves struggled to wake up Saturday, when their offense went on walkabout for the longest time and the pitching staff walked just about as many as you can in a 7-1 loss to the Nationals.
SunTrust Park was left wanting for the team that rode a season-high, six-game winning streak into the game.
A crowd of 36,050 instead sweltered while watching starting pitcher Julio Teheran (9-8) walk a career-high six batters in only four innings on a day when Braves pitchers walked 14 -- only two intentionally – to set a franchise record for a nine-inning game.
Six of seven Washington runs were scored by batters who reached by free pass, and the mess left at least one wondering if the age-old baseball axiom that hitting can be contagious might be true of pitchers walking batters.
“I hope not. It sure looks like it ...,” manager Brian Snitker said after the Braves surpassed the previous franchise mark of 13 free passes issued in a nine inning game, set by the Boston Bees in a May 6, 1938 game at Chicago and matched Sept. 14, 1974 against the Pirates.
“They say there’s no defense for it, and it just wears everybody out.”
The Braves (83-65) looked worn out.
Braves relievers Sam Freeman, Luke Jackson, Max Fried and Aroydis Vizcaino added a walk each, with Vizcaino’s record-clincher coming in a ninth in that saw fans scramble for cover as darkened skies began dumping rain.
The Braves, whose magic number to clinch the NL East remained at nine games, pending the Phillies’ Saturday night contest in Miami, slogged their way to two hits in three innings against Jeremy Hellickson and no more in six hitless relief innings by Jefry Rodriguez (3-2) and Matt Grace.
The game-winning run, scored by rookie Juan Soto after he reached on a leadoff walk, came on a two-out, bases-loaded walk to Adam Eaton on four consecutive pitches.
Teheran, who went five or more innings in eight consecutive previous starts, five times going more than six in that span, struck out three in the fourth and walked four. That inning alone matched his previous season-high total for a game.
He denied over-thinking, or trying to get too cute; he said he just kept missing his targets even when they were big.
“I couldn’t get my fastball even if I was trying to throw it down the middle ...,” Teheran said after throwing 90 pitches, just 52 for strikes. “I have things to work on, and hopefully it gets better for my next start. It’s not like I’m thinking (too much). I’m just trying to make my pitches.”
The Braves remained in the mix even after Washington took a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning without putting a ball in play.
The game got away, though, when rookie Touki Toussaint walked four Nats in a three-run sixth, and the Braves never figured out Rodriguez, who lowered his ERA to 5.33 with 4-2/3 hitless innings.
“I said we were very fortunate to be in that game as well as we were with 12 walks, two intentionals,” Snitker remarked.
Perhaps the first inning offered all you needed to know.
Bryce Harper drew a two-out, bases-empty walk – one of three for him in the game – and moved up on a single by Anthony Rendon. He scored on a single by Soto, who went on to walk three times and steal three bases.
That pushed Teheran’s first-inning ERA to 7.14 this season.
The Braves matched in the bottom half of the frame.
Ronald Acuna led off with a single, moved the third on Hellickson’s errant pickoff attempt, and scored an unearned run on Freddie Freeman’s long fly to center.
That was about it for the Braves at the plate, where they looked like a team playing an early-afternoon game after a night game that lasted almost four hours Friday.
Hellickson’s pace probably didn’t help.
He worked like a snail in his three innings, in his first start after about four weeks on the disabled list, when he took himself out of the game while batting in the top of the fourth. He was shaking his troublesome right wrist.
Rodgriguez, who also replaced Hellickson against the Braves on June 3, when he lasted four pitches before leaving the game with a bad hamstring, picked up the win while allowing no hits with one strikeout and three walks.
Kurt Suzuki had a second-inning single for the Braves, who return to action Sunday at SunTrust Park with Sean Newcomb (12-8, 3.82) matching Tanner Roark (8-15, 4.37) at 1:35 p.m.
Teheran said he’s not worried about securing a spot on the Braves’ postseason roster. Snitker’s probably not thinking about that, at least not yet.
“I think he was just missing spots is what happened,” the manager said. “I don’t think he was wild by any stretch, but you miss spots, he doesn’t give in, and consequently the walks go up.”
