It never rains in Southern California, but it sure does in Georgia, as the Padres learned this week.
The Braves and Padres were unable to complete their doubleheader Wednesday. After the Braves lost Game 1, 3-2, Game 2 was suspended in the fifth due to inclement weather.
Here are five takeaways from Wednesday:
1. The Padres led the Braves 5-4 in the bottom of the fifth before the game was suspended. The date to resume hasn’t been determined, but the teams will begin play in the fifth. The contest will still be seven innings. The teams could continue the game when the Braves travel to San Diego in late September, though that will require the Braves agreeing to the unique circumstance.
2. Bryse Wilson started Game 2, going only two innings. He allowed five runs on four hits, consistently falling behind hitters and walking four. It put his team in a five-run hole early. It was a tough start under suboptimal circumstances for Wilson, who’s bounced between the majors and minors this season.
“God bless Bryse, he’s been put into some different situations that screw with his routine,” manager Brian Snitker said. “He got rained out the other day in (Triple-A) Gwinnett. All of a sudden he’s turning around and starting a game for us. This kid never offers any excuses. He takes the ball, he’s there ready for you.
“His routine gets screwed up. People don’t realize how important that is, especially to a starting pitcher, when you do that to them. He went from being rained out to starting a game for us two days later. That’s not an easy thing to do, to ask of a kid or man. But Bryse never offers any excuses. He takes the ball and it didn’t work out good for him today.”
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
3. Lefty Kyle Muller started Game 1 and was “effectively wild,” according to his manager. Muller held the Padres to one run on two hits across four innings, but he required 87 pitches to do so. Muller admitted his command was “terrible” and said it was his worst outing in the majors.
Still, the 23-year-old kept the Braves within striking distance. Consider it a learning experience in Muller’s fourth start.
“My command definitely wasn’t there,” Muller said. “I owe (catcher) Kevan (Smith) a couple steaks and a couple drinks after tonight. I was wearing him out. It was a hot day, too. So shout-out to him for putting up with me the whole game.
“I couldn’t find that groove to keep executing pitches and hit some spots. On the pitching side of things, it wasn’t a good performance. But in terms of damage control, I was pleased with that because it easily could’ve gotten out of hand a couple times.”
4. Reliever Shane Greene followed Muller. He surrendered two hits, including a two-run homer to Fernando Tatis that put the Padres ahead 3-0. Greene has allowed 15 earned runs in 15 appearances. Wednesday marked the fifth time he allowed multiple runs in an outing.
“Command, he’s just missing,” Snitker said. “He was really good two nights ago. Threw the ball extremely well. But I think it’s pretty much the location part.”
5. The Braves went 2-3 in their first homestand of the second half. They lost a half game on the first-place Mets in that span and sit 4-1/2 games back in the National League East. The Braves have five homestands remaining this season.
Stat to know
4-5 (The Braves fell to 4-5 in extra-inning games. They’ve been outscored 39-20 in those contests, including the suspended game.)
Quotable
“I feel good about where we’re at.” – Snitker as the team readies for a crucial week.
Up next
The Braves begin their most important road trip of the season Thursday. They’ll play four in Philadelphia and five in New York against the Mets. It’s a stretch that could easily make or break their campaign.
