The Braves’ undefeated run with Max Fried on the mound ended Saturday.
Fried looked mortal, allowing three runs over five innings, and the Braves lost 10-4 to the Nationals at Truist Park. It was the Braves’ second consecutive loss following a five-game winning streak.
It was also their first loss in a game started by Fried. The Braves were 8-0 in his outings entering Saturday, their longest such streak with one starter to begin a campaign since winning Kris Medlen’s first 12 starts in 2012. And considering the rest of the Braves’ rotation, they know they can’t afford to give away many of Fried’s appearances.
Among the Cy Young frontrunners, Fried hadn’t allowed two runs in a start before Saturday. He allowed three in his latest outing, plagued by soft, well-placed hits and his own notable decline in velocity. Fried was hovering around 90-91 mph, roughly three mph below his average. He also issued a season-high four walks.
Fried said he’s healthy but admitted he’s experiencing some physical fatigue.
“It (my velocity) was definitely down,” Fried said. “Sometimes you don’t feel physically your best. At that point, you know you might not have it that day as far as physically, the way the ball is coming out. For me, I just want to go out there and try to compete. Throw some good pitches, get some outs, let the defense work. It was just one of those days.
“I was a little tight. I wasn’t able to get as loose. The ball wasn’t coming out as good, but I was still trying to do what I could to keep them off balance. Obviously the fastball velocity wasn’t there. It is what it is. But you have to go out and try to figure out how to compete with what you have that day.”
Fried followed that by saying he wasn’t concerned. “I think it’s a little mix of everything going on just catching up to me, but I’m feeling good.”
Manager Brian Snitker said the team could give him some extra rest down the stretch. Fried has logged at least five innings in each of his nine starts. “It was just one of those days,” Snitker said. “Every five days, he’s taking the ball. We’ll probably try to get him an extra day’s rest at some point.”
To state the obvious, the Braves need Fried at 100% to make any progress in October. He’s single-handily carried the rotation through stretches, prompting first baseman Freddie Freeman to declare him the team’s first-half MVP.
One small bit of positivity from Fried’s outing: He didn’t allow a homer, extending his homerless streak to 63-1/3 innings, longest in the majors. He’s the only qualified starter to not allow a home run this season.
Notes from Saturday:
- For the second night in a row, the final inning was a mess. After Patrick Weigel struggled Friday night, Chad Sobotka was roughed up Saturday. Snitker put in Sobotka while the team was down 5-4. Three outs later, the Braves were down 10-4. Sobotka was charged with all five runs while getting only two outs.
It was the second consecutive night the Braves didn’t turn to one of their many premier relievers in a close game. The bullpen has carried the Braves thus far, and Snitker stressed he wanted to give his best relievers more rest.
“That’s the reason we’ve won so many games, because those guys have pitched a lot,” he said. “There were lots of guys who pitched yesterday who we’d lose tomorrow if we pitched them behind in the game. When we get caught up a little bit, I think that won’t be the case. … Right now, we’re not in that position.”
Saturday was the Braves’ first loss when leading after five innings. They were previously 14-0 under such circumstances.
- The Braves entered the night fourth in MLB with 62 home runs. Ronald Acuna, Travis d’Arnaud and Adam Duvall added to that total Saturday. It’s a much smaller sample size, but these Braves have outslugged the 2019 team so far, posting a .478 slugging percentage against a .452 mark last season.
- Acuna’s lead-off homer was the 18th of his career, setting a franchise record. Acuna was tied with Felipe Alou entering the day. Alou required 633 games to reach that mark; Acuna broke it in his 210th game leading off (293rd overall).
The 22-year-old is in his third season and coming off a top-five MVP finish. His 18 lead-off blasts are the most for a player through his first 300 games.
- Freeman saw his 18-game hitting streak end. He went 0-for-3 with a walk. Over his run, Freeman hit .394/.506/.636 with three homers, seven doubles and 14 RBIs. It was the third-longest streak of his career, trailing only 20-game and 30-game runs.
- Philadelphia lost Saturday, but it only trails the Braves by two games in the National League East. The third-place Marlins defeated the Rays to get back to .500 (17-17) and are 3-1/2 games back. The top two teams in each division will qualify for the expanded postseason, along with an additional two wild-card teams.
- The Braves and Nationals conclude their series Sunday when Josh Tomlin starts against Patrick Corbin. The teams will play a four-game set next weekend in Washington to wrap up the season series.
