Those who stayed left shocked. In front of their eyes, A.J. Minter, a reliable reliever, unraveled, leading to an improbable comeback by the Marlins.
This was unbelievable.
Minter and the Braves blew a four-run lead and lost to the Marlins 5-4 on Thursday. They took three of four games from Miami at Truist Park, but were three outs from a four-game sweep.
Five observations on the loss, which included a three-hour, one-minute rain delay:
1. In front of his locker, Minter spoke in a somber tone. He hadn’t yet gone back to watch his outing – it hadn’t been that long since he exited the game – but he had tried to digest it and compartmentalize it with his recent struggles.
“This is the point in time where you have to look yourself in the mirror when you get up in the morning, and you have to determine: Am I gonna keep going and fighting and pushing? Or are you just gonna give in?” Minter said. “With that being said, I’ve been through a lot worse. I’m gonna wear this one on the chin and get back out there and just keep working. That’s all I can do.”
Minter had a rough weekend versus Houston, but Thursday was far worse. He entered in a 4-0 game in the top of the ninth, then eventually departed with the lead down to a run and runners on the corners.
The Braves summoned Jesse Chavez for the final out. Instead, Garrett Cooper laced a two-run double that gave the Marlins the lead.
“I’m not locating the ball where I want to,” Minter said. “With that being said, I’m coming in throwing strikes. That’s really the only thing I can do is to just come in and throw strikes. And if they’re gonna hit, which they did today. But this one hurts. This one, we deserved to win that game today.”
One run-scoring hit came on a belt-high four-seam fastball. Another came on a belt-high cutter away. The last came on a cutter right down the middle.
The Braves were home for seven games. They blew leads in four of them.
Thursday was the biggest punch to the gut, but the Braves still are 17-9.
“It’s gonna happen,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “It’s probably happened in this last week a little more than you want it to.”
2. Minter, who has been the closer with Raisel Iglesias sidelined, arrived at Truist Park on Friday of last week having allowed two earned runs over nine innings.
In his last-3 2/3 innings, he has been charged with 10 earned runs.
“I’m here to serve God, my family and my support staff – meaning my teammates, my coaches, and the people who support me,” Minter said. “If you aren’t one of those people, then you don’t have to watch me, you don’t have to keep up with me. I’m here to serve my teammates and the people who support me.”
Minter’s five saves are tied for the third most in the National League. But he’s had a tough stretch.
For context: Minter allowed 16 earned runs all of last season – in 70 innings. In 2021, a season in which the Braves sent him down, he surrendered 22 earned runs in 52-1/3 frames for the big club.
This season, he’s given up 12 earned runs in 12-2/3 innings. Most have come over three outings, and the numbers look worse because of that.
3. The Braves announced some good news Thursday morning: Iglesias, they said, would begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett on Thursday.
To this point, Iglesias has spent the entire season on the injured list. The bullpen still has one a nice job, save for an ugly homestand for a couple of relievers.
4. One positive from the loss: starting pitcher Kyle Wright looked, and felt, terrific. He tossed three scoreless innings before the delay. In them, he matched his season high with six strikeouts.
After the delay, the Braves scored four runs in the fifth inning. They looked good until the top of the ninth inning.
5. Now, it’s on to New York and Citi Field, where the Mets will be waiting for the Braves in this season’s first edition of this National League East rivalry.
In order, the Braves will start Max Fried, Spencer Strider, Charlie Morton and Bryce Elder in a four-game series that begins Friday.
“Us and the Mets, we’ve been battling the past few years, and it’s gonna get another good one this weekend,” Minter said. “We have a really good rotation lined up against the Mets, and the bullpen is just going to come in and do what we’ve been doing. We’re excited for the challenge to bounce back.”
Stat to know
8.53 - Minter’s ERA has ballooned to 8.53.
Quotable
“I think games like this, flush it immediately. The faster the better. It may sound bad, but as loose as you can get the clubhouse back, the best. Obviously we’re frustrated we lost, but a tough one like that, man, you just move on as quickly as possible. If that means you gotta crack a joke to lighten the mood, you gotta do it because we’ve gotta play again tomorrow.” – Wright
Up next
In the series opener, the Braves will see Mets left-hander David Peterson. First pitch is at 7:10 p.m. Friday.
