CHICAGO — To this point, the Braves’ offense has not fully clicked. The club has dealt with injuries. They have experienced unfortunate bounces. At times, they have played poorly.
They are still 29-18.
The past three days were huge: The Braves might not be fully back, but they found ways to win.
With Thursday’s 3-0 win over the Cubs, the Braves took two of three from another projected National League contender. They won the season series against Chicago.
They are off to Pittsburgh for the final leg of this trip.
Five observations:
1. To begin the afternoon, the Braves missed multiple opportunities with runners in scoring position. If you were watching, you might have thought or said, ‘Oh no, not again. Here we go.’
And then Jarred Kelenic led off the fifth inning with a home run.
And AJ Smith-Shawver kept his team in the game.
And the bullpen shut down the Cubs.
And the offense broke through for late runs.
In a game that could’ve swung either way, the Braves showed heart and grit. They found a way to win. They’re not at their best, but they came away with a series win on the road in front of great crowds.
“It was a big series for us,” A.J. Minter said. “I feel like this road trip could’ve gone two different ways. For us to get off on a good start is big for us. We’re still at a very good spot, as far as the season goes. You never want to let the division get away from us. For us to go out there and to win two out of three on the road, and go to Pittsburgh and hopefully win another series. It was a low-key big series for us.”
His point: The Braves needed this. Yes, it’s only late May, but it’s felt like each wave of momentum for the Braves has come with another tough series or two.
The Braves haven’t fully returned to form. An example: In this series, they went 3-for-31 with runners in scoring position. Had they not pitched as well, they could’ve lost this series.
They are instead going to Pittsburgh having won the series.
On Wednesday, they exploded late as Max Fried dazzled. On Thursday, they supported the terrific pitching with a couple of runs toward the end of the game.
The Braves found a way.
“I think that’s the sign of a good team,” Jarred Kelenic said. “I don’t think that we’re doing anything different or we’re trying to do too much or anything like that. I just think that’s the way baseball goes. It comes in waves. I think that it’s only a matter of time before somebody leaves more pitches over the heart of the plate for us, and we hit the ball in the right spots. I think that over the course of an entire season, this is all part of it. You just kind of gotta ride this wave and keep doing what we’re doing, and I think we’ll be just fine.”
2. During the afternoon, it seemed like Smith-Shawver had grown from last season. And as he pitched, he felt this growth.
“The game feels a little bit slower compared to last year,” he said. “Sometimes it sped up on me last year. I feel like I’m doing a better job minimizing, holding runners on, just kind of the little pitching things I’ve been learning throughout that process.”
He pitched into the fifth inning and didn’t allow a run. He hit 99 mph, but we knew he could throw hard. The impressive part: His change-up and curveball looked improved. He still has his slider, but said he didn’t throw it Thursday.
You might be able to reduce the importance you place on his 6.10 ERA through eight starts in Triple-A. Smith-Shawver said he’s been working on off-speed pitches and doing things he wouldn’t in a major-league game.
In his season debut with the big club, his development was clear.
“That kid’s got a bright future,” manager Brian Snitker said.
“I think he has one of the highest ceilings I’ve seen in a starting pitcher,” said Chadwick Tromp, who caught Smith-Shawver on Thursday, and has been with him in Gwinnett.
Smith-Shawver gave up some hard-hit balls, but only three hits. He struck out four batters and walked two.
If he continues on this trajectory, he’ll certainly contribute for the Braves this summer.
“Yeah, I definitely feel like I can get the job done here, I’m confident in my stuff,” Smith-Shawver said. “It’s just about getting opportunities and trying to make the most of them.”
3. Kelenic is from Waukesha, Wisconsin, which is around 75 miles away from Wrigley Field. He had a group of supporters at Thursday’s game: His dad, brother, girlfriend, her parents and a couple of family friends.
He homered in front of them – a 401-foot shot to right-center field that cut through a howling wind that knocked down most balls.
“I love playing here,” Kelenic said. “This stadium is just so iconic and the fans are right on top of you. Day game in Wrigley is what you dream of as a kid – playing there at some point. To be here with this team, especially to come out with a ‘W’ – I feel like we haven’t been swinging the bats as well as we’re capable of, but we’ve been throwing the ball well. It’s definitely exciting.”
Kelenic never came here as a fan growing up. He first played here in high school for the Under Armour All-America Game, which features some of the nation’s top rising juniors and seniors.
He has since enjoyed a lot of success here: In five games here, he’s 7-for-16 with four homers.
4. Here is the perfect example of how a starter’s performance leads into the next day: Fried tossed a complete game Wednesday, and on Thursday, Snitker lifted Smith-Shawver after 4-1/3 innings to put everything into winning this game. His top relievers were available because all but one of them hadn’t yet pitched in the series.
“That was good,” Snitker said. “I mean, what Max did last night was huge. It allowed us to win the game today, honestly. We could kind of match up the way we wanted and use the guys we wanted to use with the lead.”
Following Smith-Shawver, Dylan Lee pitched a scoreless inning. Then the ball went to Pierce Johnson, who didn’t allow a run over two-thirds of an inning.
The Braves went to Joe Jiménez in the seventh inning, A.J. Minter in the eighth and Raisel Iglesias in the ninth. Each continued the shutout.
“That’s what we work for,” Jiménez said. “Everybody here comes every day just to do the work. Obviously, we trust everybody in this bullpen. It’s just fun to watch, everyday doing their job and picking each other up. It’s great to see.”
5. At this moment, the Braves find themselves six games behind the Phillies, who won – again – Thursday. The Phillies, at 37-14, own the best record in the majors.
Philadelphia is 29-6 in its past 35 games, which the club said matches its best 35-game span in franchise history – matching a stretch in 1892.
The Braves know there’s plenty of time left, especially because they haven’t yet played their best baseball.
“You can’t win the division right here in, what month are we in, still May,” Minter said. “And we’ve seen it before. We’ve come back from a larger deficit and we’re still right there. We still obviously got some series against the Phillies. Yeah, they’re playing some of the best baseball I’ve ever seen in my entire life, honestly. Everything’s clicking for them.
“But with that being said, we’re gonna give them a run for their money, that’s for sure. We’re not gonna give up. We still got plenty of time. Just try to keep winning series, that’s all we can do.”
Stat to know
8 - Thursday marked the Braves’ eighth shutout of 2024 – the most in MLB. Some recent context on their eight shutouts in 47 games: Last year’s team had 15 over 162 games, and the 2022 club had eight. The current Braves pitching staff is on pace to eclipse both marks.
Quotable
“It was a tough series, and it was nice to win it. I saw a lot of really positive things from the offense and different individuals, and hopefully we’ll continue to build on it.” – Snitker
Up next
The Braves haven’t yet announced a starter for Friday’s series opener in Pittsburgh. The Pirates will start left-hander Bailey Falter. First pitch is at 6:40 p.m.
