The good news for the Braves on Saturday was a 7-2 win against the Miami Marlins for their first series win at Turner Field. The better news: They have 14 games left against the Marlins, who haven’t beaten the Braves in five this season.
Gordon Beckham hit a three-run homer, rookie pitcher Aaron Blair had a solid outing in his return to the majors, and the Braves took full advantage of an opponent’s defensive mistake — the kind of break that usually went against them this season, but not in consecutive wins against the Marlins to start this series.
“Just seems like it’s starting to turn a little bit,” Beckham said after the Braves’ fifth win in 10 games. “I just hope it keeps turning for the next month or two so we can keep climbing back in this thing.”
The Braves (14-34) recorded consecutive home wins for the first time this season and finally have more wins (four) at Turner Field than they have at Marlins Park (three). They’re 4-20 at home and go for a sweep Sunday with Julio Teheran (2.57 ERA) facing Marlins right-hander Tom Koehler (4.79 ERA).
Dating to April 15, the Braves are 5-0 with 29 runs scored against the Marlins, and 9-25 with 100 runs scored in 34 games against everyone else. The Marlins are 22-17 against teams other than the Braves during that period.
Blair didn’t get his first major league win in his sixth start, but the Braves rookie pitched worlds better than in his last two starts before he was sent back to Triple-A on May 18. The big right-hander allowed five hits, two runs and two walks with five strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings, including strikeouts to end the second and third innings with two runners on each time.
“I had a good feel for the change-up from the beginning,” Blair said. “Curveball was there when I needed it. Fastball command was there when I needed it. Where the last start everything was up and over the plate, today everything was a little bit better.”
He posted a 21.60 ERA and .536 opponents’ average in his last two starts before being sent down, including nine earned runs in 1 1/3 innings May 17 at Pittsburgh in Brian Snitker’s first game as interim manager. Blair was optioned to Triple-A the next day.
“I didn’t see any of the previous (Blair starts), only the one in Pittsburgh,” Snitker said. “But I really like what I saw today. Makes you feel good. I was sitting there wanting him to do good because I want to see him again. That was really a good change-up. He was hitting with that thing pretty good. …
“I really wanted to see him today, and after today I’m looking forward to seeing him in his next start.”
The Braves trailed 2-1 before the sixth inning, when they scored three runs on three hits and benefited from a crucial error by center fielder Marcell Ozuna, who butchered Nick Markakis’ RBI single and saw it bounce past him and roll to the wall, bringing in the second run on the play and allowing Markakis to reach third.
Jeff Francoeur followed by bouncing a double over the center-field fence to push the lead to 4-2. Francoeur has six hits in the first two games of the series, and Markakis drove in two runs to give him four RBIs in the series.
Beckham's three-run homer in the seventh off reliever Edwin Jackson gave the Braves two rarities in a difficult season — a big lead and late-innings breathing room for the bullpen, so much that they could afford to rest dominant closer Arodys Vizcaino.
“We show up every day, and we come to the park and work hard,” Beckham said. “I really feel like this team shows up every day and wants to win. We’re not putting more pressure on ourselves from having this hole. We just go out and play every day and hope it keeps going like the last couple.”
The Braves’ only sweep this season was a three-game job at Miami on April 15-17, when the Marlins served as a salve for the Braves following an 0-9 start.
The Marlins have been that again for the Braves in this series, after the Braves were swept by the lowly Brewers to start a 10-game homestand and fall to 2-20 at home, the worst home start by any team in more than a century.
Now they’ve doubled that wins total in two days against the Marlins, and the Braves improved to 5-6 since Snitker replaced fired manager Fredi Gonzalez.
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