Even though Julio Teheran lost his no-hit bid in the eighth Wednesday and would have preferred pitching the ninth for a chance at his first career shutout, both he and Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez know how reliable the Braves bullpen has been.
Reliever David Carpenter pitched a perfect ninth including two strikeouts to complete the 5-0 victory. The Braves bullpen has allowed just one run over its last 27 2/3 innings.
Braves relievers outshined a tough Pirates bullpen in a three-game sweep. The Braves and Pirates entered Wednesday’s game tied for the NL lead in bullpen ERA at 2.67, but Braves relievers gave up only one run in seven innings over the series. The Pirates relievers gave up seven runs in 14 1/3 innings.
The only run allowed by the Braves bullpen over the past eight games came Friday night in the second inning of relief for rookie left-hander Alex Wood. But the left-hander with the mid-90s fastball has already impressed with his mound presence and command.
“There are always guys down there that can do the job,” Gonzalez said. “Managers and coaches have just got to trust them, feel comfortable that they can do the job, and then keep putting them in spots where they’re going to be successful. It also helps when you know the ninth inning is going to be covered by (closer Craig) Kimbrel.”
Gonzalez pointed to the return of Jordan Walden from the disabled list as a stabilizing force. Walden has pitched four scoreless innings since his return from shoulder inflammation. He has provided the Braves some eighth inning security with the loss of both Eric O’Flaherty and Jonny Venters to season-ending elbow surgery.
The Braves have also gotten good work from Luis Avilan (seven straight scoreless outings and a 2.31 ERA overall), Anthony Varvaro (four scoreless outings on homestand) and Cory Gearrin (three scoreless outings since his three-run outing in New York).
“You’ve just got to get comfortable in those situations because it’s a little different,” O’Flaherty said of the seventh and eighth innings. “There’s a little bit different energy. You’ve just got to control your emotions in those situations and it may take an outing or two, but they’re so good it’s not going to matter.”
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