The Braves had a good weekend of starting pitching in Miami. The trick for a sustained run during might be repeating that pattern for a week or two at a time.
The Braves won two of three games at the Marlins, and were in position to earn the sweep, in large part because their starting pitchers were effective. Mike Foltynewicz, Julio Teheran and R.A. Dickey combined to allow 14 hits, four runs and five walks over 19 innings against the Marlins.
“That’s the key to any run to get on in baseball is the pitching,” manager Brian Snitker said before the Braves opened a two-game, interleague series at Toronto on Monday. “It’s going to allow you the opportunity to do it. It’s like that everywhere in every league, pretty much, especially with starters keeping guys in the game.”
Foltynewicz and Teheran earned victories in their starts at Miami. Dickey had a shutout through 6 2/3 innings before surrendering a pinch hit, three-run homer to Tyler Moore.
That was a game in which the Braves squandered several chances to drive in runs. That’s happened less often as the offense has improved. Now the Braves need the starting pitching to be consistent.
“The key is for everybody to contribute and do their job,” Braves left-hander Jaime Garcia said. “The starting pitching hasn’t been where we know it’s capable of being. (But) we have a lot of confidence in ourselves. We know the people we have (are) very talented.”
It’s early in the season so the good weekend in Miami made a big difference for the Braves’ starting’ numbers. Entering Monday their starters’ 4.71 ERA ranked seventh-worst in the majors after they were next-to-last before the Marlins series.
“It was more what these guys are capable of doing,” Snitker said. “All phases go in ruts at some point and time over a long season. Hopefully we can continue to build on those good starts like we had this weekend.”
Struggling right-hander Bartolo Colon pitched the opening game against the Blue Jays. Colon entered the game with a 7.22 ERA that was worst among qualifying major league pitchers.
Garcia was scheduled to pitch on Tuesday with Foltynewicz and Teheran the starters for the two-game series against the Blue Jays on Wednesday and Thursday at SunTrust Park.
“We know it’s a matter of little things clicking and going (right) for us,” Garcia said. “All I can tell you is, it hasn’t been because we don’t want to or (lack) of work ethic. Everyone is putting in the work, everybody is doing things right. It’s part of the game. We’ve got to just trust in ourselves and trust that things will come along. I think we are getting close to that point.”
Prior to Monday, all of the Braves starting pitchers except for Colon were showing positive trends.
The Cardinals roughed up Foltynewicz for seven runs over four innings on May 5. He came back to hold the Marlins two six hits and a run over six innings on Friday.
After he was effective during April, Teheran had consecutive subpar outings at SunTrust Park. He pitched six scoreless innings against the Marlins on Sunday with three hits and one walk allowed.
The seven innings pitched by Dickey on Sunday against the Marlins were his most since he also went seven innings against the Nationals on April 20. In his previous start the Cardinals touched him for four runs over six innings with two home runs.
Garcia allowed three runs in the fifth inning of a loss to the Astros on Wednesday, continuing his struggles when facing a lineup for the third time through. But going into that game Garcia had three consecutive starts of at least six innings with two earned runs allowed.
The Braves added Colon (44), Dickey (42) and Garcia (30) this season with the hope that it would stabilize a rotation that struggled with youth in 2016. Garcia said that experience would help the veteran starters stay level when the results fluctuate.
“It’s essential you go through those ups and downs,” Garcia said. “It’s just a matter of how you go about it and how you react to the tough times.”
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