With all the distractions the Braves endured since the end of their last game in San Diego, just getting back on the field Friday night at Turner Field was a relief.
But it proved only consolation after a 5-3 loss to the Cardinals in 11 innings.
The momentum from winning five of six to finish a West Coast trip was not so much lost on allegations against pitching coach Roger McDowell for using anti-gay slurs and a late-night DUI arrest of Derek Lowe as it was swallowed up on repeated rallies by the Cardinals.
The Braves (13-14) led 2-0 after the first inning and 3-2 in the seventh but squandered both leads, as well as the chance to get over .500 for the season for the first time since April 5.
Craig Kimbrel blew his second save in his past four chances to force extra innings, and Nick Punto broke through with a two-run triple off rookie Cory Gearrin.
“It would have been good,” said Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez of a chance to win and assuage Friday’s controversy. “But it’s not the end of the world. We pitched good. We had some opportunities and didn’t add on runs, and that’ll get you.”
Nate McLouth homered off Chris Carpenter in the seventh to give the Braves a one-run lead, but Carpenter got Brian McCann to ground into a double play with the bases loaded to end the inning.
Still, the Braves had their top relievers set up to finish the game, with Eric O’Flaherty, Jonny Venters and Kimbrel. But Kimbrel gave up a leadoff single to Yadier Molina in the ninth, which set up Ryan Theriot to move him to third on a hit-and-run single through the right side. Molina scored on a sacrifice fly.
“It’s tough to save one-run games in the major leagues,” Gonzalez said. “I think (Craig) Kimbrel is learning that…. You’re checking the gas tank with a match, every time you let that leadoff hitter on. You can bunt, you can hit-and-run. That’s the way it goes. Craig is good, and we’ll keep running him out there.”
Gearrin, pitching into his second inning in the 11th, finally showed signs of humanity, hitting a batter and walking another before giving up the triple to Punto, the Cardinals’ first extra-base hit of the game and Gearrin’s first hit allowed.
Gearrin hit Theriot on the leg with one out in the 11th to snap a streak of 13 batters retired in his first three major league appearances. After walking Mark Hamilton on four pitches with two outs, he drew a visit to the mound from interim pitching coach Dave Wallace. Punto tripled on the next pitch.
The Braves played extra innings for the fourth time in eight games and Gearrin was working two innings for the second time in four games.
“I thought Gearrin did a terrific job again for us,” Gonzalez said. “In the boxscore he’s going to come out with the L by his name, and I think he pitched a little better than that.”
The Braves had one last chance to tie the game in the bottom of the 11th but the momentum was lost after Freddie Freeman got called out on a called third strike from umpire Tim McClelland which Freeman thought had called ball four. It nearly cost the Braves a baserunner, as Dan Uggla had to hustle back to first base to avoid the double play.
“Having the opportunity to look at a replay, for me it’s a strike,” Gonzalez said. “It’s too close to take.”
Hudson, the defending NL comeback player of the year, tried to show his teammates a thing or two about handling adversity. He limited the Cardinals to two runs on six hits – all singles -- in six innings to give them a chance to win.
The Cardinals tied it 2-2 with two runs off Hudson in the fourth, but the Braves got the lead back on the first home run of the year by McLouth.
“We felt like we had them the whole game, which we did,” Hudson said. “They get the guy on base, then do a hit-and-run, get us out of position a little bit and it worked out for them.”
The Cardinals won for the first time in six starts this season by Carpenter despite his 3.89 ERA. The Braves rapped out 10 hits in seven innings including a first-inning home run by Jason Heyward to help them take a 2-0 lead in the first inning.
Carpenter settled back down after allowing three extra-base hits in the first inning – including doubles by Chipper Jones and Dan Uggla.
The Braves will try to settle back down Saturday behind Brandon Beachy.
“Today was a more melodramatic day than usual,” Hudson said. “But tomorrow is a new day. Come out and win, and support our teammates and support everything that’s going on here. We’re family, and that’s how it’s going to be.”
