The Braves’ day off Thursday couldn’t come at a better time for their weary and maligned bullpen, which lately has appeared to be running on fumes.
Left-hander Sam Freeman and Dan Winkler blew a 5-3 lead Wednesday in a 6-5 loss to the Reds, the third lead blown by Braves relievers during a 2-4 homestand that featured series losses for first-place Atlanta against a pair of last-place teams, Baltimore and Cincinnati.
Braves relievers allowed 18 earned runs and 14 walks in 29 2/3 innings (5.46 ERA) during the homestand, and over the team’s current 9-9 stretch the relievers have a 4.92 ERA, five blown saves in 10 opportunities, and 60 hits (five homers) and 29 walks allowed in 67 2/3 innings.
At the same time as a few key relievers have struggled, Braves starters have failed to last more than five innings in six of the past eight starts, with Sean Newcomb’s six- and seven-inning performances the only exceptions. Having so many other starters “five-and-dive” at the same time as key relievers are struggling has been a bad mix.
The pen allowed three earned runs in each of the three games in the Reds series, with Freeman tagged for all three Wednesday after giving up a leadoff walk and pair of two-out singles in the seventh. Winkler replaced him and gave up a two-run single to the first batter he faced.
It’s been that kind of stretch for the Braves pen, with Freeman -- perhaps their most dependable reliever in 2017 -- and Winkler, who pitched like an All-Star for the first two months this season, among several taking their lumps.
Freeman, after posting a 2.94 ERA and .164 opponents’ average in his first 24 appearances, has an 8.16 ERA in his past 15 with 15 hits, 13 earned runs and six walks allowed 14 1/3 innings. The Braves are 4-11 in those games and he has three losses in that stretch including Wednesday.
Braves manager Brian Snitker is steadfast in his support of the bullpen and again said Wednesday he’s confident in the relievers they have.
“Everybody goes through stretches in this game,” Snitker said. “The biggest thing with Sam was fastball command that’s been here and there. Secondary stuff, overall, has been OK. It’s not unlike a hitter, a team, anything else -- sometimes guys get in ruts.
“We had the three-inning spurt there in Toronto (Freeman pitched 2 1/3 perfect innings with four strikeouts June 19 vs. the Blue Jays), I was kind of hoping that’d get him back throwing his pitches. Velocity’s good, it’s not like he’s tired or anything. Stuff is live, it’s just about getting strikes, I think, with his fastball is the biggest thing.”
Closer Arodys Vizcaino is expected to return from the 10-day disabled list Sunday at St. Louis, the first day he’s eligible. The Braves have used A.J. Minter and Winkler as co-closers in his absence, though they’ve not had many chances to close games while he’s been out.
Winkler had a stunning 0.74 ERA and .122 opponents’ average in 26 appearances through June 3 with 35 strikeouts and six walks in 24 1/3 innings. In eight appearances since then he has an 8.22 ERA and .353 opponents’ average, allowing 12 hits, seven runs and three walks with six strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings.
Shane Carle was dominant early, producing a 0.69 ERA and .194 opponents’ average with eight holds in his first 20 appearances through May 19 and allowing two earned runs, six walks and no homers in 26 innings over that period. But in 14 appearances since then he’s had a 5.17 ERA and .259 opponents’ average with three holds while allowing nine earned runs, 10 walks and two homers in 15 2/3 innings.
It looks from the outside like the Braves need to add a proven reliever or two before next month’s trade deadline to make a strong postseason push. Snitker was asked about his level of concern with the bullpen in light of recent struggles.
“I wouldn’t say concern,” he said after Wednesday’s loss. “I’m just. ... Anytime things kind of get haywire and you’re extending guys beyond what they’re probably accustomed to, that’s a concern more than the personnel. I mean, I think if we get back to the starters covering innings and doing what they’ve been doing all year – they’re going through a little rut, too. The five-inning stints -- Newk stretched it to six….
“That’s going to happen. I mean, you’re going to go through this with the bullpen. We’ve got the right people down there, I’m not concerned about the individuals, it’s the workload more than anything. I think we have the pieces there, it’s just kind of get back on a little – for three months we’ve had a good little rotation and thing going, and it got out of whack with the games that we had to play and extra innings and things like that. And that’s going to happen. Again, the pen, the starting pitching, it’s no different than grinding through at-bats in the offense when they’ve had their lulls.”
Veteran catcher Kurt Suzuki said he also remained confident in the bullpen.
“Yeah, it’s just one of those rough stretches that you get during the season,” he said. “No different than any other team. Everybody goes through it, where there’s a stretch where the bullpen ends up throwing a lot of innings. You’ve just got to deal with it and keep trucking along. There’s going to be good days and bad days, you’ve just got to keep moving along.”
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