Until the seventh inning Friday night, it seemed as if wasted scoring chances, slopping fielding and another early exit for starter Randall Delgado would all be part of the autopsy of the latest Braves loss to the nemesis Washington Nationals.
Things changed quickly in that seventh for the Braves and rookie Andrelton Simmons, who got redemption with a game-tying two-run homer that capped a four-run inning and erased the Nationals' 4-0 lead.
But the momentum shift was quashed quickly when Michael Morse led off the eighth with a first-pitch homer off Braves reliever Chad Durbin, sending the Nationals toward a 5-4 win in the series opener at Turner Field.
The Braves had another chance in the ninth after Freddie Freeman's leadoff double against closer Tyler Clippard. After Eric Hinske flied out to center (not deep enough to advance the runner), Martin Prado drew a four-pitch walk. Michael Bourn flied out to center and Simmons flied out to right to end the game.
The Braves' fifth loss in six games this season against Washington dropped them to 4 1/2 games behind the National League East-leading Nationals. The Braves are 18-28 against them since the final week of the 2009 season.
Delgado lasted four innings and was charged with eight hits and four runs (two earned). He threw 90 pitches, plenty coming during the ragged two-error third inning.
Sloppy defense can be dispiriting, particularly early in games. The Braves haven't had many such innings lately, but the third was one.
After the Nationals took a 1-0 lead in the second on three hits, including a two-out RBI single by pitcher Ross Detwiler, Delgado retired the first two batters in the third. Then things got ugly. Adam LaRoche reached on an error by second baseman Jack Wilson, in his first start this season after manager Fredi Gonzalez decided to have slumping Dan Uggla finally take a night off.
Morse followed with a grounder that skipped past third baseman Chipper Jones and initially was ruled an error, and shortstop Simmons made a throwing error on the same play to allow LaRoche to reach third.
Ian Desmond singled to drive in both runners for a 3-0 lead. The Jones error later was changed to a hit, but both runs in the inning were unearned because of the two-out Wilson error that started the mess.
It was a rough night until the seventh for Simmons, who grounded out with runners on the corners to end the third inning and flied out with the bases loaded to end the fifth as the Braves continued their struggles with runners in scoring position.
After going 0-for-8 in those situations in Thursday's 3-2 loss to Arizona, they were 1-for-6 in those situations through the first five innings Friday and trailed 4-0. The Nationals' fourth run came on a Jesus Flores homer off Delgado in the fourth.
The Braves' RISP woes cropped up again after Matt Diaz led off the fifth with a double. Freeman followed with a fly out and Wilson grounded out before pinch-hitter Juan Francisco was hit by a pitch.
Bourn hit a slow grounder between home plate and the mound, and his speed and hustle forced Detwiler to rush as he tried to field it. He dropped the ball for an error that loaded the bases. With the potential tying run at the plate and two out, Simmons flied out to right.
The Braves finally broke through in the seventh, after Freeman was hit by a pitch with one out. Wilson followed with a bunt single, and Prado's pinch-hit single drove in the Braves' first run.
Bourn followed with a sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 4-2, and Simmons homered on a 1-2 pitch from the lefty Detwiler, clearing the left-field fence for his third home run and 12th and 13th RBIs in 24 games since the rookie was brought to the majors from Double-A Mississippi.
Delgado got no decision to end a three-start losing streak, though it wasn't the kind of performance the Braves hoped to see from one of their two struggling young starters (Mike Minor is the other), at least one of whom could lose his spot before much longer. Delgado is 2-4 with a 5.26 ERA in his past eight games, and was coming off the briefest start of his career, 1 1/3 innings (six hits, four runs) on Sunday at Boston.
