PHOENIX – Following the most rigorous 19-game stretch of the season, the Braves’ schedule is about to get a lot easier.
Unfortunately for them, so are the schedules for two of the four teams that were ahead of the Braves for the second National League wild-card spot before Wednesday.
The Braves’ 10-3 loss in a series finale Wednesday against the Diamondbacks ended a 19-game stretch in which they played six series against five teams with a combined .612 winning percentage including division leaders Houston, Washington and the Los Angeles Dodgers, plus the NL Central second-place Cubs and two series against the Diamondbacks, who have the lead for the first wild-card spot.
The Braves went 8-11 in that demanding stretch, now get a day off before a four-game series beginning Friday at Philadelphia against the last-place Phillies, whose 34-64 record before Wednesday was the worst in the majors.
“It’s just been tough,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “I mean, it’s just been every day you’re up against one of the better teams in the league, and we kind of held our own. There’s a couple we let get away. But again, we just have to take it a day at a time, you can’t look ahead and see the schedule and get through it, you just have to take each individual day as its own entity and try to do what you can that day.”
The Braves do have to face the NL West-leading Dodgers again next week at SunTrust Park, but their overall remaining schedule after Wednesday had opponents with a collective .486 winning percentage, which was the seventh-easiest remaining schedule in the majors.
However, the Cubs and Cardinals each had remaining schedules that were even easier in terms of opponents’ winning percentage.
Entering Wednesday, the Diamondbacks and Rockies were the leading teams in the NL wild-card standings, with Cubs 4 ½ games back followed by the Pirates (7 ½), Cardinals (8) and Braves (8 ½).
“No doubt we can play with all of them,” Braves catcher Tyler Flowers said. “I think we showed that against the Dodgers. We kind of showed it here (at Phoenix) but we definitely showed it against them at home.”
The Braves swept the Diamondbacks in a three-game series at SunTrust Park after the All-Star break, then got swept by the Cubs in another three-game home series.
“The Cubs were just kind of hot; we played good ball against them but they were just kind of hot in every aspect,” Flowers said. “But I think there’s no doubt we can play with anybody out there. Just a matter of doing the little things – getting ahead of guys, not giving free momentum with walks, making the routine plays, coming up with a big hit here or there. That’s basically the recipe to win games.”
