The Braves were happy to be home after a three-city trip. They had a day off Thursday, and were facing a team that had lost eight of nine and a pitcher with a 5.70 ERA who was just back from a stint in the minor leagues.
If you’ve followed the Braves this season, perhaps you can guess what happened?
They made three errors and didn’t have an extra-base hit or a run until the sixth inning of a 5-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Turner Field.
"It was not a very good brand of baseball," Braves third baseman Chipper Jones said. "Just a lack of concentration. Continued to shoot ourselves in the foot, time and time again, both offensively, defensively, on the bases … It was just not a very good display of quality baseball.”
Ramon Hernandez ended the remaining suspense with a two-run homer in the ninth inning off Braves closer Craig Kimbrel, the first allowed by Kimbrel in 51 major league appearances, including the postseason.
The Reds scored three runs in the first five innings and turned back several scoring threats for a series-opening win over the Braves, who have totaled only 18 runs in their past eight games, including five losses.
“It wasn’t a very pretty game for us, to say the least," said Braves starter Tommy Hanson (5-4), who threw 98 pitches in 4 2/3 innings and was charged with three runs (two earned), four hits and three walks, along with a costly throwing error.
With the bases loaded and the Braves trailing 3-1 in the eighth, Alex Gonzalez grounded into a fielder’s choice to make him a majors-worst 0-for-17 with runners in scoring position and two outs.
“To tell you the truth, I thought we were in that game the whole night, even in the ninth inning," said manger Fredi Gonzalez, whose Braves have scored three runs or fewer in eight of their past 11 games. "Keep it at two runs and you’ve got a chance.
"You know, you start to see some spark in the offense, you see some swings, and you think, OK, keep it at two runs and we may sneak one out tonight. But that wasn’t the case.... Regroup and come out tomorrow.”
The Braves mustered one run against Mike Leake (3-3) and a Cincinnati team that surrendered 28 runs in a four-game series at Philadelphia before arriving in Atlanta.
They fell to 4 1/2 games behind the National League East-leading Phillies.
The Braves left 11 runners on bases and the Reds stranded 14. The Braves had nine hits and six walks, including three walks for Jones.
"We had our chances, but just couldn’t cash them in," Jones said. "You figure with nine hits and all the walks that we had, we’d be able to push across more than one run. That’s the way the ball’s bouncing for us right now. We’ve got to fight to turn it around.”
The Reds got a run in the second when Fred Lewis doubled in Scott Rolen, who had reached on an infield dribbler. They added an unearned run in a hitless fourth, after Hanson’s errant throw to second on a potential double-play grounder.
“We didn’t do the stuff that we work on all the time," Gonzalez said. "That’s a little bothersome.”
The way the Braves have struggled to score, a two-run lead was just enough for Leake, who was recalled Friday from Triple-A. Through three innings, the Braves advanced one runner to second base.
After allowing eight earned runs and 12 hits in 7 1/3 innings of two Triple-A starts against Durham and Norfolk, Leake had less difficulty with the Braves’ lineup.
The right-hander issued consecutive two-out walks in the first inning to Jones and Brian McCann before Eric Hinske flied out to the warning track.
The Braves didn’t get a hit out of the infield until Martin Prado’s two-out single in the third, and he was out trying to extend it to a double. McCann’s sixth-inning double was their only extra-base hit.
They had a prime scoring opportunity in the fourth, with two on and none out. Hinske flied out to left before Uggla lined out to third to start an inning-ending double play when Jones was caught off second base.
Uggla had another chance in the sixth with runners on the corners and one out. His towering fly was caught in front of the center-field wall, a few feet from being a tying homer. Instead, he had to settle for a sacrifice fly that cut the lead to 3-1.
It was the first RBI in 10 games for Uggla, whose eighth-inning single was his sixth hit in 15 games. He’s batting .183 overall and a team-worst 6-for-48 with runners in scoring position.
“I thought Danny swung the bat well," Gonzalez said. "Had a chance. How does his ball not go out and Ramon Hernandez’s ball goes out? That’s how the baseball gods are testing his will right now."
Hanson wasn’t sharp for the second time in a week. After posting a 2.35 ERA in his first nine starts, with 54 strikeouts and 14 walks in 53 2/3 innings, he has been charged with six earned runs, nine hits and seven walks in 10 2/3 innings in his past two starts, while throwing a whopping 219 pitches to get 32 outs.
“I think [with] a lot of those pitches, I was just missing," Hanson said. "And when I did get ahead, they laid off some pitches…
“I wasn’t trying to pick [around edges of the strike zone], but after watching the video a little bit it looked like I was trying to pick. I was trying to be aggressive and go after them, but I was just barely missing. I didn’t want to make a drastic adjustment and start throwing everything right down the middle.
“I threw a lot of pitches. I threw that ball into center field. It [stunk]. That’s it."
