NEW YORK — After posting a 0.00 ERA and .158 opponents’ average in his first five appearances for the Braves, veteran reliever Jim Johnson has been knocked around (and walked upon) for a 16.88 ERA and .615 opponents’ average in his past three, getting tagged with a blown save in the second of those games and a loss in the third.
After giving up three walks, two hits and the winning run without getting out of the eighth inning of Wednesday’s 3-2 loss, Johnson still had the support of his teammates and manager Fredi Gonzalez, although Gonzalez conceded that the struggles now warranted at least some degree of concern.
“I’m not overly concerned,” Gonzalez said. “Obviously you want to win and for him to pitch good.”
The Braves thought several of Johnson’s pitches to the first batter of the eighth inning Wednesday should have been called strikes, and that the inning might have gone differently if they had been. Granderson did not swing at any of the six pitches he saw, taking two strikes followed by four consecutive balls.
Juan Lagares then poked a slow single through the hole in the right side of the infield on a hit-and-run to put runners on the corners. Lucas Duda followed with a sharp single before Johnson induced a double-play grounder. But he walked the next two batters, and that was it for the night for the big right-hander.
After allowing just three hits and one walk with eight strikeouts in his first five appearances, the sinkerballer has surrendered an alarming eight hits, five runs, two homers and three walks with no strikeouts in his past three appearances.
When asked if Johnson’s role would be the same for now, Gonzalez said yes, but….
“Let’s say the eighth inning shows up today with Granderson, Lagares, Duda up,” Gonzalez said before Thursday’s game. “Maybe you run Avi (left-hander Louis Avilan) out there. And Jimmy right behind him.”
