Erick Aybar has been so bad for the Braves this season that when he’s used to pinch-hit, there is going to be the question: Why?
With the Braves trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the seventh inning Monday night against the Red Sox, they mounted a threat after Jeff Francoeur’s one-out double and a Freddie Freeman walk.
But after left-handed reliever Robbie Ross Jr., entered, pinch-hitter Drew Stubbs hit into a fielder’s choice and pinch-hitter Aybar struck out looking. The 1-0 loss was the Braves’ sixth in a row.
“We had an opportunity in the bottom of the seventh,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “We blew out the bench trying to get a couple of runs there, and we didn’t get it done. But Porcello pitched a good game on his end, and their bullpen did a nice job also.”
Aybar has an NL-worst .061 average (2-for-33) with runners on base, including 0-for-14 with runners in scoring position. The switch-hitter is 1-for-23 against lefties, and Aybar pinch-hit for rookie Mallex Smith, who’s 1-for-15 with two seven strikeouts against lefties.
Aybar is a .273 career hitter against lefties, though one would not know it from watching his first three weeks as a Brave.
“You see the at-bats Smitty’s giving you against left-handers and you go, Ok, this guy (Aybar) is better than those numbers,” Gonzalez said of the decision to pinch-hit the veteran shortstop in that span. “Those are the choice you have, you pull the trigger, you try to go for it in the seventh, and it didn’t materialize.”
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