Pitching carried the Braves to victories in four of six games during their latest home stand and that was a good sign for them because it had let them down during their struggles this season.
If the Braves (22-21) can get some offensive outbursts to go along with the good pitching, they might manage to go on a sustained run. But manager Fredi Gonzalez said lots of runs just aren’t in the cards for his club.
“Our offense is our offense,” Gonzalez said after the Braves beat the Brewers 2-1 on Sunday at Turner Field. “We are going to be an offense that just scratches some runs. The offense that scored seven in an inning a couple nights ago, that’s not our everyday offense. We’re an offense that can hit and run, do some stuff, put some balls in play.”
The Braves pounded out seven runs in the seventh inning of their 10-1 victory over the Brewers on Thursday. But they scored a total of 10 runs in the other four games of the home stand, which opened with a two-game split against the Rays.
The Braves scored a total of 16 runs in a three-game sweep of the Marlins in Miami before the home stand but just 18 while losing five of six games at Washington and Cincinnati. The Braves won three games against the Brewers by one run and are 8-8 in such games this season.
The starting pitching has improved and the bullpen has stabilized, giving the Braves a chance to win most every game in the past nine. Gonzalez said that’s the way it will have to be for his team.
“It’s all about the pitching,” Gonzalez said. “You get a good pitching performance and you are in the game and you can do some stuff offensively to score runs.”
