Julio Teheran pitched much better against the Marlins this time around, rebounding from a career-worst performance last time out.
Six days after getting shelled for nine runs (seven earned) in Miami, Teheran held the Marlins to three over five frames. It wasn’t anything marvelous, but it was enough for the Braves’ second consecutive win.
And they sure did need it: The Braves opened their seven-game homestand with three straight losses to the Dodgers. Sean Newcomb got them a win in the finale, and the bats backed Teheran in a 5-3 win over the Marlins on Monday.
Freddie Freeman and Ronald Acuna hit homers. Johan Camargo doubled twice. All of a sudden, a quiet offense found life.
The Braves tagged Wei-Yin Chen for five runs in five innings. Teheran was responsible for one of those runs, backing his own cause with an RBI-single in the second.
Teheran struck out and walked four each. He threw 98 pitches (63 for strikes). But a glass-half-full approach would be that he battled through after a poor first inning.
Brian Anderson’s homer quickly gave the Marlins a two-run lead. Ender Inciarte’s and Teheran’s RBIs knotted the game an inning later. Freeman’s seven-pitch at-bat to open the third resulted a homer that put the Braves ahead for good.
Acuna continued being strong at leadoff. He’s hitting .303 (10-for-33) since moving atop the lineup after the all-star break. Camargo’s two-hit day brought his average to .267 since he became the regular third baseman.
Brad Brach, acquired Sunday afternoon from Baltimore, pitched the eighth inning. He pitched around a Starlin Castro single and a Camargo error that put two on base to finish a scoreless frame.
The Braves have needed another reliable arm at the back end of their bullpen. Brach is having an under-performing year by his standards, but if he can somewhat regain his 2012-17 form, it’d be huge down the stretch.
Braves left-handed pitching prospect Kolby Allard will make his major-league debut Tuesday in the middle game of the series.
