A Braves team that made one error in its first 12 games this season made four Friday night against the Phillies, and the last one quashed any chance of keeping the game scoreless.
Freddie Freeman failed to field Ben Revere’s ground ball with one out in the ninth inning as Freddy Galvis raced home from third to give the Phillies a 1-0 win in a series opener at chilly Citizens Bank Park, handing the Braves their first shutout, their fourth consecutive loss, and their eighth loss in 11 games since a 5-0 start.
There was some debate over whether Freeman would’ve had a play at the plate if Revere’s grounder hadn’t glanced off the end of his glove as he reached down to field it, but Freeman was certain that he would have.
“Just missed it,” he said of the error, his second of the night. “I had to act like a shortstop, and obviously I’m not one of those. I just missed the play. It’s on me.”
The Braves got just two hits against Aaron Harang and the Phillies, and have mustered six runs during a four-game skid that included a sweep at the hands of the Mets. They wasted a strong outing by Alex Wood and a recently maligned bullpen.
The Braves got a leadoff walk from Cameron Maybin in the ninth, but Kelly Johnson immediately grounded into the third double play of the night. The Braves advanced only one runner past first base the entire game, that in the fifth when A.J. Pierzynski doubled with one out.
Chris Johnson followed with a single, but Andrelton Simmons grounded into a double play.
“Two hits,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “We had some opportunities. (Runners at) first and third, they turn a double play. We just didn’t get the knock. Even there in the last inning. It’s a tough one.”
Braves setup man Jim Johnson, coming off three consecutive bad outings, entered with two on and the potential go-ahead run still at third base, and came through by striking out Carlos Ruiz to end the inning.
But Johnson (1-2) had some bad luck and one costly off-the-mark pitch in the ninth. Galvis led off with a single, advanced on a sacrifice, then moved to third on a passed ball. The pitch was high and outside and bounced off Pierzynski’s glove far enough to let the runner move up.
Revere followed with his grounder to Freeman, which was ruled an error but with an RBI awarded to Revere. The only run of the game was unearned due to the passed ball.
“I thought JJ did a great job, keeping the ball down, getting ground balls,” Gonzalez said. “I’m not so sure that even if Freeman comes up with that ball there’s a play at the plate, even though he has an above-average arm. Still, it doesn’t sit right making four errors the entire game. That’s not what we’re about.”
After leading the majors with only one error in their first 12 games, the Braves have made seven in the past four games, and their record fell to .500 (8-8) for the first time.
The Braves have seen this kind of night from Harang before. Unfortunately they’ve also seen this sort of frustrating night for Wood, in Philadelphia and elsewhere.
Wood pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing five hits and two walks before leaving with the bases loaded and his pitch count at 102. Rookie Cody Martin coaxed a foul fly ball from Carlos Ruiz to strand three runners in the sixth.
The Braves scored one or no runs while Wood was in the game in half of his 24 starts last season, including his only start at Philadelphia, when he pitched an eight-inning complete game and lost, 1-0.
Harang, who pitched so well for the Braves last season, pitched that way against them Friday, facing 25 batters – one over the minimum in eight innings. He allowed two hits with one walk and six strikeouts, and induced inning-ending double-play grounders from Nick Markakis and Simmons in consecutive innings.
“I think obviously we’re capable of being way better than this,” Freeman said. “It doesn’t help when your four hitter is just not doing anything right now, so hopefully I can pick it up here shortly.”
Freeman went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts to make him 1-for-14 with seven strikeouts during the skid.
In two starts this season at Citizens Bank Park, one of the most hitter-friendly stadiums in the majors, Harang has allowed a total of four hits and two walks with 14 strikeouts in 14 1/3 scoreless innings against the Red Sox and Braves. The stocky right-hander got no decision to remain 2-1 while trimming his ERA to 1.37 in four starts.
“Again, we didn’t do anything against Harang, a guy that we know,” Gonzalez said. “We’ve seen him pitch 30-some times. He did a good job keeping us off-balance.”
Last season with the Braves, Harang was 3-1 with an 0.85 ERA in his first five April starts.
The Phillies had a prime scoring opportunity in the eighth inning after putting two on with none out via a Chase Utley single, a Luis Avilan wild pitch and an error by Chris Johnson on a grounder from former Brave Jeff Francoeur.
Ryan Howard’s line-out to right fielder Markakis advanced Utley to third, before Cody Asche inexplicably popped up a bunt attempt to Freeman for the second out of the inning. There are reasons the Phillies had lost nine of 11.
Bu Friday, they ran into a team struggling almost as much as they are.
