In what has been a season of precipitous highs and lows for the Braves, Craig Kimbrel has been their one constant. But Thursday night, the machine-like closer showed he's still human.
Chris Young hit a ninth-inning solo home run off Kimbrel to lift the Arizona Diamondbacks to a sweep-averting 3-2 win against the Braves at Turner Field.
The first homer allowed by Kimbrel this season snapped a string of 17 consecutive scoreless appearances for the flamethrower, who had piled up 24 strikeouts with no walks and two hits allowed in his previous 13 innings. It was the second blown save in 24 chances for the National League saves leader.
Braves starter Jair Jurrjens lasted 5 2/3 innings and was charged with six hits, two runs and three walks with no strikeouts. He had a 2-0 lead before giving up a two-run double to Jason Kubel in the sixth.
One out and one walk and wild pitch later, Jurrjens was out of the game. It wasn't as convincing as his win Friday at Boston after a two-month stint in Triple-A, but Jurrjens' outing was good enough to make it seem as if what Jurrjens did against the Red Sox wasn't a fluke and that yes, he is a much better pitcher than he was in April.
Top-rated Diamondbacks prospect Trevor Bauer got no decision in his debut, allowing five hits, two runs and three walks with two strikeouts in four innings. The Braves were busy on the base paths against him, but didn't make Bauer pay a heavy price when they had chances.
The Braves had hoped complete a sweep against Arizona to begin a season-long 10-game stand at Turner Field, where they had lost six of seven before the Diamondbacks arrived.
Martin Prado drew a two-out walk in the third inning and scored on Brian McCann's double off the right-field wall for a 1-0 lead. The Braves had a chance to inflict more damage against Bauer, but let him off the hook. Chipper Jones followed McCann with a walk and Dan Uggla was hit by a pitch to load the bases, but Freddie Freeman flied out on a 1-0 pitch to end the inning.
In the second, Jones reached on a leadoff single and Uggla struck out. After a Freeman double put two in scoring position, hot-hitting rookie Andrelton Simmons grounded out and Jurrjens struck out to end the threat.
The Braves pushed the lead to 2-0 in the fourth after Simmons doubled off the glove of right fielder Justin Upton and advanced on a Jurrjens sacrifice. Michael Bourn's sacrifice fly brought him home.
The Diamondbacks stayed close, and it didn't take long to tie in the sixth after Willie Bloomquist's leadoff single. One out later, Jurrjens walked Upton to bring up Kubel, who began the day with a National League-leading 24 RBIs in June. He increased that to 26 RBIs with one swing, a tying double to the right-center gap.
Heyward, also having a terrific June, saved a run in the second inning when he cut down Kubel trying to tag and score on Aaron Hill's fly out to right. Heyward caught it and made a perfect throw to catcher McCann, who tagged Kubel to complete the inning-ending double play.
McCann also helped out Jurrjens in the fourth when, after Upton's leadoff single, McCann threw him out trying to steal second.
Besides Kubel, the only Arizona base runner to reach second base before the sixth inning was Bloomquist on a two-out double in the third.
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