The Braves started the second half in fine fashion, winning two of three from the visiting Phillies. It's too bad the Nats refused to cooperate, as they and the Braves are still tied for the East division lead.
I can scarcely recall a game where I saw the Braves get so many two-out hits. In the opening game, nine of the 10 hits and five of the six runs came with two outs; the lone exception was Jason Heyward's home run leading off the second inning. He extended his hitting streak to eight games, but it was snapped the next day when he went 0-2.
Chris Johnson stayed on a hot streak, hitting his seventh home run of the season against Kyle Kendrick, who seems to have lost his anti-Braves mojo. He had four hits and three RBI in the series.
Freddie Freeman is stuck in a mini-slump. He was 0-14 before his RBI single in the sixth inning Sunday. He had nine hits in six games prior to his current skid.
Tommy La Stella had four hits in the series. His three-run double Sunday made him 5-6 with the bases loaded this year. That one miss must be an anomaly.
With the exception of Saturday, Atlanta's offense looked really good. They were 7-18 with RISP and earned 18 hits overall in the two wins. Saturday, Cole Hamels made everyone look bad, but Aaron Harang held his own and left without giving up a run. Then Jimmy Rollins happened.
Chasen Shreve was called up in place of Luis Avilan and made his debut Saturday, striking out Ryan Howard. He looked good for the brief moment he was in the game.
Alex Wood punctuated the series with a dominating outing on Sunday, striking out eight in six innings and allowing just three hits. He was easily the top starter for the Braves in the series.