The Braves lost to the Dodgers on Monday night as they made Kevin Correia look like a star and the defense collectively let down Julio Teheran in a 6-2 loss.
The Braves actually managed to score first in the bottom of the 4th inning. Emilio Bonafacio led off the inning with a single and Ramiro Pena bunted him over. Freddie Freeman walked and Justin Upton smacked a sharp line drive up the middle to score Bonafacio. The Braves led the game 1-0 after four but that was as good as things would get for Atlanta.
Things fell apart for the Braves in the top of the sixth inning. Teheran allowed a single to Correia (his second of the game) and the Dodgers loaded the bases with two more singles. Another single tied the game and kept the bases loaded. Teheran finally got an out when Matt Kemp popped out on an infield fly call. But the relief was short lived as Carl Crawford delivered an infield single and Justin Turner knocked in a third run with a groundout. It was 3-1 Dodgers but of the 5 hits in the inning only one was well struck. The inning was a combination of BABIP luck for the Dodgers and atrocious range by the Braves infielders. With Andrelton Simmons out the Braves infield defense is a disaster that will be prone to these kinds of soft groundball innings.
The Dodgers put the game out of reach in the 8th though in truth three runs is more than enough to beat the Braves these days. Teheran allowed Puig to lead off the inning with a walk but managed to retire Adrian Gonzalez. A Matt Kemp ground rule double chased Teheran and put runners on 2nd and 3rd. Overall, Teheran was effective in the game he just didn't miss as many bats as usual and had no luck turning balls in play into outs.
James Russell came in to face Crawford and allowed Crawford to drive in Puig on a hit to centerfield. Russell was immediately taken out after failing to get the lefty and replaced by Juan Jaime. Jaime came in and promptly moved Crawford to second on a wild pitch. This came back to bite Jaime as Ramiro Pena threw away the ball while trying to turn a double play and allowed two more LA runs to score. The game was 6-1 and the defense was comical all night long.
The Braves made a token attempt at a comeback in the ninth when Gattis drove in a run with a double. It was too little too late though as the Braves lost 6-2. The Braves offense couldn't do anything against a pitcher making a spot start just buy his team some extra rest. With Simmons out the Braves defense is pitiful and the team seems to be falling to pieces. The Braves have lost 10 of 12 and are four games behind the Nationals. Tommy La Stella left the game with an injury but is expected to play tomorrow.