Battery Power - May 11: Marlins 6, Braves 3Your one stop shop for everything Atlanta Braveshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/52890/favicon-32x32..png2018-05-12T06:39:50-04:00http://www.batterypower.com/rss/stream/171075952018-05-12T06:39:50-04:002018-05-12T06:39:50-04:00Video: Albies homers but Braves come up short in Miami
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<p>Atlanta’s winning streak ends with a 6-3 loss to the Marlins</p> <p id="5gjxOX"><span>Ozzie Albies</span> homered again but it wasn’t enough for the <a href="https://www.talkingchop.com/">Atlanta Braves</a> in a 6-3 loss to the <a href="https://www.fishstripes.com/">Miami Marlins</a>. </p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">IT'S OZZIE'S . WE'RE JUST LIVING IN IT.<br><br>That's 12 home runs for the <a href="https://twitter.com/Braves?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Braves</a> standout. The only player with more right now? Mookie Betts. <a href="https://t.co/bIqubxJtwi">pic.twitter.com/bIqubxJtwi</a></p>— FOX Sports: Braves (@FOXSportsBraves) <a href="https://twitter.com/FOXSportsBraves/status/995089022665084929?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2018</a>
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<p id="2PiA9j">Albies’ third inning home run was his 12th of the season tying him for the lead in the National League. </p>
<p id="GojMWv"><strong>Interviews</strong></p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">"The sinker didn't have the normal life."<a href="https://twitter.com/Braves?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Braves</a> manager Brian Snitker weighs in on a difficult outing for Brandon McCarthy, Ozzie Albies' home run and more.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Braves?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Braves</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ChopOn?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ChopOn</a> <a href="https://t.co/vjA6ZdKYgw">pic.twitter.com/vjA6ZdKYgw</a></p>— FOX Sports: Braves (@FOXSportsBraves) <a href="https://twitter.com/FOXSportsBraves/status/995124763604406273?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 12, 2018</a>
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<p id="WQpbet">Brian Snitker</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">"I felt like the pitch quality tonight was better than last time."<a href="https://twitter.com/Braves?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Braves</a> veteran Brandon McCarthy weighs in on his latest outing. <a href="https://t.co/1TwyCR05Nm">pic.twitter.com/1TwyCR05Nm</a></p>— FOX Sports: Braves (@FOXSportsBraves) <a href="https://twitter.com/FOXSportsBraves/status/995127575893630977?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 12, 2018</a>
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<p id="zW9uKd"><span>Brandon McCarthy</span></p>
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https://www.batterypower.com/2018/5/12/17347464/video-atlanta-braves-highlights-ozzie-albies-home-runKris Willis2018-05-11T22:22:38-04:002018-05-11T22:22:38-04:00Miami hit deluge drowns McCarthy, Braves in 6-3 defeat
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<p>Brandon McCarthy was subjected to an onslaught of hits and the Braves’ bats foundered against the rocks of the Marlins’ bullpen.</p> <p id="l3OBkl">Normally, when a team scores in three consecutive innings, like the <a href="https://www.talkingchop.com/">Braves</a> did on Friday night, that means a good night. Unfortunately for the Braves, the <a href="https://www.fishstripes.com/">Marlins</a> also scored in those same three innings, in greater quantities. That was the difference as <span>Brandon McCarthy</span> suffered another poor start, and the Braves couldn’t solve the Miami relief corps en route to a 6-3 loss. The defeat snapped the team’s three-game winning streak and its longer road winning streak, evening the present series at one apiece. The Braves will now have the weekend to try and exact some revenge.</p>
<p id="g0E3VB">The main story in this one was that Brandon McCarthy gave up a ton of hits. Some of those hits were well-deserved, and some, to put it bluntly, were not. <span>J.T. Realmuto</span> set the tone for Miami and McCarthy early, knocking a hanging McCarthy curveball for a double (hit probability = 34%) to lead off the bottom of the first. Two consecutive groundouts led to Realmuto crossing the plate with the game’s first run. After a bit of a reprieve in the second where McCarthy struck out the side while working around a single (hit probability = 68%), the Braves finally did something against Miami starter <span>Dan Straily</span>.</p>
<p id="gWFB8w">By something, I actually mean <span>Ozzie Albies</span> hooking his 12th homer of the year into right field. The blast ties Albies for first in the National League with <span>Bryce Harper</span> and was another patented Wizard Albies magic missile that just got out (hit probability = 48%). But, aside from Albies, the rest of the hitters in the top half of the third struck out, and the Marlins went right back to work against McCarthy. And I do mean, “right back to work,” as Realmuto knocked the first pitch of the bottom of the inning deep into left center for a homer to take back the lead. </p>
<p id="2pr2KX">The Braves then tied it up again in the top of the fourth. <span>Nick Markakis</span> reached on a one-out single, and advanced to third when <span>Ender Inciarte</span> hit a ball that went off of first baseman <span>Justin Bour</span>’s glove. <span>Johan Camargo</span> then drew a walk to load the bases, as the Braves seemed to be figuring out that Dan Straily didn’t really have the control or command to keep them off the bases. This then became self-evident (if only for a little while) as the next batter, <span>Ryan Flaherty</span>, drew a bases-loaded walk, tying the game at two apiece. Unfortunately, McCarthy then flew out to keep the game knotted...</p>
<p id="0ryLul">...which then gave the Marlins another opportunity to unknot it. <span>Derek Dietrich</span> hit a leadoff single (hit probability = 48%). Then, <span>Miguel Rojas</span> lined a ball over the infield (hit probability = 57%), moving Dietrich to third. <span>Lewis Brinson</span> then chopped a ball over Flaherty at third base (hit probability = 18%), scoring the third Miami run. After a merciful Straily groundout, Realmuto then came up and collected his third hit of the game, a run-scoring single up the middle that McCarthy did not get a glove on (hit probability = 34%). Fortunately for the Braves, <span>Martin Prado</span> hit a hard grounder to third that became an around-the-horn double play.</p>
<p id="hrfN7u">So naturally, the Braves (kind of) battled back against Straily. Ozzie Albies drew a leadoff walk, stole second, and advanced to third on an errant throw by Realmuto on the steal attempt. After an ugly Ronald Acuña Jr. strikeout and a heartbreaking liner off <span>Freddie Freeman</span>’s bat that was snagged on a dive by Bour at first, Nick Markakis picked up his teammates with a liner into right field that scored Albies and put Markakis at second. The Braves were within one, and it looked like Miami skipper Don Mattingly might have pulled Straily right then and there, but he elected to leave him in and <span>Kurt Suzuki</span> grounded out to leave the Fish ahead by one run.</p>
<p id="4SJWxT">Unfortunately for the Braves, even that deficit wouldn’t last long, as McCarthy gave up more runs still. Just like in the third, he again allowed a homer to the leadoff batter, this time to <span>Starlin Castro</span>. (And that ball was crushed.) The Marlins weren’t done yet, though. A one-out pop-up (hit probability = 31%) and a couple of liners into the outfield (hit probabilities = 91%, 74%) pushed another run across. McCarthy then ended another inning via the double play, courtesy of a soft liner off the bat of <span>Lewis Brinson</span>, but the damage was done.</p>
<p id="xDYtLC">That was it for both starters, but the Braves managed nothing against Miami’s bullpen, which hasn’t been effective to date. <span>Junichi Tazawa</span> pitched a scoreless sixth, righting the ship after what’s been a horrendous start to 2018 for him. <span>Peter Moylan</span> pitched the bottom of the inning, allowing two baserunners but also inducing the Braves’ third double play in three innings to get out of it. In the seventh, the Braves did nothing against <span>Tayron Guerrero</span>, Miami’s best reliever so far this season, who carved up Ozzie Albies with a 101 mph fastball. In the eighth, the bats did nothing against <span>Kyle Barraclough</span>, hitting three can of corn fly balls. <span>Jesse Biddle</span>, meanwhile, worked two scoreless innings of relief, and getting yet another double play thanks to a great snag of a liner at short by <span>Camargo</span>. Brad Ziegler came on for the ninth and the Braves faltered once again, despite a <span>Preston Tucker</span> pinch-hit single and an Albies liner that was flagged down in left field despite being struck pretty well.</p>
<p id="iaHOQY">The real story in this one, though, was the Marlins’ furious attack and the punishment suffered by McCarthy. McCarthy’s final line was five innings, 11 hits allowed (including two homers), six runs allowed, two walks, and three strikeouts. If you live by the BABIP you die by the BABIP, but McCarthy is probably not going to succeed in any start where he allows homers, doesn’t get favorable ball-in-play outcomes, and also records only modest strikeout totals. The triple whammy of a decreased strikeout rate, an increased walk rate, and terrible luck on fly balls leaving the yard has really done in McCarthy’s performance so far this season, and a .362 BABIP-against just makes everything worse. Some of these things (the BABIP and the HR/FB rate) might regress, but McCarthy may need to figure out a way to pull his peripherals back up to return to his expected level of performance. </p>
<p id="q43g9O">Meanwhile, the Braves never really solved Straily, who recorded his first non-terrible start of the year. Straily went five, allowing three hits, three walks, and three runs (two earned) while striking out five. Despite putting three runs on the board, the Braves only managed five hits, two of which came courtesy of Nick Markakis. </p>
<p id="1OAHK9">The series continues tomorrow night, as <span>Mike Soroka</span> takes the ball for Atlanta to face off against <span>Jarlin Garcia</span>.</p>
https://www.batterypower.com/2018/5/11/17347056/atlanta-braves-miami-marlins-recap-may-11-2018-brandon-mccarthy-ozzie-albiesIvan the Great2018-05-11T18:30:02-04:002018-05-11T18:30:02-04:00GameThread: Braves @ Marlins, 5/11/2018
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<p>Brandon McCarthy vs. Dan Straily</p> <p id="LOxv5Y">Here we go, one more time. </p>
<p id="wQeill">Your anagrams of the day:</p>
<p id="HMkClI"><span>Brandon McCarthy</span> = Many Crotch Brand</p>
<p id="fZlgcI"><span>Dan Straily</span> = Salty Nadir</p>
<p id="XHvFHD">Go Braves!</p>
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https://www.batterypower.com/2018/5/11/17346634/atlanta-braves-miami-marlins-gamethread-may-11-2018-brandon-mccarthy-dan-strailyIvan the Great2018-05-11T16:00:01-04:002018-05-11T16:00:01-04:00Braves re-deploy Flaherty at third in Friday night lineup
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<figcaption>Jim Young-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
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<p>So I guess it’s a platoon for the time being?</p> <p id="O2z1Md">Here’s how the <a href="https://www.talkingchop.com/">Braves</a> line up against <span>Dan Straily</span> and the <a href="https://www.fishstripes.com/">Miami Marlins</a> tonight:</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Friday night <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Braves?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Braves</a> baseball in Miami at 7:10 ET! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ChopOn?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ChopOn</a><br><br>Game Preview: <a href="https://t.co/erhuwxW6jJ">https://t.co/erhuwxW6jJ</a> <a href="https://t.co/82bgWdnRIT">pic.twitter.com/82bgWdnRIT</a></p>— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) <a href="https://twitter.com/Braves/status/995015721489924096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2018</a>
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<p id="fbnkrl"><span>Ender Inciarte</span>, who has hit leadoff, seventh, and ninth this year, will make his second start of the season in the six-hole. <span>Ryan Flaherty</span> gets the start at third base in lieu of Jose Bautista. Given that the Braves are (finally) facing a right-handed starter again, this suggests that at least for the time being, Bautista and Flaherty find themselves in a platoon. Or, it’s just a one-game break for Bautista. Your guess is as good as mine.</p>
<p id="XVQjfy">Every hitter on the Atlanta roster has faced Straily at least once, save Acuña, Culberson, and Preston Tucker. Albies, Bautista, Freeman, and Markakis have all taken Straily deep. </p>
<p id="h0P7vS">The Fish, meanwhile, are using yesterday’s same lineup:</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">The <a href="https://twitter.com/Marlins?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Marlins</a> lineup <a href="https://t.co/Xz0lWJn1Uq">pic.twitter.com/Xz0lWJn1Uq</a></p>— Joe Frisaro (@JoeFrisaro) <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeFrisaro/status/995013797109731330?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2018</a>
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<p id="t6uxfg">Some of their players have gotten a few hacks against McCarthy in the past, but there’s no large history there. The combined 25-man roster has fewer than 25 at-bats against McCarthy, and none have ever taken McCarthy deep before.</p>
<p id="rOl3UG">By my count, this is going to be the 22nd different batting order the Braves have used in 37 games. For the Marlins, they’ve used a whopping 33 lineups in 37 games so far, and no lineup more than twice. So it’s actually somewhat remarkable that they’re using the same lineup on back-to-back days here, which is going to be only the third time this season that that’s happened.</p>
https://www.batterypower.com/2018/5/11/17346038/atlanta-braves-miami-marlins-lineups-may-11-2018-ryan-flaherty-ender-inciarteIvan the Great2018-05-11T14:00:02-04:002018-05-11T14:00:02-04:00Braves go for ninth straight road win, McCarthy eyes bounceback
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<figcaption>Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>The Marlins and Dan Straily stand in Atlanta’s way on Friday night.</p> <p id="pkpIZM">A lot of previously unthinkable things have happened this season. The <a href="https://www.talkingchop.com/">Braves</a> are (still!) first in the division, clinging to a slim half-win lead over the <a href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/">Philadelphia Phillies</a>. Nick Markakis is on a monster tear. <span>Ozzie Albies</span> has more extra-base hits (25) than singles (20). The Braves have an eight-game road winning streak; they’ll try to push that to nine with a win in Miami tonight.</p>
<p id="ZJEYxd">Lost in the shuffle of all the unexpected stuff is that veteran <span>Brandon McCarthy</span> has not had a very good start to his season. If the season ended right now, he’d have posted his worst FIP (aside from a four-start injury-shortened season in 2015) since 2009. McCarthy has suffered poor ball-in-play luck (.342 BABIP-against; an 0.018 underperformance of his xwOBA-against) and fly ball luck (19.2 percent HR/FB-against), but he also just plain hasn’t pitched too well. An FIP- of 116 is problematic, though there’s some hope that with reasonable outcomes on fly balls he can pitch more to the tune of his 98 xFIP-, which would be in line with his 2017 xFIP levels. In short, though, McCarthy’s results have left something to be desired: aside from a couple of blow-ups, he’s basically had relatively decent-but-not-great outings each time. He’s yet to have a scoreless outing, an outing longer than six innings, an outing with more than six strikeouts, or an outing where he doesn’t walk a batter.</p>
<p id="Xdx0LV">All of this kind of came to a head last time out, when he was “blasted” by a procession of dinks and dunks originating from the bats of the <a href="https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/">San Francisco Giants</a>. McCarthy lasted just three and a third, allowing 12 hits (.647 BABIP-against!), one walk, and eight total runs. He did allow a homer and only struck out too. In terms of results, it was by far his worst start of the year (Game Score version 2 of 4!) and his worst start since April 2007, when he allowed six runs, including three homers, in two innings. Anyway, I wont hold that blow-up against him since that entire series was kind of a disaster, but McCarthy also hasn’t shown the kind of contact management that makes his profile work. His wOBA-against and xwOBA-against were in the .290s-.300s in 2017 and 2016; even in his injury-shortened 2015 his xwOBA was only .313. Yet, he’s been allowing a .346 xwOBA and a .364 wOBA to date, and that’s not a recipe for success. Hopefully he’s able to improve on that mark against the <a href="https://www.fishstripes.com/">Marlins</a>.</p>
<p id="Yslb01">Facing the Braves tonight will be one of the Marlins’ more-recognizable names: Dan Straily. Straily has always been somewhat of a mystery to me — he was a popular darkhorse breakout candidate a few years ago due to some great separation between his fastball and changeup and a tendency to get out ahead of certain pitching curves, like pitching to generate fly balls and pop-ups in lieu of the traditional walks-and-strikeouts approach. Despite all that, he didn’t really have good results aside from his 2013 season (which was more average than good) and then another average-y effort last time out. <span>Charlie Morton</span>, he is not, which is what made it all the more confusing when the Marlins traded three prospects for him last offseason. (What’s notable here is that <span>Luis Castillo</span>, one of the prospects traded for Straily, has actually been better and more valuable than Straily since the trade, so it’s basically an “lol Marlins” situation all around, here.)</p>
<p id="9TQHaj">In any case, Straily started his 2018 on the Disabled List, courtesy of an arm injury that was reported as an elbow strain, forearm tightness, and forearm inflammation. Since returning, his results have been straight-up awful. He’s made two starts, lasting just four innings in each. He’s allowed six total runs, three homers, eight walks (!!), and collected just three strikeouts. His FIP- through those two starts is a whopping 267, and his xFIP- is an eye-popping 197. So, if he bamboozles the Braves, you’ll know why. Or, if the Braves mash him into oblivion, you’ll know why. Weirdly enough, the Marlins actually won both of those games, because baseball is dumb and marvelous. Also, Straily has allowed a .491 xwOBA in those two starts, so that’s “no bueno.” It’s an opportunity for the Braves, but don’t be surprised if he bounces back, because no one can probably be as bad he has been for a long stretch without hitting the Disabled List or AAA again.</p>
<p id="9m8Vf7">The Braves have a long history with Straily. They faced him a whopping five times in 2017. The Braves went 2-3 in those games; Straily allowed a total of 14 runs (12 earned) in 25 innings in his outings. The starts ranged from the very good (six and a third innings of four-hit, shutout ball with eight strikeouts) to the very bad (five runs in three innings, with two homers and four walks allowed, in his last start against Atlanta), with three more generic outings mixed in. Straily had only faced the Braves once before 2017, when they pounded him for six runs in 2016 during his <a href="https://www.redreporter.com/">Reds</a> tenure.</p>
<p id="VfICiW">McCarthy, meanwhile, faced the Marlins twice last year as a member of the <a href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a>’ rotation. In May, he allowed one run in six innings; in July, he allowed four runs in four and two-thirds. One of McCarthy’s four career shutouts has come against the Marlins, but that was all the way back in 2013.</p>
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<p id="Phbk3o"><strong>Game Info</strong></p>
<p id="prqK43">Atlanta Braves at Miami Marlins</p>
<p id="XPWzw2">Marlins Park, Miami, FL</p>
<p id="GZ3hKE">7:10 pm EDT, May 11, 2018</p>
<p id="garuMw">TV: Fox Sports South, MLB.tv</p>
<p id="MNoZwV">Radio: 680 AM/93.7 FM, WYAY 106.7, Braves Radio Network</p>
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https://www.batterypower.com/2018/5/11/17343738/atlanta-braves-miami-marlins-preview-brandon-mccarthy-dan-straily-road-winning-streakIvan the Great