Battery Power - May 19: Braves 5, Mets 4Your one stop shop for everything Atlanta Braveshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/52890/favicon-32x32..png2021-05-19T22:56:51-04:00http://www.batterypower.com/rss/stream/222101452021-05-19T22:56:51-04:002021-05-19T22:56:51-04:00Acuña’s walkoff blast saves the Braves in 5-4 win over Mets
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<p>#13 got #13 as the Braves notched win #20</p> <p id="KtGtD1">The proverbial “they” say that all’s well that ends well, and while this game certainly ended well, I don’t think I’d describe the rest of the contest as a positive experience. In any case, though, the Braves staved off a sweep and salvaged a game thanks to Ronald Acuña Jr’s walkoff blast to start the bottom of the ninth. Acuña’s 13th homer of the season was really the biggest positive to take away from this game, so here, go and watch it on loop a few times:</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Bottom of the 9th, tie ballgame...<br><br>Take it away, <a href="https://twitter.com/ronaldacunajr24?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ronaldacunajr24</a>!<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForTheA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ForTheA</a> <a href="https://t.co/R2tWZGemTe">pic.twitter.com/R2tWZGemTe</a></p>— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) <a href="https://twitter.com/Braves/status/1395203482274074633?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 20, 2021</a>
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<p id="W6h95m">The way the Braves got there, though, was hardly delightful. Why? I can summarize it. Remember that this was a 4-4 game headed into the bottom of the ninth. Now, look at this image:</p>
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<p id="EoOZix">A .402 xBA is, frankly, insane. (Also, I think the .402 was before Acuña’s homer; I’m not sure Baseball Savant actually updated after the game ended. No matter.) There has literally been <em><strong>one game</strong></em> so far this season (other than this one) where a team compiled an xBA over .400, and it was .403. In that game, the <a href="https://www.crawfishboxes.com">Astros</a> scored 10 runs. In this game, the Braves scored five runs, trailed multiple times, didn’t score until the fifth, and had a win probability as low as 25 percent at one point.</p>
<p id="hZMeZO">So, how did we get from here to there? Well, it went something like this. The first few innings were quiet as Charlie Morton and David Peterson ran into few issues. Both pitchers faced the minimum through three (Morton gave up a leadoff single in the second but then got a double play), but the <a href="https://www.amazinavenue.com/">Mets</a> struck first when Jonathan Villar absolutely obliterated a 1-2 Morton fastball for a moonshot solo homer. The Braves got their first hit in the fourth thanks to Freddie Freeman, but it was immediately erased by a double play ball from Marcell Ozuna. Though Morton retired the next six batters after Villar’s homer, the Braves were down and things weren’t looking great.</p>
<p id="arN1Sw">But, the fifth turned things around, at least for a while. Austin Riley continued his recent spate of torrid hitting with a one-out double. A groundout moved him to third, and the Braves caught a non-break when a very wild pitch from Peterson could have easily scored the tying run... except it also hit the batter. That brought up Guillermo Heredia with two outs and runners at the corners, and he jumped on a high Peterson fastball and slashed it into right for a game-tying hit. Charlie Morton was next, hitting for himself, and he too went after the first pitch, this time a sinker at the knees, and golfed it into center for a go-ahead bloop single. Next was Acuña, who worked a walk. But, it wasn’t just a regular walk: the fourth ball was spiked in the dirt and bounced away, allowing Heredia to score a third run. A hard single from Freddie Freeman chased Peterson for Drew Smith, who got out of the bases-loaded jam by getting Ozuna to hit a hard grounder that, as has always been the case for Ozuna in May when grounders are involved, was gobbled up by a fielder for the third out.</p>
<p id="jKOY5O">Peterson’s night ended with those three runs allowed on the back of a 5/1 K/BB ratio in 4 <sup>2</sup>⁄<sub>3</sub> innings. Morton also cruised through the sixth, but the game was about to get bonkers from there. With Drew Smith still in there, the Braves loaded the bases with two outs on a Riley single, Swanson double, and intentional walk to bring up the pitcher’s spot. The Braves yoinked Morton out of the game (six innings, the solo homer, 8/0 K/BB ratio) in favor of Pablo Sandoval, who hit a ball at 102.6 mph down the left-field line. The Mets weren’t shifted, and the ball was snared at third. Why focus on this? Because of the seventh.</p>
<p id="jC9VcI">With Morton gone, A.J. Minter got the ball. He got two quick outs, but then fell apart. Dominic Smith put a ball in play on a swinging bunt; Minter fielded it and threw it away. He then completely lost control, throwing four straight balls to James McCann, each of which missed in the exact same spot armside and up. After a fifth, more egregious miss to Jose Peraza, Minter threw a fastball at the knees that was sent (we’ve seen this way too many times at this point) on the ground past Riley. With catcher’s speed, McCann couldn’t score, but the Mets were now down just 3-2, with the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position.</p>
<p id="z6SBLD">That was it for Minter, on came Luke Jackson. The Mets pinch-hit with yesterday’s hero, Tomas Nido. (The pitcher’s spot was up because Drew Smith was double-switched in.) Jackson’s first pitch was a brushback slider that was never a strike. Nido swung. He hit it 69.5 mph. It found grass in front of Heredia. The Mets led 4-3. Nido’s ball had basically the same hit probability as Sandoval’s. One was hit 33 mph harder than the other. That one would’ve broken the game open. Instead, the other gave the Mets the lead. </p>
<p id="ojuEL3">Things looked even more grim when the Braves wasted a leadoff walk to Acuña in the bottom of the inning, as new reliever Miguel Castro retired the other batters. But, again, it was actually far more absurd than “the Braves wasted a leadoff walk.” In that half-inning, after that walk, Freeman crushed a ball at 102 mph into the right-center gap. It was caught at the wall by an outstretched glove. Ozuna hit another sharp grounder up the middle; this time it hit Castro, who couldn’t catch it, but was instead able to force Acuña out at second. Theater of the absurd, oh boy.</p>
<p id="sOmVZ3">Chris Martin, who <em>doe</em>s<em> </em>apparently exist, despite not being asked to put out the fire in the seventh, threw a quick 1-2-3 eighth. The Mets then asked Aaron Loup to face R-R-R in the bottom of the inning with a one-run lead, a curious tactical decision perhaps necessitated by the fact that the Mets have like half a roster and then various cardboard cutouts with contracts drawn in crayon at this point. That allowed the Braves to tie the game: Riley once again doubled to right, a Swanson grounder up the middle actually turned into an infield hit instead of an out after it bounced off Loup, and William Contreras sliced a ball to right to score Riley. The Braves were set up well to take the lead, but pooched it horribly.</p>
<p id="jrHl1i">First, Guillermo Heredia was inexplicably asked to bunt, despite facing new reliever Jacob Barnes, who has been awful this season. He could not get the bunt down (duh), and after a protracted battle, went down swinging on the ninth pitch of his PA. Then, in one of the worst decisions I’ve seen so far this baseball season, Swanson decided to try and steal third. He was thrown out for the second out. Pinch-hitter Ehire Adrianza struck out shortly thereafter, and there went that promising opportunity.</p>
<p id="A2QyzE">The Braves lost it because Will Smith couldn’t keep the game tied in the ninth last night. It nearly happened again tonight. Smith started his night by striking out the newest Met, Cameron Maybin. But, Maybin reached on the strikeout as Contreras temporarily lost the ball when it bounced off his shinguard. Smith won a Smith-Smith matchup by striking out Dominic, but Maybin stole second, and also moved to third on a wild pitch. Since you know this game ended in a 5-4 walkoff, you know Maybin didn’t end up scoring. But he almost did, in what would’ve been a killer — with two outs, Peraza hit a very soft, 52.5 mph liner that would’ve been hit over Riley’s head had he been playing in a bit more. But, he wasn’t, that was out number three, and Acuña walked the Braves off on the game’s very next pitch.</p>
<p id="cpml7B">The Braves have a lot of work to do to keep clambering back into the playoff chase. We’ll see what they do against the Pirates in a four-game weekend set that starts tomorrow night.</p>
https://www.batterypower.com/2021/5/19/22445030/atlanta-braves-new-york-mets-recap-5-4-win-ronald-acuna-jr-walkoff-homer-this-game-manIvan the Great2021-05-19T18:50:00-04:002021-05-19T18:50:00-04:00Game Thread, 5/19/2021: Mets @ Braves
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<figcaption>Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>David Peterson vs. Charlie Morton</p> <p id="cNQHMx">Can the Braves avoid a sweep? Will David Peterson have a lengthy, strikeout-filled start, or a quick exit? Can Charlie Morton’s luck turn, and even if it does, will the Braves pull him at the appropriate time? Can Austin Riley’s tear continue? Will Kevan Smith make an appearance? Stay tuned.</p>
<p id="jtt9X7">Also win the game, Braves. Please. </p>
https://www.batterypower.com/2021/5/19/22444646/game-thread-5-19-2021-mets-bravesIvan the Great2021-05-19T17:29:25-04:002021-05-19T17:29:25-04:00Riley moves up to fifth as Braves look to stave off further tribulations
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<figcaption>Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Dansby Swanson drops to sixth</p> <p id="wlxqQt">For everyone that has exclaimed, “Move Swanson down, but hell, at least move Riley <em>up</em>,” I’ve got some good news:</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here’s how the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Braves?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Braves</a> will line up for tonight’s series finale vs. the Mets.<br><br>Presented by <a href="https://twitter.com/TruistNews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TruistNews</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ForTheA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ForTheA</a> <a href="https://t.co/7cO0V7XJ08">pic.twitter.com/7cO0V7XJ08</a></p>— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) <a href="https://twitter.com/Braves/status/1395093215536164867?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2021</a>
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<p id="tBxvkn">This will actually be Riley’s ninth time hitting fifth this season alone, so it’s not really a new direction for the lineup or anything... more of a reversion. Still, this is the first time the lineup has been arrayed in exactly this fashion, and the second time it’s these eight guys (with the first time being yesterday). </p>
<p id="WOOjq0">The top six in this lineup have seen Peterson a few times, thanks to a couple of starts against them last season. Not much to report on that front, though...</p>
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<p id="0XsKUn">As for the Mets, well, they’re really taking their sweet time putting out an official lineup, so we’ll go with this one, and we’ll see if it changes when it’s officially announced.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Mets lineup at Braves tonight as they go for the sweep:<br><br>3B Jonathan Villar<br>SS Francisco Lindor<br>LF Cameron Maybin<br>1B Dominic Smith<br>C James McCann<br>2B Jose Peraza<br>CF Johneshwy Fargas<br>RF Khalil Lee<br>LHP David Peterson</p>— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) <a href="https://twitter.com/timbhealey/status/1395124504020520965?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 19, 2021</a>
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<p id="I6DfVT">This is a pretty novel arrangement for the Mets, who were previously batting Fargas ninth. James McCann also gets his first start in this series. Cameron Maybin, acquired from the Cubs recently, gets his first start as a Met. Meanwhile, Pete Alonso grabs the bench, which might make Charlie Morton’s life a little easier tonight.</p>
<p id="WHYXO9">Not very much familiarity with Morton among this group, as you can see:</p>
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<p id="Uyr0Sq">Anyway, maybe the Braves will actually win a game or something.</p>
https://www.batterypower.com/2021/5/19/22444391/atlanta-braves-new-york-mets-lineups-may-19-2021-austin-riley-dansby-swansonIvan the Great2021-05-19T14:00:00-04:002021-05-19T14:00:00-04:00Braves, Morton will try to clamber upwards against Peterson, Mets
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<figcaption>Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Just remember: mostly dead is slightly alive</p> <p id="uYv42h">After losing the first two games of a home series to a barely-there <a href="https://www.amazinavenue.com/">Mets</a> roster, the Braves are going to have to figure something out fairly quickly if they want to stay alive in the playoff chase. Yes, it’s “only” May, but the Pit of Despair is now more present than looming, and if you can’t get wins against your biggest impediment to a playoff spot when their roster is way, way more diminished than yours, when can you? That’s a question the Braves will hopefully divine an answer to tonight as they try to avoid a sweep, and repeatedly afterwards.</p>
<p id="bVyhjY">Starting for Atlanta will be Charlie Morton, who probably has a lot of questions of his own to hurl heavens-ward. Morton’s actually pitched pretty well, with a 102 FIP- and a 92 xFIP-, but he currently has his lowest strand rate, second-highest HR/FB rate allowed, and third-highest BABIP-against ever, so he has a 125 ERA- to show for his decent pitching. He’s been great the first time through a lineup (2.12 FIP, 2.06 xFIP, sub-.300 wOBA-against), decent a second time (the 25 percent HR/FB stands out), and just purely awful the third time through (more walks than strikeouts), yet the Braves haven’t seemed particularly keen on changing his usage. </p>
<p id="c04DOn">Across his eight outings, he’s:</p>
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<li id="KNCSEv">Given up the tie and the lead the third time through once</li>
<li id="TOdats">Given up the lead the third time through once</li>
<li id="ZCXi6j">Allowed run(s) the third time through without giving up the lead twice (in one, the lead was given up due to a hit by the pitcher earlier in the same inning)</li>
<li id="jVcU9n">Not allowed a run the third time through thrice</li>
<li id="F4ZbhG">Gotten obliterated to the point where he didn’t make it out of the first once</li>
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<p id="ydg1tO">That three-to-seven “hey it’s worked out okay” ratio is not great. </p>
<p id="lmX9UM">A huge source of Morton’s struggles so far have been related to his cutter, which has had the “amoeba” problem you might remember from when Mike Foltynewicz had it afflict his slider in the first part of 2019. Morton doesn’t throw his cutter very often, but its inconsistent shape has resulted in it being absolutely crushed at times, while giving the other team free balls at others. But, it’s hard to say that the cutter has really been a <em>problem</em> given its infrequent usage, Morton’s returned fastball velocity, the continued good work of his curveball, and so on. No, like his teammates, Morton has just been mired in misery he can’t fully control, and hung out to dry by poor tactical decisions otherwise. Like his teammates, and us, we’ll just all hope the worm starts to turn today.</p>
<p id="YdZmw4">Morton’s mound opponent will be David Peterson, who has actually had a similar pretty similar to Morton’s (and the Braves overall) so far. The pitching triple-slash easily illuminates why: 129 ERA-, 109 FIP-, 77 xFIP-. In short, Peterson’s been killing it, striking out nearly 30 percent of the batters he’s faced to give him a K%-BB% of over 20 percent despite a high walk rate. But, he’s also been killed by a crazy-high HR/FB and a low strand rate, so hey, we probably don’t need to rehash this story <em>again</em>. None of Peterson’s pitches stand out, and he’s not averse to walking guys, but the total package has mostly worked so far (but for the stuff he can’t control). </p>
<p id="MGghhw">Delving beyond the summary, Peterson’s 2021 experience has been very erratic. He’s had two wonderful outings, including a 10/0 K/BB ratio start where he allowed just a solo homer in six frames to the <a href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/">Phillies</a>, and his most recent outing, where he pitched into the eighth allowing just two runs and a 9/2 K/BB ratio against the Rays. But, he’s also been some combination of inefficient and shelled, such that he’s lasted four innings or fewer, in three of his seven tries so far. At this point, after struggling with essentially two bullpen games by the Mets, what the Braves are going to do offensively is as much driven by them as any opposing hurler, so we’ll just see what happens.</p>
<p id="i9hIsv">Peterson beat the Braves in his last start against them last year, putting up a 10/4 K/BB ratio while allowing just a solo homer from Adam Duvall. He previously lost a game, his second career start, to them earlier in the season, when he allowed three runs despite an 8/1 K/BB ratio in six innings in early August. In that game, Johan Camargo took him deep, and he walked in a run with his lone base on balls as well. Morton last faced the Mets in 2017, when he was an Astro, missing them entirely last season. </p>
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<p id="M1wuCy"><strong>Game Info</strong></p>
<p id="DgPAT5">New York Mets @ Atlanta Braves</p>
<p id="JiIZ5u">Wednesday, May 19, 2021</p>
<p id="xEByHp">Truist Park, Atlanta, GA</p>
<p id="gEUMMQ">7:20 pm EDT</p>
<p id="4m60IF">TV: Bally Sports Southeast</p>
<p id="aBNLDp">Radio: 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan, WNNX 100.5, Braves Radio Network</p>
<p id="pxfSnz">XM Radio: Ch. 187</p>
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https://www.batterypower.com/2021/5/19/22443637/atlanta-braves-new-york-mets-preview-charlie-morton-david-petersonIvan the Great