Three Cuts: Braves have something AL West leaders don't; Freeman gets his groove back
Taking three cuts after a week that saw the Braves flirt with a dubious spot in history -- and avoid it in resounding fashion -- Freddie Freeman get his groove back, Jhoulys Chacin make a splash and Mallex Smith put together a memorable first few days in the majors.
The overall statistics aren't pretty, as Atlanta is 29th in the majors in batting average at .208, has hit the fewest home runs with three, sits 28th with a collective 5.35 ERA and the minus-25 run differential trails only the Brewers' minus-29. But the Braves have something the AL West-leading Rangers don't: a series sweep as they polished off the Marlins with a 6-5 win in 10 innings Sunday.
Regardless of where this team was considered in the preseason pecking order, few could argue that the first month-plus of the schedule was absolutely brutal, and having to deal with the Nationals' Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg twice apiece and the Cardinals' Adam Wainwright and Carlos Martinez didn't help matters. The Braves found a remedy against Miami -- which, as luck would have it, didn't put Jose Fernandez on the mound.
The Braves' win on Friday kept them from going 0-10 for the second time in franchise history and the first time since 1988, and winning three straight will go a long way toward energizing the clubhouse as they return home.
About that: it's now back to the daunting matchups as they'll face former Brave Alex Wood, Ross Stirpling (who flirted with a no-hitter) and, arguably, the best pitcher in the game in Clayton Kershaw as the Dodgers come to Turner Field. Then, it's the Mets' Matt Harvey, Steven Mats and Noah Syndergaard before the Red Sox follow with Rick Porcello, David Price and Clay Buchholz over that four-game set. The only breaks coming up are that Atlanta doesn't have to face the Cubs' Jake Arrieta or Jon Lester in the last series of the month.
Freddie Freeman wasn't happy when he was benched for Thursday's finale against the Nationals. He had been hitless in his previous four games, though, and batting .080 on the season.
The problem, Freeman would say, wasn't his swing mechanics, but he needed to keep his shoulders looser. Whatever adjustments the two-time All-Star made, they paid off against the Marlins. Freeman went 4-for-11, including a run-scoring double on Saturday and an RBI single Sunday to push his season average to .167. A bounce-back at Marlins Park should come as no surprise as Freeman hit .314/.368/.457 there a year ago.
It's been said time and time again that as Freeman goes, so goes the Braves' offense. While others may have made a bigger overall contribution -- hot-hitting Nick Markakis was 5 for 12 with four RBI and Gordon Beckham and Adonis Garcia had three RBI apiece -- Atlanta put together its highest-scoring series of the new season (18 runs) with Freeman looking like much more of a threat.
"There's a little thunder," manager Fredi Gonzalez said after Saturday's 6-4 win. "It's in the distance, but it's coming. He's getting closer and closer to being the Freddie Freeman we know."
And already, the Braves offense is benefitting from it.
If Chip and Jo -- no, not Chip Caray and Joe Simpson, your voices for the Braves on FOX Sports South and FOX Sports Southeast, but Chip and Joanna Gaines of HGTV fame -- ever want to get out of the Fixer Upper game, Roger McDowell could have himself a second career.
We've seen the Braves pitching coach work his magic with Aaron Harang, Freddy Garcia and Ben Sheets, and now he appears to be doing it again with right-hander Jhoulys Chacin.
He gave up three runs Sunday, but also allowed just four hits and struck out six in 5 1/3 innings and through five, was working on a one-hit shutout. That comes on the heels of tossing six scoreless innings in Washington on Tuesday.
Chacin wasn't necessarily down and out like some of the other arms that McDowell has helped revive, and he is only 28. His best season came in 2010 with the Rockies when he posted a 3.28 ERA over 21 starts and 137 1/3 innings, but in 2014 he struggled mightily (5.40 ERA in 11 starts) and dealt with a shoulder issue. The bulk of his 2015 came in Triple-A, as he started all of four games for the Diamondbacks with a 3.38 ERA.
He's a nugget to chew on via MLB.com's Mark Bowman: against the Nationals, Chacin became the second pitcher in Braves history with at least eight strikeouts on few than 70 pitches, as he threw just 69. Who did he join? Hall of Famer John Smoltz, who did it in 1998 and 2007.
Chacin may ultimately be just a placeholder for the young arms, or potentially a piece they could move at the deadline, but so far he's looking like another veteran arm finding success under McDowell.
Mallex Smith's first MLB steal attempt, the one that left him with a bloody forehead as he was hit by his own helmet, will be hard to forget. Add in that he entered Sunday with just two hits in his first 21 plate appearance, which included eight strikeouts, and he was in need of a lift.
The 22-year-old provided it himself in the 10th inning Sunday with a two-out RBI single to center field off Edwin Jackson to give the Braves the win. That was his first RBI of his career.
Prior to losing Hector Olivera it would have made for an interesting debate for Gonzalez and Co. to decide what to do with Smith when regular center fielder and leadoff hitter Ender Inciarte returns from the disabled list, and who would have made room for Smith to stick around.
But with an elite defender in Inciarte, and Markakis looking more impressive than he did a year ago, Smith joining that duo in left field could give the Braves -- from a purely defensive standpoint -- their best possible alignment in the outfield.
Follow Cory McCartney on Twitter @coryjmccartney and Facebook. His book, 'Tales from the Atlanta Braves Dugout: A Collection of the Greatest Braves Stories Ever Told,' is out now, and 'The Heisman Trophy: The Story of an American Icon and Its Winners' will be released Nov. 1, 2016.
