In a victory over the Red Sox, the Braves displayed the strength in their numbers. They showed that, as talented as their stars are, their other players can also do their jobs and lead the club.
With a team effort, Atlanta beat Boston, 4-2, on Tuesday at Truist Park. The Braves are 21-12.
Five observations:
1. The final highlights were two runs in the eighth inning: One on Marcell Ozuna’s single, the other on Orlando Arcia’s ground ball. Ozuna drove in the go-ahead run and Arcia added to the lead, so both deserve credit.
Before them, though, the unsung heroes had their moments.
Jarred Kelenic hit his first home run in a Braves uniform. Aaron Bummer kept the game tied with two massive strikeouts. Adam Duvall saved the game with a highlight catch in left field.
“The team needs them,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “We need everybody, all 26 that we have. We need them to contribute if we’re going to do anything. It’s good to see all those guys being a part of a really fine game.”
Let’s go through it all.
2. Upon entering the game, Bummer got a ground ball – except it hit off of him and the tying run scored. This was unfortunate luck, as that grounder might’ve been a double play had it not bounced off Bummer during its path.
“I mean, I was sitting there thinking, I was like, I knew it went straight back at me. If I got it, I was going straight home. And I looked behind me, and Ozzie (Albies) was standing right behind me – so I was (upset) I didn’t get out of the way, because Ozzie was standing right there,” Bummer said.
Then Bummer dazzled.
The bases were loaded. The game was tied. Bummer then had two battles – one with Jarren Duran, another with Rafael Devers.
Bummer struck out Duran on six pitches. Then came a seven-pitch fight with Devers, who is one of baseball’s elite hitters. On the seventh pitch, Bummer got Devers to chase a sweeper below the zone.
“I think it was just trusting (catcher Travis d’Arnaud), the fingers that he was throwing down,” Bummer said. “And really just kind of continuing to attack. It was being able to execute pitches in and being able to just continue to execute pitches.”
To this point, Bummer has experienced his struggles. He entered this appearance with a 4.76 ERA. But Bummer did a terrific job here.
Could we see more of this?
Two guys who know him well think so.
From Reynaldo López, Bummer’s former teammate with the White Sox, through interpreter Franco García: “Definitely had the privilege to watch him pitch over the last few seasons. I know what kind of pitcher he is and I know what he’s capable of, and I think that’s who we saw tonight. I think as he continues to pitch and he’ll keep getting more confidence, the pitcher you saw tonight will be the pitcher that you continue to see moving forward.”
From Joe Jiménez, Bummer’s current teammate who saw him as an opponent for years: “Absolutely. I saw him when I was in Detroit, against Chicago a lot, and I saw him (be) nasty. I saw a pitcher that dominated righties and lefties. I know the pitcher he can be. It happened to me last year, too, starting the year, just fitting in. You’re just trying to get comfortable. It’s hard when you get on a team (to) just do good right away. It’s really hard. I think he’s just fitting right where we need him to be.”
3. When he saw Tyler O’Neill connect with the ball, Jiménez thought it was destined to find grass.
“I mean, obviously I missed my spot because it wasn’t supposed to be in the middle-middle (part of the strike zone),” Jiménez said. “But yeah, when I saw that ball hit, I thought it was going to get in between the two outfielders.”
Then Duvall robbed his former team with a tremendous play in the eighth inning, on a ball that seemed certain to score a run and give Boston a lead.
Duvall raced to his left, slid and made a terrific grab. No run. Inning over.
“That’s awesome,” Snitker said. “Really good play. People don’t realize that ball’s coming out of them lights right there, and that’s tough. And he’s been out there before a lot in that field. That was a huge one obviously, a huge play, probably a game-changer.”
The Braves’ offense is dangerous and often mounts comebacks, but in its current state, who knows what would’ve happened? This catch could’ve saved the game for Atlanta.
4. It had been since June 9, 2023, and a span of 232 at-bats, since Kelenic had hit a home run. In the time between, he fractured his foot, returned to action, then experienced the second trade of his career.
On Tuesday, the moment came: Kutter Crawford threw Kelenic a juicy cutter, and he turned on it and sent it to the Chop House for a two-run homer. The blast gave Atlanta a 2-0 lead.
“He’s been great,” Snitker said. “He’s handled everything. He’s continued to believe in himself and work. It was good to see the power. I’m sure that felt really good to him. That’s why we like him. You see what he can do, what he can bring. We see it in the outfield, defensively, speed on the bases and everything. Hopefully tonight’s a nice stepping stone for him.”
5. López pitched well – until the final few hitters. This was a tough end to an otherwise terrific start.
He had rolled through 5 1/3 innings, but couldn’t get the final two outs to reach six. And the Red Sox didn’t hit him.
No, he walked three batters. Three walks in one inning after issuing 11 walks in 35 innings before that. And Arcia’s error, which allowed former Brave Vaughn Grissom to reach, didn’t help.
The Red Sox scored a run on López’s third sixth-inning walk. Snitker went out to get him.
“I think it was a little humid tonight,” López said. “In the sixth inning, I just think I tried to do too much. I really wanted to finish the sixth and I wanted to finish it strong, so I feel like I put maybe a little more pressure on myself to finish that way when I should’ve just stayed calm and pitched my game.”
But López’s teammates rewarded a performance in which he kept his team in the game and threw well.
This is a team game, and the Braves exemplified that in Tuesday’s win.
Stat to know
12-4 - The Braves are a MLB-best 12-4 at home this season. In 2023, they went 52-29 at Truist Park, which was the third-best home record in the majors.
Quotable
“Yeah, it’s great to see how the team carries itself, how the team gets along and how we fight until the very last out. I know things haven’t been going our way, but fortunately, we were able to just rally and keep fighting.” - López on the team’s mentality
Up next
On Wednesday, Chris Sale will start for the Braves versus his former team. First pitch is at 7:20 p.m.
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