Sep 17, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds outfielder TJ Friedl (29) excessive fives shortstop Elly De La Cruz (44) after the victory over the Atlanta Braves at Nice American Ball Park. Necessary Credit score: Katie Stratman-Imagn Photographs The Atlanta Braves will attempt to rebound after blowing a four-run lead in a crucial loss as they oppose the host Cincinnati Reds within the second sport of a three-game collection on Wednesday.
If the Braves (81-70) do not attain the playoffs for the primary time since 2017, the Reds may have performed a significant function. Cincinnati (74-78) has received all 4 conferences this season, with simply two video games remaining within the season set.
The Braves blew a 5-1 lead on Tuesday within the collection opener and fell 6-5 to the Reds. With the Mets routing the Washington Nationals 10-1 and the Diamondbacks dropping to the Colorado Rockies 8-2, the Braves are two video games again of New York and Arizona for the ultimate two Nationwide League wild-card spots.
Accidents would possibly lastly be catching as much as the Braves, who captured the 2021 World Collection and received 100-plus video games in 2022 and ’23. The crew misplaced workers ace Spencer Strider to an elbow harm in April, proper fielder Ronald Acuna Jr. to a torn ACL in Might, shortstop Ozzie Albies to a fractured wrist in July and third baseman Austin Riley to a hand harm in August.
Albies would possibly have the ability to return this weekend after homering in his first rehab sport on Tuesday.
Of their loss to the Reds on Tuesday, the Braves went 2-for-9 with runners in scoring place and left 14 on base, together with the tying run in scoring place within the ninth.
“It is exhausting,” Braves supervisor Brian Snitker mentioned. “We have been speaking about all of it yr, actually. We have been speaking about it earlier than all of the harm bugs began, actually. However what, actually, that is not an excuse. We’re what we’re, we obtained our guys, they usually’re all able to doing the job. It is simply, I believe, about not making an attempt too exhausting and adjusting in some conditions.”
As soon as a candidate for the Nationwide League triple crown, Braves designated hitter Marcell Ozuna has slumped recently, going 26 video games and not using a dwelling run.
The Reds, in the meantime, are having fun with the spoiler function, having received three of their previous 4 video games, all towards playoff contenders. Spencer Steer belted a go-ahead two-run homer within the seventh inning to cap the Tuesday comeback.
“I believe we will hopefully string collectively a extremely good couple weeks right here within the season and have our heads held excessive going to the offseason,” Steer mentioned. “We all know what we’re able to. And after we play clear baseball in all phases of the sport, I believe we’re actually robust to beat. So I believe that is gonna be a giant focus for us going ahead.”
It was Steer’s twentieth homer of the season to associate with his 25 steals. Steer and Elly De La Cruz, with 24 homers and 64 stolen bases, are the primary Cincinnati teammates since Barry Larkin and Eric Davis in 1996 to succeed in 20-plus homers and 20-plus steals in a season.
The Braves will ship rookie right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach (6-7, 3.73 ERA) to the mound on Wednesday. Schwellenbach earned a win in his newest outing, permitting 4 hits and two runs over six innings in a 6-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday. Schwellenbach has by no means confronted Cincinnati.
The Reds will counter with certainly one of their hottest pitchers, right-hander Jakob Junis (4-0, 2.73 ERA), making his fourth begin as a part of the injury-riddled Cincinnati rotation. Junis allowed three hits and one run over 5 innings on Thursday in a no-decision towards the St. Louis Cardinals.
Junis is 0-1 with a 6.23 ERA in three profession video games (two begins) towards the Braves, all whereas he was with the San Francisco Giants the earlier two years.
–Subject Degree Media
