Braves Offense Stymied In Loss To Cardinals

Aug 23, 2013; St. Louis, MO, USA; Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman (5) hits a one run single off of St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Adam Wainwright (not pictured) during the sixth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

It was another struggle at the plate tonight for the Atlanta Braves as they were only able to muster six hits and a single run in a 3-1 loss to the Cardinals in St. Louis on Friday night.

It was a very good pitching performance by Braves starter Kris Medlen tonight, who was, unfortunately, on the wrong side of the scoreboard again tonight. Medlen went six innings and allowed three runs (all earned) on six hits, walked one, and struck out three. Medlen also went on to retire 12 Cardinals in a row before allowing a lead off walk to Matt Carpenter in the sixth inning. The blow that did the Braves and Medlen in was a mistake change-up thrown to Matt Holliday who proceeded to send it deep in to the St. Louis night to give the Cardinals a 2-1 lead.

Justin Upton was ejected in the 6th inning after grounding out to second base. While it appeared that Upton was mad at himself, home plate umpire Paul Nauert felt that those said words were directed towards him and then ejected Upton. Replay showed that Upton, although frustrated with the strike zone tonight of Nauert’s, did not directly say anything to Nauert. I can imagine how frustrated Upton must have been after being ejected for being mad at himself. But…whatever.

The one shining spot for the Braves tonight was, in fact, Freddie Freeman. Freeman delivered a base hit to tie the game at one a piece and at that time it seemed like the Braves were getting a little momentum in their direction. Freeman is now hitting .426 with 29 RBIs with two outs and runners in scoring position. It’s amazing how he has not been in the conversation (at least) of MVP talks.

Well there you have it, folks. Braves look to bounce back tomorrow at 6:30 against the same St. Louis team. Julio Teheran will be taking the mound against Shelby Miller. Hopefully the offense will be up to the task, as the Braves are looking for ways to win without Heyward atop the lineup.