Braves Host Four Games With The Brew Crew

After splitting a pair of games with the Tampa Bay Rays, the Atlanta Braves welcome the Milwaukee Brewers to Turner Field.  Atlanta (19-20) has definitely had its ups and downs during the first part of their season.  The offense has performed, the rotation has been hit or miss, and the bullpen has been a work in progress.  Milwaukee (15-26) really stumbled out of the gate and have already had to change managers.  Craig Counsell now leads the Brewers from the dugout after the front office moved on from Ron Roenicke.

Milwaukee is in the bottom third of most team offensive statistics including third most in strikeouts (335) and last in team batting average (.229).  The Brewers haven’t fared any better from the mound as the staff’s ERA is 4.59 and the team has allowed the most earned runs in the National League (184).  Even fielding the ball cleanly has been a struggle for the Brew Crew as Milwaukee has the worst fielding percentage in the NL (.977).  Their 35 errors trail only the Oakland Athletic’s 44 in all of baseball.

Tonight’s starters are Julio Teheran (3-1, 4.33 ERA) for the Braves and Matt Garza (2-5, 5.72) for the Brewers.  Julio pitched decently in his last start against Miami, going 5.2 innings with one earned run, one walk and five strikeouts.  Although the sheer amount of hits Teheran is giving up is unsettling, he has walked three or fewer batters in his last four starts.  It could be worse as Garza’s last start against the Mets was dreadful.  He surrendered ten earned runs and ten hits, walking three in 3.1 innings pitched.

Friday night’s starters are Alex Wood (2-2, 3.83 ERA) and Wily Peralta (1-5, 4.32 ERA).  Wood won his last start against the Fish, going 7 innings and allowing just one earned run.  His walk totals have been minimal for Wood all year as he hasn’t issued more than three free passes all season.  But outside of his start in Miami last weekend, Alex hasn’t pitched deep into ball games, usually exiting well before the seventh inning.  That doesn’t bode well for a young and tired bullpen.  Peralta doesn’t walk many guys either but he has given up at least seven hits in seven of his first eight starts on the year.

The red-hot Shelby Miller (5-1, 1.33 ERA) will be coming off a near no-hit bid in his start Saturday afternoon when the newest Braves ace squares of with Brewers RHP Mike Fiers (1-4, 4.75 ERA).  Miller has pitched sensationally since coming over from the Redbirds in the Jason Heyward trade.  Would the Cards have given up on Shelby had they known he would become this type of starting pitcher in just Year Three?  I think Braves Country can all agree on this: Shelby Miller’s starts for the Atlanta Braves are now must see television.

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In the series finale, Mike Foltynewicz (2-1, 5.32 ERA) will face off with fellow up-and-coming starting pitcher Jimmy Nelson (2-4, 3.73 ERA).  Both Folty and Jimmy have been highly touted pitching prospects for some time now.  Though both young righthanders have shown signs of inconsistency, it will be interesting to see if this is the first of many starts between these two elite prospects.

Atlanta took care of the Florida professional teams these last five games going 4-1 against Miami and Tampa Bay.  Milwaukee has been a major disappointment thus far and this Atlanta Braves team that has hovered around .500 for most of the season needs to come up big in this series.  The Braves need to at least split the four-game set.  Atlanta could definitely take three of four and if the Braves bullpen improves, a home weekend sweep of the Brew Crew is not out of the realm of possibilities.  Let’s Go Braves!