Atlanta Braves Get Vintage Julio Teheran in Loss
By Kit Anderson
The Atlanta Braves may have lost on Wednesday night but Julio Teheran showed encouraging signs pitching well at home. Teheran went seven strong innings taking an undeserved loss.
Watching Julio Teheran pitch for the Atlanta Braves last night brought back memories of how he pitched in his early seasons with the team. He was efficient and had his best stuff going seven innings and giving up only two runs.
One of those runs could have been avoided with better defense played behind him. Teheran didn’t get any run support and took a loss after his great outing.
Still, even in a Braves loss the fact Teheran was pitching so well was encouraging. Watching him pitch well at home was something Braves fans have been waiting to see.
His struggles at SunTrust over the last two seasons have been well chronicled. The fact he was able to put together such a nice outing at home shows it has been a mental obstacle for Teheran and not a sudden inability to pitch.
The start lowered his ERA to 4.03 and another good start would push it back to the respectable numbers we expect from Julio.
Teheran will need to continue to produce if he hopes to hold off trade rumors and the Braves young farm system of arms.
The Braves ended their four-game set with the Mets with a split and lost their division lead. They trail Washington by a half game and will play the Nationals now in four games.
It will be a key series for a young team looking to show the Nationals they are no longer the only threat in the East.
The Braves are going to have to ignite the team with their offense to help carry a struggling bullpen. The Nationals meanwhile will look to put the young Braves back in their place and take control of the division lead.