The anemic, lethargic Atlanta Braves offense has turned a complete 180 degrees leading to a five game win streak and hopes of grabbing a playoff spot. Justin Upton and the Braves lineup banged out fourteen hits Tuesday night leading to an 11-3 victory over the struggling Pittsburgh Pirates who have now lost seven in a row.
The one guy who gets lost in this offensive outburst was Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Aaron Harang who pitched 8.1 innings allowing only three runs on nine hits without walking a batter and striking out four. Harang also jump started the Braves onslaught in the 2nd inning with a 2-out RBI single giving the Braves a 1-0.
It was another milestone night for Braves left fielder Justin Upton as tonight marked his 1,000th career game. He celebrated the achievement in a big way going 2-4 with 5 RBI’s, three of which came with one swing. A 3-run homer in the 3rd inning to give Harang and the Braves a 4-0 lead. Upton’s 24th homerun of the season also extended his hit streak to 10 games. During that span Upton is batting .382 with 6 XBH’s and 14 RBI’s.
Jason Heyward singled home B.J. Upton in the 4th inning to give the Braves a 5-0 lead, but the Braves added insult to injury in the 5th inning when they batted around and scored 5 more runs giving the Braves a 10-1 lead.
The big 5th inning started with Chris Johnson reaching first base on a fielding error by shortstop Jordy Mercer. Gattis followed with a single and Andrelton Simmons loaded the bases with a walk. B.J. Upton knocked Pirates starter Francisco Liriano out of the game with an RBI single that ricocheted off the right field wall. After a pitching change Jason Heyward added a 2-run single and Justin Upton finished off the inning with another 2-run single.
Pirates’ reliever Brandon Cumpton was the only positive performer for Clint Hurdles and his staff. Cumpton came in for Liriano in the 5th and stayed in for the remainder of the game saving the rest of the Pirates bullpen. The only blip Cumpton encountered was the 9th inning mammoth homerun Evan Gattis hit to give the Braves their eleventh run. Aside from that Cumpton kept the Braves lineup at bay for the remainder of the game and kept the Pirates bullpen from getting worn out in a losing cause.
It’s been a struggle for the Pirates as of late but you thought tonight might be the night they get back on track as their leader and most valuable player Andrew McCutchen returned to the lineup. Sometimes we forget how hard it is to hit a baseball and with McCutchen being out a couple weeks it will take him a few games to get his timing back. With that said, McCutchen didn’t help the Pirates cause tonight as he went 0-4 with a strikeout and an inning ending double-play.
The win Tuesday night brought the Braves win streak to five games and sixth win in the last seven games. Unfortunately, during this stretch the first place Washington Nationals have won eight in a row preventing the Braves from gaining any ground in the division. It’s a long season and the Braves still have time to battle with Washington for the division crown.