Taking Care of Business
The series in Houston - before it began - would’ve been considered a success with merely a series win. That’s not to say the Braves aren’t capable of sweeping any team, anywhere. But in the American League, Houston is the bully on the block.
Bringing with them Darius Vines, Reynaldo Lopez, & Max Fried, Atlanta showed up to Space City with bad intentions for the hometown team. Houston is riddled with injuries right now, but you’d be hard-pressed to find sympathy among us Braves fans who just lost our ace for the entirety of the season. With scheduled starters of a minor league call-up, a reliever turned starter, & the former staff ace who’s in the last year in a Braves uniform, the offense put the team on their back while Brian Snitker had quite possibly his best bullpen management series since the World Series title.
In the series premier, Darius Vines twirled a gem. After surrendering a run in the 1st inning, him & the bullpen shut the door and locked it until it was time to turn the lights off in the stadium. Darius threw 4.2 total, striking out 4, issued three free passes, and allowed four hits. Johnson & Minter both notched holds over two combined innings of work, giving up three hits and striking out two (both by Minter). Jesse Chavez worked one inning of no-run ball, striking out one and walking one. It was Aaron Bummer however that earned the win during his two outs of work.
The Atlanta offense played with their food until the 9th, when they put the game out of reach with four runs in the half-inning. Ozzie played a portion of the game with the broken big toe that’s now got him on the 10-Day IL.