Atlanta Braves Clippings

Saturday, June 13, 2015

Braves.com

Braves strand 10 in loss to Mets

By Mark Bowman and Anthony DiComo / MLB.com | June 12th, 2015

NEW YORK -- At least for now, Atlanta's long-standing dominance over the Mets appears to have come to an end. John Mayberry Jr. and Wilmer Flores each homered on Friday, backing Bartolo Colon in the Mets' 5-3 win over the Braves at Citi Field. It was the Mets' fifth consecutive win over the Braves, marking their longest single-season streak against their division rivals since 1989.

The win improved the Mets to 22-11 against National League East opponents, including a 16-5 mark at home. They are 11-18 vs. everyone else.

"We've just played well against them so far," said Mets outfielder Michael Cuddyer, who contributed an RBI double. "I've always said the only way to win the division is to win in the division."

Flores' second-inning homer off Braves starter Alex Wood gave the Mets an early lead they would never relinquish. Mayberry added some cushion with a two-run shot off Wood, who gave up five runs -- four earned -- over 6 1/3 innings.

The run support was just enough for Colon, who surrendered only two of his own but needed 100 pitches to complete six innings. The 42-year-old struck out three, walked two and allowed six hits -- and no, he did not record any hits of his own.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Going deep: With Lucas Duda receiving a routine day of rest, Flores became the first Mets shortstop to hit cleanup since John Valentin in 2002. He took to the role immediately, hitting his 10th home run to break a team-leading tie with Duda. The solo shot also tied him with St. Louis' Jhonny Peralta for the big league lead among shortstops.

"I'm just going out there and trying to hit the ball hard," Flores said. "For me, it doesn't matter where I'm hitting."

Wood's unique mistakes: Wood had never allowed more than one home run in any of his previous 46 career starts, and he entered Friday with the second-most pickoffs since the start of 2014. The young southpaw got in trouble with the fastballs that Flores and Mayberry deposited over the outfield fence, but it was his errant pickoff throw to second base that put Mayberry in position to score on Eric Campbell's decisive sixth-inning groundout.

Markakis' missed opportunities: Nick Markakis grounded into two double plays, including a game-ender, while going hitless in three at-bats with the bases loaded. His first double-play groundout came after reliever Alex Torres issued consecutive walks to load the bases in the seventh. Colon escaped a two-run, 30-pitch fifth by getting Markakis to ground out with the bases loaded.

"I was just not sticking to my plan," Markakis said. "I have a plan going up there. When you change your thought process in the middle, it can really hurt you. It got me tonight."

QUOTABLE "A couple years ago, those balls don't go out. They just barely make it to the party deck. But guess what? That party deck is there for both teams." -- Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez, referring to Citi Field's former -- larger -- dimensions

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS In beating the Braves, Colon improved to 9-4 in 13 starts this season. He has recorded decisions in 25 consecutive starts dating back to last year, matching Dwight Gooden in 1994 for the longest streak in franchise history. Through an interpreter, Colon called his record "an honor."

WHAT'S NEXT Braves: Shelby Miller will take the mound when Atlanta and New York resume their three-game series on Saturday afternoon at 4:10 ET. Miller has allowed one run or fewer in five of his past seven starts.

Mets: Jacob deGrom (7-4, 2.42 ERA) will look to continue piling up strikeouts when the Mets continue their series with the Braves in Saturday's 4:10 p.m. ET game at Citi Field. Undefeated in his last five starts, deGrom has whiffed 44 batters over that 36 1/3-inning span.

Wood still grappling with growing pains

By Mark Bowman / MLB.com | @mlbbowman | 1:22 AM ET

NEW YORK -- Left-hander Alex Wood has spent the past month distancing himself from the mechanical issues that plagued him during the season's first six weeks. But over the course of this week, he has shown that he is still susceptible to frustrating growing pains.

Such was the case when Wood exited Friday night's 5-3 loss to the Mets evaluating the physical and mental mistakes he made in the process of surrendering a career-high two homers and making one costly errant pickoff attempt at second base.

"I thought it was a battle the whole night," Wood said after allowing six hits and five runs -- four earned -- over 6 1/3 innings.

Coming off Sunday's abbreviated, five-inning stint against the Pirates, which concluded when he was ejected for arguing balls and strikes after the top of the fifth inning, Wood seemed to be in a groove, notching two strikeouts in a perfect first inning. But he opened the bottom of the second by allowing Wilmer Flores' 10th home run of the season.

Wood had given up just one home run in his previous 61 innings, but he wasn't as upset about the location of the fastball Flores belted as he was about the decision to throw a 2-1 inside fastball that John Mayberry Jr. sent over the left-field wall for a two-run homer in the fourth inning.

Making matters worse was the fact that there's some history against Mayberry, who is now 6-for-15 with two homers against Wood.

"Those are the most frustrating [mistakes] because that is what I pride myself on, being the most prepared to win that chess match," Wood said. "That particular at-bat, I didn't."

Although the home runs were costly, the Mets did not tally their decisive run until the sixth, when Mayberry scored on Eric Campbell's groundout. Mayberry, who had singled with one out and advanced on a walk, then took third when Wood's pickoff throw to second base sailed into center field -- much like closer Jason Grilli's did during Monday's loss to the Padres.

"I wouldn't say it's a high-risk play, because we're pretty good at it," Wood said. "But it's just something that happened. It's a physical mistake. I don't know [if he would have been out] if it had been a good throw. But it's something I like doing, and it won't keep me from doing it again."

Wood surrendered just one earned run in each of the three starts he made from May 16 to June 1, but as he has allowed seven earned runs in the 11 1/3 innings completed during his past two starts, he has been reminded that he's destined to endure some growing pains as he experiences his first full season in a big league rotation.

"It [stinks] that we came up short," he said. "But it's one of those things where I tried to give the guys everything I had."

Handed chances, Markakis can't cash in

By Mark Bowman / MLB.com | @mlbbowman | 1:47 AM ET

NEW YORK -- Braves right fielder Nick Markakis can only hope that what he experienced during Friday night's 5-3 loss to the Mets proves to be one of those rarities that's inevitable if you spend an extended period at the Major League level.

Markakis grounded into two double plays, including a game-ender, while going hitless in three at-bats with the bases loaded.

"It was just some bad at-bats by me today, especially in some big situations," Markakis said. "I was second-guessing myself up there a couple times. You've got to kind of eliminate the mental aspect of it. I think I was thinking up there too much, and you get yourself into trouble when you do that."

Markakis has batted .294 with a .385 on-base percentage and .392 slugging percentage since moving into the No. 4 spot on May 15, but 61 games into the season, he remains homerless. Equally alarming are the struggles he has recently had in run-producing situations.

Since assuming cleanup duties to provide three-hole hitter Freddie Freeman some protection, Markakis has batted .250 with runners in scoring position. He has recorded just three hits in his past 17 at-bats in those situations.

Markakis is also now hitless in seven at-bats with the bases loaded this season.

"That's the way this game is sometimes," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "But he's a professional, and if you keep getting him in those situations, he's going to split a gap."

When Freeman drew an eight-pitch walk off Jeurys Familia to load the bases with one out in the ninth, Markakis was in prime position to erase all that had gone wrong earlier in the evening. Instead he rolled over a 99-mph sinker and watched the Mets turn the game-ending double play.

"That last inning I was just looking for a good pitch," Markakis said. "I got a good pitch, and sometimes it's hard to hit 99. We gave it our best shot, and I failed."

Markakis had earlier ended a bases-loaded threat when he concluded Bartolo Colon's 30-pitch fifth inning with a groundout. Two innings later, after Alex Torres issued consecutive walks to load the bases with none out, Markakis grounded into the first of his rally-killing double plays, though he did plate a run in the process.

"I swung at a bad pitch against Torres with the bases loaded after him walking a couple guys," Markakis said. "I should have been looking for a ball over the plate. Instead I was trying to do too much. It came back to bite me today."

Gonzalez, Collins weathering job situations

Braves, Mets managers on last year of contracts, but both appreciate time they've had

By Barry M. Bloom / MLB.com | @boomskie | June 12th, 2015

NEW YORK -- Fredi Gonzalez of the Braves and Terry Collins of the Mets are managers under pressure to perform.

Despite both their teams having played way above expectations in the National League East thus far this season, they are both working on the last year of their contracts. Their future beyond the last game of 2015 is, at best, murky.

Both men say they have yet to talk contract extension with their respective general managers -- John Hart of the Braves and Sandy Alderson of the Mets. Both say there are still under evaluation and wouldn't have it any other way. Both have the kind of experience and disposition to weather the pressure inherent in their unique situations.

"It's not even on my mind. I'm the oldest manager [at 66], so it shouldn't even be on my mind," Collins told MLB.com on Friday night prior to his Mets playing the Braves at Citi Field. "Waking up tomorrow should be the only thing on my mind."

"I handle it the same way as always," Gonzalez said in a one-on-one interview. "I come in, do my job, and I don't even worry about that kind of stuff. I've been lucky enough. I didn't think I'd even have one chance to manage in the big leagues, but I've had two, and now I've gotten in nine years. I do my job to the best of my capabilities, and let's see what happens."

This was supposed to be a rebuilding year for the Braves as they prepare to move into a new suburban Atlanta ballpark in time for the 2017 season. Hart traded away such stalwarts as Justin Upton, Craig Kimbrel, Melvin Upton Jr. and Jason Heyward, yet the Braves went into action on Friday night in third place, and at 29-31 are only 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Mets.

The Mets, despite a plethora of injuries, have played nip and tuck with the Nationals, having fallen no further than three games out of first all season. And even that was on April 11. They've been as many as four games up.

Given those surprising team performances thus far, by all rights both men should have their respective jobs for at least next season and perhaps well beyond.

Gonzalez said he isn't stressing about that. He had two goals when he took over the Braves in 2011 from the just-retired and now Hall of Fame manager Bobby Cox. It was his second gig as a manager, having just been released after four years with the Marlins.

"When I was going in, my goals were to make sure my kids got through school and that I owned my own house," he said. "And I've done both. Everything from here on in is just gravy."

When Collins took over the Mets, also in 2011, it had been 12 years since he last managed in the big leagues, his tenure with the Angels having ended before the 1999 season had concluded. Collins said the goal this time around was to enjoy himself. Collins also managed in Japan during his time between Major League jobs, which was more than a decade.

"I look at it completely different," said Collins, who also managed the Astros for three years just before embarking on those nearly three seasons in Anaheim. "In fact, when I got this job, I told my wife that I was going to enjoy this, that I was going to have some fun with it.

"The first jobs were about trying to show everybody you deserve it, that you're good enough. All those things we strive to try to do. Not with this with one. I don't have to apologize to anyone."

Gonzalez said his last chat about the future was during Spring Training with Hart, who took over for Fran Wren as president of baseball operations after last season. Hart was a consultant in the organization before that, and Gonzalez said he and Hart work well together.

The Braves have had some success under Gonzalez and have been to the postseason twice, losing a Wild Card Playoff Game in 2012 to the Cardinals, and in '13 a National League Division Series in four games to the Dodgers. Last year's 79-83 finish was his only sub-.500 season.

"In all my years, and I told this to John, I've never had it so good between a manager and general manager, never had a better relationship," Gonzalez said. "A couple of times he's come in and said, 'Hey, it's your call. What do you want to do? It's your team.' And that's good. We get judged for winning or losing, for getting into the playoffs. I'm fine with that."

Collins said his job situation hasn't come up with Alderson since last season. The Mets have yet to enjoy a .500 season during the Alderson-Collins tandem, coming closest at 79-83 in 2014. The two men have worked well together.

"When last year he told me he wanted me to come back, he said, 'You know, there's going to be a lot of discussions about it because you'll be on your last year,'" Collins recalled. "And I said, 'We'll worry about it when the season is over. A lot of things seem to take care of themselves.'

"I'm fine. I have no bills, and I'm happy as a lark. Do I want to do it? Absolutely. I love it. I have a blast doing it. These guys, these players keep you young."

All-Star hopefuls Miller, deGrom square off

By Joe Trezza / MLB.com | 12:45 AM ET

Saturday's matchup between the Mets and Braves at Citi Field features two young right-handers vying to become teammates later this summer on the National League All-Star team.

Both Atlanta's Shelby Miller and New York's Jacob deGrom enter the contest in the top six in the NL in ERA, with Miller's 1.84 good for second league-wide. deGrom has lowered his mark to 2.42 by winning four of his last five starts, and he's been the most consistent young arm in the Mets' up-and-coming rotation.

Miller, meanwhile, has been a revelation since being acquired from St. Louis in the offseason. He's allowed one run or fewer in seven of his 12 starts and held opponents to a .188 batting average. His only shaky outing came on June 2, against Arizona, but he rebounded by holding the Padres to one run over seven innings last time out.

Things to know about this game:

• The Mets haven't faced Miller since 2013, when he was mainly a fastball-curveball pitcher. Late last season he started throwing a sinker, which he credits for much of his 2015 success. Miller also possesses a cutter now, and he uses those two pitches to accumulate a ground-ball rate of more than 50 percent.

• Mets manager Terry Collins sat Travis d'Arnaud on Friday, feeling that the recently reinstated catcher could use a day off after starting two consecutive games since returning from the disabled list. d'Arnaud should be back on Saturday, as should first baseman Lucas Duda, who was given a breather on Friday as well.

• Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez doesn't play outfielder Jonny Gomes much against right-handed pitching, but he was in the lineup on Friday against Bartolo Colon. Expect the left-handed-hitting Kelly Johnson in action on Saturday against deGrom. Johnson was activated earlier this week after missing almost a month with a strained oblique.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Braves quotes after Friday’s 5-3 loss to Mets

By David O'Brien - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

NEW YORK — Braves quotes from Nick Markakis, Alex Wood and Fredi Gonzalez after Friday night’s loss to the Mets.

**NICK MARKAKIS

On failing with bases loaded three times

“I don’t know if that’s happened to me. Just some bad at-bats by me today, especially in some big situations. Second-guessing myself up there a couple of times. You’ve got to kind of eliminate the mental aspect of it; I was thinking up there too much. You get yourself into trouble when you do that.”

You mean thinking about it too much after not coming through twice in those situations earlier?

“No. Just not sticking with my plan. I have a plan going up there. You change your thought process in the middle of it, it can really hurt you. It got me tonight. Swung at a bad pitch from Torres with the bases loaded, after him walking a couple of guys. I should have been looking for a ball over the plate, instead I was trying to do too much. It came back to bite me today.

“And the last time, in that last inning, I was just looking for a good pitch. I got a good pitch; sometimes it’s hard to hit 99 (mph). I gave it my shot, and we failed, or I failed. We move on, I move on, and we look to win the game tomorrow.”

**FREDI GONZALEZ

Nick the guy you want up there in that situation, with bases loaded in ninth?

“Absolutely. Both of those guys (Markakis and Freddie Freeman, who walked before Markakis GIDP). I thought Free put up one heckuva at-bat against him. With Nicky, I felt pretty good. Not that he’s going to run the ball out of the ballpark; I thought he was going to split a game, get at least two guys in.

“Even Cunningham started that inning with a nice line drive, Ceciliani made a nice play on it. But we had really, really good at-bats throughout that ninth inning. Throughout the game, also. I thought their add-on runs – the home runs are the home runs, but their add-on runs there in the sixth and the seventh, they were big for them, obviously.”

On the irony of Markakis being one of your best hitters the past month or more, and goes 0-for-5 including three times with bases loaded

“That’s the way this game is sometimes. But he’s a professional. You keep getting him in those situations, he’s going to split a gap.”

On Wood’s errant pickoff throw leading to unearned run in sixth

“It happened early in the week against the Padres with Grilli. We have two middle infielders who are really active, and they do a nice job holding those runners. We put on a pick and we just didn’t execute it.”

On Wood’s performance

“He battled. It was a situation there in the sixth, where we had (runners at) first and second with two outs, and I’m choosing to let him hit there because of our situation in the bullpen, and he’s pitching really good enough, let him have it. I don’t want to cover three or four innings out of the bullpen in that situation, but I felt that good about him that I let him hit there.”

“It’s a good outing. Believe it or not, a couple of years go those balls don’t go out (before they brought fences in at Citi Field), they just barely made it to the party deck (beyond the fence). But the party deck’s there for both teams. But he did fine. He gave us an opportunity to win a ball game.”

On losing again to Colon

“He’s tough on us. He throws the ball over the plate and the ball goes everywhere – it cuts, it sinks, it rises. We’ll try to figure him out.”

**ALEX WOOD

Other than two mistake pitches on homers, and errant pickoff throw, did you feel like you were in control most of the night?

“I thought it was a battle the whole night. The pitch to Wilmer was just a pitch I left over (the plate). The pitch to Mayberry, just bad pitch selection on my part; I probably shouldn’t have tried to go in there. But we grinded, man. Sucks we came up short, but it’s one of those things, I tried to give the guys everything I had. Just like they do. They set a high standard every single night that we go out there, from start to finish. Sometimes it really stinks on my end when I wasn’t able to quite do enough tonight.”

On the pitch selection to Mayberry

“We tried to go with a fastball in. I probably left it middle-in. I probably should have thrown something different there, but hindsight’s 20-20.”

Mayberry has six hits including a couple of homers in about 15 at-bats against you

“If I make the pitches that I need to, I should handle him. Tonight he just took advantage of a mistake.”

On lessons learned from an outing like this

“I can accept a physical mistake. The mental mistake to Mayberry, I wouldn’t call it a growing pain, I just would call it a mental mistake. And that’s what bothers me, because I pride myself on being the most prepared and winning that chess match….”

Do you beat yourself up over the errant pickoff throw to second?

“It’s hard to beat yourself up. I wouldn’t say it’s a high-risk play, because we’re pretty good at it. It’s just something that happened. To me that’s a physical mistake. I don’t know if he’s out or now with a good throw, but it’s something I like doing, and it won’t keep me from doing it again, that’s for sure.”

Mets, Colon hand Braves 7th loss in 10 games

By David O'Brien - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

NEW YORK — Three times Nick Markakis came up with bases loaded Friday night, and not once did the Braves’ cleanup hitter come through.

Markakis grounded into an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the ninth as the Mets held on for a 5-3 win to open a three-game series at Citi Field.

“I don’t know if that’s happened to me,” said Markakis, who went 0-for-5, left nine runners on base, and twice grounded into double plays with bases loaded. “Just some bad at-bats by me today, especially in some big situations. Second-guessing myself up there a couple of times.

“You’ve got to kind of eliminate the mental aspect of it; I was thining up there too much. You get yourself into trouble when you do that.”

Markakis came in with a .305 overall batting average, but with bases loaded he’s now 0-for-7 with no RBIs this season.

The Mets didn’t have a hit with a runner in scoring position until the seventh inning against the Braves, but it didn’t much matter, since two of their first three hits sailed over the outfield fence.

Braves starter Alex Wood allowed as many home runs (two) in the first four innings as he had all season.

It was the seventh loss in 10 games for the Braves (29-32), who slipped to 3 ½ games behind the National League East-leading Mets. The Braves have lost 12 of 17 games between the teams going back to July 7.

The Braves made things interesting, for sure, in the ninth, after a Jace Peterson walk and Cameron Maybin single brought career Mets nemesis Freddie Freeman to the plate with one out against closer Jeurys Familia. He took some mighty cuts and fouled off a few pitches before drawing a walk that loaded the bases once again for Markakis.

“I thought Free put up one heckuva at-bat against him,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “With Nicky, I felt pretty good. Not that he’s going to run the ball out of the ballpark; I thought he was going to split a game, get at least two guys in.”

Instead, for the second time Friday he grounded into a bases-loaded, 4-6-3 double play, this one a game-ender. Markakis also grounded into a double play in the seventh with none out, after Alex Torres had issued consecutive walks to Maybin and Freeman and was clearly having trouble finding the plate.

“I have a plan going up there,” Markakis said. “You change your thought process in the middle of it, it can really hurt you. It got me tonight. Swung at a bad pitch from Torres with the bases loaded, after him walking a couple of guys. I should have been looking for a ball over the plate, instead I was trying to do too much. It came back to bite me today.

“And the last time, in that last inning, I was just looking for a good pitch. I got a good pitch; sometimes it’s hard to hit 99 (mph). I gave it my shot, and we failed, or I failed. We move on, I move on, and we look to win the game tomorrow.”

One run scored when he grounded into a double play in the seventh to cut the lead to 4-3, and Juan Uribe grounded out to the pitcher to end the inning. The Braves were 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position.

The Mets cushioned their lead with a run in the seventh on two hits, including Michael Cuddyer’s two-out double off reliever David Aardsma.

Wood (4-4) was charged with six hits and five runs (four earned) in 6 1/3 innings, with four walks and six strikeouts. The fourth run he allowed was unearned after Wood’s errant pickoff throw at second base in the sixth inning. The left-hander tried to catch Mayberry off guard, but the throw sailed past second baseman Peterson into center field, moving runners to second and third and allowing Eric Campbell’s groundout to move the lead back to two runs, 4-2.

After the Mets took a 3-0 lead on Wilmer Flores’ leadoff homer in the second inning and John Mayberry Jr.’s two-run homer in the fourth, the Braves scored twice in the fifth to cut the lead to 3-2. But they let ancient starter Bartolo Colon (9-4) off the ropes in that inning when they didn’t score again despite having two in scoring position with one out.

Colon, 42, who had a 6.44 ERA in his previous five starts, limited the Braves to six hits and two runs in six innings and improved to 3-0 in three starts against them this season. He had two walks (both intentional) and three strikeouts Friday, and has issued just one other walk in six starts (41 innings ) against the Braves over two seasons.

Wood was six years old when Colon began his career in 1997.

“He’s tough on us,” Gonzalez said of the stocky right-hander, who’s 4-2 with a 3.07 ERA in his past six starts against the Braves. “He throws the ball over the plate and the ball goes everywhere – it cuts, it sinks, it rises. We’ll try to figure him out.”

The Braves also failed to score after Uribe’s leadoff double in the sixth, when A.J. Pierzynski followed by popping out and Jonny Gomes struck out. Colon intentionally walked Andrelton Simmons to bring up Wood, and the Braves weren’t about to pinch-hit for him in the sixth inning of a one-run game, not with his pitch count low at that point (74) and given the well-documented struggles of their majors-worst bullpen.

Wood tried to sneak a two-out bunt for a base hit, and nearly did it, the ball rolling an inch or so foul just before it stopping rolling up the third-base line. He ended the inning with a comebacker to Colon.

Mayberry’s homer off Wood with one out in the fourth inning came on a 90-mph fastball with the count 2-1, and Flores’ second-inning homer came on an 88-mph fastball with a 1-1 count. Mayberry also walked and singled in the sixth inning, and has six hits and two homers in 15 career at-bats against Wood.

Colon had faced two batters over the minimum through four innings, allowing only a single and hit batsman in that span, before the Braves opened up the fifth with three consecutive singles by Pierzynski, Gomes and Simmons. Wood hit a potential double-play grounder to shortstop Flores, who dropped it and had to settle for one out at second base, with the Braves’ first run scoring on the play.

Peterson followed with an RBI double to the base of the right-field wall to cut the lead to 3-2, and the Braves still had two runners in scoring position (Wood was held up at third base on Peterson’s double). Maybin struck out, and Colon intentionally walked Freeman to bring up Markakis with bases loaded and two out.

Markakis hit a comebacker to Colon to end the inning and strand three in what was then a one-run game.

Mets 5, Braves 3

By David O'Brien - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

How the game was won: The Mets built a 3-0 lead on homers by Wilmer Flores in the second inning and John Mayberry Jr. in the fourth, then held off the Braves for a 5-3 win in a series opener at Citi Field. The Braves went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position, letting Mets starter Bartolo Colon off the hook a couple of times on the way to their seventh loss in 10 games. Nick Markakis failed to get a single RBI in three chances with bases loaded, including a game-ending double-play grounder.

Number: 2. Home runs allowed by Braves starter Alex Wood in the first four innings Friday, which equaled the number he allowed in his previous 11 starts this season. Wood (4-4) was charged with six hits and five runs (four earned) in 6 1/3 innings, with four walks and six strikeouts.

What’s next: It’ll be a matchup of aces when the Braves and Mets play the second game of a three-game series Saturday at 4:10 p.m, as Shelby Miller (5-2, 1.84 ERA) faces Mets right-hander Jacob deGrom (7-4, 2.42).

Braves’ bullpen struggles ‘like Groundhog Day’

By David O'Brien - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

NEW YORK – June wasn’t halfway done yet, and already Braves relievers had five blown saves and five losses for the month before Friday night’s series opener against the Mets.

They had a 5.10 ERA in June to increase their majors-worst bullpen ERA to 4.75 before Friday.

“It happens around the same point in the game, too,” said manager Fredi Gonzalez, whose Braves relievers frittered away a 4-1 lead in the eighth inning Thursday against the Padres and lost 6-4 in 11 innings. “It’s like Groundhog Day.”

Thursday’s loss was the eighth for the Braves in games they led after six innings, one more than they lost in the entire 2014 season (62-7).

Considering the Braves were only 2 ½ games behind the National League East-leading Mets before Friday, it’s not a stretch to say they would lead the division with merely below-average bullpen performance instead of the majors-worst relief work they’ve gotten so far.

The Braves’ staff as a whole also had a majors-worst .278 opponents’ average allowed in close-and-late situations, along with a majors-worst 14 homers surrendered in those situations

Simmons stops hands-first slides, needs work on feet-first form

By David O'Brien - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

NEW YORK – Overshadowed by a couple of Andrelton Simmons’ recent hard slides, and the Padres’ assertion that he intentionally slid into their catcher’s leg on a play at the plate Tuesday, is this positive development from the Braves’ perspective: At least he’s not sliding hands-first.

The two-time Gold Glove shortstop broke a pinkie sliding head-first as a rookie in 2012, and made Braves officials cringe plenty of other times sliding hands-first — or head-first, as some refer to it — in 2013 and 2014. Simmons said he finally abandoned that style of sliding at the behest of the team and his own realization that it was risky.

“I try to stay away from (hands-first slides),” he said. “I mean, I’ll still do them, but very, very rarely. If I do 10 (slides) I might do one or two that are going to be (hands-first).”

Simmons said he didn’t think he had slid hands-first once this season.

“We’ve taken the head-first slide away from him, a long time ago,” said Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez, who forgot that Simmons actually slid head-first multiple times in 2014. “I don’t know when’s the last time he slid headfirst. I begged him (not) to, especially at first base. Remember when he used to do it at first base all the time?”

Simmons remembers. And for a long time, he couldn’t stop himself from doing it, even though he’d been asked to avoid sliding head-first if at all possible. He finally got past the point where he was able to overcome his instincts to dive toward the base.

“It’s not worth it,” Simmons said. “Try to stay on the field as much as I can. I have a better chance to stay on the field if I can save my fingers. I could still hurt my ankle, I mean, but … On a cold day, I can still feel (discomfort) in my pinkie, from the first time I hurt it. Not pain, but I can feel lit, in one spot.”

Now, about the ankle. Simmons’ feet-first sliding technique leaves plenty to be desired. Until he develops better technique it might not be much safer than the hands-first sliding, except that he’s at least protecting his valuable hands and cannon-strong arm.

The Braves want him to work on his sliding to avoid the kind of late, violent slides he’s made a few times this season, when it looked like he might sprain an ankle or knee, or worse, from the force with which he slid into the base.

“We need to get him better at it,” Gonzalez said, “not because it’s a dirty slide, but because you don’t want him to get hurt. There’s been a couple of times when he slides that you (cringe). And believe me, he’s not doing it maliciously. I don’t think the play at the plate (against the Padres) was anything malicious. By the way, you (Padres’ Derek Norris) are a catcher. I was a catcher. Every once in a while you’re going to get a nick, or someone’s going to slide in hard, or whatever.

“But my biggest reason to try to work him (on sliding) – which is hard; I mean, when are you going to do it? He’s got to play the game. But we’ve got to addresss that, because I fear he’s going to hurt himself. Slides late, doesn’t know how to slide.”

Simmons said, “Still working on it (feet-first form). That’s OK.”

Braves’ C. Johnson getting used to not play much

By David O'Brien - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

NEW YORK – Chris Johnson was out of the lineup again Friday for the series opener the Mets, which no longer came as a surprise to the Braves third baseman. He’s become a platoon player at third base and plays only sporadically since the Braves see so few left-handers.

Johnson, who two years ago led the National League batting race for much of the season, had only 64 official at-bats in 25 games (16 starts) through 60 team games before Friday, including five starts – four at third base, one at first base — in 15 games since a nearly four-week stint on the disabled list.

He had 42 at-bats – and a .167 average – against right-handers, and those at-bats aren’t likely to increase much as long as Juan Uribe stays healthy. If the Braves face a lefty, Johnson is almost certain to be in the lineup. If they don’t, he’s unlikely to get in the game until a lefty reliever enters.

It’s a bit of an awkward situation, as it’s no secret the Braves have tried since last fall to trade Johnson, who was signed to a three-year, $23.5 million contract extension by the previous Braves general manager, Frank Wren, just over a year ago. That extension didn’t kick in until this season.

“I don’t know about my situation,” Johnson said. “I show up, and when I’m in there, I’m in there. When I’m not, I’m not, and I know if a lefty comes – I know my role – lefty comes in the game and there’s a spot where they need me to hit in the pitcher’s spot or anybody else, I’m on the alert.”

The Braves traded for the veteran Uribe on May 27, and he’s become the primary third baseman, since the Braves face right-handers at least five or six out of every seven games.

Johnson had only eight at-bats and two starts in the Braves’ past seven games before Friday, going 2-for-8 with a solo homer and three strikeouts. Since returning from the DL on May 27 – the same day Uribe joined the Braves – Johnson was 5-for-21 with two RBIs, no walks, eight strikeouts and one error.

If a contending team, particularly one with a good-sized payroll and money to spend, has a need for a hitter who can do some damage against lefties, there’s at least a decent change that Johnson could be traded before the July 31 trade deadline. He knows that, though he doesn’t talk about it publicly.

He hasn’t been a distraction whatsoever in the clubhouse, hasn’t complained about his role since it became apparent what that role would be.

As long as the Braves play him almost exclusively against lefties, there’s a good chance Johnson’s stats will remain attractive in a niche role. He was hitting a modest .266 overall with four doubles, a homer, a .314 OBP and .375 slugging percentage. But against lefties, Johnson was 10-for-22 (.455) with a .478 OBP and .636 slugging percentage.

If, say, Cole Hamels is traded to a contender in the West, another big-budget contender in that division might suddenly find Johnson quite an attractive and affordable option. In the meantime, Johnson has begun to get adjusted to his role. And he concedes it’s not been easy.

“Yeah, it’s hard to keep the timing,” he said. “It’s hard on both sides, too. When you’re out there on defense – you can take all the ground balls you want, but you get into game speed and it’s just different. It’s tough. It’s a grind. It’s like everybody at-bat is a pinch hit, even if you’re starting.

‘But I’m good (mentally). I’m fine. I’m over the frustration or getting mad about it. In my role I know what I’m here to do. If I can help out that’s what I’m going to do. I know I can hit lefties real well. Until something changes, that’ll be my role.”

Braves, Peterson preach athletic diversity

By Steve Hummer - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

It required but the slightest nudge the other day to get Jace Peterson and Cameron Maybin talking some gentle garbage about their basketball skills.

So, who wins 1-on-1?

The speedy 6-foot-3 outfielder, who quit the Roberson High (Asheville, N.C.) basketball team his senior year, just 15 points shy of a career 1,000 points?

Or the 6-0 second baseman, a three-sport all-state athlete in Louisiana (small school), who you just know had a little Matthew Dellavedova in him?

“Come up to my crib in Asheville and we’ll see. I’ve got a nice little court there. I’ve got a (championship) belt and everything there, too,” Maybin said.

“I’m taking that belt back to Louisiana,” Peterson clucked.

There was general agreement on one thing: “Nobody (in their baseball circle) could beat us 2-on-2,” Peterson said.

Having fellows on the payroll who are generally athletic — and know it — would seem to be a good thing when the workplace is a stadium. But sports can be so short-sighted. Kids get confined to a single game. They become specialists before they lose their last baby tooth. And miss out on the rhythmic flow of the games changing with the seasons, as well as the opportunity to develop other skills and varied muscles.

Baseball is especially guilty of monopolizing its young, locking the children into year-round high-dollar programs with the thinking that the only way to achieve a life of major league bliss is through countless after-school reps.

Here we pause to mention that Peterson made it to the baseball apex despite not playing in a single such select program. “We wanted Sundays free to go to church,” said his father, Scott Peterson.

The just-completed draft drills extraordinarily deeply, fracking its way through 40 rounds this year. Hence the headline in the satirical online “Onion” — “Report: 87 Per Cent of Americans Unaware They Have Been Chosen in Later Rounds of MLB Draft.”

But in the great grey mass of names, you can discern a bit of a pattern for the Braves.

Among their first-rounders, pitcher Mike Soroka played hockey (goal tender) before he started baseball and infielder Austin Riley was a high school soccer player/football kicker.

Third-round pitcher Anthony Guardado also was a defensive back at Nogales High in California.

By the time 30 rounds had passed, the Braves were daring to try to pick the pocket of various SEC football programs, almost heresy in these parts. They chose two wide receiver signees as outfielders — D.J. Neal (South Carolina) and Terry Godwin (Georgia).

This was no accident or coincidence. Diversity of athletic experience has become a legit component — one of many — to the Braves’ scouting philosophy.

Brian Bridges, installed late last year as the scouting director, said so.

The multi-sport players, particularly the football guys “have been knocked down and you get back up. It’s just not vanilla, playing baseball every day,” Bridges said

“They tend to adapt more; they can handle it better; they can deal with failure better because you’re going to fail in this game.”

The manager won’t argue.

“I believe in guys who play multiple sports,” Fredi Gonzalez said. “You don’t get burned out on baseball. And they’re good athletes.”

One other sport in particular has his respect.

“I think there is a mental toughness to a football player, there’s a little bit different mind-set, especially if they play college someplace. You can tell the toughness,” Gonzalez said.

Here’s where we get back to Peterson. The Braves didn’t acquire him from San Diego in December as part of the Justin Upton trade just because he had the distinction of being a ball-hawking defensive back at McNeese State. But that didn’t hurt.

The toughness showed itself when the Braves sat him out earlier this month with a bruised thumb. To get him to miss two games, the Braves “just about had to put him in a straight jacket,” Gonzalez said.

More important, Peterson, with only 27 games of major league experience before this season, has slid in fairly seamlessly into the role of leadoff hitter. At second base he has paired well with shortstop Andrelton Simmons.

Scott Peterson, who coached his boy in baseball, can see now the same approach he encouraged at the small private school in Lake Charles, La. “We wanted him to have a football mentality in baseball. There was not a ball he thought he couldn’t get to. And at the plate, he had a bulldog mentality,” he said.

To think, back in high school, if he were to rank his sports, Peterson would have gone, in order, basketball-football-baseball. He kind of had to grow into putting baseball on top (or not grow enough for the other sports, whatever the case).

He played all three, and ran some track, too. “He loved it whenever a new season came along, and he hated to see the old season go,” his father said.

Shopping for college, Peterson was looking for someplace he could compete in more than one sport, that was a requisite. He got small college offers for all three. He settled on the football-baseball perfecta at McNeese.

Might he have been farther along in his baseball career had he concentrated just on that? Who knows? If he went that hard at baseball, he just as easily could be on his second shoulder surgery by now.

This much Peterson does know — and pay attention, baseball fathers out there: When one day he settles down and has a family, his kids can play any number of sports they desire.

“Every sport is kind of a different competitiveness; it brings out something else in you. I’d recommend it to anybody’s kid.”

So, listen up junior, if you don’t put down that glove once in a while, how are you ever going to grow up to be another Jace Peterson?

Braves ‘pen woes have kept team from 1st place

By David O’Brien

NEW YORK – By now you are fully aware of the degree to which Braves relievers have struggled in recent weeks, so we’ll not belabor that point. But allow me to present to you a stat o two that brings home just how costly those late-innings meltdowns have been:

The Braves have already lost more games in which they led after six innings (eight) than they lost in all of the 2014 season, when they went 62-7 in such games. Think about that. Eight losses. Just cut that in half and the Braves are in first place today, 1 ½ games ahead of the Mets.

Instead, Atlanta is 2 ½ games behind the NL East-leading Mets entering tonight’s opener of a three-game series between the teams at Citi Field.

The Braves have a majors-worst 4.75 bullpen ERA, and their staff as a whole has a majors-worst .278 opponents’ average allowed in close-and-late situations, along with a majors-worst 14 homers allowed in those situations.

The Braves are two games under .500 after 60 games, which is better than most people predicted they’d be after trading Craig Kimbrel on the eve of opening day, following the offseason trades of Justin Upton, Evan Gattis and Jason Heyward. But the trade of Kimbrel, coupled with the 80-game PED suspensions for hard-throwing Arodys Vizcaino and lefty Andrew McKirahan, plus the spring-training shoulder injury to lefty Josh Outman, a free-agent signee, have left the Braves bullpen in even worse shape than any of us could’ve imagined entering the season.

We were lulled into a false sense of security when the ‘pen started out so strong, with rookies Cody Martin and Brandon Cunniff making it looking way easier than it’s supposed to be in their first stints in the big leagues, and setup man Jim Johnson appearing to have regained his pre-2014 form, and Jason Grilli converted every save opportunity while barely allowing a run in the first part of the season.

Bur reality has hit this team like a ton of bricks. Opposing teams developed a book on Martin’s tendencies. Cunniff has continued to pitch well for the most part, but has given up some critical walks and hits. Johnson has become erratic and at times looks like the guy who struggled so mightily with two teams in 2014. And Grilli has become a walk-a-tightrope closer more often than not for the past month.

Luis Avilan has been solid for the most part, way better than many of his critics seem to believe judged on comments. But the rest of the Braves’ relievers? Whew. It’s been brutal.

They hope this weeks’s additions of free agents David Aardsma and lefty Dana Eveland can help stem the tide, and the Braves believe that Vizcaino and McKirahan will be nice additions in July when their drug suspensions end. So might sidearmer Peter Moylan, who is at Triple-A trying to regain his form 14 months after a second Tommy John surgery.

Will it be enough? Probalby not. The Braves are going to probably have to decide if they make a serious move at an accomplished reliever or two before the July 31 trade deadline, if they hope to turn a beleaguered bullpen into a competitive one. Whether they will or not probably depends how they do in the next few weeks, since there aren’t many relievers available right now.

That’s a Catch-22 of sorts, of course – wait a few weeks, by which point the Braves could be 7-8 games back instead of a 2-3, if the ‘pen keeps blowing up the good work of the offense and starting pitchers. And if they do fall that many games back, I wouldn’t expect them to be buyers at the deadline.

Hang on. It’s going to get interesting, one way or another, in the coming weeks.

Just realized, I guess I did belabor the point about the ‘pen, huh?

• Important series: The Braves need to win a couple of games in this series to avoid losing ground, obviously. And to do so, they need to reverse a couple of recent trends.

They are 3-6 despite a .296 batting average and 44 runs in their past nine games, mainly because they have a 4.88 ERA in that span, with a disproportionate amount of the runs charged to the bullpen along with multiple blown leads.

The good news for ATL: The Mets are 5-8 with a 4.30 ERA in their past 13 games, having batted .253 and averaged fewer than four runs per game in that span. They’ve given up seven or more runs in five of their past 12 games.

But here’s the other trend that needs to be turned around: The Braves were swept in an April 21-23 series at Citi Field, and they’re just 5-11 in their past 16 games against the Mets. Atlanta scored three or fewer runs in 13 of those 16 games.

• Tonight’s matchup: It’s young Alex Wood against ancient Bartolo Colon, a rematch of their April 12 game when Colon got the win.

Wood is 4-0 with a 2.15 ERA in seven road starts, but 0-3 with a 6.00 ERA (and .333 opponents’ average) in home road starts. He’s lasted five or fewer innings in each of his past three home starts, and the Braves scored a total of two runs while he was in those games, including none while he was in the past two. On the road, Wood has lasted 6 2/3 or more innings in five of his past six starts, including seven, seven and eight innings in his past three.

The Braves have scored four or more runs while he was in five of his seven road starts, and he’s averaged just over six runs per nine innings pitched on the road compared to 2 ½ runs per nine at home.

Wood has a solid 3.51 ERA and .255 opponents’ average in his past four starts against the Mets, with 24 strikeouts and seven walks in 25 2/3 innings. But he’s 0-1 in those games, and the Braves scored two or fewer runs while he was in each of them. That includes the 4-3 loss April 12 against Colon in Atlanta, when Wood allowed three runs in 6 2/3 innings and Colon allowed three runs in seven innings and got the win.

Wood is 3-1 with a 2.41 ERA and .281 opponents’ average 33 2/3 innings over his past five starts, after going 1-2 with a 4. 32 ERA and a .313 opponents’ average in 33 1/3 innings over his first six starts. He’s allowed only two homers all season.

Against Wood, Michael Cuddyer is 3-for-5 with a homer, John Mayberry Jr. is 4-for-13 with a homer, Juan Lagares is 3-for-15 with a homer, and Lucas Duda is 2-for-10.

Meanwhile, Colon’s fortunes have turned in the other direction. The 40-something righty is 2-3 with a 6.44 ERA, .289 opponents’ average in his past five starts, after going 6-1 with a 3.30 ERA and .251 opponents’ average in his first seven starts including two April wins against the Braves.

Colon is 6-2 with a 2.48 ERA in eight career starts against the Braves, including 3-2 with a 3.09 ERA in five since the beginning of the 2014 season. Colon had 28 strikeouts and just one walk and one homer allowed in 35 innings over those past five starts against the Braves, all of them quality starts, though he did allowed three earned runs in each of the past four.

His other three starts against the Braves came in 2002, when Alex Wood was 11 years old.

Against Colon, Jonny Gomes is 8-for-24 with three homers, Andrelton Simmons is 8-for-15, A.J. Pierzynski is 14-for-53 (.264) with two homers, Freddie Freeman is 7-for-16, Nick Markakis is 9-for-35, and Kelly Johnson is 2-for-13 with five strikeouts.

Bethancourt’s mistakes behind plate lead to two San Diego runs

By Jeff Schultz

This shouldn’t be taken as a suggestion that one of the Braves’ most touted prospects is going to be a bust. But should the Braves be worried about Christian Bethancourt?

It’s one thing for Bethancourt to be struggling offensively in his first full season (.206 batting average, which actually went up 10 points after getting two hits Thursday against San Diego). But the Braves’ lost to the Padres 6-4 in 11 innings as much because of Bethancourt’s poor play at catcher as another bullpen collapse or Julio Teheran’s bad eighth inning.

• A passed ball by Bethancourt with the bases loaded allowed San Diego to score its first of three runs in the eighth inning and narrow the Braves’ lead to 4-2. Bethancourt now has four passed balls in only 26 games this season.

“It’s my job to catch the ball and I didn’t. The ball got by, they scored the run and I have nothing to blame it on … just me,” he said.

• Later in the inning, with the bases still loaded and the score 4-3, Bethancourt was called for catcher’s interference when the Padres’ Cory Spangenberg swung the bat and it tipped Bethancourt’s glove. Spangenberg was awarded first base and Yonder Alonso came home from third to tie the game 4-4.

“I could hear it in the dugout — I don’t think it was any question .. it was catcher’s interference,” manager Fredi Gonzalez said.

Bethancourt’s impending arrival convinced the Braves to deal Evan Gattis in the winter and, to some degree, played a role in not making an aggressive offer to keep Brian McCann in free agency two years ago. The Braves have enough other holes on this team. They can’t afford to have their young catcher giving games away.

Braves prospect Jose Peraza adapts to change

By Phillip Suitts - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Over the past two seasons, Braves elite prospect Jose Peraza changed positions twice, moved down a spot in the batting order and saw the level of competition rise.

But Peraza’s production hasn’t faltered.

With Gold Glove-winning shortstop Andrelton Simmons under contract with the Braves until 2020, last year Peraza moved from shortstop to second base. He went from high Single-A to Double-A by the end of the season.

Then less than three weeks ago, Peraza made his first start in center field because of the emergence of second baseman Jace Peterson in Atlanta. While Peraza worked out in center during spring training, he’s learning the position on the fly, said Brian Snitker, manager of the Triple-A Gwinnett Braves. Already, Peraza’s route running has improved.

“He’s getting better by the game,” Snitker said. “He still has a lot of things to work on. He’s far from a finished product.”

The defensive transition isn’t the only challenge Peraza faces. At the lower levels, Peraza saw a steady diet of fastballs, but in Triple-A he sees more nuanced pitchers with off-speed pitches. On Wednesday, Peraza even faced a knuckleballer, Norfolk Tides right-hander Eddie Gamboa.

After batting leadoff last season, Peraza has moved to the No. 2 spot. Through all the changes, Peraza has remained consistent at the plate. As of Thursday, he was batting .282 with a .323 on-base percentage.

“He’s able to hit the ball to all fields,” said Gwinnett hitting coach John Moses, who coached Peraza at the Braves’ Double-A affiliate last season. “We’ve been working on some things in his approach and with his hands. He’s going be a pure hitter. I think he’s got surprising power, and I think as he gets older that power is going to show.”

Peraza’s power hasn’t manifested itself in Triple-A yet; he’s slugging .354 after he compiled a .441 slugging percentage last summer. But through an interpreter, catcher Jose Yepez, Peraza said the defensive switch to center hasn’t affected him at the plate.

“When you are put into a different position you have to learn a lot of different things and a lot of that rolls into your mind throughout a whole ballgame and even prior to the game,” Moses said. “But I think he’s a good enough athlete to overcome all that.”

Peraza feels more comfortable at second base and said the transition to center field is harder than the move to second base. But the change didn’t blindside Peraza. He was told during spring training that he might play center this season, Peraza said.

On May 27, Peraza started in center, his first official appearance at the position. Since then, he’s split time between second and center. Perez started at second Wednesday, and he likely will play in center over the next few games, Snitker said.

“With his speed he profiles as a center fielder more than a big, hairy power-hitting guy on a corner,” Snitker said. “He profiles as a center fielder and has the athleticism to probably execute that.”

As a former shortstop, Peraza has the arm strength to play center, but if he starts playing the position full-time he’ll have to adjust his throwing motion. Peraza still throws from an middle-infielder arm slot. But the Braves haven’t tried to tinker with his mechanics yet since he’s still spending time at second.

“He’s made a couple of really nice throws,” Snitker said. “That’s not going to be a big deal.”

Away from the field Peraza lives with Yepez, who interprets the coaches’ instructions for Peraza. But Peraza’s English is improving. He answered a question about his defensive preference Wednesday in English.

Improving his English is one more challenge Peraza faces. But he’s taken all the changes in stride. While his transition to center field is far from complete, he doesn’t appear flustered by the new set of circumstances.

After seeing him adapt to other situations, the Gwinnett coaching staff believes he can make the adjustment.

“He’ll make that transition pretty easy,” Moses said. “He’s done a great job thus far, and we’re happy with his results thus far. Hopefully he continues in the right direction.”

Ex-Braves: Gone but not forgotten

By Mike Luck - For the AJC

Updates on former Braves players around the majors:

Jason Heyward, OF

St. Louis Cardinals

Heyward, who didn’t start Tuesday and batted seventh Wednesday, hit .238 in the past week and is batting .251 this season. With just 17 RBIs, he’s on pace for 46 this season (he had 58 last season).

Craig Kimbrel, P

San Diego Padres

His much-anticipated return to Atlanta resulted in two saves in two attempts in four games. Kimbrel has 15 saves and a 3.91 ERA this season. He has given up 21 hits and walked nine in 23 innings.

Dan Uggla, 2B

Washington Nationals

He had only four at-bats in the past week, but managed two hits, bumping his average to .217. Uggla, who once had 36 homers and 82 RBIs for the Braves, has one homer and 12 RBIs.

Evan Gattis, OF-DH

Houston Astros

Gattis, who was the 704th player drafted in 2010, has 12 homers and 38 RBIs. But he hit only .179 in the past week, dropping his average to .226, 37 points below last season.

Justin Upton, OF

San Diego Padres

He had a quiet four-game series with the Braves, going 2-for-12. Upton is hitting .194 in June after a scorching May in which he batted .343. He has not hit a home run since May 24.

Brian McCann, C

New York Yankees

He finally seems comfortable with New York and his average is benefiting, rising to .264 with nine homers and 38 RBIs. McCann hit .412 in the past week.

Tim Hudson, P

San Francisco Giants

He gave up eight hits in five innings (with four earned runs) Wednesday, but still got a win. Hudson is 4-5 with a 4.60 ERA and will be 40 years old July 14.

Jeff Francoeur, OF

Philadelphia Phillies

He hit .333 and had seven RBIs in the past week. Francoeur, playing for his seventh major league team, is hitting .264 with four homers and 20 RBIs.

Melvin Upton Jr. OF

San Diego Padres

He’s had only five at-bats (no hits) since he was added to the roster Monday and may not see much playing time after San Diego activated outfielder Wil Myers on Thursday.

David Hale, P

Colorado Rockies

The Marietta native is 2-0 with a 4.12 ERA and has earned a spot in the rotation. Hale has 14 strikeouts and has not walked a batter this season (19 2/3 innings).

Turner Field is one of Atlanta's big Olympic successes

By Williams McFadden

Turner Field, formerly Centennial Olympic Stadium and soon to be formerly home of the Atlanta Braves, is a "huge success."

That's according to WBUR's Curt Nickisch, and he's talking about the stadium's transformation — and, more broadly, about the very smart way that transformation was managed by the city following its role as host of the 1996 Olympic Games.

In a recent three-partseries for WBUR, Nickisch reviewed Atlanta's games in light of Boston's potential 2024 bid.

"In Atlanta, almost across the board, people say the Olympics changed their city for the better," he wrote. "Some go so far as to say the Games transformed Atlanta, especially downtown."

The new stadium was a cornerstone of that.

Nickisch quoted one recent study: "No venue built for a major sporting event since has been more effective than Turner Field."

This is what worked: The city built a "no-frills" stadium and, immediately after the games, converted it with $200 million of private money.

And fans remember it fondly.

"I feel like [Turner's] still got life, you know,” Dalton Beal told WBUR. “And it’s my childhood. I grew up coming to Turner Field to watch the Braves play, and it’s tough to see it go.”

Of course, Atlanta's legacy as Olympic host is more complicated than the story of one stadium triumphantly remaking itself into another kind of stadium.

The Braves move is similarly nuanced: The team has said moving to Cobb brings it closer to the heart of its fan base.

"We’ve played 18 great years [at Turner]. We probably would be here a lot longer,”Mike Plant, the head of business operations for the Braves, told WBUR. “We had another vision to create a mixed-use development, and over a period of years we just couldn’t reach an acceptable arrangement with the ownership entity, the rec authority, the city of Atlanta and the county."

As the Braves' SunTrust Park continues to take shape in Cobb County, Turner Field's fate remains unwritten.

"Never forget for all the future years that we are able to enjoy this stadium,” Braves President Stan Kasten said in April of 1997, at the home opener.

Fox Sports South

Three Cuts: Wood's road dominance halted in Braves' loss to Mets

Jay Clemons

Here are a few detailed takes from the Braves' 5-3 loss to the New York Metson Friday, a frustrating road defeat for Atlanta ... even though it never owned the lead:

1. THE BRAVES WILL BE KICKING THEMSELVES FOR ONLY PUSHING ACROSS ONE RUN IN THE VITAL SEVENTH INNING

Atlanta had everything set up for a big inning in the 7th (trailing by two). The top of the order headed for the plate ... and starting pitcher Bartolo Colon being displaced by a Mets bullpen that can be shaky, at times.

The odds of success were bolstered right away, with Jace Peterson (single) and Cameron Maybin (walk) reaching base with zero outs. Throw in a walk to slugger Freddie Freeman ... and suddenly, two runs seemed like a good baseline goal for the Braves (2 for 12 with runners in scoring position).

But things turned for the worse, once Nick Markakis -- a clean-up hitter still searching for his first homer with Atlanta -- grounded into an easy double play (scoring Peterson). Juan Uribe then killed the rally with a harmless grounder to the pitcher.

Speaking of which, the Braves produced inning-ending groundouts to the pitcher in three consecutive innings -- the 5th, 6th and 7th. And their final three frames were eradicated by double plays.

That's kind of cool ... in a morbid way.

1A. YOU WON'T FIND THIS GAME IN ANY OF NICK MARKAKIS'S CAREER SCRAPBOOKS

The Braves (29-32, 3rd in the NL East) loaded the bases three times on Friday; and during those crucial periods, Markakis hit into an inning-ending groundout (fifth inning), a rally-diminishing double play (7th) and a game-ending double play (9th).

All told, Markakis went 0 for 5 for the night, dropping his seasonal batting average from .305 to .298.

2. ALEX WOOD HASN'T PITCHED IN EVERY ATLANTA ROAD SERIES -- IT ONLY SEEMS TO BE THE CASE

Friday marked the eighth road outing for Wood this season -- a high number for early June.

It also represented the halting of Wood's superb streak of 14 consecutive road starts with three or fewer runs allowed -- factoring in the southpaw's final six outings from last season.

During that prolific stretch, spanning 14 starts and 87 innings, Wood had a scintillating 2.28 ERA -- essentially All-Star form when pitching away from Turner Field.

As for Friday, Wood was hardly wretched against the Mets (33-29, 1st in the NL East), allowing four earned runs and six hits over 6 1/3 innings. But those decent numbers don't necessarily account for the two biggest black marks from the outing:

a) Wood gave up homers to Wilmer Flores (solo shot) and John Mayberry Jr. (two-run blast). Why is that significant? Well, of Wood's 47 career starts in the majors, it marked the first time he surrendered multiple homers in the same game.

b) Wood committed a brutal error in the 6th, attempting to pick off Mayberry at second base. That gaffe enabled Mayberry and Dilson Herrera to move up 90 feet on the base paths.

One batter later, an RBI groundout pushed Mayberry home, upping the Mets' lead to 4-2.

3. IT'S A SIMPLE PROPOSITION FOR THE BRAVES MOVING FORWARD: IF YOU CAN'T BEAT THE METS OR NATIONALS ON THE ROAD, THERE'S NO CHANCE OF AN NL EAST TITLE

The above statement reeks of hyperbole, since Atlanta only has 19 total games at Citi Field (New York) and Nationals Park (Washington D.C.) this season -- and none for July and August.

But rest assured, these road tilts against the division's premier clubs will eventually mean everything -- even in a watered-down division.

For the year, the Braves are now 0-7 when traveling to New York and Washington. By any rationalization ... that just can't happen.

The Sports Xchange

Atlanta Braves fall to Colon, New York Mets

By Sports Xchange

NEW YORK -- Shortstop Wilmer Flores and left fielder John Mayberry homered Friday night and right-hander Bartolo Colon threw six solid innings as the New York Mets beat the Atlanta Braves, 5-3, at Citi Field.

The Mets (33-29) won their second in a row to ensure they'd remain at least a half-game ahead of the Washington Nationals in the NL East. The Braves (29-32) fell to 4-7 this month.

Colon (9-4) allowed two runs on six hits and two walks (both intentional) while striking out three. He earned a decision in his 25th straight start, tying a team record set by right-hander Dwight Gooden from June 2, 1993 through June 24, 1994.

Colon allowed five of his hits and both runs in the fifth and sixth but stranded a total of five runners in the two innings. Right-hander Carlos Torres bailed left-hander Alex Torres out of a jam in the seventh, when the Braves left the tying run on third after a comebacker by third baseman Juan Uribe.

Right-hander Jeurys Familia notched his 18th save despite loading the bases with one out in the ninth. But he got right fielder Nick Markakis to hit into a 4-6-3 double play.

Third baseman Eric Campbell had a run-scoring groundout in the sixth for the Mets while first baseman Michael Cuddyer delivered an RBI double an inning later.

For the Braves, second baseman Jace Peterson had two hits, including an RBI double in the fifth. Peterson scored the Braves final run in the seventh on a double play by Markakis. Catcher A.J. Pierzynski also had two hits.

Atlanta right-hander Alex Wood (4-4) allowed five runs (four earned) on six hits and four walks while striking out six over 6 1/3 innings. He also helped himself with a run-scoring fielder's choice in the fifth.

The Mets took the lead when Flores, in his first big league at-bat in the cleanup spot, led off the second with a homer. In the fourth, Flores drew a one-out walk and scored on Mayberry's homer to left.

The Braves had just one hit through four innings before opening the fifth with three straight singles. Wood followed with a potential double play grounder to short, but Flores bobbled it and could only get the force at second as Pierzynski scored. Peterson followed with an RBI double to score Jonny Gomes.

Colon struck out center fielder Cameron Maybin before intentionally walking first baseman Freddie Freeman to load the bases for right fielder Nick Markakis, who grounded back to Colon to end the inning.

NOTES: The Mets placed RHP Erik Goeddel on the 15-day disabled list with a right elbow strain and recalled IF Danny Muno from Triple-A Las Vegas. ... Mets RHP Dillon Gee, who was sent to the bullpen when New York shelved its six-man rotation earlier this month, will make a spot start in Sunday's series finale. That will push back RHPs Noah Syndergaard and Matt Harvey to Monday and Tuesday. ... With LHP Dana Eveland making his Braves debut Thursday, Atlanta has now used more players this season (40) than it did all of last year (39). The franchise record for players used in

a season is 50 in 2007. ... Three Braves prospects -- RHP Tyrell Jenkins, RHP Jorge Reyes and OF Mallex Smith -- were named to the South team in the South Atlantic League All-Star Game scheduled for June 23.

Associated Press

Colon, Flores leads Mets to 5-3 win over Braves

By HOWIE RUMBERG (AP Baseball Writer)

NEW YORK (AP) -- Bartolo Colon was not at his best as he labored through the middle innings. No surprise to anyone, the burly, 42-year-old right-hander still managed to make big pitches when he needed them.

Colon moved into a tie for the major league lead with his ninth win, Wilmer Flores and John Mayberry Jr. homered, and the New York Mets held on to beat the Atlanta Braves 5-3 on Friday night.

''He didn't have his good stuff,'' manager Terry Collins said, ''but he battles so well you kind of liked where you were sitting, even in the sixth inning. Today he really had to work for it and he kept us in it.''

Colon (9-4) gave up two runs and six hits in six innings as he matched Seattle's Felix Hernandez, who was roughed up at Houston, and Pittsburgh's Gerrit Cole for the most victories in baseball.

Jeurys Familia, whose availability for the game was uncertain because he was awaiting the birth of his child, loaded the bases with one out in the ninth before getting Nick Markakis to ground into a double play for his 18th save.

Markakis also grounded into a double play against Alex Torres in the seventh with the bases loaded and no outs, pulling Atlanta to 4-3, and he bounced out to Colon with three aboard in the fifth and two outs.

''Just some bad at-bats by me today,'' Markakis said. ''I think I was thinking up there too much and you get yourself into trouble when you start doing that.''

Michael Cuddyer followed up his game-winning hit Thursday against San Francisco with an RBI double in the seventh as New York beat Atlanta for a fifth straight time after losing the first two games between the teams this year.

The NL East-leading Mets improved to 22-11 in the weak division.

Alex Wood (4-4) entered his 12th start of the season having allowed only two home runs - one was to Cuddyer on April 12 - but he was tagged twice early by the Mets.

Flores connected leading off the second, in his first career at-bat in the No. 4 hole.

With slumping left-handed Lucas Duda out of the lineup against a lefty, Collins elevated the rookie shortstop into the cleanup spot but was quick to say that this move was just a one-day necessity.

Mayberry hit a two-run shot in the fourth after Flores was intentionally walked with one out to give New York a 3-0 lead.

But the Braves loaded the bases with three straight singles to open the fifth. Wood then hit a grounder to short for a potential double play and Flores bobbled the ball before flipping to second for the force.A.J. Pierzynski scored and Wood had an RBI.

Jace Peterson doubled in a run to make it 3-2.

The Braves had two runners on in the sixth but, for the second straight inning, Colon got the final out on a comebacker.

''I felt a little tired to be honest with you in the fifth inning,'' Colon said. ''It was humid, it was hot, was just tired of the weather.''

Colon matched Dwight Gooden's franchise record established in 1993-94 with a decision in 25 straight starts, a streak that started July 23, 2014. Colon is 16-9 over that span.

Eric Campbell had an RBI groundout in the bottom of the sixth. Mayberry, who singled for his second hit and advanced when Dilson Herrera walked, was on third because Wood threw a pickoff attempt at second base into center field.

Wood allowed five runs - four earned - and six hits in 6 1-3 innings

TRAINER'S ROOM

Mets: The Mets placed reliever Erik Goeddel on the 15-day DL because of a strained right elbow. Goeddel had not allowed a run since May 27, 5 2-3 scoreless innings.

UP NEXT

Braves: RHP Shelby Miller lowered his ERA to 1.84 when he allowed just one run in seven innings against San Diego in his last start.

Mets: RHP Jacob deGrom was named co-NL player of the week with Clayton Kershaw after going 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA. DeGrom is 2-1 with a 2.00 ERA in three starts vs. the Braves.

CALL IT WHAT YOU WANT

Dillon Gee will make a spot start for New York on Sunday, pushing Noah Syndergaard and the rest of the starters back a day in an attempt to help manage innings of the team's young star pitchers. The Mets recently backtracked on a plan to use a six-man rotation. ''It's not a six-man rotation, it's a five-man rotation, but we're going to slip somebody in because we think maybe a day here is an extra day that will help out,'' Collins said.

Braves-Mets Preview

By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO (STATS Writer)

The New York Mets are atop the NL East thanks in large part to their record within the division. They have a good chance to improve it with Jacob deGrom taking the ball at Citi Field.

DeGrom looks to continue his home dominance Saturday and help the Mets win six straight over theAtlanta Braves for the first time since 1985.

The Mets (33-29) were foundering during a 2-6 stretch that included being no-hit by San Francisco'sChris Heston on Tuesday. They've started to turn things around by winning two in a row since, and facing a division opponent could be the key to getting on an extended run.

New York is 22-11 within the East and 16-5 at home in such matchups after beating Atlanta 5-3 on Friday. The Mets have won five in a row and eight of 10 meetings with the Braves (29-32).

DeGrom (7-4, 2.42 ERA) is 10-1 with a 1.30 ERA in 13 home starts, a stretch that began with an 8-3 win over Atlanta on July 8. He struck out 11 and tossed seven scoreless innings to win his first career game in Queens.

That was also the start of deGrom's career-best five-game winning streak, and he has a chance to match it Saturday. He's posted a 1.24 ERA with 44 strikeouts and four walks in 36 1-3 innings over his last five outings.

DeGrom was named co-NL player of the week along with Los Angeles' Clayton Kershaw after winning two road starts by yielding three runs - two earned - with 18 strikeouts in 15 innings.

"It's mainly about going out there and trying put us in position to win every day, going out there and trying to put up zeros to get a win," said deGrom, who struck out 10 and yielded two runs - one earned - in six innings of a 10-2 victory at Atlanta on Sept. 21.

That gave him a 2-1 record and 2.00 ERA in three career starts in the series. DeGrom struck out 29 in 18 innings in those games.

The Braves' Shelby Miller (5-2, 1.84) remains among baseball's ERA leaders despite going 0-1 with a 2.96 ERA over his last four starts.

The right-hander was in position to win after allowing one run in seven innings Monday, but the bullpen gave up four runs in a 5-3 loss to San Diego.

He's 0-1 with a 2.63 ERA in three games - two starts - against the Mets, all of which came while with St. Louis. Miller was charged with a 5-1 defeat in his only outing at Citi Field on June 12, 2013, giving up four runs and two homers with 10 strikeouts in six innings.

Michael Cuddyer is 3 for 3 with a double off Miller. He has an RBI double in each of the last two games, adding a walkoff single to cap Thursday's 5-4 win over the Giants.

Cuddyer has batted .368 in his last 10 home games.

The Braves' Freddie Freeman has posted a .395 average with five homers and 12 RBIs in the past 12 games. He went 1 for 2 with three walks to match his career high Friday.

Freeman is 1 for 7 with two walks against deGrom.