ATLANTA -- Tallying a high strikeout total is a good thing for most pitchers, at least those not named Grant Holmes.
Holmes experienced an all-too-familiar result as he recorded his third double-digit-strikeout total, but he also allowed two solo home runs in a 2-0 loss to the Nationals on Saturday afternoon at Truist Park. The Braves are now an astounding 0-8 when the right-hander has recorded at least eight strikeouts in his career.
"You strike out 15 guys, give up two runs and lose,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “It was a strange game.”
Holmes, Dylan Dodd and Tyler Kinley combined for 15 strikeouts. But the potent Atlanta offense that ranks second in the Majors with 281 runs was unable to compensate for the solo homers Holmes allowed to Dylan Crews in the fourth and to Jorbit Vivas in the fifth.
How rare was this? Well, since moving to Atlanta in 1966, this marked just the third time in 27 opportunities that the Braves lost a game during which they tallied 15 or more strikeouts and allowed two runs or less over nine innings or less.
Michael Harris II’s line-drive single to center to begin the bottom of the seventh served as Atlanta’s only hit. The Braves have been shut out just four times this year, but three of those instances have occurred within their past 10 games.
This string of strikeouts has coincided with Matt Olson hitting .128 (5-for-39) with a .363 OPS over his past 10 games. Weiss said it’s just a coincidence that this slump began around the same time Olson grimaced on a swing-and-miss and later revealed he occasionally feels discomfort when his right elbow hyperextends on a whiff.
Braves fans will continue to worry about Olson’s health. It was encouraging to see him produce a 109.7 mph exit velocity with a ground ball in the seventh inning. But the other two balls that came off his bat on Saturday were 60.1 mph and 62.9 mph.
Speaking of velocity, Holmes’ four-seam fastball averaged 92.3 mph, down from his season average of 94.6 mph. Still with the help of his two breaking balls, he struck out 10 over just five innings. The Nationals whiffed with 10 of 21 swings against his slider and with five of eight swings against his curveball.
“Thank God the curveball and slider were there, that could have been bad,” Holmes said.
Knowing how good Holmes’ breaking balls are, many fans have opined that serving as a relief pitcher would be his optimal role. While he might end up in the bullpen, now certainly doesn’t seem to be a good time to make this transition.
First of all, the Braves don’t currently have strong rotation depth. Hurston Waldrep won’t be available for at least another month. As for AJ Smith-Shawver and Spencer Schwellenbach, they still have many hurdles to clear before the Braves will have a good feel for when they might be activated from the injured list.
And JR Ritchie posted a 5.30 ERA and walked 14 batters in 18 2/3 innings over the last four starts he made before being optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett. He’s not a better rotation option than Holmes, who has allowed just two runs over 11 innings in his past two starts.
There are concerns about Holmes going through a lineup more than twice. But with Reynaldo López, Didier Fuentes and Dodd, the Braves have three quality multi-inning relief options to help bridge the gap to high-leverage relievers when needed.
When asked about Holmes’ latest outing, Weiss said, “We’ll take that every time.”
Maybe next time, Holmes will keep his strikeout total at seven or under.