Iannetta proving to be tough out for pitchers

ATLANTA -- Chris Iannetta started behind the plate on Saturday night despite his previous history against Braves starter Gavin Floyd. The Angels catcher entered the game 0-for-11 with two strikeouts in his career against the right-hander.

No Major League pitcher had faced Iannetta more times without giving up a hit or walking the veteran backstop than Floyd. But Iannetta finally broke through Saturday, getting hit by a pitch in one of his three plate appearances against the right-hander.

David Hale also plunked Iannetta on Saturday night, doubling the number of times he had been hit by a pitch this season entering the game. He was hit by a pitch only twice in each of the past two seasons as well.

Iannetta finished 1-for-4 on Saturday and has now reached base safely in 13 of his previous 14 starts, batting .333 (16-for-48) with two homers, three doubles, four RBIs, four walks and a .415 on-base percentage during that span. He leads all MLB catchers with 88 walks since the beginning of 2013 and owns a .373 OBP, which is on pace to be the second-best of his career.

"Same thing as always, try not to get myself out as much as I can," Iannetta said. "The game's hard enough when the pitcher's trying to get you out and you're getting yourself out, so I try to eliminate the number of times that I do. I try to just make solid contact and get a good pitch to hit or hopefully draw a walk."