BOSTON -- It’s not good when television analyst CJ Nitkowski catching a foul ball proves to be the night’s top highlight. But that’s what the Braves had to deal with after Bryce Elder endured his first rough start of the season in an 8-0 loss to the Red Sox on Wednesday night at Fenway Park.
“We’ll turn the page on this one,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “The game got away from us in the fourth inning. We didn’t really take care of the ball.”
The Braves will need to win Thursday afternoon’s series finale to avoid losing consecutive series for the first time this year. Here are three takeaways from Wednesday’s game.
One of those nights
Elder pitched around trouble during two of the first three innings and then got singled to death during Boston’s six-run fourth. It was an outing he’ll want to forget. But it’s not one that will destroy his bid for a second All-Star selection within the past three years.
Even after allowing six runs (five earned) over 3 1/3 innings, Elder still ranks sixth in the National League with a 2.50 ERA. He entered Wednesday having allowed three earned runs or fewer in 13 straight starts going back to last year.
“I have all the confidence in the world in Bryce,” Weiss said. “That’s the first really tough one he’s had in a really long time.”
So what happened? With runners on second and third and one out in the fourth, first baseman Matt Olson booted Marcelo Mayer’s sharp grounder. Had he fielded it cleanly, he could have recorded an out at the plate, or at least prevented Masataka Yoshida from attempting to score.
Elder then allowed singles to each of the next three batters and was replaced by Dylan Dodd, who allowed two inherited runners to score on a Wilyer Abreu single.
The results might not have been as ugly had Olson cleanly fielded Mayer’s grounder. But the right-hander also benefited from left fielder Mauricio Dubón throwing out Ceddanne Rafaela at the plate in the first inning. It’s worth noting that five of the nine singles Elder surrendered had an exit velocity of 100-plus mph. Another one came off the bat at 99.1 mph.
Each of the four hits Elder allowed in the fourth came within the first two pitches of the plate appearance.
“I think my stuff could have been a little bit better, but at the same time, I’m going to take my chances [in 0-0 counts],” Elder said. “It’s not that they were all 60 [mph] off the bat. They were whacking it pretty good.”
Way below the Mendoza Line
Ha-Seong Kim recorded two long flyouts, including one that came off his bat at 97.3 mph. But the shortstop went 0-for-4 and is now hitting .095 (4-for-42) with a .286 OPS through his first 12 games of the season.
Along with missing this season’s first six weeks while recovering from right middle finger surgery, Kim played just 48 games last year. The Braves will remain patient because they gave Kim a one-year, $20 million deal just before he tore ligaments in his finger in January. Their hope is his slow start is a product of simply not playing enough over the past couple of years. His Minor League rehab assignment consisted of nine games, five at Triple-A Gwinnett and four at Double-A Columbus.
“It's just so difficult when you don't have a Spring Training and when you've missed a lot of time the past two years,” Weiss said. “This game, these guys make it look really easy, but the game is extremely fast at this level. A rehab assignment does no justice to how fast this game is up here. So it just takes time to get caught up.”
Proving himself
Jorge Mateo took advantage of the opportunity he was given when Weiss utilized him as his designated hitter against Red Sox lefty Connelly Early on Wednesday. Mateo singled twice in four at-bats. This was just the veteran infielder’s 18th start of the season, but he now has seven multi-hit games.
If Kim continues to struggle, Mateo and Dubón have proven they can capably fill the shortstop position.