Kuzul

The Atlanta Braves‘ hot start to the season has received plenty of attention due to the offensive output of offseason acquisition Justin Upton and Evan Gattis, who has backed up the spring training hype with a strong start.

But on Friday night at Nationals Park, it was the role players who stepped up and made key plays in the Braves’ 6-4 comeback win over the Nationals.

The battle of NL East titans began with the Nationals getting out to a strong start by way of a Bryce Harper two-run homer in the first and RBI singles by Jayson Werth and Denard Span in the second. 

With Ross Detweiler hurling a gem on the mound for the hosts, the chances of a Braves comeback were slim to none, until the seventh inning began. 

Although it was just a single run, Chris Johnson gave the Braves a sense of belief with his first home run of the season. 

The eighth inning brought the Nationals bullpen into the game as the usually reliable Tyler Clippard took the rubber. 

The Braves were able to pull back another run in the eighth due to a quality that they may not have been known for at the beginning of the season—their patience. 

Gattis, Jason Heyward and B.J. Upton worked their at-bats into walks with Upton’s free pass bringing home Heyward.

The true superstars of the team then took a step back in the ninth inning as Ramiro Pena and Blake DeWitt dropped down two consecutive pinch-hit bunts.

Pena, who hit for starting catcher Gerald Laird, laid down a perfect bunt in front of home plate on the third base side to become the second batter to reach base against Drew Storen in the ninth.

DeWitt then came to the plate to pinch hit for reliever Jordan Walden and dropped down an immaculate sacrifice that sent Johnson to third and Pena to second.

Without those two crucial bunts the Braves would not have been able to capitalize on Ryan Zimmerman’s error three batters later. 

After one of the unsung heroes of the bullpen, Eric O’Flaherty, shut down the Nationals in the bottom of the ninth, the most unexpected of at-bats occurred in the top of the 10th inning.

Pena, who had 12 at-bats this season going into Friday, delivered the 14th home run of his nine-year professional career with a shot over the right field wall.

Pena’s two-run, game-winning home run sent the Braves dugout into an absolute uproar. The home run also marked the end of an unlikely comeback that sent shock waves throughout the Washington D.C. metro area and the entire nation.

There are few things that we can predict throughout the course of the season, but if the role players continue to step up for Atlanta this season, a spot in the postseason is close to a guarantee. 

Follow me on Twitter, @JTansey90. 

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at Los Angeles Dodgers

First off: why couldn’t Pablo Sandoval’s two-out first inning liner have actually decapitated Clay Kershaw in the season opener? (Kidding). Not only did he buzz through the Giants’ lineup (only Sandoval and Angel Pagan managed hits)—he did the same to Pittsburgh days later and appears to be even stronger than ever. In case you forgot, Kershaw has made a career of Giants killing. A decapitation may be the only way to curb his dominance.

San Francisco did go on to a series win, as Madison Bumgarner did his best Kershaw impression in Game No. 2 and Joaquin Arias handled first base with aplomb. Arias dug out multiple tough hops and impressively stayed with a Carl Crawford pop-up that, had he hit it in his old home ballpark of Tropicana Field, may have went through the roof. Make no mistake, folks—that catch was not easy in any way. 

Though minus the flair of Kershaw‘s opening day home run, “The Eagle” as I call Bumgarner, also contributed to his own cause with the bat. He garnered a single and extracted 14 pitches in his other two at-bats—the latter of which led to an error and two SF runs. 

Sandoval and Hunter Pence powered SF to victory in the rubber match. Sandoval, who’s subtly displayed a bit more selectivity at the plate overall, has been susceptible to high heat in the early going—chasing most and hitting none. That is, until he connected off Josh Beckett on a chest-high heater that was not a mistake.

It seemed in every at-bat of the series, Adrian Gonzalez smacked a deep fly ball, inciting “OOOOH’s” from the easily-excitable Dodger crowd. (Speaking of A-Gone, why was he repeatedly feeling up Marco Scutaro at first base after pickoff attempts, when he no longer had the ball?)

vs. St. Louis Cardinals

Then the Giants came home to one of the best ceremonies ever (not just baseball, mind you). Only thrice before has baseball given me chills: Hank Aaron’s 715th home run as Bill Buckner hangs off the wall in a desperate attempt to save his pitcher from infamy, the last out of Nolan Ryan’s seventh no-hitter and Edgar Renteria’s home run off Cliff Lee in the 2010 World Series. 

The ’13 Giants home opener now makes the list. Great to see the now-retired Huff there for his ring. Curious as to the whereabouts of Brian Wilson, Willie Mota, Brad Penny, Ryan Theriot and Freddy Sanchez—and why coach Shawon Dunston and infielder Nick Noonan both wear No. 21. (Note: Noonan ripped his first MLB hit over the weekend.)

It seems to me that, with the exception of Matt Holliday and Carlos Beltran, every Cardinals hitter is the same player. They all grind out at-bats. They all use the whole field. They’re all pests. They’re all even starting to look alike, at least to me. They were without the injured David Freese and missed not one beat in taking the series 2-1.

Despite a small strike zone, and with the help of fantastic defense by Sandoval at third base, Barry Zito held St. Louis scoreless through seven innings in the opener—a 1-0 win closed out by Sergio Romo. The one run came via a bases-loaded walk by Pagan following a rare error by catcher Yadier Molina, who fumbled Zito’s sacrifice bunt.

A tough luck loss to rookie Shelby Miller followed, and the week ended with a shocking blowout behind Matt Cain, who surrendered nine earned runs in the fourth inning and proved once and for all that he should never be allowed to face Matt Carpenter ever again for any reason. Something bad will happen. In fact, if Carpenter ever joins the Giants, it would not surprise me at all to watch him make errors and put up oh-fers in every Cain start. He was born to cause the horse some grief.

In closing…

• We still haven’t gotten any explanation as to why both Hyun-jin Ryu and Beltran ran out ground balls at roughly 50 percent when neither appeared to be injured or left the game. Not that I’m complaining, as a Giants fan.
• Holliday has the potential to be the Giants villain of his era, if he’s not already. Remember, during Cain’s very early career, the two got into a shouting match after Holliday admired a home run. Then there was last year’s attempted demolition of Scutaro in the playoffs. Karma set in when Holliday fumbled Scutaro‘s subsequent hit into an insurance run, and when he popped out to Scutaro for the series’ final out—sandwiched around an obviously retaliatory plunk by Cain.
• Reigning MVP Buster Posey did not put up a single RBI during the week despite several chances. His swing seems fine and he’s not chasing; he just appears to be rolling over pitches.

Broadcasting Quotes of the Week:

“The ball’s not carryin‘ to right field.” — Mike Krukow, on a Pence pop-up to second base (April 5, second inning).

“Do they have the DH in the Korean League?” Krukow wonders, as Ryu bails out badly on a Bumgarner breaking ball. “Or curveballs?” quips Duane Kuiper. (In fairness, Scutaro was totally buckled by a Beckett curveball in the last contest of the series.)

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The Red Sox won a pitching duel in their home opener.

Thanks to a Daniel Nava home run and a phenomenal performance from Clay Buchholz, the Fenway faithful witnessed the ninth straight win on Opening Day in Boston.

Unlike the last two seasons, the Red Sox came home to Fenway with a winning record. After beating Baltimore 3-1, they are tied with Oakland and Texas for the best record in the AL at 5-2.

Here is my three up, three down for the home opener against the Orioles.

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It’s pretty clear that the Chicago Cubs have bullpen issues. For the third-straight outing, closer Carlos Marmol struggled in relief and the Cubbies lost a heartbreaker, 6-5, to the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field.

Despite leading 5-1 heading into the last two innings, the Cubs bullpen imploded to give this one away. The collapse culminated in home runs off the bats of B.J. and Justin Upton in the bottom of the ninth.

Facing Marmol to lead off the inning, B.J. launched a solo shot to tie the game before Justin’s long ball gave the Braves the walk-off victory two batters later. The game-winner was Justin’s second home run of the night and capped a three-hit, three-RBI performance for the younger Upton brother. 

It was the first time this season the brothers have gone deep in the same game, but considering both of their power, it’s likely that this will happen more than a few times as the season progresses.

For the Cubs, Marmol was not the only reliever at fault in this one. Japanese import Kyuji Fujikawa was just as bad in his one inning of work out of the bullpen, allowing three runs on four hits in the eighth inning.

Marmol and Fujikawa helped waste a strong outing from starter Carlos Villanueva, who lasted 6.2 innings and allowed only one run in his first start of the season.

Braves’ starter Julio Teheran was spared the loss despite allowing five runs and eight hits in five innings of work.

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Barry Zito seems to have discovered a dominance over the St. Louis Cardinals recently.

The last time Zito took the mound against St. Louis, the San Francisco Giants were in dire straights. Giants fans will remember that game.  It was game five of the 2012 National League Championship Series against the Cardinals where the Giants found themselves trailing St. Louis three games to one. 

On the road for game five, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that the Cardinals would beat up on the Giants’ lefty who had received so much criticism after signing a seven-year, $126 million contract in 2007.  The Cardinals were the hot team.  The Giants were not.

Yet Zito’s performance during game five was nothing short of incredible.  He pitched 7.2 innings of shutout baseball against the Cardinals and even contributed at the plate (mercurynews.com).  The Giants then soared after the must-win game, eventually going on to defeat St. Louis in seven games and moving on to win the 2012 World Series.

The lynch-pin of the Giants’ success in the playoffs was Zito.

Thus, it only seemed fitting that Zito would take the mound against the Cardinals yesterday during the Giants’ home opener.  The last time he saw the Cardinals, he dominated them and gave the Giants hope to keep their postseason dreams alive.  This time, he picked up right where he left off against a team he shut down a season ago, giving the Giants more hope that 2013 will be just as special.

Following the Giants’ opening day ceremonies, Zito took the mound amidst a roar of cheers from Giants fans who, not so long ago, chastised him.  It was another moment of redemption for the veteran.

The Cardinals looked just as baffled by Zito’s pitching as they did during the NLCS last year.  Zito shut out St. Louis, looking strong over seven innings.  He allowed only three hits while walking two and striking out four (cbssports.com).

Zito ran into some trouble during the top half of the seventh inning when St. Louis put two runners on base with two outs.  Yet Zito was able to retire Cardinals shortstop Pete Kozma on a fly ball to center to end the inning.  He finished the game with 102 pitches on the day.  Zito then departed to another tremendous ovation, one of which he has been getting used to lately.

The Giants went on to beat the Cardinals 1-0, giving Zito his first win of the young season.(cbssports.com).

What this means for the Giants is hard to determine, but signs have to be good. 

Zito was ready for the start despite all of the festivities that preceded the Giants’ home opener.

He stated:

I would like to stay focused on what I have to do and my process and not get caught up too much in the festivities.  It’s going to be great for the fans, obviously.  That’s for them to enjoy.  But for us, we have to focus on our tasks. (via mlb.com)

That is a great attitude for a veteran pitcher to have, especially after enduring a tenure with a team that included so many lows.  Yet for the Giants, Zito has become somewhat of a good-luck charm as they have now won 15 games in a row in which he has started, including the 2012 postseason (mlb.com).  That streak will undoubtedly end at some point, but a solid start including the win is a major plus for Zito and the rest of the Giants rotation.

Zito’s resurgence has not gone unnoticed by his Giants teammates.

Right fielder Hunter Pence praised Zito by saying:

Pitching is about deception, and he’s got a lot of deception.  He’s really smart out there and doesn’t give you good pitches to hit.  Even his strikes are tough to hit.  You think you’re seeing a cutter out of his hand and it’s really the fastball down the middle.  And if you protect too much against the cutter, he’ll go back outside. (via mercurynews.com)

Hopefully, this start is an indication that Zito will emulate more of the 15-8 season he enjoyed last year and avoid the types of seasons he had in San Francisco years prior.  If he can, the Giants pitching staff will be all that much better. 

It is hard to tell after one start, but a start like this one is always a good thing.

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Usually there isn’t much hype for the Boston Red Sox’s first game against the Toronto Blue Jays, but with John Farrell making his first appearance in Toronto since he left the Canadian organization, there were plenty of storylines.

Aside from Farrell’s return, it marked the first time the Red Sox would face the recently restocked Blue Jays.

The Red Sox managed to go on the road and get their third win of the season.

Here is my “Three Up, Three Down” for Boston’s first game against the Blue Jays.

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Friday night was the much-anticipated debut of Zack Greinke in Dodger blue, and it went very well.  He pitched 6.1 strong innings, striking out six and allowing just two hits without conceding any walks.

Greinke dominated a Pittsburgh Pirates lineup that has some high-end talent in it, led by last year’s third-place finisher in the NL MVP race, Andrew McCutchen, who was held to just one hit.

There was some trepidation on the part of the Dodgers heading into the outing because Greinke had been struggling with some elbow inflammation during spring training.  Indeed, he made only 92 pitches, despite the fact that he was cruising through the game.

He was as sharp as can be expected in his first start, locating his fastball well and generally staying around the strike zone.  He began the game with his fastball velocity hovering around 91 or 92 and mixed in his mid-70s curveball effectively.  His combination of pitches enabled him to keep the Pirates off-balance all game.

He was efficient from the get-go, making just nine pitches in the first inning and getting five of his first seven outs on ground balls before picking up his first strikeout.  He would then go on to strike out four in a row, though, as he settled in.  His fastball picked up some late life, and he was able to effectively begin to mix in his changeup.

As the game went on, he moved his fastball in and out and varied his pitches well on his way to his six strikeouts.

He got enough support from his offense to win the game, as an Andre Ethier home run propelled the Dodgers to a lead they would never relinquish, and the initial one-run cushion was all Greinke would need.

This was a very encouraging start for Greinke and the Dodgers, and it would have been even if there hadn’t been lingering injury concerns.  As it is, he demonstrated why FanGraphs has him as the eighth-most valuable pitcher over the last three seasons.

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Mike Minor carried the Atlanta Braves to a 4-1 win over the Chicago Cubs on Friday night.  Justin Upton hit another home run, and Evan Gattis had three hits in the victory.

Minor (1-0), who made waves at the beginning of last season by demanding a spot in the Braves’ rotation, got his year off on the right foot with 7.1 innings of solid pitching.  He allowed five hits and one earned run.  Mike could very well find himself as the ace of this staff if he continues to pitch like he did during the second half of 2012.  And although he struck out seven in this game, he doesn’t even need a high K rate to be successful.  He just has to keep the ball in the yard.

Justin Upton got the crowd going early with a laser shot into the left field seats in the first inning for his third home run.  He drove in another run in the third with a sac fly and was greeted warmly in the dugout.

All year people will be watching very closely to see if the Braves can complete the “little plays” needed to scratch out runs.  Moving runners over and making sac flies/bunts will probably be noted every single time.

Juan Francisco put the game away in the fifth inning with a key bases-loaded hit.  After enduring a long at-bat against eventual loser Scott Feldman (0-1), Francisco dropped a soft liner into left field to score two and put the Braves up 4-1.

Gattis was the only Brave with more than one hit.  He fought off two of his three hits into right field, which is a good sign.  He must be prepared to make adjustments going forward.

Two players have struggled to start off this season, neither of which we should be concerned about.  B.J. Upton still does not have a hit, and somehow he is being even more aggressive than usual.  He popped out early in the game after swinging on a 3-0 count.  If Upton still doesn’t have a hit by the end of the weekend, then maybe fans can start sounding alarms.

Andrelton Simmons, who went hitless, is still adjusting to the leadoff spot.  But he should be feeling no pressure whatsoever, the rest of the lineup can carry the load for him while he works out his swing.  His most important contribution to the team is defense.

Eric O’Flaherty and Craig Kimbrel came out of the bullpen and closed out the game.  Prized pitching prospect Julio Teheran will hope to carry the momentum from a phenomenal spring against Cubs righty Carlos Villanueva.

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The Cincinnati Reds clobbered the Washington Nationals 15-0 Friday night to take home their third win of the young MLB season.

The Reds sent right-hander Homer Bailey to the mound, while the Nationals starter Dan Haren made his team debut.

The Reds spoiled Haren’s debut and sent a major statement to the baseball world following their 2-1 series victory over the Angels with Friday’s barn-burner over the Nats.

Offense

The offensive attack was a balanced one as 11 different Reds collected hits, including five multi-hit efforts.

Four different Reds hit home runs, including two, two-home-run games from Zack Cozart and Todd Frazier.

Shin-Soo Choo also contributed a home run, as did Xavier Paul, whose pinch-hit grand slam gave the team a 14-0 lead in the seventh inning.

The team totaled six home runs, one shy of their record while playing at Great American Ball Park.

The star of the Reds’ offensive effort though was Frazier.

Frazier logged five at-bats Friday and contributed four hits—including two home runs—to go along with four RBI and three runs scored. 

The impressive showing by Frazier raised his batting average to .471 on the season 

The Nationals on the other hand, didn’t have much of an offensive attack to speak of.

The Nats and only had four runners reach second base—none of which advanced beyond second.

The only true bright spot in a box score riddled with 0-for performances was Danny Espinosa, who was 2-for-4 with a double.

Pitching

Homer Bailey was on-point in his first start of the season.

The 26-year-old righty won his first game of the season behind a six-inning, six-strikeout effort.

Bailey allowed just two hits and three walks, and had it not been for numerous deep counts, he may have gone the distance.

The relief corps was also impressive. The duo of Manny Parra and J.J. Hoover combined for three innings, three hits, one strikeout and a walk.

The three Reds pitchers combined for the team’s first shutout of the season.

Conversely, the Nationals suffered through a dismal performance by both their starter Dan Haren and the bullpen.

Haren allowed six earned runs in four innings pitched coming on nine hits—four home runs—and no walks.

Haren was relieved by Zack Duke, Henry Rodriguez and Ryan Mattheus, respectively.

The trio of relievers combined for four innings pitched and allowed nine runs—eight earned—on 10 hits and a walk.

Wrap-Up

The Reds turned this one into a laugher when they staked themselves out to a 14-0 lead by the end of the seventh inning. 

The game was an important one for the Reds, though, who have now won three of their first four games in 2013.

The offense proved its worth tonight and showed that the Reds can play with any team in the league.

It’s obviously very early, but wins like these over quality opponents like the Nationals can go a long way toward creating confidence in the clubhouse.

Tomorrow, the Reds send Mike Leake to the hill for his first start while the Nationals are slated to start Ross Detwiler (per Cincinnatireds.com). 

Final Score: Reds-15, Nationals-0 W: Homer Bailey (1-0), L: Dan Haren (0-1)

All stats courtesy of ESPN.com.

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The Braves started off the 2013 season on the right foot with a 7-5 victory over Philadelphia.

And the atmosphere at Turner Field was electric. 

The offseason acquisitions of B.J. and Justin Upton created a buzz around the Braves, and fans were even more excited when they learned Chipper Jones would be throwing out the first pitch. 

While Atlanta’s lineup may be tested throughout the year, Opening Day was all positives. 

Home runs from Freddie Freeman, Dan Uggla and Justin Upton brought Braves fans to their feet. And how pretty was Justin Upton’s swing?

Hopefully this will be a sign of plenty more power from the Braves throughout the season.

Tim Hudson pitched well until running out of gas in the fifth inning, giving up two runs before being pulled.  We may just have to get used to this situation with Tim, he’s already up there in age and will need solid play from his defense every single night. 

The Braves received great bullpen work from Luis Avilan (W, 1-0) and Craig Kimbrel (S, 1), both with scoreless outings.  Avilan kept the Phillies from taking the lead and the Braves tacked on three insurance runs.

Even Gerald Laird played well, collecting two hits and an RBI. 

And hopefully we won’t have to wait too long to see the debut of Evan Gattis, whose swings have generated Paul Bunyan references and Chuck Norris jokes.

I held my breath every time a ball was hit to Chris Johnson, and B.J. Upton looked a bit too amped up to be playing with his brother. 

But otherwise it was a solid effort and a good night for Atlanta.

It was very nice to see the Braves do well against their kryptonite for the past few years, a lefty pitcher, especially one with a nasty changeup. 

The Braves have a day off on Tuesday and play Game 2 against the Phillies on Wednesday.  Paul Maholm will square off against Roy Halladay.

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