Daniel Shirey-USA Today Sports
The Atlanta Braves (15-6) missed out on a golden opportunity to sweep the Colorado Rockies but settled to leave Denver winning two of three games. Winning a series on the road is something manager Fredi Gonzalez certainly won’t complain about. Add in the fact it was at Coors Field in some terrible conditions, and you take the two wins and run. Here’s a look at what went right and wrong against the Rockies.
Series MVP: Justin Upton keeps belting home runs and hit two more in this series to raise his MLB-leading total to 11. He finished 5-for-12 with three RBIs and four runs scored in the series. The highlight came in Tuesday night’s game in which he hit a solo shot after B.J. Upton to make the Uptons the first pair of brothers to hit back-to-back homers since 1938. Not only was Upton the series MVP, but he appears in line for a MVP-caliber season. Forty home runs seems well within reach, with 50 not being farfetched.
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Juan Francisco: The left-hander received two starts in the series, going 4-for-9 with a home run and knocking in four runs. Francisco launched a home run to deep right in the second game of the doubleheader on Tuesday. The power display comes as no surprise, but Francisco also boasts a healthy .316 average on the season.
Jordan Schafer: With Jason Heyward sidelined for 15 days, Schafer and Reed Johnson will get more opportunities in the next two weeks. Schafer got two starts in right field this series and went 3-for-7 with two RBIs, three walks and a stolen base. Schafer could get a crack at the leadoff spot as the Braves search for answers from that spot.
Julio Teheran: The 22-year-old picked up his first quality start of his career and his first win of the 2013 season in the second game of the doubleheader on Tuesday. Teheran was efficient in his outing, throwing 70 of 90 pitches for strikes without walking a batter and scattering eight hits over seven innings. He gets another test in his next outing against the Washington Nationals.
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B.J. Upton: Upton still hasn’t broken his early-season slump. Despite a historic home run, Upton managed just that one hit in 14 at-bats while striking out five times and stranding six men. It will be worth watching how long Gonzalez continues utilizing Upton at the top of the order.
Craig Kimbrel: The closer picked up his first blown save of the 2013 season on Wednesday, failing to close out the sweep of the Rockies and Tim Hudson‘s 200th career win. Kimbrel did pick up a save in the first game of the series on Tuesday, but he’s set such high standards that one slip-up is out of the ordinary.
Freddie Freeman: Freeman returned from the disabled list on Tuesday and didn’t have a normal Freeman-series. He went just 2-for-11 with a double and RBI, although he did walk three times. He’ll find his rhythm sooner rather than later.
Bombs Away: The Braves hit six home runs in the series (J. Upton 2, Dan Uggla, Evan Gattis, Francisco, B.J. Upton) but failed to hit any on Wednesday in the loss. The Braves still lead MLB with 35 on the season.
Whiffs: The Braves struck out 24 times in the series to up their total to 185 on the season, which is good for second most in the National League .
Getting on Base: The Braves now sit at No. 5 in the National League with a .327 on-base percentage. Good things will come if they remain in the top-five all season.
