Game of the Week: July 16: ATL @ SD

[Commissioner Erick]

Atlanta Braves (59-33) vs San Diego Padres (46-44)


ATL: Marc Eberle (8-4, 4.35)
SD: Anderson Espinoza (4-0, 3.32)


Braves 5 Key Stats

23: Juan Gestoso steals. Atlanta leads the league in stolen bases with Gestoso leading the way. Gestoso has led the league in steals the last four years, and continues to dominate on the bases. He’s had more opportunities as well. Despite having a Hall-of-Fame career thus far, Gestoso has produced career highs in average and OBP this year.

4: Regulars in the Atlanta lineup hitting .206 or worse. It’s their biggest offensive weakness. Both their catchers, Mike Zunino and Steven Williams, are struggling to hit for average, but Jim Morgan is batting just .204, and Steve Goode is hitting .189.

26.39: Atlanta’s Zone Rating, best in the NL. Ronny Maurcio leads NL Shortstops in Zone Rating and has a chance to win a third Gold Glove. Basket Case Benoit puts everything in the basket at First. Even Marc Eberle has the most putouts among NL Pitchers. The Braves defense is excellent, a reason why they’re second in runs prevented.

5.71: Brian Villanueve’s ERA. Villanueve has allowed nine homers in 41 innings. He has 27 Saves to lead the league, but also seven blown saves. Atlanta doesn’t have the sure thing they had when Trevor Rogers was back there.

2: Extra inning losses Atlanta had in four games against the Padres in April. Josh Fitzpatrick took the loss in both games. If the game is close, giving the ball to Fitzpatrick may cause heartburn in Braves fans.


Padres 5 Key Stats:

0: Saves for Jake Reed. The Padres got an excellent 42 Save, 1.69 ERA season from Jake Reed last year. This year, he’s a long man. He was in the starting rotation for some of the year, had a 6.19 ERA, and has had a 1.79 mark since returning to the pen. He may get a bigger role over the second half.

101: The most RBIs a Padre has ever had in a season. Mike Fitzgerald has 68 driven in thus far with 22 homers. He’s been the best slugger in Padres history and is on pace for the most RBIs in a season for the club.

.875: Royce Lewis’ OPS. Lewis was a terrific player last year with a .283 average and nine home runs. This year, Lewis already has a career high 11 homers, a .311 average, 11 steals in 12 attempts, and has been a strong Shortstop. It took him a while to develop and injuries have set him back, but now that he’s put things together, he’s a star, the first the Padres have ever had.

.324: Dave Rosinsky’s Average in El Paso this year. With Tetsuo Yamada out for two months, Creig McBride will look to fill his spot. Rosinski had the first crack and hit .286 with three walks his first week. The 28-year-old rookie is a three-time Minor League All-Star so he’s produced in the pass.

.167: John Yacey’s average in June. San Diego needs one more power hitter, and Yancy can be that guy. He’s only hitting .242 in July, but he’s homered three times in 10 games. That’s a big reason why the Padres went only .500 in June, but are off to a strong 6-4 in July.


Questions for the GMs:


For Jim Leesch, you’ve had control of the Braves for a few weeks now. What are your thoughts on the team heading into the second half of the year?

You have several hitters with low averages. Is that something you want to rectify?

Jim Morgan has pitched well in the past. He hasn’t hit well at all, but he shows big potential there and is only 24. What are your plans for him in the second half?

For Creig McBride, you’re without Tetsuo Yamada for two months. How will you look to overcome his absence?

You tried Jake Reed in the rotation and it didn’t work. What role will he play in the second half?

The Braves have a great defensive team. Will that affect your lineup today at all?


TRIVIA: Who is the only Padres player to ever have more than 502 Plate Appearances in a season with an OPS above .900?

[Padres]

Tetsuo Yamada for two months. How will you look to overcome his absence?
The Yamada injury hurt, all injuries hurt - but that one, with him being my most expensive player - hurts more. So I took a deep dive into my organization and felt that Dave Rosinsky would be a good fit for what we needed in the interim. So far he has done well w/ a OBP of .412, he has done well to set the table for the bats later in the lineup. I wish he would get comfortable and get a few more extra base hits.

You tried Jake Reed in the rotation and it didn’t work. What role will he play in the second half?
Jake Reed is a tough one, I did try him the rotation only bc we had no other candidates for injuries. It did not work out well. Tried him at the start of the year there again, again didn't go well. He has been serviceable as a long man relief option. I feel like we have 2 very good options at the back end of our bullpen right now with Paddock & Karinchak. I believe that Reed will return back to his back-end option come the 2nd half of the year. The Padres are once again low on money, so just trying to piece together the best bullpen I can for the money I able to spend (or the lack thereof).

The Braves have a great defensive team. Will that affect your lineup today at all?
All I can say is that I hope our guys "Put the ball where they aren't". I have tried to fit the lineup card with guys at the top who are OBP guys, so that the power can come up and hope to make the Braves pay if a mistake is given. I do not have good success with these GotW games. So here is to hope our luck changes!

[Atlanta GM]

Jan 28, 2022 13:00:04 GMT -5 Commissioner Erick said:

You’ve had control of the Braves for a few weeks now. What are your thoughts on the team heading into the second half of the year?
Obviously I’m pleased with where our record is going into the half-way point.  Our pitching and speed are stellar, even with the recent unfortunate hit to the bullpen.  We need to get more patient at the plate, though, or the postseason will be a real challenge.

You have several hitters with low averages. Is that something you want to rectify?
Absolutely.  We won’t continue to perform at an elite level without some more consistency at the plate.  It’s going to be a difficult tightrope to walk, because we don’t want to sacrifice defense for hitting if we can help it.  I think it’s a matter of coaching - we have to get the players who are struggling to buy into a more patient approach.

Jim Morgan has pitched well in the past. He hasn’t hit well at all, but he shows big potential there and is only 24. What are your plans for him in the second half?
He has a high ceiling both on the mound and in the field.  I’m not willing to pigeonhole him right now, since he can be such a valuable and flexible tool for us.  We’ll keep working on his development across the board and see where he will ultimately give his greatest contributions.

[Commissioner Erick]

TRIVIA: Daniel correctly guessed Alejandro Toral

[Commissioner Erick]

Braves 10 - Padres 4


WP: M. Eberle (9-5)
LP: A. Espinosa (4-1)


Getting offensive support from Steve Goode, the Atlanta Braves topped the San Diego Padres, 10-4. Goode was 4-5 with a home run and 3 singles. He scored 2 runs and drove in 3 for the Braves. With the win, Atlanta raised its record to 60-33.

The Braves benefited from a costly error in the top of the third. With Steven Williams at bat and Atlanta leading 2-1, the San Diego miscue allowed Atlanta to plate 2 and take the lead, 4-1.

"I still think this team can play even better," Goode told the Atlanta News.


Questions for the GMs:


For Jim Leesch, 15 hits against the Padres today. For a team struggling to hit for average, why was your club so successful?

Art Winkler was caught stealing to end the second inning. Do you favor an aggressive base stealing approach?

Tony Ryan had a hit in two at bats off the bench. What do you think about the rookie's performance this season?

For Creig McBride, Anderson Espinosa allowed five runs in 3 innings, but 3 were unearned. Would you have liked to see him pitch deeper?

Rosinsky went 1-4. What did you think of his hitting?

Greg Kelly homered. Do you see improvement from him this year?


TRIVIA: Steve Goode had a game earlier this year with 7 RBIs, tied for the most in a single game in Braves history. Who is the other Braves player with 7 RBIs in a game?

[Atlanta GM]

Art Winkler was caught stealing to end the second inning. Do you favor an aggressive base stealing approach?
I have no problem with an aggressive approach on the base-paths, and in that situation, Art obviously thought he had an opportunity to generate some pressure by getting into scoring position with two outs.
In general, I think our squad's willingness to push the defense that little bit harder is one of the things that makes our hitting struggles feel less burdensome.

Tony Ryan had a hit in two at-bats off the bench. What do you think about the rookie's performance this season?
Tony has been a great asset coming in off of the bench this season. It's really tough to hit with consistency when you're only getting in two times a week or so, but he's handled the role really well. It is a great feeling to know that you have a guy who can be asked to come in and give our starters a breather without sacrificing defense or patience at the plate. And who doesn't love a local-boy-makes-good story? The fans love it when he shows up in the lineup at home.

[Commissioner Erick]

TRIVIA 2: Nobody guessed Bryan Martelo