Takeaways: Braves fall 8-6 to Cubs, set stage for rubber match tomorrow
The Atlanta Braves were looking to secure their third-straight series win this afternoon but fell short in the 8-6 loss at the hands of the Chicago Cubs.
Bryce Elder's start was not as bad as it looked
Elder has been a reliable part of Atlanta's rotation this season. In his second year at the Major League level, he is 8-2 with a 3.18 ERA and 89 strikeouts. Today Elder gave up five earned runs off of seven hits in 4.1 innings of action.
The Cubs got going early putting across five runs in the bottom of the first inning. Only three of those runs, however, were earned. Elder tossed two scoreless innings before letting a run across in the fourth and fifth innings, effectively ending his day.
Elder put together a decent day despite the rough beginning. Was it good? Far from it, but Elder has shown his ability to be great plenty of times. This one can be chalked up as a one-off.
The Braves do not go down easily
Atlanta has shown its resilience plenty of times this season and today was no different. Once the Braves finally generated some momentum at the plate, scoring two runs in the 6th inning and two more in the 9th, it was too late to do much good.
Despite the "too little too late" aspect, it is nice to see the team fight.
Blown chances are detrimental
Stranding runners on base is never a recipe for success. The Braves left nine runners to the Cubs' six and that will almost never lead to a win, especially with Atlanta batting 2-10 with runners in scoring position.
Getting runners on base is great, but getting them home is the name of the game and the Braves failed to do that today.
Tomorrow
First pitch for tomorrow is set for 2:20 PM ET. Charlie Morton (10-9, 3.62 ERA) will take the mound for the Braves against Cubs left-hander Justin Steele (12-3, 2.65 ERA). Bally Sports Southeast will have the television broadcast and the game can be heard on 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan or on the Atlanta Braves Radio Network or MLB.com.
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