Bryce Elder Giving Braves More Than Most Would Have Predicted

Even with the defensive blunder, the Atlanta Braves are in a better position this year with Bryce Elder on the mound. They managed to get seven innings out of him Saturday night during the 2-1 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

All three runs in the game came in the second inning. The Braves took a 1-0 lead on an RBI single by Dominic Smith, putting Elder in a position to win. However, with runners on first and second with one out in the bottom half of the frame, Arizona first baseman Jose Fernandez laid down a perfect bunt down the third-base line. Elder rushed a throw to Matt Olson, and it sailed into right field. Two runs came across, and that would be it for offense.

After that, Elder settled in and delivered five more scoreless innings, with eight total strikeouts on the night. He needed 89 pitches in the effort and outlasted his former teammate, Michael Soroka, by two innings.

It’s a bit of a statistical flaw with ERA that Elder has two unearned runs on the night when the error was on him. But even if they counted, it would be considered a solid night. The offense failed to back him up. Without the long ball, they went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left six on base. When it rains, it pours for this offense. But droughts still come about.

So, while Elder has his fair share of the blame for why the Braves took their third loss of the year, he’s not the primary culprit. Through two starts, he hasn’t been, which is a refreshing change of pace. The inning where it all completely unravels for him hasn’t come about yet.

He’s averaging a strikeout per inning, and he has a solid 0.85 WHIP across 13 innings pitched. Even if the two runs counted as earned, he’d have a 1.38 ERA. That would be the second-best on the team after Chris Sale’s 0.75 ERA. Half as good as this would have been enough for most.

Most were rightfully nervous when he was poised to be an arm in the rotation once again. While he had a strong finish to the season, he had a combined 5.59 ERA over the last two seasons. As of late, he’s arguably looking better than his All-Star form.

As a group, the Braves' starting pitching has a 1.78 ERA, which is good for the best in the National League. Even if Elder’s two runs were earned, they would have had a league-leading 2.13 ERA. Despite the stress from the injuries, they’ve managed to be one of the team's strongest assets out of the gate.

They’ve put in an effort that was good enough to have this team be 7-2 on the year, but being 6-3 after how last year started is still solid ground to stand on.

The Braves are still in position to take the series in Arizona on Sunday. Martín Pérez will have the start for a 4:10 p.m. EDT first pitch (1:10 p.m. in Arizona).