Kimbrel Reunion Promising, But Braves Remain Out of Sync

The Atlanta Braves decision to bring up Kimbrel looks great to start, but there's so much that still needs to be sorted out

Kimbrel got the job done, but it wasn't enough | Robert Edwards-Imagn Images

Craig Kimbrel's return to the Atlanta Braves was promising in Friday night's 5-4 loss in extra to the San Francisco Giants. He pitched a scoreless seventh inning while giving up a hit and a walk. He stuck out a batter to end the inning.

If he pitches that way every time he comes out to the mound, the Braves are in that much better of a position to win. With the way the bullpen imploded the day before, seeing just keep an opponent scoreless is a great start.

However, the team remains out of sync, as evident by the loss. One thing goes right while something else goes wrong.

They scored four runs, which should have been a plus too. However, other problems meant it wasn't enough. They found themselves behind early, 3-0. Two fielding errors in the first didn't help either and one of the runs was unearned. A cleaner defensive inning could have meant a 4-3 win to bounce back and start the road trip on a high note.

Spencer Schwellenbach had a poorly timed rough first inning to complement the errors. He allowed three singles, a walk and a wild pitch. Errors might have extended the inning and allowed them to happen, but he still contributed to a messy inning nonetheless.

Heading back to the offense for a moment. Even when they scored four runs, they had a lot of the same issues we've seen all season. They went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left 12 runners on base. The top half of the lineup outside of Matt Olson had a poor performance. Remove Olson, and the first four batters in the lineup went 2-for-17. That's not going to cut.

Three scoreless frames in the game had at least one runner in scoring position. Manager Brian Snitker made the peculiar decision to put Drake Baldwin in to pinch hit for Nick Allen while no one was on base with one out. He then had to be subbed out for Luke Williams, who ended up being the guy at the plate for a bases-loaded situation in the top of the 10th.

It gets frustrating when these games are so winnable and they find ways to remain in the loss column. They can get the credit for actively trying to make changes, but the Braves have now dropped five straight and have lost 12 of 15. The damage controls in place aren't working.