3 takeaways from the Braves' loss to the Nats

ATLANTA -- Austin Riley’s latest home run gave reason to anticipate another Braves comeback win and yet another Nationals bullpen collapse. But on a night when Max Fried was not at his best, the season’s first matchup between these two rivals was actually decided by a mistake made by Atlanta’s newest reliever.

Howie Kendrick’s seventh-inning leadoff homer off Anthony Swarzak extended a deficit that proved insurmountable as the Braves toyed with Washington’s leaky bullpen before absorbing a 5-4 loss Tuesday night at SunTrust Park.

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“We gave ourselves a chance,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “We had the deck stacked in our favor a couple times. But the guy [Stephen Strasburg] we were facing is really good, and he was throwing really, really good tonight.”

While Fried matched a season high by surrendering nine hits over 5 2/3 innings, Strasburg matched a season-high 11 strikeouts over seven innings, just one of which proved laborsome. The Nationals’ starter gained a three-run advantage courtesy of Kendrick’s homer off Swarzak, who had not allowed a run in any of the three previous innings he had completed since the Braves acquired him last week.

Here are three takeaways from just the fifth loss over the Braves’ past 17 games:

Riley fuels late drama
Even after Kendrick homered, there was reason to wonder how the game might change once Strasburg exited. The Braves had erased a three-run, ninth-inning deficit on Sunday in St. Louis, and the Nationals’ bullpen entered this two-game series with a 7.12 ERA and just nine saves in 20 opportunities.

Before Sean Doolittle responded to Dansby Swanson’s two-out single by getting Freddie Freeman to whiff on the game’s final pitch, Riley made things much more interesting with his two-run home run off Kyle Barraclough in the eighth. The 412-foot shot was the sixth homer the 21-year-old prospect has hit through his first 52 career at-bats.

“That kid has some kind of power,” Snitker said of Riley, who has a 1.150 OPS through 58 plate appearances.

Riley’s power has certainly compensated for the fact that he entered this game having struck out in 10 of his past 22 at-bats. He prevented a four-strikeout game with a key single during Sunday’s ninth-inning rally, and he responded to Tuesday’s second-inning strikeout with a hit in each of his next three at-bats. He teamed with Josh Donaldson and Nick Markakis to record three consecutive one-out singles during a two-run fourth against Strasburg.

“I’ve been very, very, very impressed with his at-bats since he’s been here,” Snitker said. “He’s had some tough ones. They’ve worked him over pretty good and pitched him tough. They’re definitely aware of him.”

Trouble with the curve
Fried struggled to consistently command his curveball, which accounted for two of three singles that led to a run in the fourth. As for the slider he has thrown more frequently over the past month, there were some more signs of the value that the additional breaking ball might provide once further developed.

“The feeling just keeps getting better off my fingers,” Fried said. “Just being able to trust it in any count is big, especially when I have my catchers telling me it’s a good pitch and they want me to throw it.”

Fried surrendered consecutive doubles against the slider to begin Washington’s three-run sixth, but it should be noted Kurt Suzuki’s excuse-me, opposite-field flare came off the bat at 56.6 mph. The lefty also missed the zone twice with this pitch in the process of ending his 5 2/3-inning effort by walking Adam Eaton with the bases loaded.

But as Fried either hit or walked three of the final four batters he faced, his primary problem was controlling his fastball. He had issued two walks or fewer in nine of his previous 10 starts.

“He’s been so precise, and he wasn’t horrible tonight,” Snitker said. “If we score five or six runs, you can live with that. He’s not going to be pinpoint all the time, but I thought he did a great job of staying in counts and keeping the game in check.”

Bullpen battle
Kendrick’s decisive home run came against a high fastball on the outside corner. Swarzak has now allowed a homer in seven of his past 13 appearances dating back to April 18. The veteran reliever also added to the sixth-inning frustration by following Fried’s bases-loaded walk with one of his own.

When the Braves acquired Swarzak from the Mariners in exchange for two pitchers -- Arodys Vizcaíno and Jesse Biddle -- who were not part of their future plans. They simply wanted to add depth to a ‘pen that has been solidified as former starters Sean Newcomb and Touki Toussaint have teamed with Jacob Webb to serve as reliable setup men for Luke Jackson.

The development of the Braves’ bullpen is still a work in progress, but the relief corps has provided some encouragement as it has produced a 3.06 ERA and limited opponents to a .616 OPS over the past 10 games. It’s certainly in better shape than the one possessed by the Nationals, who have seen their relievers construct a 8.51 ERA and surrender a .929 OPS over the past 10 games.