LOS ANGELES – While addressing the media at Dodger Stadium on Saturday morning, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman smiled as he said that having an abundance of quality starting pitchers improves his quality of life.
Thanks to an overabundance of injuries, Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos hasn’t been spared from dealing with the unrelenting stress created by a lack of starting pitching depth.
The Braves managed to get through the best-of-three NL Wild Card Series by using two starting pitchers in a traditional manner and a reliever to open the third game. But after the bullpen floundered in a 5-3 Game 1 loss to the Dodgers on Saturday afternoon, there’s reason to ask, does Atlanta have enough pitching to win this NL Division Series?
“Look, you’ve got [Chris] Sale and [Tyler] Mahle still,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said. “Tomorrow, we’ll have a much more rested bullpen. I don't have any worries about having enough pitching. We've got plenty of pitching.”
Truth is, the Braves haven’t had plenty of pitching since the first week of Spring Training, when Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep learned they needed elbow surgery. Joey Wentz, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo López, Bryce Elder and Martín Pérez are among the other starters not currently available.
Even the pitching-rich Dodgers might be weakened if they were currently without seven different starting pitchers.
But while pitching is a big-picture concern, the Braves might have lost Game 1 even if Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine or John Smoltz had been starting. Two-time reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal allowed just two hits and one run over six innings while making his first postseason start for the two-time defending World Series champion Dodgers.
Ozzie Albies’ two-run homer in the ninth off Tanner Scott wasn’t enough to overcome the home runs Victor Mederos and AJ Smith-Shawver surrendered after Dylan Dodd threw three scoreless innings as an opener.
In Division Series with the current 2-2-1 format, teams taking a 1-0 lead at home have gone on to win 42 of 56 times (75%).
“To win Game 1 is certainly important, very important,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “We could have deployed our starters any way we wanted, but to have Blake [Snell] going tomorrow to follow up with what Tarik did today and knowing that you got [Yoshinobu Yamamoto] in the holster for Game 3, we're in a good spot.”
While Roberts is working with a collection of Cy Young Award winners and candidates, Weiss is having to dig deep into his bullpen to try to get 27 outs.
So, why was Mederos used in the fourth inning of a scoreless game? Well, Didier Fuentes wasn’t available because he pitched against the Phillies on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Robert Suarez wasn’t available after pitching on Thursday for just the third time in three months.
Weiss also indicated before the game he likely wouldn’t use Grant Holmes as a bulk guy. Holmes threw two innings in that role on Thursday.
Every high-leverage option, including Fuentes and Suarez, should be available for the next couple games.
“We’re trying to win every game, but having a five-game series, it’s a bit more strategic and gives us more time to get back into it,” Braves catcher Drake Baldwin said. “I think it’s about going out there and tomorrow, starting zero-zero and doing as much as we can.”
Sale might be available to help turn the tide in Sunday’s Game 2. The Braves are still debating whether to give him this start.
But the fact that Sale started Game 1 of the Wild Card Series, came out of the bullpen two days later and might start three days after that relief appearance highlights the lack of quality options the Braves have, especially with Elder (right knee) and Pérez (sore back) still recovering from recent injuries.
Sale and Mahle, the potential Game 3 starter if Sale goes on Sunday, are the only members of the NLDS roster who might make a traditional start for Atlanta over the remainder of this series. But the openers have been impressive. Dodd’s effort came two days after Ray Kerr opened Thursday’s win over the Phillies with 3 1/3 scoreless innings.
As Dodd was being lauded for his effort, Teoscar Hernández hit a two-run homer off Mederos. Kyle Tucker and Max Muncy extended Los Angeles’ lead with home runs against Smith-Shawver in the sixth.
While the Braves were playing bullpen-door roulette, Skubal was proving how comforting it can be to rely on one pitcher to carry the load. The southpaw surrendered a leadoff single to Drake Baldwin and then retired 15 straight before allowing a solo homer to Sean Murphy in the sixth.
If Sale and Mahle can deliver in their respective starts, the quality of life will improve for the Braves’ decision makers. But as Saturday proved, having to piece together 27 outs with relievers is stressful, especially with a couple of high-leverage options unavailable.
“When it comes to the postseason, nobody has roles,” Braves third baseman Austin Riley said. “Whatever it takes to get to 27 outs.”