The Braves will enter as losers in four of their last five games. The 7-1 defeat to the San Francisco Giants last night dropped them to a tie for third place in the National League-West.
Much of the blame couldn’t be placed on any area, since they are messing up on both sides of the field. Although their opponents are only hitting a modest .269 in that span, they still gave up a combined 34 runs with a woeful 6.00 ERA. Their own batting, meanwhile, were almost on the same rate during that stretch (.255), but they could only tally 16 runs, none of which came from homers.
As for the pitching, Julio Teheran is next in line. It’s tough to expect many good things from the six-year veteran, with his performances in May being consistently mediocre. He has been blasted for seven home runs and could only compile a 1-3 card with a 6.58 ERA in five starts this month.
Like the Braves, the Angels are also coming in having lost all but one of their last five games. It may look to be worse, though, as Mike Trout just jammed his thumb Sunday night against the Miami Marlins. He wasn’t able to return and is scheduled to have an MRI.
Trout, of course, is the heart and soul of the team, and the Angels will be losing a ton of firepower should he miss time. The two-time NL MVP’s 16 home runs is currently tied for first in the league, while his slash line of .342/.463/.752 is once again dominating the charts (fourth in batting average, first in on-base and slugging percentage).
Andrelton Simmons and Albert Pujols are among the guys that will be eyed to produce more if Trout gets sidelined – Simmons, who will be facing his former team for the first time, is 18-for-42 (.428) in his last 10 games, with seven RBIs, four runs, and one homer.
The defense, on the other hand, will be headlined by 11-year veteran Ricky Nolasco (2-4, 4.37 ERA). Like Teheran, May is also one of his worst months in recent memory, as the Angels have lost in all of his five starts this month. He has 30 strikeouts in his last 29.1 innings, but has also allowed 16 runs on 29 hits and 11 walks.
