NEW YORK — With their latest offensive eruption, the Braves may have created further reason to argue they need to make every effort to add another bat before Friday’s 4 p.m. ET Trade Deadline.
This was a logical reaction to them totaling just two runs while splitting Monday’s doubleheader at Citi Field. But when you consider the remaining potential of Atlanta’s depleted lineup, this thought could have also been surmised as the Braves were rolling to a 12-5 win over the Mets on Tuesday night.
“I’m sure [the front office] isn’t getting much sleep thinking about what to add and what not to add,” Braves third baseman Austin Riley said. “I’m just going to let them do that job and I’m just going to focus on trying to win ballgames right now and trying to stay focused.”
Riley highlighted his third career multi-homer game with his second career grand slam, and Ozzie Albies accounted for the first of the four home runs the Braves tallied on the way to moving within four games of the first-place Mets in the National League East. Atlanta will have a chance to gain further ground during the final two games of this five-game series.
“I think we’re more than capable of winning the division,” Braves right-hander Charlie Morton said after throwing five solid innings. “We’re four or five games back going into the Deadline. So there’s a lot of unknowns, just because of where we’re at. But I think we all believe in the group we have in the clubhouse.”
Riley gave the Braves a 10-1 lead with his fourth-inning grand slam against Jerad Eickhoff, who was charged with 10 runs and seven hits over just 3 1/3 innings. Eickhoff had also surrendered Dansby Swanson’s two-run double, Albies’ two-run homer and Abraham Almonte’s two-run homer through the first three innings.
So, how can a team that had scored two runs or fewer in six of its past eight games, erupt much like it had during Saturday’s 15-3 win in Philadelphia? Well, the shellacking of the Phillies came in a game started by Vince Velasquez, who may soon fall out of Philadelphia’s rotation. And there is a good chance the Mets will soon designate Eickhoff for assignment for the third time this season.
“I’m so frustrated I let these guys down,” Eickhoff said. “You’re playing the Braves. Obviously, they’re right behind you in the hunt for the division here. So it’s frustrating. It’s embarrassing. It’s frustrating. Regardless of the circumstances, I feel like I have the stuff and the ability to navigate that, but I was not able to do that tonight.”
Braves manager Brian Snitker was certainly happy with what he saw, regardless of the perceived challenge level.
“Any time you have a Major League game and a Major League pitcher is on the mound, anything can happen,” Snitker said. “It was good to see good offensive production out of the guys.”
Taking advantage of susceptible starters might actually be an indication of how capable this lineup can be even without Ronald Acuña Jr. and Marcell Ozuna for the rest of the season. Freddie Freeman has contributed MVP-caliber production for the past six weeks, Albies ranks among the Major League leaders in extra-base hits and Riley has hit .297 with 17 homers and a .910 OPS over his past 77 games.
“The power is unbelievable,” Snitker said. “He’s a young hitter. He’s still learning. There’s still a lot of upside in this guy.”
Riley’s grand slam traveled a projected 432 feet and his two-run shot in the sixth inning went a projected 420 feet, per Statcast. The 24-year-old third baseman has tallied a career-high 19 homers. He, Albies and Swanson should soon join Freeman in the 20-homer club.
“We’ve still got a lot of season and a lot of ballgames left,” Riley said. “Hopefully, the numbers keep up and we kind of keep this thing rolling and make a run at it.”
There’s still plenty of potential in this lineup. But the fact this offense remained pretty quiet when facing Yu Darvish, Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola and Marcus Stroman over the past week created reason to believe an additional piece could prove beneficial down the stretch.
While it seems like the Braves need to acquire at least one reliever, trading for an outfielder like Adam Duvall, Mitch Haniger or even Kris Bryant wouldn’t hurt. There were offseason discussions about platooning Duvall with Joc Pederson before Pederson opted to sign with the Cubs.
There would be no need to platoon the two if they were to be united in Atlanta over the final two months. Duvall could man left field and Pederson would remain in right. It’s not necessarily what had been envisioned, but it’s a whole lot better than what the Braves have had most of the year with their outfield mix.