Derek Lowe had a rough 1st inning and an even rougher 4th. Lowe ended up going 4.0 innings with 8 hits, 2 walks, 7 earned runs, and 2 strikeouts. Dan Haren was unspectacular himself, but he was able to strand a majority of the 11 baserunners he allowed on. The Diamondbacks only scored in two innings, but their 5 run 4th inning broke the game open and left the Braves with plenty of work to do in order to catch up.
The Braves scored some runs in the sixth and eighth in their comeback effort but in the end, the lead was a bit too much for even the awful Diamondbacks bullpen to blow. The Braves bullpen impressed as they allowed no runs in 4 innings pitched. Craig Kimbrel saw his wildness at the Major League level continue as he walked 2 in his only inning pitched but struck out 2 as well. Billy Wagner got some work and pitched yet another solid inning in relief.
Derek just didn't have his best stuff tonight and although he was rather unlucky in the 1st inning, he got hit hard in the 4th. Mark Reynolds took Lowe deep for his 13th homer of the year and Stephen Drew added 2 more hits against Lowe, making him 17-34 in his career vs. the Braves sinkerballer.
The Braves had a chance in the 8th inning to tighten the game a bit but with the bases loaded and 2 outs, Omar Infante grounded out to Aaron Heilman to end the threat. Eric Hinske, Melky Cabrera, and Infante all added 2 hits a piece and David Ross came in half way through the game to add an RBI double and another RBI later as he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
Once again in the ninth, the Braves loaded the bases. This time Yunel Escobar grounded into yet another double play with 1 out to end the game. Escobar's line drive percentage of 16.7% is the lowest it has been in any single season and he ranks 14th in the Majors in ground ball percentage at 55%.
Lowe got the loss, moving his record to 8-5 while he saw his ERA move back past the 5.00 mark. Dan Haren came away with the win and now sits at 6-4. Chad Qualls earned his 11th save of the year.
Tomorrow, the Braves look to even up the series as Kris Medlen (3-1) takes on Edwin Jackson (3-6)