Braves search for rock bottom in ugly 12-2 loss to Phillies

Say hello to rock bottom.

We hope.

The Atlanta Braves were unceremoniously bludgeoned on Saturday evening. Amusingly, the Braves took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but from there, it was all about the Philadelphia Phillies, who scored eleven (!) runs over a three-inning period on the way to a 12-2 blowout victory.

Saturday's match-up between Matt Wisler and Aaron Nola was billed as a potential pitcher's duel, but Wisler failed to hold up his end of the bargain. The youngster allowed seven earned runs in just 4.2 innings, and that damage included home runs to the likes of Cameron Rupp and Odubel Herrera.

The disastrous run prevention didn't stop with Wisler, though, as David Aardsma was beaten into submission. The veteran right-hander allowed five earned runs while soliciting just three outs, and when the Wisler/Aardsma duo was finished, the score was 12-2 and the game was effectively over.

Throughout what is now a six-game losing streak, offense has been the problem for Atlanta on the majority of occasions. However, everything went wrong in this one, including a late injury to Andrelton Simmons that saw the shortstop exit the game to begin the eighth inning. The jury is out as to just how severe that injury will be, but Saturday became a "when it rains, it pours" situation in a hurry.

There is little reason to discuss the specifics of a 10-run loss beyond the fact that the Braves were flatly embarrassed by the worst team in the National League on Saturday evening. Atlanta has lost six straight games on their way to an ugly 46-58 mark on the season, and for the sake of everyone involved, the team must hope that this particular game marks rock bottom for the 2015 season.