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The Atlanta Braves have claimed three consecutive victories and Monday night’s win over Noah Syndergaard and the New York Mets was especially nice for Aaron Blair. On Tuesday, Brian Snitker’s team will take on the Mets for the second straight night and, this time, Julio Teheran will take the ball for the road team.
Teheran has unequivocally been Atlanta’s best starting pitcher this season, but the right-hander did struggle in his last outing. He allowed five earned runs over 5.1 innings in a 7-5 loss to the Miami Marlins and, previous to that, Teheran took a no-decision after a solid but unspectacular outing against these same Mets.
For the season, Teheran owns a 3.18 ERA in 170 innings and while some of the peripherals are less encouraging, he has improved his command (1.96 BB/9) in impressive fashion. Against a New York offense that isn’t exactly spectacular, there is reason for optimism with Teheran on the mound, especially given that he will be opposed by Robert Gsellman.
The 23-year-old Gsellman has only four MLB starts under his belt, though it should be noted that he has pitched well to the tune of a 3.08 ERA (3.29 FIP) in 26.1 innings. Still, the right-hander does not boast a particularly impressive offering of “stuff” and Gsellman should be at least somewhat susceptible to an offense that has been quite good (shockingly so, I might add) in the recent past.
With the number one pick basically out of reach at this point, it is now “safe” to root for the Braves again as the season winds down. With that in mind, Julio Teheran is fun to watch and every game against the Mets (or any NL East rival) is worth monitoring. Let’s do this together.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Tuesday, September 20, 2016, 7:10 pm ET
Location: Citi Field, New York, NY
TV: Fox Sports Southeast, MLB.tv (streaming)
Radio: 680 AM, 93.7 FM (Flagship in Atlanta), WYAY 106.7, Braves Radio Network