Newcomb gets the ball
Braves turn to lefty in Game 3 of NLDS
ATLANTA — On the brink of elimination in their first postseason appearance in five years, the Atlanta Braves are throwing a changeup.
Left-hander Sean Newcomb will start tonight in Game 3 of the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, with previously scheduled right-hander Kevin Gausman scratched as the series shifts from the West Coast to SunTrust Park, which will make its playoff debut.
With the Braves trailing 2-0 in the best-of-five series, Atlanta manager Brian Snitker made the change Saturday.
Newcomb, 25, came within one strike of throwing a no-hitter against the Dodgers on July 29 in Atlanta. He pitched two scoreless innings in relief of starter Mike Foltynewicz in Thursday’s opener, which the Braves lost 6-0.
“We need to win,” Snitker said. “Not that Gausman doesn’t give us that opportunity. We like how Newcomb matches up with them and the success that he’s had against the Dodgers this year.”
Snitker said he discussed the change with general manager Alex Anthopoulos on the flight home after Atlanta’s 3-0 loss Friday. They agreed to the move Saturday afternoon.
Gausman is 5-3 with a 2.87 ERA in 10 starts since he was acquired from the Baltimore Orioles in late July.
“Snit came up and talked to me on the plane before we took off, let me know that that was a possibility, so kind of get my mind right before I kind of went to bed,” Newcomb said.
Newcomb threw a careerhigh 134 pitches when he went 8 2/3 innings against Los Angeles in a 4-1 win on July 29. Chris Taylor singled to left field on a 2-2 pitch with two outs in the ninth.
Newcomb was 12-9 with a 3.90 ERA in his first full MLB season, though he had a 5.68 ERA in 10 starts at the end of the season.
Rookie right-hander Walker Buehler is expected to start for the Dodgers. He allowed one hit in 6 2/3 scoreless innings Monday during the 5-2 win over Colorado in the NL West tiebreaker and finished the regular season 8-5 with a 2.62 ERA.
Despite being outscored 9-0 in the first two games of this NLDS, the Braves have been outhit just 10-9. Only two runners have reached third base, though, so changes to the batting order would not seem inappropriate.
Snitker said he may move switch-hitting second-baseman Ozzie Albies up in the lineup to No. 2. He does not anticipate any changes to his starting eight, though.
“We’ve got to take the safety off and start firing,” said Snitker, whose team needs a win tonight to force Game 4 on Monday at SunTrust.
Game 5 would be played Wednesday in Los Angeles.
The odds are long for the Braves advancing to the NL Championship Series for the first time since 2001. Only three times have teams that trailed 2-0 rallied to win a bestof-five playoff series under the 2-2-1 format.
The youthful Braves ran into back-to-back dominant pitchers in Hyun-Jin Ryu and Clayton Kershaw in Los Angeles. Atlanta didn’t advance a runner past second base in Game 1 and twice got runners to third in Game 2 but couldn’t score.
“We need to go out there and string some hits together, a couple big innings,” said Atlanta shortstop Charlie Culberson, a former Calhoun High School standout.
They might be hard-pressed to do that against Buehler, who has drawn comparisons to ace Kershaw.
“Obviously, it’s a big spot,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, “but he continues to kind of surpass all expectations.”
The rebuilding Braves surprised this season by winning the NL East with a starting lineup that features plenty of rising stars and some dependable veterans, including outfielder Nick Markakis and first baseman Freddie Freeman. But their bench is thin, limiting Snitker’s options.
“I don’t know that moving guys around, giving them different looks in the lineup when you’re swinging the bats like we are is even the answer,” Snitker said, “but we’ll try something a little different.”
Markakis went 1-for-7 with two strikeouts while batting cleanup in Los Angeles, where Freeman was 1-for-8 with two strikeouts.
“We’ve got to start scoring some runs,” Freeman said, “and hopefully we can do that in front of our home crowd.”
Center fielder Ender Inciarte said this team has been at its best under pressure and already shocked people with its success, and he believes the Braves can do it again. Culberson shares his faith.
“We’ve still got chances,” Culberson said. “We just need to take a deep breath and go out there and try to have fun.”