Sports Page Atlanta

No, neither is a trade involving Mark Teixeira or Will Ohman, but the Atlanta Braves did make two roster moves over the past two days. On Monday, they designated RP Vladimir Nunez for assignment, and activated RP Rafael
Soriano off of the DL. Tuesday, the Braves activated UTIL Omar Infante from
the DL, shipping SS Brent Lillibridge to AAA Richmond.

In a road trip, those are the first two, of what could be many impactful
roster moves. Still nothing regarding Teixeira or Ohman, but don’t be
surprised if one or both is gone by the end of the week.

The Atlanta Braves have a record of 3-5 to start the season, and believe it or not, all five losses have been one-run losses. Last night’s 4-3 loss in Colorado had nothing to do with the bullpen, but that was a first, as every other loss for the Atlanta Braves has been a result of Braves relievers. Let’s take a look at a few other facts about the 2008 Braves bullpen.

• Braves relievers are 1 for 4 in save opportunities. Blaine Boyer, Will Ohman, & Peter Moylan all have blown saves.
• Braves relievers (as a whole) rank 21st in ERA with a 5.14 ERA.
• Braves relievers have taken 4 losses thus far, the most by any team in baseball.
• The bullpen has given up 5 home runs, ranking 29th behind only the Oakland A’s who have given up 6.
• Only 4 teams have more relief innings pitched than the Braves. Overwork may be an issue here.
• 4 of the 7 Braves relievers have an ERA over 7.00

As bad as the relief crew has been, remember we’re only eight games in. It’s early enough in the season to chalk all of these bullpen woes up to bad luck. The Braves could use a nice one-run victory to turn things around.