The Braves probably should not have won on Monday night. The Cubs left 15 runners on base and went 2-for-14 with runners-in-scoring-position. While part of that credit goes to the Atlanta pitching staff for working out of jams all night, it's definitely something the staff does not want to make a habit of doing.
Jair Jurrjens struggled to consistently throw strikes and allowed 13 base runners in 6.1 innings, though he somehow escaped without allowing a runner to score. There was a brief scare in the sixth inning when Jair appeared to tweak his injured knee while fielding a baseball, but he continued pitching. It did not appear to be a serious injury, though fans always have to worry whenever the young pitcher damages a knee that has been surgically repaired twice.
Freddie Freeman got Atlanta on the board with a solo-home run in the second inning. After both Martin Prado and Brian McCann nearly missed homers of their own in the first inning, it was fitting Freeman would finally knock one into the Wrigley Field bleachers. Prado did knock in a run of his own in the third inning, though it was on a force out.
With the score still 2-0 in Atlanta's favor, Dan Uggla hit one of his biggest home runs to give him thirty on the season. Uggla took a high fastball and hit a monster shot into the Chicago night that landed in streets behind the stadium. With the homer, the second baseman becomes the first Brave to hit 30 in a season since 2006. It may be hard to believe, but it's true.
Arodys Vizcaino came in and recorded two outs in the seventh before handing the reigns over to Eric O'Flaherty who worked a scoreless inning. Craig Kimbrel got a night off and was replaced by Jonny Venters. The lefty walked the first two batters of the inning, but promptly struck out Carlos Pena and Marlon Byrd before getting the final groundout of the game.
It wasn't pretty, but Atlanta squeaked out the 3-0 victory. It was their fifth win in a row.
Mike Minor will look to continue his good work on the mound Tuesday night as the series continues. He will be opposed by Casey Coleman, who has struggled mightily this year. First pitch is scheduled for 8:05EDT.