They say you can live with giving up solo home runs. But when you give up four of them and your offense struggles, that doesn't bode well.
Mike Minor allowed just five hits over six innings, but four of them were solo home runs and the Braves lost Monday's series-opener at Cincinnati 4-1. After giving up a homer in the first inning, Minor allowed back-to-back-to-back homers in the fourth inning.
The Braves offense managed just two hits. One of them came from Juan Francisco, who hit — you guessed it — a solo home run. Dan Uggla also hit a double. Mike Leake pitched a gem for the Reds, allowing just the two hits over eight innings. He also helped his own cause with the first of the three-straight homers in the fourth.
Livan Hernandez and Kris Medlen each pitched a scoreless inning of relief.
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