Braves’ Matt Olson rips offense after wasting Bryce Elder’s strong start

The Atlanta Braves had a golden opportunity to reach .500 for the first time this season, but another underwhelming night at the plate spoiled a quality outing from Bryce Elder, leaving Matt Olson and company searching for answers.

Facing a Pittsburgh Pirates team that had just fired its manager and was on a seven-game losing streak, Atlanta managed only two runs in a 3-2 loss at PNC Park on Friday night.

Elder allowed just three earned runs across six innings and struck out eight without walking a batter. It was a solid outing, his third quality start in the last four games, but once again, the Braves’ offense failed to show up in time.

“We’d like to get over that .500 hump and start getting on the winning side of things,” Braves first baseman Matt Olson told David O’Brien of the Athletic. “Definitely not a good offensive performance from us tonight. Bryce threw the ball really well. Bullpen threw the ball well. We just couldn’t give him any support there until the end.”

Braves struggle to get back to .500

The defeat dropped the Braves to 18-20, marking their fourth failed attempt to even their record this year. Despite a recent stretch where the team won 13 of 19, inconsistency at the plate remains a glaring issue.

Olson, who owns a .222 batting average but a strong .358 on-base percentage and .750 OPS, emphasized personal accountability as well.

“You’re gonna be frustrated with a night like that,” Olson added. “We had some chances, especially me personally, with some guys in scoring position, and just not good at-bats. There’s no way to put it nicely. You want those situations, and you want to go out and produce. And (we) didn’t until the end.”

While the Braves’ infield defense continues to perform at an elite level, leading the league in metrics like Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average, it’s the offense that remains unpredictable from game to game.

The Braves felt they had reached a turning point in the season earlier this week with a big win over the Los Angeles Dodgers, which made Friday’s loss to the Pirates even more frustrating. Until the offensive inconsistency changes, even strong starts from pitchers like Bryce Elder won’t be enough to lift Atlanta into serious contention.