5 Reasons the Atlanta Braves Are Such a Good Road Team

The Atlanta Braves are in the thick of the National League East race, and there's a reason why.

Playing on the road has been the Braves' forte this year. They currently carry a 20-14 record away from Turner Field, but they are just 14-15 at the Ted, thanks in part to a sweep by the New York Yankees.

But there are many reasons why the Braves are good on the road.

Here's a look at five of them.

5. Bad Start Leaves Bad Taste

The Braves started the season 0-4, all road games, and looked very sluggish.

But that somehow left a bad taste in their mouths, and they won their next five on the road, scoring an average of almost seven runs per game.

The only other stretch where the Braves have been bad on the road this year was during a series in Cincinnati, in which the Reds swept all four games.

4. Run Differential

The Braves have a plus-36 run differential on the road, and they sport a minus-10 run differential at home.

Now, someone may look at that and say that the Braves have played more games away from Turner Field, but it still doesn't take away from having a negative run differential.

It's hard to put your finger on why because the Braves are all over the place when it comes to offense at home. Some games, they're the first to score and/or get a nice three-plus-run lead. Other games, they get behind early and can't fight their way back.

3. Leadoff

In the game of baseball, it all starts with the leadoff hitter at the plate.

On the road, Michael Bourn is batting .297 with five home runs and 12 RBI. At home, he's actually hitting for better average at .344.

The difference is in Bourn's power on the road.

Add in that Bourn is batting .404 in the first inning on the road, and you see that the Braves are getting off to quick starts.

2. Home Runs

The Braves are killing the ball on the road. They've hit 38 home runs away from home, while they've hit 24 at Turner Field.

Add in a .400 slugging percentage as a team, and you have the makings of a good hitting team.

But we all know that the Braves aren't built on hitting, even though it's looking that way.

1. Pitching

The bread and butter of the Braves has always been pitching.

Although there have been some struggles over the last few years, the starters and relievers seem to have it together for the most part (Jonny Venters and Mike Minor).

So, here are the Braves' road stats from the mound with their ranking in MLB:

Stat	Number	Rank
Saves	14	1st
Opp. Batting Avg.	.242	5th
Double Plays	29	6th
Strikeouts	253	6th
ERA	3.45	7th
Runs Allowed	120	7th
WHIP	1.30	9th

Most of those stats are self explanatory, but I want to highlight the double plays.

Known as a pitcher's best friend, double plays have gotten the Braves out of jams on the road on multiple occasions. So I guess you can chalk that up to good defense and good pitching.

And Finally...

While we've seen the success the Braves have had on the road, my hope is that they'll get it together for the home games as well.

I'm not a Braves' fan, so I can watch them on TV playing in another city. It's all about going to the game and seeing them play live, knowing, "this is our town."

Sorry to you non-Braves fans who don't understand that.