Minor gives major effort, but Braves fall short in DC

As they have spent the past few weeks enduring an ugly offensive stretch that has extended the mediocrity they have produced most of this season, the Braves have nearly killed any hope of successfully defending their division crown. Now, they can only hope that their bats awake in time to avoid a fate that will be more painful than the one Mike Minor experienced during Monday night’s 2-1 loss to the Nationals.