Brian Snitker calls out Braves offense after loss to worst team in baseball

Mother Nature certainly didn't do the Atlanta Braves any favors this week. There was a postponement of their second game of the series against the St. Louis Cardinals due to weather but then the first game of the doubleheader was delayed by rain as well on Wednesday. That then set the Braves up to play three games in a 24-hour span with a make-up game from April 3 against the Chicago White Sox on deck in the Windy City before heading back to Atlanta for a series starting on Friday.

And now that's going to be a sour trip back home.

After a disheartening loss in which the Braves scored one run in St. Louis in Game 2 of the doubleheader, Chris Sale made a return to his old stomping grounds on the Southside of Chicago and delivered a stellar performance. He lasted 7.0 innings and struck out 11, allowing just one run on a Luis Robert Jr. solo shot.

Even with Sale shutting down the White Sox, though, the Braves offense couldn't take advantage as that Robert homer was the only run scored in the game, a 1-0 loss for Atlanta. And on the heels of that, manager Brian Snitker had to send a message to the offense.

Clearly not in the best of moods -- even by his normally stoic standards -- Snitker was asked how he felt about the Braves at-bats on Thursday on the Southside and plainly said that Atlanta "didn't have much to show for them" before adding that they "couldn't hit".

He then added the biggest jab yet at the offense, complimenting the Braves' pitching performances from Bryce Elder in Game 2 on Wednesday night and then Sale's gem on Thursday.

"We won a series against the Yankees, felt really good coming out of there," Snitker said. "Same thing yesterday, second game of the doubleheader we just couldn’t score any runs. Pitching has been really good."

Brian Snitker calls out Braves offense after 1-0 loss to MLB-worst White Sox

Frustrations were bound to boil over in some capacity after a loss to the team like the White Sox but even more so when everything was done except providing offense from the Braves. The club managed only three hits, failing to capitalize on five walks issued by Chicago, and ultimately left seven runners on base and went 0-for-5 on the day with runners in scoring position.

This all came less than 24 hours after managing only three runners over six innings against embattled Cardinals youngster Matthew Liberatore on Wednesday while going 2-for-6 in that game with runners in scoring position in the eventual 4-1 loss.

Through the month of June, the Braves are 20th in MLB in OPS (.688) as a team and it's showed. Even with Spencer Strider having missed basically all season with an elbow injury, the Atlanta pitching staff has delivered the goods. Sale has been his old self as has Max Fried, Reynaldo Lopez has been the steal of the offseason, Charlie Morton keeps beating the drum and the bullpen has been reliable as well.

But it's been the inconsistent and sometimes anemic offense that has ultimately stung the reigning NL East champs time and again. Not having Acuña and Harris certainly doesn't help but, as the Braves still trail the Phillies by eight games in the NL East and see the likes of the aforementioned Cardinals, rival Mets and even the Padres start to surge, it's a problem that Snitker and the club need to fix.

Perhaps the manager's comments will spark Alex Anthopoulos to act even quicker at the trade deadline than he was already expected to as he attempts to reignite the offense.