The Atlanta Braves came into Thursday’s matinee with a golden opportunity—a chance to sweep the Detroit Tigers and keep their early-season momentum rolling after a thrilling walkoff win the night before. But baseball has a way of humbling even the hottest teams, and the Braves learned that lesson the hard way. Late-inning pitching struggles and defensive miscues unraveled what had been a promising start, handing the Tigers a 5-2 victory.

For a while, it looked like Atlanta might cruise to another win. Bryce Elder took the mound and, despite not having his sharpest stuff, managed to dance through traffic for six innings. His stat line—five strikeouts, three walks, and a ground-ball rate of just 22 percent, the lowest of his career in any start—told the story of a pitcher who had to work for every out. He escaped a two-out jam in the first inning when Spencer Torkelson lifted a harmless fly ball, and again in the third after a walk and a single put two runners on. A groundout and a missed opportunity by Riley Greene on a hanging slider kept the Tigers off the board. Elder even got some help from Ronald Acuña Jr., who gunned down Gleyber Torres trying to stretch a single into a double in the fifth.

Meanwhile, the Braves’ offense scratched out a 2-0 lead against Tigers starter Framber Valdez. They stranded a couple of runners in the first, but broke through in the second when Eli White lined a hard single to center, scoring Kyle Farmer—who was making his first start of the year. Atlanta looked poised to add more when a Valdez pitch appeared to hit Acuña’s foot, but the call stood after a replay review that left the Braves baffled. Consecutive strikeouts ended that threat, but Mauricio Dubon’s single in the fourth provided some breathing room—for a while.

Then came the late innings, and everything fell apart. The Braves’ bullpen, which had been a strength early in the season, suddenly couldn’t find the strike zone. Walks, hits, and a costly defensive error allowed the Tigers to erupt for four runs in the seventh and eighth innings. What had been a tight, well-pitched game turned into a blowout in the span of a few frames. The Braves managed just two runs on the day—a season low in scoring for a team that had been putting up crooked numbers all week.

The loss snapped Atlanta’s three-game winning streak and dropped them back to .500 on the young season. More concerning, though, was the way they lost: a season high in runs allowed, and likely a season high in frustration. For a team that prides itself on pitching and defense, Thursday’s performance was a reminder that even the best plans can go sideways when the baseball gods decide to test you.

As the Braves pack their bags for the next series, they’ll have to shake off this one quickly. The schedule doesn’t get any easier, and in a division as tight as the NL East, every game counts. But if there’s one thing Atlanta fans know, it’s that this team has a short memory—and a knack for bouncing back.