ATLANTA - The Reds only had three hits in seven innings against Julio Teheran, but one was quite loud and damaging for the Braves and their star-crossed pitcher.
Jay Bruce's three-run homer in the first inning was more than enough offense for the Reds in a 3-1 win Tuesday night at Turner Field, the 10th loss in 12 games for the Braves and their 27th loss in 34 home games this season.
The Braves loaded the bases with none out in the ninth inning against reliever Blake Wood but failed to score after the Atlanta native and former Georgia Tech pitcher struck out pinch-hitter A.J. Pierzynski and induced a game-ending double-play grounder from Mallex Smith.
No other major league team has fewer than 12 home wins, and the Braves' 18-46 overall record is the worst in the majors and the franchise's worst through 64 games since the 1911 Boston Rustlers started 14-50 in a 44-107 season.
The Braves are on pace to finish 46-116, which would break a franchise record for losses by the 1935 Boston Braves (38-115). Just four teams have lost 115 or more since 1900, with the 2003 Detroit Tigers (43-119) the only team to do it in the last half-century.
Teheran (2-7) allowed three hits, three runs and one walk with eight strikeouts in seven innings, and retired 19 of the last 20 batters he faced including 17 in a row. But the anemic Braves offense couldn't overcome that early three-run deficit despite several chances.
They were 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position in the first four innings, while the Reds were 1-for-1 in those situations at that point and held a 3-1 lead. The Braves finished 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and have hit .170 (36-for-212) in those situations in their past 25 games, with 51 strikeouts.
After putting two on with one out in the third inning and failing to score, the Braves got on the board in the fourth after a leadoff single by Adonis Garcia, who had two of their four hits. He stole second base, went to third on Jace Peterson single, and scored on Teheran's sacrifice bunt.
The Braves didn't get another runner past first base until the ninth inning, when Garcia drew a leadoff walk, Tyler Flowers singled and Peterson walked to load the bases with none out against Wood.
Brandon Finnegan allowed one run, four hits and three walks in six innings to become the latest lefty starter to subdue the Braves, and former Braves minor leaguer J.J. Hoover pitched two perfect relief innings for the Reds - after entering with a 14.34 ERA in 12 appearances.
Teheran is 2-5 with a 2.13 ERA in his past 11 starts. He's allowed three runs or fewer in every start during that span, and the Braves have scored two runs or fewer while he's been in eight of those 11 games.
His run support - 2.74 per nine innings pitched - was the fourth-worst in the majors before Tuesday.
Six of 11 hits allowed by Teheran in his past three starts have been home runs, and they accounted for all eight runs he gave up in 20 2/3 innings in those games.
After serving up five bases-empty homers in his previous two starts at Los Angeles and San Diego, Teheran gave up three runs on one swing of Bruce's bat in the first inning, after walking Joey Votto and giving up a Brandon Phillips single.
Bruce's three-run homer on a 2-2 slider was the eighth homer against Teheran in his past five starts, after he'd allowed just one homer in the previous six starts.
It also snapped Teheran's string of 20 scoreless innings over three starts against the Reds, who before Tuesday had scored against him in only one of his four starts against Cincinnati, as a rookie in 2013.
After Kyle Waldrop reached on a two-out error by second baseman Peterson in the first inning, Teheran retired 17 consecutive batters before Waldrop's seventh-inning double