Lord didn't factor into the decision in Wednesday's 9-0 loss to Atlanta, allowing two hits and a walk over 3.1 scoreless innings. He struck out six.
A nearly 90-minute rain delay ended what was shaping up to be an unlikely pitcher's duel, as Lord's dominant performance was matched by three perfect innings from Grant Holmes. Lord may have been nearing his limit anyway, however -- the right-hander tossed 39 of 55 pitches for strikes, and he hasn't thrown 60-plus pitches in any outing this season. He'll likely return to a long-relief role, but Lord's making a case to get stretched out for another crack at the rotation, having posted a 2.40 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 18:8 K:BB over 15 innings since the beginning of August.