Top Prospect Freddie Freeman made his long awaited debut for the Braves in last night's game. Photo Courtesy of Tim Evearitt.

September 2, 2010 – 7:10 PM Peachtree TV
New York Mets (65-68) Vs. Atlanta Braves (78-55)

Site Announcement: First an apology for the lack of updates recently. We have been working through some things here that have taken all of our spare time and have not been to adequately give the coverage that we are used to. Hopefully things will be getting back to normal around here soon.

What to Watch For: The Braves come into tonight seeking their sixth straight win and a series sweep of the New York Mets. It is no secret that Tim Hudson has been the teams best pitcher this season and will be going for his 16th win of the season. A case could be made that Hudson is the Braves team MVP this season as no one really expected this kind of season coming off of Tommy John surgery. Jason Heyward has been red hot hitting .520 over the last seven days and has raised his season average up to .284. Matt Diaz carries a lifetime .533 batting average into tonight’s game against Mets starter Johan Santana.

Tim Hudson

Vs.

Johan Santana

The Mets against Tim Hudson

The Braves against Johan Santana

Tim Hudson struck out a career high 13 Marlins while capturing his 15th win of the season. Photo courtesy of Tim Evearitt.

If anyone ever needed a game like this it was the Atlanta Braves. The bats woke up early pounding out six runs in the second inning against Marlins starter Ricky Nolasco. Those runs were plenty enough for Tim Hudson on this night. Hudson continued his magnificent season by pitching seven innings, allowing six hits and one run while striking out a career high thirteen batters. Hudson runs his record to 15-5 on the season and his performance helped the Braves snap a four game losing streak.

Martin Prado had a homer and 5 RBI's for the Braves on Saturday. Photo Courtesy of Tim Evearitt

Offensively the theme of the night was to do the little things. Braves television broadcaster Joe Simpson touched on it early in the game that the Braves for the last couple of weeks had been struggling moving runners over and thus had been struggling scoring runs. In the Braves six run second inning, Tim Hudson got down a key sacrifice bunt. That combined with a big three run Brian McCann double sent the Braves on their way.

Offensively five different Braves had at least two hits. In all they banged out fourteen total hits including three homers and three doubles. Martin Prado hit his 15th home run and drove in five runs. Eric Hinske subbed in for an injured Derrek Lee and responded with two hits including his tenth home run of the season.

Lee’s side injury is the only bad news on an otherwise close to perfect night. The win moves the Braves back to two games in front of the Phillies. The Braves and Marlins wrap up their series with the rubber match on Sunday with the first pitch scheduled for 1:35. Derek Lowe will be on the hill for the Braves and will be opposed by Marlins ace Josh Johnson.

Derrek Lee left Saturday Night's game with an injury. Photo Courtesy of Tim Evearitt.

New Braves First Baseman Derrek Lee left Saturday Night’s blow out win over the Marlins with a mild side strain. Carroll Rogers reports that he will likely miss Sunday’s game against the Marlins as well.

Bobby Cox had this to say:

“I don’t think it’s too bad,” Cox said. ” We had a six-run lead at the time. We all know six runs sometimes dissipates quickly but it was a good time for him to go ahead and get it treated and take the night off and maybe tomorrow.”

Hopefully this is something that is not related to his recent bout with back troubles and he will be back in the lineup on Monday.

Saturday August 28th – 7:10 PM
Florida Marlins (65-62) vs Atlanta Braves (73-55)

Preview

The Braves come into Saturday night’s game badly in need of a win to snap a four game losing streak. Tim Hudson will be going for his fifteenth win of the season tonight against the Marlins. The Braves will look to put last night’s ugly loss out of their mind and get back to their winning ways.

Ricky Nolasco

Pure garbage is about the best way to describe this game. The Marlins hit four home runs off Tommy Hanson in route to a 7-1 win, giving the Braves their fourth straight loss.

As if a preview of things to come, Cameron Maybin hit a home run on the first pitch of the game for the Marlins. The next batter, Logan Morrison, did the same for a two-run lead without recording an out. Terrible defense led to two runs in the second on a Brad Davis sac fly RBI and Chris Volstad RBI single (Jason Heyward overthrew the cutoff man by 10 feet when the runner didn’t even run home, advancing the back-end runner to second and eventually causing him to score). A leadoff triple by Hanley Ramirez in the third was actually a fly ball lost in the sky by Eric Hinske, resulting in two bases for Ramirez. He reached third when Hinske threw the ball to no one in particular and it took a stabbing grab to prevent it from going all the way to the backstop. This is little league stuff.

The Marlins hit another set of back-to-back home runs in the sixth off the bats of Dan Uggla and Gaby Sanchez, giving them a 7-0 lead. This prompted Bobby to yank Hanson without recording an out in the inning. Hanson went five innings, allowing seven runs on eight hits. He didn’t walk any and struck out three. He didn’t have much of anything going tonight and a career-high four homers allowed is evidence of that. Defense and a few bloops didn’t help, but it was clear he had nothing going for him.

The Braves let Chris Volstad dominate them for eight innings, allowing a single run in the eighth on a solo homer by Heyward (getting his run back, I guess). They didn’t walk a single time and had six hits. Two were from Heyward, one coming from a double by Derrek Lee. They put a runner on second in the second and third innings but both times with two outs and nothing coming from it. They put two in scoring position in the sixth but again with two outs, and Hinske grounded out.

If you’re looking for a bright spot, you can look at the bullpen tonight. Cristhian Martinez pitched two scoreless innings, including two strikeouts. Craig Kimbrel gave up a hit and walk but struck out two in a scoreless inning. Billy Wagner walked two in a scoreless inning.

The Braves will have to rely on another team to keep the lead the same again, as the Phillies and Padres are currently playing. Pretty soon the Braves will have to rely on themselves again to do this. Ricky Nolasco and Tim Hudson pitch Saturday night.

Over the course of any season in professional sports, particularly in baseball, it is difficult to weigh a certain win or loss with any more importance than those of it’s everyday counterparts. Still there are games that stand out. That are easily remembered and today’s loss to the Rockies is one that is hard to forget. At this point the Braves could have dodged a bullet. The Phillies also lost their third in a row and the Braves lead is still 2.5 games. However, if the Braves go on to lose the division or the wildcard by a game then this was a loss that is going to stick in everyone’s mind.

The Braves got off to an unbelievable start. Scoring ten times through three innings and taking a 10-1 advantage into the fourth with Jair Jurrjens on the mound. The Braves battered Rockies starter Esmil Rogers for seven runs and eight hits in just an inning and two thirds. His replacement Manny Corpas didn’t fair much better, allowing four hits and three runs including Omar Infante’s seventh home run of the season. The for whatever reason, everything changed.

The momentum that the Braves had build vanished in an instant. A sacrifice fly in the fourth made the score 10-2. Then a fifth inning Dexter Fowler triple made the score 10-5 after an Alex Gonzalez throwing error allowed Fowler to score.  Jair Jurrjens couldn’t escape the sixth as a Seth Smith RBI double made the score 10-6.

Peter Moylan came on and wasn’t effective issuing a walk and a two RBI double to Rockies’ pinch hitter Ryan Spilborghs which closed the gap to 10-8. Eric O’Flaherty came on to escape the sixth with no further damage. Jonny Venters came on and pitched a scoreless seventh but things went bad for him in the eighth. After a Seth Smith strikeout to lead off the inning, Venters walked Chris Iannetta. Melvin Mora then followed with a single. After a ground out and another walk, Carlos Gonzalez stepped to the plate and promptly tied the game with a single that scored both Iannetta and Young Jr.

Venters was then replaced by Kyle Farnsworth who allowed RBI singles to Troy Tulowitzki and Todd Helton which gave the Rockies the advantage 12-10. A monstrous comeback for the home team and a colossal collapse by the Braves.

As always with this year’s Braves team it seems fortune has smiled on them. The Astros were able to beat the Phillies yet again further protecting the lead in the National League Eastern Division. The Phillies have to be kicking themselves as the three game sweep by the Rockies presented the Phils with a chance to overtake the Braves. Alas with no damage done the Braves simply need to put this loss and this whole series behind them and move on.

Move on they shall as they head back to the friendly confines of Turner Field tomorrow where they are a league best 44-17 at home. Tommy Hanson will take the mound and try to put an end to the Braves current three game losing streak.

Atlanta Braves (73-53) vs Colorado Rockies (65-60)
Wednesday August 25th – 3:10 PM ET (SportSouth)

Preview: For the Braves coming into Wednesday the goal is simply to get a win anyway that they can. They have already lost the series with the Rockies and Jair Jurrjens will be trying to play the role of stopper and salvage one game in the series. Luckily for the Braves, the Phillies have also dropped their last two games and thus the lead is still at 2.5 games.

Jair Jurrjens

Esmil Rogers

Rogers against the Braves:

First Appearance

Jurrjens against the Rockies:

More bad defense and zero hitting resulted in a second straight loss for the Braves as they dropped to the Rockies, 5-2.

Both teams got the game going with long balls as Carlos Gonzalez hit a two-run shot in the first and Alex Gonzalez hit a solo homer in the second. Neither team scored again until the sixth, when Seth Smith hit a solo homer for a two-run Rockies lead. Gonzalez cut the lead to one again in the seventh on an RBI single, but Dexter Fowler drove in two in the eighth for a three-run lead, where it remained.

You could say double plays killed the Braves and you’d be right. They put the leadoff man on in the first and hit into a double play. They did the same in the second, erasing a baserunner and causing Gonzalez’s home run to be a solo shot. They did it again in the sixth. Their last double play came in the eighth, but this time the runner didn’t get on until two outs. Three of the four double plays hit into erased the leadoff batter that reached base. The Braves had seven hits and one walk but only one at bat with a runner in scoring position. How sad.

Derek Lowe pitched pretty well, allowing three runs on two homers and one other extra base hit in six innings. He walked two and struck out four. His control remained pretty solid and he got ground balls when he wasn’t giving up home runs.

Eric O’Flaherty pitched a scoreless seventh. Takashi Saito allowed two singles and a passed ball set up both in scoring position. A single by Fowler brought home both. Otherwise he struck out the side.

The Braves looked to salvage a win in the series finale Wednesday afternoon. Jair Jurrjens faces Esmil Rogers. The Astros beat the Phillies a second straight night, this time in 16 innings, keeping the Braves’ lead at 2.5 games.

Tuesday, August 24 – 8:40 (SportSouth)
Atlanta Braves (73-52) vs. Colorado Rockies (64-60)

Derek Lowe
(4.32 ERA, 3.90 xFIP, 3.10 BB/9, 5.79 K/9, 7.8 SwStr%, 57.9 GB%)
(Career vs. COL: 19 GS, 9-7, 4.37 ERA, 32 BB, 66 K)
vs.
Jorge de la Rosa
(4.74 ERA, 3.84 xFIP, 4.87 BB/9, 8.69 K/9, 10.7 SwStr%, 57.7 GB%)
(Career vs. ATL: 3 G, 1 GS, 0-1, 12.15 ERA, 8 BB, 5 K)

Braves vs. De La Rosa:
Derrek Lee: 2-8, RBI, 3 BB, 3 K
Omar Infante: 3-7, RBI, BB
David Ross: 0-2, RBI, 4 BB
Melky Cabrera: 3-5, 2 2B
Rick Ankiel: 1-4, 2B, RBI, K
Eric Hinske: 0-4, 2 K
Alex Gonzalez: 1-3, K
Martin Prado: 0-2, BB
Matt Diaz: 1-1, 3B, BB

Rockies vs. Lowe:
Todd Helton: 15-45, 2 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 7 BB, 3 K
Troy Tulowitzki: 5-20, 2B, 2 RBI, BB, 6 K
Chris Iannetta: 4-15, RBI, BB, 3 K
Miguel Olivo: 3-16, 2B, BB, 5 K
Ryan Spilborghs: 5-15, 2 RBI
Ian Stewart: 1-11, 2B, 2 BB, 3 K
Dexter Fowler: 2-10, 2 2B, RBI, K

What to Look For:
Whether the Braves can touch De La Rosa. He’s a lefty who throws down and gets grounders along with his share of strikeouts. However, he also walks plenty and the Braves need to take advantage to have a chance. It won’t matter if Lowe can keep the Braves in the game if they can’t touch De La Rosa.

My Take on the Opposition:
De La Rosa’s 4.74 ERA is a bit high for how he has pitched but not a lot. He has a 3.84 xFIP and has a swinging strike percentage of 10.7%, but he is walking more at 4.87 BB/9 and striking out fewer at 8.69 K/9, and is giving up more home runs. One bright spot is a significant increase in grounders at 57.7% along with continuing to have a great changeup. De La Rosa has allowed nine runs in 6.2 career innings against the Braves.

Omar Infante Was Named NL Player of the Week. Photo Courtesy of Tim Evearitt

We learned yesterday that Omar Infante was named NL Player of the Week. It should come as no surprise when you look at the stats and what he accomplished. I mean, he is an All Star.

Infante is riding a 12-game hitting streak. Over that stretch, he is 23-52 with three home runs and seven RBIs. Over the week-long stretch that earned him the honors, he was 15-35 with a double, two triples, three homers, and five RBIs. They aren’t mind-blowing numbers, but considering he went 7-14 with a double, three homers, and five RBIs in the three-game series in Chicago, Infante deserved the award.

Even before the current 12-game hitting streak, one 0-4 game separates another 12-game hitting streak. He had a .947 OPS in July and currently resides at .979 in August, including a .573 SLG. It’s safe to say keeping him at leadoff was smart for the time being.

Infante seems to follow the formula of Martin Prado, not walking or striking out much and living off base hits that find holes. Infante’s .366 wOBA is helped tremendously by a .393 BABIP. He lives off the ability to avoid a considerable amount of strikeouts (14.5%), but his career walk average is 6%, and this season it’s actually 5%. Prado isn’t much better but it is higher at 6-8%, while he maintains a strikeout rate of around 13%. It’s not enough of a difference to name plate discipline as the difference between the two.

However, if you take a look at power numbers you find your difference. Infante has a .107 ISO, which you could say is normal for him these days. His power numbers while with the Tigers are nowhere to be found and are so far in the past that you can’t really consider them now. An ISO of around .100 is a realistic prediction for Infante going forward, in my opinion.

Meanwhile, Prado has a .172 ISO and his nearly-full season last year gave him a .158 ISO, both much higher than Infante has seen in a while. Whether Prado can repeat his power numbers from this season is not certain, but as he enters his prime it’s a safe bet to say he will maintain something close to that. Like Infante, Prado lives off base hits and a career .338 BABIP will attest to that. His bat control is phenomenal and is something hitters should strive for. But while Infante thrives on singles, Prado has begun to launch a few over the fences. If Infante cannot return to his Detroit power, he will never hold the value of Prado, nor will he earn a starting job for a full season.

I hate that I turned on Infante in his congratulatory post, but it’s something Braves fans should consider when thinking about Infante’s future with the team. Either way, we should enjoy what he gives us down the stretch because he has been a huge part of this offense.