Archive for April, 2010

The Atlanta Braves have suddenly become a really poor baseball team. Ever since the comeback win against the Phillies last week, the Braves haven’t won a game. The Mets have a chance to sweep the Braves tonight on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball. Losers of four games in a row, the Braves are falling fast. There is not any one particular thing that is not working; it is a number of problems that has this team reeling. The last place Braves have a shortstop who is not hitting the ball and he is making mental errors costing them games. As talented [...]

With the Atlanta Braves running into offensive problems again in their second-straight loss to the Philadelphia Phillies, it is perfect timing to switch gears and check out Triple A ball. Freddie Freeman, the Braves future first baseman, finally found the leather of the ball to punch two of them out of the ball park last night. He now is back on the front seat in the Braves farm system and will once again be discussed as a possible mid-year pick up to provide the team with a little boost. Well, the Braves need more than Freeman. The Phillies showed great [...]

With my thumb ready on the stop button of my Directv remote, the next morning’s itinerary started to take shape in my mind–we needed toothpaste and it was my turn to get “the essentials.” Matters suddenly more pressing than the Braves were flooding my consciousness as Troy Glaus walked to the plate last night, down by three runs, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth. He’d surely be the final out, a fitting denouement to an awful night both at the plate and on the field for the embattled first baseman who perhaps was wondering how a scant [...]

The Atlanta Braves no doubt added depth to its bullpen while removing the top-tier guys to save cash. The signing of Billy Wagner made it clear that the Braves were giving the reigns to a new leader. Behind him are a rotation of former starters and closers, middle relievers and a one-time top prospect. Billy Wagner(1-0, 3 ERA, 1 save) Grade: B Wagner already has blown a save for the Atlanta Braves but he rebounded strong with a win against the Phillies. It’s nice to see a guy come off a serious injury and strike out Ryan Howard with a [...]

The Atlanta Braves and Tim Hudson will vie for first place in the National League East when they face the Phillies, who have their ace Roy Halladay on the mound. Hudson has looked great in both outings so far this season. So has Halladay. There is not a whole lot we can compare and contrast with Hudson pitching against the Phillies. His injuries over the past two season don’t give us a lot to work with. But Hudson does appear to be fully healed from surgery. This is the second game of the first series of the year for these [...]

The Atlanta Braves battled back from a 3-run deficit in the bottom of the ninth inning and defeated the Phillies tonight with three late home runs. Nate McLouth capped the comeback with a walk-off home run into almost-empty right-field seats. The entire Braves team then ran into the locker rooms, almost as if the comeback was planned and the celebration was a set up. Either way, it was an incredible finish for the first game of the series against the Phillies. In the 9th Inning, Troy Glaus and Jason Heyward homered to tie the game at 3-3. Billy Wagner threw [...]

With the Phillies leading 3-0 after Troy Glaus and Eric Hinske already failed to hit with runners in scoring position, the game seemed all but over for the Atlanta Braves. Glaus redeemed himself in the 9th, by hitting a 2-run homer, followed by the same feat from Jason Heyward. Hinske we can talk about later. The game is tied 3-3 in the 10th inning and although the stadium looks a bit empty, there is life left in the Braves. When Glaus hit his home run, I had still planned to criticize him for his current play and the Braves executive [...]

The Philadelphia Phillies are playing like their defending National League Champions. The pitching even looks better than it did last year and the hitting is looking good. But it is fitting that in the first series against the 7-5 Atlanta Braves, the Phillies face Tommy Hanson, Tim Hudson and Derek Lowe. As backwards as Bobby Cox has this pitching rotation, make no bones about it: This is equal to the best three-man rotation in baseball, if not one of the best. Lowe may not be deserving, but Jair Jurrjens does, despite a slow start to the 2010 season. This series [...]

The Atlanta Braves (7-5) showed this weekend that they are better than the Colorado Rockies. Rookie Jason Heyward knocked in the winning run and saved the day for the Braves. Jair Jurrjens pitched a beautiful gem today but it was Heyward who got the accolades. On several occasions this season this Atlanta Braves team has come out and played World Series-type baseball. Either the offense is unstoppable or the pitching is stellar and the bullpen saves the evening with a win. This Braves team also has had error-filled, sloppy, uninspiring performances from the offense to the bull pen. But those [...]

The Colorado Rockies have the first no hitter in their young history, thrown by Ubaldo Jimenez. Jimenez also pitches the first no hitter of the season to win 4-0 tonight. The series is evened up 1-1, with the rubber game tomorrow in Atlanta. The Atlanta Braves have had quite the inconsistent season so far. After a bruising opening game win against the Cubs in which the Braves scored 16 runs, the offense has looked downright anemic at times. Tonight just happened to be the worst of it so far.