Braves offense shines on a soggy day at Turner Field

Jair Jurrjens and RA Dickey squared off in an April 7th rematch with the series on the line. The rain (like the runs) started early and wouldn’t let up. We have a pretty busy game log here, so we better get to it.

The Mets drew first blood with an Ike Davis home run in the top of the second. The Braves faithful, still haunted by this blast on Monday, were not pleased to see Davis regain his power stroke today. But the Braves answered right back in the bottom of the frame with a two-run shot by Juan Francisco, his second in two games.

The momentum swung right back in the third with a David Wright double to score Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Daniel Murphy, and just like that the Mets were back on top 4-3. However, it would be the last lead they would hold all day. The Bravos recaptured the lead in the bottom of the frame with a two-run double by Martin Prado then a two-run homer by the struggling Dan Uggla, and they wouldn’t look back from there.

I could get into specifics, but I think the box score pretty much tells the tale:

Everybody hit, everybody scored. Freeman hit a two-run homer in the fifth. Chipper Jones drove one to the hilariously inept Jason Bay in the sixth, and Bourn later scored him. Diaz and Bourn added RBI singles in the seventh. Freeman and Ross added RBI’s in the eighth. In total, the Braves put up five doubles, a triple, and three home runs en route to beating the tar out of the Mets and taking the rubber match in the series. When the dust settled in the ninth, it was 14-6, and the Braves were the leading scorers in all of baseball.

On the flipside, neither starting pitcher looked great in this game. RA Dickey shouldered most of the damage for the Mets, as he was eventually charged with eight runs in 4.1 innings. This sudden production against Dickey is a good sign for the Braves, who will likely see him a few more times this year. Jurrjens frankly looked lost on the mound, allowing seven hits and four walks (including three in one inning) in just four innings of work. JJ has yet to demonstrate any of the poise or command that made him so effective in the first half of 2011, and I’m afraid his trade value is at an all-time low. Roger McDowell will have to work hard to get his head on right, or JJ may face some competition to keep his starting spot when Hudson returns.

On the bright side, Chad Durbin logged his first decent outing of the year, pitching a scoreless (and homerless) seventh inning. Livan Hernandez and Christhian Martinez (who got the win) both put in some good work, and the Braves cruised to a 7-5 record.

The Braves head to the desert tomorrow to take on the Arizona Diamondbacks. Mike Minor will toe the rubber against Josh Collmentor in game one of the series, and if Minor can keep the Dbacks in check, I like the Braves’ chances to continue this offensive momentum and put up enough runs to win.