Morning Chop: Atlanta Braves News 8/25
Aug 24, 2013; St. Louis, MO, USA; Atlanta Braves first baseman
Freddie Freeman(right) is congratulated by third base coach Brian Snitker (51) after hitting a solo home run off of St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher
Shelby Miller(not pictured) during the first inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Miller dominates, Cardinals beat Braves 6-2
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Long counts have kept Shelby Miller from pitching too deep into games the last few months. On Saturday, though, the rookie was happy to give the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen a bit of a break.
Miller worked seven innings of three-hit ball and Matt Carpenterand Carlos Beltran each homered as the Cardinals beat the Atlanta Braves for the third straight time, 6-2.
‘I thought that’s probably about as good as we’ve seen him in a long time,” manager Mike Matheny said. ”His stuff was electric and he was in the lower part of the zone.
”He was really locked in, hopefully that’s something he can maintain,” Matheny said.
Atlanta Braves Trade Rumors
The waiver trade deadline is one week away, meaning that teams have to work fast if they want to make an out-of-house upgrade for their playoff roster. Will there be a flurry of moves to close out August? “I doubt it,” one National League General Manager told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. “There’s a lot more blocking going on this year.” Here’s more from today’s column..
Speaking of the Reds, Bronson Arroyo probably won’t be back with the club and a National League team like the Cardinals, Mets, or Braves would probably suit him.
[Editorial Note: Would Bronson Arroyo be a good get for the Braves at some point in the future? Let us know what you think in our comments section below]
Braves’ Kris Medlen apologizes after criticizing Gonzalez
Via Miami Herald
ST. LOUIS — Sixteen hours after questioning Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez‘s decision to replace him with two runners on and none out in the seventh inning of Friday’s 3-1 loss to St. Louis, pitcher Kris Medlen apologized to Gonzalez and said he was wrong to have aired his complaints to reporters.
“I just wanted to tell him that all I was trying to say was that I wanted to be out there, I’m a competitor and whatever else,” Medlen said Saturday. “But it just came out the wrong way. I vented to the wrong people. But I think he expects that out of his starters – I’m here because I want to be out there (on the mound), you know? I want to be in there, and I’m a competitor.
“I felt like I was the guy who could have got the job done, but Downsy came in and did a great job, too. And I know what that’s like, being a reliever and having to come in in that situation.” Reliever Scott Downs was summoned with the Braves trailing 2-1, after Medlen gave up a double and a single to start the seventh inning Friday. Downs threw a wild pitch, struck out David Freese with runners at second and third, then walked Daniel Descalso before pitcher Adam Wainwright‘s bases-loaded sacrifice fly pushed the lead to 3-1.
Cards eye sweep of Braves, league’s best record
Co-NL Central leaders start Lynn vs. Minor in finale of four-game set
The back-and-forth National League Central race should gain a little more clarity over the next two weeks, when the Cardinals play 13 games against the Pirates and Reds, with all three teams jockeying for playoff seeding. A series sweep of the Braves, who entered the weekend with the best record in baseball, could prove to be quite the confidence boost ahead of that pivotal stretch.
“We know what the schedule is like ahead of us, but we just try to simplify. We don’t put any more focus on one team than another team,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said on Saturday. “As soon as you start falling into that trap, you set yourself up for some serious heartache.”
Thanks for Reading our Morning Chop