AJC > Sports > Braves > Blog > Archives > 2006 > August > 17
Thursday, August 17, 2006
The Vulture no more
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So I’m late getting out of RFK, late getting on the subway (sometime after 6 p.m.) and absolutely certain that I’m going to miss my 8 p.m. flight to Atlanta and thus miss my connecting flight to Fort Lauderdale, because I’m certain that security at Washington/Reagan airport has to be brutal right about now …
And I’m pleasantly _ no, make that ecstatically _ surprised. Because here I sit in the Delta Crown Room rushing to hack out a blog, just one hour after leaving the stadium on the other side of town, 10 subway stops and one transfer away.
It’s great to expect the worst and then have things go so well, I tell you. But it just reminds me of how hellish our own ginormous airport is by comparison. I mean, I literally made it through ticketing AND through security here in a total of 10 minutes. Unbelievable.
Having said that, and feeling so good about how things have gone, I’m sure I’ll now get some wrench thrown in the works via a mechanical failure or a hold on incoming flights at Hartsfield-Hell International. But we’ll see.
OK, but enough of my travel itinerarary, because I’m sure a few of my agitators here will rip me for even sharing that much and not talking about the Braves within the first four paragraphs.
So the Braves. How ‘bout that Vulturreal, eh? Henceforward, until further notice, I’ll call Mr. Villarreal by his given name. Because he stepped up today and stuck it right up … uh, down the throats of us skeptics who questioned whether he could even make it through three innings without giving up a pair of homers to Alfonso Soriano.
Oscar, you’ve earned a reprieve, not to mention another start. He’ll get at least one more turn in the rotation, and if it goes like this one _ five innings, one hit, one walk, no runs _ you can bet he’ll get more than that.
But I’m certainly not ready to predict he’ll repeat this. We’ll see.
Talk about a must win, though. That’s the second time he’s responded hugely after a Smoltz disappointment. The other time, of course, when Villarreal took over in the second inning at Tampa Bay when Smoltz hurt his groin. No runs in 4-1/3 innings that day.
Is he best suited for starting? Maybe, because he throws a bunch of different pitches. But it doesn’t make sense that the guy can barely get through two innings as a reliever without giving up a bomb, yet can go five in a park where balls have been flying out, and not even give up an extra-base hit.
Oh, well. You can’t ever figure this game out. We all know that.
Braves had to have it, and of course did exactly what we discussed a few days ago. We know they’re almost certainly out of this thing, but yet every time you get the shovel out and start to throw more dirt on ‘em, they stick a damn hand up through the dirt and we have to stop shoveling and let them live for another day.
But after splitting in Washington, I’d say they absolutely need to sweep the Marlins, and at worst win two of three. They’re tied with Florida in the NL East and wild-card standings, so maybe it’d help mentally to put some distance between them and the $15 million-payroll Marlins this weekend.
God, think of that _ $15 million payroll. And tied with the Braves. Yikes.
OK, gotta catch my flight. Sorry can’t offer more. I’m really, really, rushed. This took _ let me check _ 7 minutes to write. And please don’t bother pointing out if there are typos. If you do, you’re an anal-retentive geek. Kidding. Sort of.
Onward and upward. I’ll share some soil with you Atlantans for 30 minutes in about 2 hours. Leave a pie for me at the airport atrium, if you’d like.
