AJC > Sports > Braves > Blog > Archives > 2007 > May > 03
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Braves enjoy off day, first place
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A quick off-day blog while contemplating how much better an off day must feel in first place, what a rough week it’s been for Ryan Langerhans, and if any of us thought Adam LaRoche and Wilson Betemit would each be batting .132 on May 3.
What in the name of Colonel Kurtz is going on? The horror … the horror …
Not all recently exiled Braves are struggling. Marcus Giles is batting .330 with two homers, 16 RBIs and a .377 on-base percentage while batting leadoff for the Padres. Damn fine numbers compared to almost anyone _ just not quite as fine as the .323-5-15 and gaudy .466 OBP of the man who replaced him, Kelly Johnson.
Johnson’s .474 leadoff OBP is the best among major league leadoff men _ by a wide margin. Seriously. Anyone see that coming?
I thought he’d do alright this year, be a mediocre second baseman and potentially solid leadoff man. But I’ll admit in my wildest imagination I couldn’t have predicted Johnson would do anything like this in his first month, after missing the entire 2006 season with that elbow injury and surgery.
Anyway, I just wrote a thing for tomorrow’s paper on five reasons the Braves are in first place and a contender again, and Kelly was No. 1. The rest included Chipper, the bullpen, Tim Hudson and the clutch hitting.
Consider this, regarding the clutch hitting: The .268 team average was merely tied for fifth in the NL before Thursday, but the .292 average with runners in scoring position and two outs was 23 points above the league’s next-best, and Atlanta’s seven homers and .531 slugging in those spots were far and away the NL leaders.
In the late innings of close games, the Braves have hit .312 (second in the NL) with league-bests of eight homers and .565 slugging.
And how’s this for a telling stat: Opponents are hitting just .195 in close-and-late situations, most of that against the Braves’ much-improved bullpen.
The hit Soriano gave up last night was just the second against him in 32 at-bats in late-and-close situations. And unheralded Tyler Yates, who was bringin’ it at 95 mph last night, has allowed ZERO hits in 13 late-and-close at-bats.
A year ago, the Braves were outhit .277-.272 in late-and-close situations. Think about it. That goes a very long way toward explaining why the record is so much better this season.
Johnson, by the way, is 6-for-13 with a double, triple, homer and 10 RBIs when batting with RISP and two outs, and 6-for-12 with a double, homer, five walks and a .647 OBP in close-and-late situations.
Maddux vs. Smoltz: Looks like it’s going to happen Wednesday in the third game of the four-game series vs. the Padres, since both are pitching Friday. Unless one gets bumped back for some reason, it’ll be a highly anticipated matchup. What do you guys think? Is it as big as Smoltz vs. Glavine? Bigger? How cool would it be to have Maddux on this current Braves staff? Why is gasoline back over $3?… Oh, sorry.
Langy’s not-so-excellent adventure: This from my buddy John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle, via the notes network our paper is part of:
“He was gone before anyone learned to pronouce his nam. Ryan Langerhans’ career with the A’s lasted all of two games. He met the team in Boston on Tuesday, and on Wednesday night, the outfielder was traded to the Nationals in exchange for former Mariners outfielder Chris Snelling.
“The guy [Langerhans] actually said, ‘I enjoyed my time here.’ “
John went on to explain that Snelling was a player the A’s liked for years, but Seattle was unwilling to trade him within the division. Similarly, Langy was a player the Nationals apparently coveted, but the Braves were reluctant to trade with a division foe.
“I would say this is not something we’ve done before, but as soon as we concluded the trade with Atlanta, Washington called and it sounded like he was a guy they’d wanted for a while,” A’s assistant general manager David Forst said. “Snelling is a guy who, when he’s healthy, is an offensive threat.”
More from Shea: “Langerhans hit .068 in April with Atlanta and he also appeared out of whack offensively with the A’s, with one walk and two strikeouts in five plate appearances. He also committed an error in center in the fourth inning Wednesday when a drive by Coco Crisp hit off the top of his glove.”
Langy’s reaction to being traded for the second time in four days: “You’ve almost got to laugh,” he said. “You never see anything like that.”
OK, I said it’d be brief … Gotta save some stuff for tomorrow.
Music soothes the soul:
“ONE OF US MUST KNOW (SOONER OR LATER)” by Bob Dylan
I didn’t mean to treat you so bad/You shouldn’t take it so personal
I didn’t mean to make you so sad/You just happened to be there, that’s all
When I saw you say “goodbye” to your friends and smile/I thought that it was well understood
That you’d be comin’ back in a little while/I didn’t know that you were sayin’ “goodbye” for good
But, sooner or later, one of us must know/You just did what you’re supposed to do
Sooner or later, one of us must know/That I really did try to get close to you
I couldn’t see what you could show me/Your scarf had kept your mouth well hid
I couldn’t see how you could know me/But you said you knew me and I believed you did
When you whispered in my ear/And asked me if I was leavin’ with you or her
I didn’t realize just what I did hear/I didn’t realize how young you were
But, sooner or later, one of us must know/You just did what you’re supposed to do
Sooner or later, one of us must know/That I really did try to get close to you
I couldn’t see when it started snowin’/Your voice was all that I heard
I couldn’t see where we were goin’/But you said you knew an’ I took your word
And then you told me later, as I apologized/That you were just kiddin’ me, you weren’t really from the farm
An’ I told you, as you clawed out my eyes/That I never really meant to do you any harm
But, sooner or later, one of us must know/You just did what you’re supposed to do
Sooner or later, one of us must know/That I really did try to get close to you
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