AJC > Sports > Braves > Blog > Archives > 2008 > May > 12
Monday, May 12, 2008
Braves: Two chances to win road game today
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Is everyone situated in their cubicles with the “boss button” ready to conceal what you’re really doing online? Good. Bosses, are you ready? Good. Folks at home, relaxing and drinking coffee (or having lunch), are you ready?
Then let’s play two, folks. Nothing like a doubleheader on getaway day, with the temperature in the upper 40s and a steel-gray sky over the Steel City skyline.
There’s a chance of showers most of the day, but probably not enough to stop play (he says, crossing fingers hopefully while glancing to make sure that, yes, that flight tonight is at 8:45 p.m. to Philly, and it’s the last one out. Yikes. And I’m already checked out of my hotel, my bags here with me in the pressbox.)
Just posted the lineup over at yesterday’s blog, but I’ll give it to you again here. For the 12:35 p.m. opener, 1. Infante (yes, at 2B instead of Kelly for the third straight time against a lefty); 2. Escobar; 3. Chipper; 4. Teixeira; 5. Francoeur; 6. Diaz; 7. Miller; 8. Blanco; 9. Jurrjens.
Asked Kelly about sharing duties lately with Infante, and he said, hey, he wants to play every, but that was all he was going to say. He’s not going to cause any problems or complain; not that kind of guy.
Bobby Cox is trying to get Infante playing time since he came off the DL last week. I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts playing him some in center against lefties.
Kelly’s hit for a higher average against lefties (.286, 12-for-42) than against righties (.239, 17-for-71), but has nine of his 11 extra-base hits against righties, including all four of his homers.
Kotsay has hit .366 (26-for-71) with nine extra-base hits and a robust 1.022 OPS against righties, and .200 (10-for-50) with one extra-base hit and an .479 OPS against lefties.
Anyway, it’ll be interesting to keep an eye on.
Friday starter: We don’t know who the Braves will start Friday against Oakland, and they don’t decide until after they see how the pitching goes today.
I asked Bobby if he’d bring back one of today’s two starters, Jair Jurrjens or Tim Hudson, on short rest Friday and he said that was definitely a possibility. If Hudson comes out after, say, five or six efficient innings today, I think that’ll make him a likely candidate.
Jeff Bennett is the other obvious choice, provided Bobby doesn’t use him after today.
Last week a Braves official indicated to me that they want Charlie Morton to keep making strides at Class AAA Richmond before they considering bringing him up. If you look at his career, Charlie has really had less than a half-season of consistent success at any level in six-plus years in the minors (and that period of success is what he’s in now, which began last August).
He’s too valuable a kid to rush to the majors unless it’s an emergency. Of course, Friday could be an emergency, if the Braves have to use Bennett and everyone else this week, and if Hudson and Jurrjens throw a lot of pitches today.
When I asked Cox this morning about the possibility of Charlie pitching Friday, he said, “He’s thrown great. Not saying we would or wouldn’t, [just saying] he’s pitched good enough.”
Given that Jurrjens has never thrown 145 innings in any season, and had some shoulder problems late last season as his innings mounted, I’d guess Braves will be reluctant to bring him back on short rest. But that’s just a guess.
Coupon good for bullets: So I went to the Penguins-Flyers NHL playoff game last night, bought a $140 ticket from a scalper for $100 20 minutes before the puck dropped. And it was an awesome experience. Great atmosphere at the Igloo.
And I’m sitting next to the guy who’d sold the ticket I used to the scalper, after this guy’s buddy broke his leg and collarbone while riding ATVs with this dude the day before.
Anyway, this blue-collar Pittsburgh dude I’m sitting next to was a good guy, talked the entire game (when he wasn’t yelling “Philly you suck,” or “Hatcher you suck,” etc). Told me how he used to attend concerts at this old arena in the 1970s - Foghat, The Who, on and on. But his favorite moment was at Ted Nugent show, back when they’d still open the roof of the Igloo (now formally known as Mellon Arena) for some concerts.
“The Nuge was swinging on a vine, pointing at the roof as it opened,” this guy tells me, and he’s just smiling and laughing and reliving what clearly was a great night in his Glory Days (this guy’s Glory Days, and the Motor City Madman’s, too).
Anyway, all that was my setup to tell you what happened when the Penguins scored their third goal, which triggers the P.A. announcement of a promotion that gives ticket-holders a $10 discount on a $50 purchase at Dick’s Sporting Goods.
“Good deal,” the guy tells me. “I can get some bullets. Bullets are gettin’ damn expensive these days.”
Yes, he was being entirely serious.
OK, let’s get going. First, a quick tune. One of my favorites, and heard it last night at the hockey game.
”ROCKIN’ IN THE FREE WORLD” by Neil Young
There’s colors on the street
Red, white and blue
People shufflin’ their feet
People sleepin’ in their shoes
But there’s a warnin’ sign on the road ahead
There’s a lot of people sayin’ we’d be better off dead
Don’t feel like Satan, but I am to them
So I try to forget it, any way I can.
Keep on rockin’ in the free world,
Keep on rockin’ in the free world.
Keep on rockin’ in the free world,
Keep on rockin’ in the free world.
I see a woman in the night
With a baby in her hand
Under an old street light
Near a garbage can
Now she puts the kid away, and she’s gone to get a hit
She hates her life, and what she’s done to it
There’s one more kid that will never go to school
Never get to fall in love, never get to be cool.
Keep on rockin’ in the free world,
Keep on rockin’ in the free world.
Keep on rockin’ in the free world,
Keep on rockin’ in the free world.
We got a thousand points of light
For the homeless man
We got a kinder, gentler,
Machine gun hand
We got department stores and toilet paper
Got styrofoam boxes for the ozone layer
Got a man of the people, says keep hope alive
Got fuel to burn, got roads to drive.
Keep on rockin’ in the free world,
Keep on rockin’ in the free world.
Keep on rockin’ in the free world,
Keep on rockin’ in the free world.
