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Saturday, June 14, 2008
Win brings K. Johnson some relief
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Anaheim, Calif. — The second-funniest thing that happened yesterday — No. 1 was Bowman dodging rush-hour traffic trying to hail a taxi in the middle of the Dan Ryan Expressway in Chicago after our first cab got us in a wreck — happened when I approached Kelly Johnson after last night’s win in Anaheim.
“I’m finally off the hook,” he said, smiling as he ate a postgame sandwich in a clubhouse that was as noisy as a frat party when compared to the morgue atmosphere of the previous week. People were smiling, laughing, after the pins-and-needles atmosphere we felt entering the clubhouse after recent losses.
Most of you know just what Johnson was referring to — his dropped popup with two out in the ninth inning a week earlier against Philadelphia seven nights earlier, when the Braves had a game in the bag … until it squirted out of his glove.
They lost in extra innings that night, the start of an excruciating seven-day, six-game stretch in which the Braves lost six in a row, getting swept by both the Phillies at home and the Cubs on the road to fall to 7-1/2 games behind Philly in the East.
Johnson hadn’t stopped thinking of that popup since. But late last night, he could finally smile about it, since some of the mounting pressure of losing for a solid week after his error had finally been released.
“I told my wife [earlier Friday], if this [losing] goes on much longer, when we walk by fans it’s not going to be, ‘Hey, there’s Kelly Johnson, the Braves second baseman,’” he said. “It’s going to be, ‘There’s Kelly Johnson, the guy who dropped the ball and lost us the season.’”
If the Braves don’t start playing like they did last night a lot more frequently, that dropped ball might still be the moment fans point to first, fairly or not, as the point where the season was lost.
Nevermind all the injuries, all the at-bats when runners were stranded in scoring position, all the one-run losses when the depleted bullpen couldn’t hold or the Braves just couldn’t come through with a clutch hit.
No, that dropped popup is a moment that sticks out, not just because the Braves were one out from a series-opening win against the Phillies, but because they seemed to be in a daze the rest of the weekend and much of the Chicago series.
And, of course, because a dropped popup with two out in the ninth tends to stand out in the memory bank more than so-and-so failing to deliver with bases loaded with none out, or with one out, or with two outs….
But anyway, Johnson and the rest of the Braves were relieved and happy last night, for the first time in a while. They got a great pitching performance from a kid, Jo-Jo Reyes, who’s really starting to realize his potential. They got multiple hits from six different batters, including rookie Gregor Blanco (3-for-4, three RBI).
Oh, and they got great news about Chipper Jones after the scary batting-practice incident when Hoss hit a drive that caromed off the top of the batting cage and ricocheted hard straight into his face, but left him with only a contusion and perhaps a black eye when he woke this morning. He’s supposed to play tonight.
He spent most of Friday night at a nearby hospital getting checked out for possible fractures or a concussion. CT scan and X-rays were negative, and Jones’ vision checked out perfect. He showed up in the eighth or ninth inning and wanted to pinch-hit, according to Bobby Cox.
(Actually, while on this subject, did you guys know Chipper’s vision is even better than 20-20, which is what I think of as perfect, though I don’t really have a clue other than knowing my own vision is terrible and has been for most of my life. Hoss has 20-15 vision. Ted Williams reportedly had 20-15 vision.
(Not that I’m comparing Jones to The Splendid Splinter, the greatest hitter of all time, but just pointing out that it’s unusual, and both these guys have it, or had it in Ted’s case. Maybe we’ve got an optometrist among the denizens who can inform us as to whether it’s as rare as I’m guessing it has to be for guys in their mid-30s to have perfect, uncorrected vision.)
Anyway, for those wondering, the six-game skid wasn’t even close to the Braves’ worst in recent years. That dubious distinction belongs to the 2006 team, which was swept in three consecutive series (at Florida, and home vs. Boston and Toronto) during a 10-game skid that was part of a horrendous 2-18 stretch from June 1 to June 21, dropping their record from 28-25 to 30-43.
These Braves have lost 14 of 21 since May 23, dropping them from 26-21 to 33-35.
San Diego has what its folks call June Gloom weather, the only time of the year when the climate isn’t perfect down there. The Braves have their own June Gloom lately.
It’s not too late to snap out of it, of course. But the Braves are going to have to play like they did last night a whole lot more frequently if they hope to keep the Phillies within shouting distance, because them boys from Philly are rollin’. And rakin’.
The Braves since April 17 are 28-26, better than everyone in the division except Philly during that stretch, including the Marlins (27-26).
But it’s not nearly as good as the Phillies (34-20) during that stretch, and lately the two have really gone in opposite directions. The Phillies are 14-6 since May 25, with a 27 homers and a 3.29 team ERA in that stretch.
The defending division champs (Phils) have a strong team, period. These are not the underperforming Phils of old. And Cole Hamels is even better than I anticipated.
Braves have got work to do, and not many people believe they can do it, for obvious reasons. I know if asked today, I’d say without question it’s Philly’s race to lose now. They’ve done what they needed to do to put themselves in the driver’s seat.
But it’s still a couple of weeks from the midway point. Lot of ‘ball to go. Mets probably aren’t going to fold their tent. Marlins are plucky, though I don’t think they have the starting pitching to stay in this much past the break.
And the Braves? We’ll see. Like I said, they’ve got a lot work to do.
”VENTURA” by Lucinda Williams
I think I’m gonna make myself a little something to eat,
Get a can down off the shelf, maybe a little something sweet.
Haven’t spoke to no one, haven’t been in the mood,
Pour some soup, get a spoon, stir it up real good.
Go out with a friend, they know the music might help,
But I can’t pretend — I wish I was somewhere else.
I wanna watch the ocean bend,
The edges of the sun, then
I wanna get swallowed up
In an ocean of love.
Put on my coat, go out into the street,
Get a lump in my throat, and look down at my feet.
Take the long way home, so I can ride around,
Put Neil Young on and turn up the sound.
Drive up the coastline, maybe to Ventura,
Watch the waves make signs out on the water.
I wanna watch the ocean bend,
The edges of the sun, then
I wanna get swallowed up
In an ocean of love.
Stand in the shower, clean this dirty mess,
Give me back my power, and drown this unholyness.
Lean over the toilet bowl, and throw up my confession,
Clense my soul, of this hidden obsession.
I wanna watch the ocean bend,
The edges of the sun, then
I wanna get swallowed up
In an ocean of love.
I wanna watch the ocean bend,
The edges of the sun, then
I wanna get swallowed up
In an ocean of love.
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