AJC > Blog > Archives > 2008 > April > 25 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USBraves’ bats have to carry this team
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Last night’s 7-4 win over the Marlins is proof that when the Braves’ lineup hits as it’s supposed to, it can make up for some shaky pitching. And with as many injuries as this team has suffered — and the number of older arms on the staff — the offense needs to continue to step up and carry the weight of the team.
Instead of stranding 13 runners, as they did in Wednesday night’s ugly loss, the guys came up with some clutch hits and produced enough to overcome a four-run, five-walk performance from Chuck James, who seemed to lose the strike zone after he was handed a big lead.
Jeff Francoeur drove in three runs with some timely hitting, Matt Diaz came through with a two-run single, Mark Teixeira notched another RBI, boosting his average to .244, and Chipper celebrated his 36th birthday by going 3-for-3 with a homer and two runs scored. That makes him .500 (18-for-36) with four homers and eight RBIs during his career on April 24. And now he gets to go to his favorite stadium in the league — Shea.
Speaking of which, Bobby Cox used Manny Acosta for two innings, which means he shouldn’t be available for tonight’s game. Not sure I like how that might play out. Here’s hoping Jair Jurrjens and the bats won’t make his absence a problem.
So do you agree that it’s on this lineup to carry the pitching, or do you think the spot-starters and the bullpen should be on the hook for holding up their end?
By the way, check out this Sports Illustrated article on Yunel Escobar and Brayan Pena. It’s a great read.
Upcoming TV schedule:
Tonight: at Mets, 7:10, Peachtree TV
Saturday: at Mets, 1:10, SportSouth
Sunday: at Mets, 1:10, SportSouth
Monday: off
Tuesday: at Nats, 7:10, SportSouth
Wednesday: at Nats, 4:35, SportSouth
Permalink | Comments (41) | Post your comment | Categories: Chop Chick
Comments
By geekboy
April 25, 2008 8:51 AM | Link to this
Well, benching Kotsay is a good start. Now if Bobby can get Frenchie to hit in clutch moments like he used to, we should be golden. There have been some encouraging signs with the bats … but if people don’t start developing a better eye then I say give Prado, Blanco and Pena more playing time. I would actually bench Tex and let Pena have a day at first … Tex is not exactly earning himself the huge raise he thinks is his divine right.
By braves_fan
April 25, 2008 9:15 AM | Link to this
chipper is off to a great start and by his expression watching wheels round second and belly flop slide into third looks to be having fun
By Chopper
April 25, 2008 9:35 AM | Link to this
I think everyone would have to agree that right now the offense is going to have to carry the team for at least two more weeks. Glavine should be back this weekend. Mike Gonzalez hopefully will be back mid-May. He threw a perfect inning in rehab yesterday. Who knows when Soriano will be back. Smoltz seems to be building up a little stamina. Who knows what’s up with Moylan. As my good friend said, “When Manny Acosta is your closer, you’re in trouble.” So, the offense is going to have to carry us a little longer. Chipper is sure doing his part. Hopefully Tex is coming around and Brian McCann is hitting triples!!! Also, we should be thankful that we are seeing the bottom of the Mets starting rotation and they will be seeing Jurrjens, Hudson, and Smoltz.
By ChampDawg
April 25, 2008 10:06 AM | Link to this
Maybe Tex is finally snapping out of it. Francoeur needs to stop trying to yank everything out of the park and just take a lesson from Chipper— make contact. Last night was encouraging. Kotsay is a liability. Having a .250 hitter (Johnson) at the top of the order is ridiculous… but so is most of what Booby Cox does.
By The Realist
April 25, 2008 10:09 AM | Link to this
Kudos to Bobby Cox for making the adjustment this early in the season to pull back on Kotsay’s playing time & getting a hotter bat in there. A lot of managers might have stuck w/ the veteran for a third of the season & allowed the team to further slip out of contention. The hitting will be fine. I’m not worried about Tex…his production will continue to rise. As for the pitchers pulling their weight, I think that the starters pitching deeper into games (Hampton, just give me 5 innings, ok?) will take pressure off of an unproven & erratic bullpen.
By Eric from MO
April 25, 2008 10:18 AM | Link to this
Geekboy you are an idiot! You have got to be kidding. Bench our most clutch hitter, look at the stats, for a guy who barely made the team as a backup catcher. People have opinions about Prado and Blanco over Kelly and Kotsay. I personally disagree with that but you can at least build a decent cast with that but Pena over Tex is absurd. It ruined your total arguement. Dont even try to defend your case because I will never answer any of your posts after a post like that.
By Drixie
April 25, 2008 10:20 AM | Link to this
Tex will hit, but what he’s also doing is protecting Chipper in the lineup; it’s not so smart to pitch around Chipper with Tex in the on deck circle as it was with Andruw “Swing Till You Drop” Jones. Check Chipper’s average since Tex became a Brave.
By Eric from MO
April 25, 2008 10:31 AM | Link to this
Drixie is right. It is no mirror coincidence that Chipper has become a much greater hitter since Tex has arrived.
By Jon
April 25, 2008 10:42 AM | Link to this
Check Chipper’s average since the beginning of 2006. He is the best hitter in baseball since then with almost a .350 clip. Tex wasn’t even a thought in the Braves mind until 1 1/2 year later. So, who is right???
By Jon
April 25, 2008 10:42 AM | Link to this
Check Chipper’s average since the beginning of 2006. He is the best hitter in baseball since then with almost a .350 clip. Tex wasn’t even a thought in the Braves mind until 1 1/2 years later. So, who is right???
By Halberstram
April 25, 2008 10:43 AM | Link to this
Last night the bullpen pitched four scoreless innings, I’d say that had a pretty important part to do with the victory. The Braves had one great inning (1st) and then held on through some strong relief pitching. Not to mention through the 5-game win streak the starting pitching was the main proponent of the streak.
I agree that strong hitting can carry this team, but I’ve not seen enough yet to count on it.
By Eric from MO
April 25, 2008 10:57 AM | Link to this
Jon from 06 til we got Tex Chipper was batting about .310. Last year he was batting about .310 until we got Tex. He ended up batting like .340 for the season. Which means he was batting .370 after we got Tex last season. Then this season he is batting .440. I do believe Drixie is right.
By richbrave
April 25, 2008 11:06 AM | Link to this
DOWN ON THE FARM
CHARLES MORTON goes 6 IP with 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 7 SO. No decision. H and R not so good. BB to SO excellent. A mixed bag of results typical of Charlie’s season so far. He’s on a flat-plain, and needs to start climbing upward with his results soon.
Meanwhile, JoJo REYES appears to approaching the top of the mountain. His fourth time out 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO. He gets his first victory of the season.
Hitting-wise Josh Anderson goes 4-9 in the last two games and steals 3 (8). His base-running in yesterday’s game wins it for Richmond. REYES and RADHAMES LIZ, a top O’s farm-hand(#2), are locked in a tight pitching duel. ANDERSON gets a single in the top of the eighth. LiLLIBRIDGE hits a single behind him which puts ANDERSON on third with speedy baserunning. He then plates the winning run on a Brandon JONES groundout. His average now at .333
CLINT SAMMONS just keeps pounding the ball from the seven hole and is now at .380 (19-50). Still solid defensively.
BARBARO CANIZARES is beginning to cool down going 1-11 in the two game set, and is now at .357 (25-70)second on the team to SAMMONS.
By John
April 25, 2008 12:08 PM | Link to this
The answer is for the pitching staff to throw strikes and quit dipping around.Glavine can hit the corners and or get the calls but Acosta et al cannot. Relievers cannot give up walks!!! If a relief pitcher gets to a three ball count he should be immediately replaced. Pitching, in contrast to hitting ,is a constant in the game. The “Offense” will never win a pennant. The answer, as it has now been for at least three years is to go get some pitching.
By cliff
April 25, 2008 12:55 PM | Link to this
I don’t agree with the top premise. We are 2nd in the league in Runs Allowed and 3rd in the league in Runs Scored.
Our only pitching problem is whose arm is going to fall off first.
FREE PHIL STOCKMAN.
By Ronald
April 25, 2008 1:29 PM | Link to this
you know it time for a change for the Braves I know a lot of people want like it but Bobby Cox need to go as you see it the player they don’t care to give their all look at the bull pen staff don’t care they look good and sometime and then they seem to not care they are the worst in bloeing game
By MV7
April 25, 2008 2:08 PM | Link to this
I want my rebate check for me and my 13 kids. Then i can afford to go see the Braves and grab a old english on the way home.
By TN Jeff
April 25, 2008 2:36 PM | Link to this
Chopper
Moylan is gone - arm surgery. The way Cox gets giddy over seeing how many relievers he can use in a single game, I expect they’ll continue to be a revolving door to the Injured Reserve List and to and from the minors.
By TN Jeff
April 25, 2008 2:41 PM | Link to this
I’m on board too with the BENCH KOTSAY club! Warning track power & a double play hitting into specialist are killing potential big innings from a team that refuses to play small ball.
By WILL
April 25, 2008 8:29 PM | Link to this
THE METS WILL WIN 2 OF THREE THIS TEAM WILL FINISH IN 4TH OR 5TH PLACE I KEEP SAYING THIS BUT YOU IDIOTS CONTINUE TO BELIEVE THIS,THIS TEAM SUX.
By WILL
April 25, 2008 8:41 PM | Link to this
AND CHOP CHICK I AM A VIETNAM VET SO ICAN TYPE ANYWAY I LIKE ALSO THIS TEAM IS LIVING ON REPUTATION AND THEY NEED GERITOL AS THERE FAVORITE DRINK THIS TEAM NEEDS TO JUST FOLD UP AND GO HOME BECAUSE THE ONLY PLACE THEY WILL BE COME OCTOBER IS COOKING,FISHING,GOLF,HUNTING AND FILING THERE RETIREMENT PAPERS.THAT WILL BE SMOLTZ,GLAVINE,HAMPTON,WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE THE BRAVES WITH JURRENS,JAMES, CARLYLE,AND THE ACE HUDSON THIS TEAM IS OLD,GET IT OLD,OLD, OLD.
By Stephen
April 25, 2008 8:43 PM | Link to this
First of all, Will doesn’t have a clue.
The spot starters need to step up, we can’t score 6+ runs every game.
It’s still way to early to start worrying.
By WILL
April 25, 2008 8:46 PM | Link to this
THE BRAVES ARE BAD BAD BAD BAD BAD THEY CANT BEAT THE NATIONALS, OR FLORIDA CHIPPER CANT BAIL YOUR SORRY CARCASES OUT FOR EVER
By mark
April 25, 2008 10:40 PM | Link to this
JJ is the Man what a BRAVE porformance tonight! I mean most pictures would have caved in..The Guy is for sure cool.Looks to be our on and up Starter for a bunch of years
By richbrave
April 26, 2008 12:02 AM | Link to this
DOWN ON THE FARM
HAMPTON rehab. 3 innings. First inning, lead-off hit. Second batter hits a bullet atom-ball to second sacker HOLT which becomes a double-play catching the runner trying to get back to first. Second inning bases loaded one out. HAMPTON looks very rusty. Suddenly he unleashes his “A” game instead of his rehab stuff, and blows away next two batters. In local news after the game said he felt “it” but was able to “pitch through o.k.” Because of newscast editing not exactly sure what was asked of HAMPTON and his complete response. Assume he referenced the pec muscle, not his hammy or something else.
LiLLIBRIDGE has first three hit night. CANIZARES 1-4. SAMMONS gets a timely poke. Braves win 8-6. Lines tomorrow on Chop Chick’s Blog.
BIG UPS TO CHARLIE MORTON for staying 30 extra minutes and signing balls, programs, backs of hands. Very nice. Stayed until EVERYONE got what they wanted. A great gesture to Richmond fans, and a genuinely good guy.
By Andrew
April 26, 2008 12:03 AM | Link to this
Will - You are an idiot. Why dont you make an argument instead of just saying the Braves are bad. You sound like a 4 year old! The Braves are 3-0 are the sorry Mets and have a great change of being 5-0 with Hudson and Smoltz pitching. The Braves have scored 30 more runs then they have allowed (which puts them in the top 5 of the league). They have had a bunch of one run loses, but when they start going our way (and they will once we get Glavine, Gonzalez, Hampton? and Soriano back) we are going to run away with the division. Now take your Vietnam Vet @$$ to another blog, this is for baseball fans!
By WILL
April 26, 2008 3:29 AM | Link to this
andrew your an idiot they are not gonna get all these players back and whats gonna happen when the mets get all there players back like pedro and el duke you georgia idiots make me sick you havent won your division in 2years youre dam n not sure gonna win it this year this team is bad,sad,lazy,and hudson or smoltz will blow it this weekend your bullpen is pathetic you cant hit for squat with runners in scoring position isaid before the season started this team was no good and i said that arizona would win the world series look at the standings WHOS THE IDIOT NOW ARIZONA 17-6 WITH THE BEST PITCHER IN BASEBALL BRANDON WEBB THE BRAVES WERE STUPID TO GIVE AWAY ADAM WAINWRIGHT FOR NOTHING THIS FRANCHISE CANT HOLDA CANDLE TO THE REAL FRANCHISE NEW YORK YANKEES SO GO TAKE YOUR RED NECK CARCAS SOMEWHERE ELSE BECAUSE YOU ARE AN IDIOT.
By WILL
April 26, 2008 3:35 AM | Link to this
AND CHOP CHICK [ WHAT BATS ] YOU MAKE ME LAUGH THIS TEAM IS O FOR EVER WITH RUNNERS IN SCORING POSITION IREAD YOUR ARTICLES YOU MUSK BE A FAN BECAUSE YOU ARE LIVING IN FANTASYLAND.
By Chris I.
April 26, 2008 8:54 AM | Link to this
Will, I am pretty sure she is referring to the bats who lead the NL in average hitting .287 to the Mets .252. Or maybe it is the bats that are third in the NL in runs? Or maybe she’s talking about the bats that are third in the NL in OPS? Either way, she has a point.
By richbrave
April 26, 2008 9:56 AM | Link to this
WILL THE PILL:
Just another NY drool. Hey WILL, the Braves won yesterday. Go jump off a building, and take those raggedy-azz Yankees with you. Better yet, don’t and get NYC to put on another DEAD ANIMAL CONTROL shift. Its raining Muts fans.
CC:
If the obnoxious caps continue could you just block this guy until he complies with your request.?
By richbrave
April 26, 2008 10:09 AM | Link to this
CHOP CHICK:
Outstanding article written about Escobar and Pena. Thank you. And as my wife is Cuban, its close to my heart. Wonderful.
By Santa3247
April 26, 2008 12:02 PM | Link to this
Hi I’m Seong-Ho,Yoon living in Sea of Glass southkorea.
Nice Kelly Andrew Johnson!!
Hey Freemason grand masters!!
Babylonian always enjoy the snapping money from the good like you. For Example…
Mike Hampton and Mike Gonzalez ETC.
And young players like Jeff Francoeur and Mattew Diaz and Yunel Escobar and Kelly Johnson and Mark Teixeira have to know this fact that
“Luxury can contaminate heart of player and result of that your speed of swing and pitching would reduce and your record would fall.”
Brian McCann is good example and so I wrote Chipper Jones the great.^*^ John Smoltz and Tom Glavine couldn’t get big money when they were young.
Furthermore the rich must call implanter with electric shocker! keep in mind.^*^
Griffin started to descend from Yerusalem to land. I checked it in japan. ^^When two mean did suiside why whole people living around them escaped to far away?^^ Do you escape when next door’s man suiside? ^*^
May the force of Messiah be with you
By Andrew
April 26, 2008 1:05 PM | Link to this
Will - You are living in a dream world. Pedro is not coming back for a while (and when he does, he will be ok, but not the Pedro of old). Ed Duque is also at the end of his career.
I guess your 7th grade education didnt teach you anything about debate. Because you have absolutely no points to your rant. You bring no substance to your blog. Basically, you are completely worthless.
The braves have one of the best 1-8 in all of baseball, which is evident by the amount of runs they have scored. And when Tex gets hot (which is already starting to happen) the Braves will have one of the best offenses in all of baseball (right up there with Boston, Arizona and the Cubbies). And once our bullpen gets back into shape, we will be right up there with Arizona (and for some reason I dont remember you saying that Arizona will win it all because I dont know you and I dont write on blogs at 3.30am).
Now go watch the Braves beat the $180 Million Dollar Mets without Chipper or Yunel. If (and when) that happens, the Mets should just give up!
By richbrave
April 26, 2008 1:40 PM | Link to this
ronald:
Please bring your interpreter to the key-board with you so we can understand what you’re trying to say. Or if your takes are just baloney as they have been so far, then go join him and leave this blog alone. O.K.??
By richbrave
April 26, 2008 3:39 PM | Link to this
DOWN ON THE FARM
Lines from R-Braves 20th game.
OFFENSE:
ANDERSON-cf-3-0-0-1-.329
LiLLIBRIDGE-ss-5-1-3-3-.182
JONES-lf-4-0-2-1-.273
CANIZARES-1b-5-0-1-0-.347
THORMAN-dh-5-1-2-0-.206
SAMMONS-c-4-1-1-1-.370
TAYLOR-rf-4-1-1-0-.353
HOLT-2b-2-2-0-0-.233
TIMMONS-3b-3-2-3-2-.245
Gotta’ stop now. Back later with Defensive info.
By richbrave
April 26, 2008 5:40 PM | Link to this
DEFENSIVE:
HAMPTON-3 IP,3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 SO.
BUENO-4 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO. 0.00 ERA 6.67
SCHREIBER-0.2 IP, 2 H,2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 SO.
SHIBILO-1,1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO, 9.00 ERA
By Santa3247
April 26, 2008 8:51 PM | Link to this
Hi, I’m Seong-Ho,Yoon from Sea of Glass southkorea.
Now, GM&Manager are moving to the order from Babylon which means people living korean peninsla and north china(Manjyu) and japan’s the rich and their King is direct descendant of Seth & Jacob & Joseph & Jesus. And whole friends of Babylon over the world now doing requeast about fullfillment of their own desire through Jesus Reliegion or directly.
And Babylon using neutron resonance schumann machine. And people using resonance schumann and the implanted on ears in USA are 100% slaves of Babylonian. They must have to follow the order of Mind Control.
See Movie “Apple Seed EX Machina”
Now brave is under the ruling of Babylon through controllable PRESIDENT & GM & MANAGER & COACHES
The last team in MLB which Babylon coudn’t control in past now being ruled just like USA.^*^
I did dispose over 50,000 demons of Babylon in south korea and Japan by the force of Messiah, the others are almost cowards. You got it?
May the force of Messiah be with you
2hundred million USA people more weak than me only one person ~*~
By Havana Guy
April 26, 2008 9:19 PM | Link to this
Santa3247 go bisit brave and stuff CHATROOM for the geriatric and retarded. You will find like-minded people with big EGO who like spew mindless drivel. go bisit brave and stuff blog/CHATROOM. Here good sermon there too.
By richbrave
April 26, 2008 10:07 PM | Link to this
Havana Guy:
You forgot “you got it” at the end of the message to Santa.
CHOP CHICK:
Is it just me? I thought on this blog, religion was taboo.!! Santa your strength is in your mouth. Please use mouth-wash before posting here again. And don’t try telling me MY god is weak and yours is strong. The two of us were made by the SAME god. Please-tolerance is a virtue and a strength.!! Trying to prophatize here is totally misplaced.
By Santa3247
April 28, 2008 2:13 AM | Link to this
Hi, I’m Seong-Ho,Yoon living in Sea of Glass(Jinhae city) southkorea.
Today, in my inspiration Bobby Cox thretened to use Grego Blanco to starting left fielder. Why? for the purpose of making John Smoltz to lose temper, upsetted.
Always in fraud of Babylon and Neutron, requester and sacrificer exist.
R: Scott Thorman S: Adam LaRoche
R: Joseph Salmon S: Jarrod Salty
R: Joseph Reyes S: Daniel Smith
R: Joseph Devine S: Philip Stockman
R: Brant Lilibridge S: Edgar Renteria
R: Gregor Blanco S: Brandon Jones
in status like this, how do you think players can do best in game?
And President,GM,Manager are whole helping this fraud. Are you insane?
Fire whole ICBM manufactured to Babylonian around. Right now!!!!!!
The good never die under the NuclearBomb. I can take part in nuclear bomb test. I will promise I can show you result.
May the force of Messiah be with you
By Santa3247
April 28, 2008 11:32 AM | Link to this
Hey!! United Slave’s America!!Don’t say any word related with justice and conscience. Under the attack of neutron from Babylon, are you laughing now? Just friends of Babylon only laughing now I think.^*^ They are dreaming whole their desire would complete by stealing the good people’s blood and money and women and happiness.
Don’t lose to babylon’s friends people of Atlanta Georgia please. And I want to send a message to the bad. Read this…..
[To babylonian and their friends]
Hi, you know me well I think. By resonance schumann and schumann matrix and schumann office or portable Jesus Machine made in NorthKorea and UndergroundKorea, ETC.
You did betrayed God on Yerusalem and made a choice about Seth and Jacob and Joseph and Jesus. Therefore through the last judgement of 1,290days to the end of time, God will forgive you conpletely I will promise; The shape you received from God and the food you were permitted to eat by God and whole kinds of sciences you invented through nature created by God must be confiscated completely.
Among you three dooms would be I sensed by inspiration. First is doom of disappearing forever after judgement, second is one of eternal curse for the essential problem of new nature, of course after judgement of Griffin, and third is fate of overcoming neutron and resonance schumann through 10days to be qualified for the Messianic Era.
Be careful about troops of Yerusalem Griffin resembled Alien in Movie. Bad Luck^*^
May the force of Messiah be with you