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Monday, June 30, 2008
Can the Braves regroup against the Phillies?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The bad news keeps coming, but, somehow, the Braves keep doing just enough to stick around.
Chipper Jones is now talking about going on the disabled list, having sat out eight games, and both Yunel Escobar and Omar Infante were also sidelined over the weekend in Toronto. Yet, amazingly, Atlanta is still within striking distance of first place, only four games out.
I know the NL East is ridiculously weak, but it’s astounding that despite the kind of season the Braves have had, they’re a good series against the Phillies away from being right back in this thing.
Of course, asking for a good series against the Phils this week is asking an awful lot of this lineup considering that Jo-Jo Reyes threw a gem yesterday and the team still managed to come away with its 23rd consecutive one-run road loss. The only trace of a silver lining around Chipper’s going on the DL would be that Corky Miller would get some company on the Braves’ bench.
So what are you looking for in this series against Philadelphia, which has gone 2-8 over its past 10 games to keep everyone in the race? (That’s in addition to hoping that Jeff Francoeur either miraculously breaks out of his season-long slump — he’s 4-for-40 with 13 strikeouts in his past 12 games — or sits for a bit after Mark Kotsay gets back and they have a little more flexibility in the outfield.)
I’ll be absolutely thrilled if the Braves can find a way to take two of three and get within three games of the Phillies.
Here are the pitching matchups:
Tuesday: Kyle Kendrick vs. Charlie Morton. In his last outing, Kendrick enjoyed the best start of his career, throwing eight shutout innings in a victory against Oakland. Meanwhile, Morton suffered another tough loss in his last start, allowing two earned runs in six innings but losing to the Brewers. In Morton’s past two starts, the Braves have scored a total of two runs while he’s been in the game.
Wednesday: Adam Eaton vs. Jorge Campillo. Eaton gave up three runs in seven innings in his previous start but was outpitched by Oakland’s Rich Harden. Campillo allowed two runs in seven innings against the Brewers last Wednesday to notch his first home win of the season.
Thursday: Brett Myers vs. Jair Jurrjens. the struggling Myers lasted only two-plus innings in his last start and couldn’t make a 5-1 lead stand up against Texas. Jurrjens, on the other hand, hasn’t allowed an earned run in 23 2/3 innings and garnered high praise from his manager and teammates last Friday, when he gave up only three singles in eight innings in Toronto.
Upcoming TV Schedule
Tuesday: vs. Phillies, 7:00, Peachtree TV
Wednesday: vs. Phillies, 7:00, FSN South
Thursday: vs. Phillies, 7:00, Peachtree TV
Friday: vs. Houston, 7:30, Peachtree TV
Saturday: vs. Houston, 7:00, Peachtree TV
Sunday: vs. Houston, 1:30, SportSouth
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