Braves want to win out

By Carroll Rogers

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The Braves opened a seven-game season-ending homestand Monday night, figuring they'd best win every game. One loss, perhaps two and that could be it.

The Braves were 2-1/2 games behind the wild card-leading Rockies entering Monday night, while the Rockies were idle. The Rockies' magic number to clinch was five, meaning any combination of Rockies wins and Braves losses totaling five gives Rockies the wild card.

The math Chipper Jones is applying is that if the Rockies take two out of three in their final two series, the Braves have to win out just to tie them and force a one-game playoff game next Monday at Turner Field. And he's banking on the Rockies doing at least that.

"With the way they've been playing, that's the way we have to go about it," Jones said. "We have to assume that they're going to win each series and we've got to go out and take care of business. We know if we lost a game or two or three, the likelihood is our season is going to be over Sunday afternoon."

The Rockies play a three-game series at home against the Brewers starting today, then travel to Los Angeles to close out the season with three games against the Dodgers.

The Braves will be playing earlier than the Rockies each day the rest of the way except for Thursday, when the Braves play the series-opener against the Nationals at 7:10 p.m. and the Rockies play the Brewers at 3:10 p.m.

Jones sees that as a potential advantage, if the Braves continue to win.

"I'd like to have them look up on the scoreboard and see that we've already won," Jones said. "It might put a little more pressure on an already pressurized situation during the course of their game. We can go out and play free and easy. Nobody expected us to be doing what we're doing. The odds are still stacked against us but when you have the confidence that this club has right now, we believe we're going to go out and win every game."

The Braves were coming off a 6-0 trip and have won 10 in a row on the road, something they hadn't done since April of 1994.

Handful of hits to 2,500

Garret Anderson opened the week needing only five hits to reach 2,500 for his career. That leaves the 3,000-hit bench mark within reach for the 37-year-old outfielder.

He'd need about 167 hits over each of his next three seasons to get there. He's on pace for 134 hits this season. Over his 15-year career, he's averaged right at 166 hits per season.

For Anderson, it's a matter of health and opportunity. Unsigned until agreeing to a 1-year contract with the Braves a couple of weeks into spring training, he's not taking anything for granted.

"(It'll take) three years of doing well," Anderson said. "But who knows what's going to happen? I might not be allowed to play for three more years. You just never know."

Anderson, who spent the first 14 years of his career with the Angels, said he "can't say" if he wants to return to the American League but that might be his best fit, considering he could DH as well as play the outfield.

"You've got to look at each situation and evaluate it," said Anderson.

Either way, if it's up to him, he'll keep at it.

"If I can sustain my health yeah," Anderson said. "I'd keep playing, definitely."

Saturday's game time

FOX has picked up Saturday's game between the Braves and Nationals and moved it to a 4:10 p.m. start. The game had originally been scheduled for 7:10 p.m.