ajcsportstalk

By Heath

August 29, 2006 11:03 PM | Link to this

The Braves keep hanging around….keeping me interested enough to keep checking up on them…in doing so…has anyone else noticed the Marlins? With their victory tonight over St. Louis (prior to what may very well be a Reds loss to the Dodgers), the Marlins are only 1.5 games out and riding a very impressive 9-game win streak. If the Marlins can do that….why can’t the Braves? ….Atleast something comparable… If the Braves won, say, 10 of their next 12 or 13… surely they would be atop or very near the top of the wildcard chase… The offense continues to, unusually, be the strong point this year….let’s hope the pitching gets its act together in time to push past these mediocre teams and into the playoffs!!!! Here’s to hope!!!!!!

By Michael

August 29, 2006 11:08 PM | Link to this

I think are chances of making the wild card are very strong. Getting Davies back this weekend will be a huge boost, but we’re going to need the offence to average out 5 runs a game the rest of the way and get good pitching from the pen. Maybe even bring up Joey Devine wouldn’t be a bad idea. I think we’re deff still in, We gotta believe! Us brave fans can’t give up if we’re virtually still alive!

By Louis Vales

August 29, 2006 11:32 PM | Link to this

Some teams go on 5 Year Plans to rebulid their teams—Marlins go on 5 Month Plans. Willis, Johnson, Olsen, Nolasco and Sanchez—Dontrelle and 4 rookies with the real studs tuning up in the minors. 5 year Plan my bottom!!

By Robert(Justice Is The Best)

August 29, 2006 11:42 PM | Link to this

I have been critical of the Braves decision to hold off Davies until this weekend, but I have to say I could be very wrong. I see that they were trying to make sure he was truly healthy and that he was confident when he arrived. He will have a tough task going against the Phils but he seems to be ready. I have to wonder who will start the other game? Villereal should start Friday, so does that mean Cormier will go in the doubleheader Saturday.

As for the Braves being back in it, we’ll see. They really need to sweep the Giants but they just need to take it one game at a time and not worry about what the other teams are doing. They need to go on 32 one game winning streaks. That is how they have to approach it.

I think the Andruw thing could loosen up the club, but more importantly everyone needs to get hot at the same time. Maybe, finally, their pride has kicked in and they realize that if they go down they have to go down fighting.

By kreedham

August 29, 2006 11:50 PM | Link to this

Well BB hit two out tonight and is only 28 behind Hank. Now I don’t want anyone to ever pass Hank especially Barry Bonds. If Bonds has any class he will retire at the end of this year in 2nd place. I think the criticism of him might just be a little less if he did so. But of course Barry is all about Barry and will probably play until he’s one up on Hank and then retire mid season. 1st or 2nd place his stats will always be tainted…but of course if more bad info comes out he might just get retired by MLB just short of the record.

Back to the Braves I hope Bobby is telling them they’ve got to get back to 500 before worrying about the wild card. If we don’t make the playoffs so be it but at least be 1 above 500.

By gotigers72

August 29, 2006 11:52 PM | Link to this

When Bonds gets to 754, I won’t eat for several days because I know I will puke when he ties and breaks The Hammer’s record. Hank was a class act, a man who got the record in the right way. Never had anything any more performance enhancing than a milkshake. Bonds has cheated with his performance enhancing drugs, whatever they may be. What a shame. I don’t know what the powers that be could do, but something needs to be done to let future fans know the circumstances around Bonds surpassing Aaron. It may be a moot point because Pujols or A-Rod or some future stud will come along and erase whatever number Bonds puts up.

That being said, Andruw’s fall when he hit his homer was funny. I bet Pendleton was close to wetting his pants. He and Bubba really lost it.

Yates and Ray need to go. They are a big reason this bullpen has stunk so bad. Keep McBride and Paronto, give Franklin a few more shots, send Barry back to AAA, and of course, sign Wickman. Bring up 3 or 4 guys on Sept. 1st, including [I guess] Devine. He has been lights out since going to Mississippi. Only 3 walks and 18 Ks in 11 innings. Not many hits either. Give some guys an audition for 2007. Even if they think they’re still in the Wild Card race. Especially if they think they’re in the Wild Card race, because Yates and Ray aren’t going to help. It’s been a while since either of them has been effective.

By Greg

August 29, 2006 11:59 PM | Link to this

Good win for the Braves. Bullpen looked terrible, but the Braves did what they needed to have done all year; hit a ton to cover up the messy bullpen. The Mets are doing that this year with their shaky starting pitching. I’m not being pessimistic, but I still feel the Braves coming up short because of the 6-21 June and inconsistency in the bullpen. There is a glimmer of hope! The must sweep the Giants or at least win the Series 2/3. The have to get hot on the road and win series in Philly and New York. I would love to see the Braves rip off a 10-13 game winning streak and have everyone above them in the WC race play .500 or play each other out. The Braves are making this interesting. I am looking forward to 2007 when and if they get eliminated. Getting Kyle Davies back hopefully will be a boost. Giles is hitting and Renteria is getting on base. Hudson is pitching OK, but needs to go on a tear.

By Jeremy

August 30, 2006 12:15 AM | Link to this

As hard as I’m trying, I can’t give up on this team yet. So many times they look dead, then they play 3 great games in a row. They are just so inconsistent that it’s ridiculous at this point, but the fact is they are just 4 games back and that means if they play .666 ball the rest of the way, they can win the wild card. This season has been so frustrating, but there’s still a (small) chance they can wind up in the playoffs. Unbelievable how bad the NL is!

By Reality

August 30, 2006 12:20 AM | Link to this

The fan base for this team is just like the team itself ….. LOSERS ….. And always will be. Just face it, you should just pour a large cup of beer so that you have something to cry in come playoff time. The Braves are irrelevant and should just be concerned with finishing last in their division. That a boy, Bobby Cox …. you loser.

By Alex

August 30, 2006 01:18 AM | Link to this

Reality and back to your parent’s basement it is!

Great win by the Braves tonight. They had Jason on the ropes, as he struggled with control and location of his fastball. Glad that Tim didn’t get rattled by the back to back first inning HR’s and kept on pitching well enough to keep the team in the game. Great to see Andrew making an adjustment to the batting stands…it’s paying off already. Chipper has been hitting over .400 for a while now…and with the exception of his awuful at bat last friday against the Nats in the 9th inning with the game on the line, he’s been hitting to all fields and with power. Just about everyone in the lineup is contributing.

I hate to say it..but if Roach keeps on hitting the way he is…I will be one of the fans that admits being wrong about him not being able to make it a full year at 1B with productive numbers.

Left Field continues to be a mystery to me…Start Diaz every game, the guy has earned that right, hitting over .300 the entire year.

Let’s hope the Braves can take 2 out of 3 from the Giants, they’ve been a hot team so that would be pretty good right now.

By Doug

August 30, 2006 05:56 AM | Link to this

Good job for the offense! 1 game closer to .500. Remember though, let’s not pat ourselves on the back TOO much. Cox went through 5 relievers and the pitching staff gave up 8 runs while the Giants had 4 errors. Let’s be realistic … our problems haven’t gone away yet. Hopefully we can look to the offense for another good streak of wins to help close the wild card race.

By NLCHAMPS

August 30, 2006 06:14 AM | Link to this

Mets magic number is 17!!!!!! I see the braves have won a coulple and that wild card chatter starts up again. Poor dislusional brave fans. You gotta feel sorry for them…………..NOT!!!

By Joe Roman

August 30, 2006 07:22 AM | Link to this

Check out the cover of the new Smithsonian Magazine. The picture of an Egyptian sculpture has the same tranquil smile we always see on Andruw’s face. His value not only as a player but as a leader is underestimated, no matter how many accolades he receives. I wish I’d seen the stumble on his home run trot. He certainly laughed as hard as anyone. Win or lose, the Braves have magic. Andruw is an enormous part of that.

By Sane Jane

August 30, 2006 07:46 AM | Link to this

Andruw’s trip at least guaranteed that the highlights from the game would be featured prominently on SportsCenter & Baseball Tonight. Did you see it lead off the 11p SC?

Those dudes ignore the Braves otherwise. Thanks fellas…

By Sane Jane

August 30, 2006 07:47 AM | Link to this

Somebody PLEASE fix this blog

I despise reading peoples’ triple posts.

By mart

August 30, 2006 08:15 AM | Link to this

Anyone notice that the pitching is horrible? (Doug did, anyway.) Leave it to the Braves to rejuvenate Barry Bonds.

By Travis L.

August 30, 2006 08:17 AM | Link to this

It’s about time we had a little fun and excitement in that dugout. Not to say they have been bored with Marcus Giles whooping it up all the time but did you catch it when Andrew was coming back to the dugout and Marcus was at the top telling Andrew to watch his step on the stairs!! That was great. But the reactions on Terry Pendleton and Jeff Porters faces where priceless!

By Margie G

August 30, 2006 08:47 AM | Link to this

I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time. The reaction in the dugout to Andruw’s prat fall was funnier than the Blue Collar Comedy Tour and that’s saying something. A video should be put on the web so I can look at it when I need a belly laugh.

By KC

August 30, 2006 09:20 AM | Link to this

Great game! First of all, I thought Tim Hudson pitched better than the box score would indicate. The performance of the bullpen just confirmed what I already felt:

1-It’s time to send Yates back to Richmond. He’s got a chance to be a good major league pitcher, but he’s got to work out his control issues first.

2-Ken Ray’s fairytale season is over.

3-Chad Paronto is a solid middle reliever.

4-Macay McBride is lights out against lefties, but very “iffy” against right-handed hitters.

Bottome line, we are 3 deep in the bullpen right now, with one of them being a lefty-only specialist. When Baez comes back, we’ll be 4 deep in the pen (no, I haven’t lost confidence in him).

Assuming Hudson and C.James can keep up the good work, we’re at least 3-deep in the rotation (which is more than most teams in the NL can say), and it would certainly be a huge lift if Kyle Davies could come back and pitch well. Our offense is as good as any in the league, as is our defense. In short, I feel good about this team every other respect… it’s just our middle relief that scares me right now. I hope JS is working on a waiver-wire deal, because we will need at least one more solid middle reliever, and the sooner the better. A couple of years ago, JS picked up Kent Merker through the waiver wire (back when he was still as solid pitcher). Let’s hope he can pull it off again.

By KC

August 30, 2006 09:46 AM | Link to this

Another big game tonight (I know… they’re all big at this point). We got past what figured to be the toughest hurdle in this series by getting the W over Schmidt. Now we cannot afford to waste a golden opportunity to win a big series. It would be outstanding to see the Bravos pull this one out tonight, and have a chance to go for the sweep tomorrow. A sweep would be just what the doctor ordered. If we could pull it off, we would pass the Giants and possibly 2-3 other teams heading into the weekend.

And don’t look now, but the Astros have won 4 in a row. They are tied with us in the standings and have Clemens on the mound tonight. Just another reason why we need this win tonight.

I’ve gotta say though that I’m a little worried about the series up in Phili. We’re going to have to start both Villareal and Cormier in that series. Davies starts on Sunday… keep your fingers crossed. If he could come back and pitch the way he did when they first brought him up last year (extremely well), there would be no words to describe how big that could be for the Braves. They may be a lot to hope for, I don’t know, but hope I will.

It’s an uphill climb to say the least, but if our middle relief shortage doesn’t undo us… we’ve got just about as good a shot at the Wild Card as anybody right now.

By Oren

August 30, 2006 10:20 AM | Link to this

Whether they make the playoffs or not, these Braves are keeping us entertained, making this an interesting season…for the 16th consecutive year. Gotta luv’em!!!

By KC

August 30, 2006 10:35 AM | Link to this

Oren:

Yeah, I have always appreciated knowing at the beginning of every season that my team at least has a chance to do something in the post-season. This year is no different. Granted, we’re only still in the post-season picture beacause we were lucky in that the rest of the league is utterly mediocre, but I’m still enjoying it. The past 14 seasons have been great, and I’m enjoying this one as well. I didn’t enjoy it back in June, but I am enjoying it now.

By Louis Vales

August 30, 2006 10:58 AM | Link to this

I hate the Braves but check out that September schedule, They really should be able to do some damage while Marlins are playing the Reds, Diamondbacks and Phillies 10 times. Shows how pitiful the state of NL is when I would actually pick the Braves if forced to bet. Once again check out the schedule of all the Wild Card pretenders and you will get it.

By h8-da-braves

August 30, 2006 11:04 AM | Link to this

I hope the braves get within a game of the Wild Card and they get knocked out by the Mets during the series in Sept 26,27 & 28th.

By Robert Lee, Sr.

August 30, 2006 11:07 AM | Link to this

Yes,I think if anything can bond a team the fall can. It was truely funny I saw it myself on TV and I’m still laughing about it this morning. with how things has gone this year; this can loosen everybody up.

By Jim J

August 30, 2006 11:12 AM | Link to this

How can these pitchers live with themselves letting Barry Bonds continue to hit homeruns and approach the Hammer’s record. I will bet you anything Maddux doesn’t let Bonds hit off of him. On the contrary, he will hit Bonds; which is what every pitcher that faces this fraud should do for the rest of the season. Plunk his big sorry rear end every stinkin time. What’s the league gonna do? Issue an ultimatum that anyone throwing at Bonds will be tossed? I don’t think so. Baseball wants to see this clown retire and fade into the background, and they would be willing to let him do it to avoid the bad image that will come from exposing him. But his ego has been enlarged as much as his phony physique over the past 10 years, and he just won’t let it go. Hit the bum every time he comes to the plate. He’ll fake a knee injury and pull himself out of the lineup real quick. As for the Bravos, is there no one in the organization with sense enough to see that Tyler Yates and Ken Ray are just not major league material?

By Joe

August 30, 2006 12:07 PM | Link to this

Why not the Braves for the WC? Nobody else wants it, except for maybe Philly who’s playing the best ball of all the wild card contenders. After this home stand is a four game series in Philadelphia. This is a huge opportunity for Atlanta. Four out with 32 games left: this can be done. Won’t be easy but definitely can be done.

By ma_1956

August 30, 2006 12:12 PM | Link to this

On plunking Bonds every time his cheatin’ heart comes to the plate: Attractive idea, but not practical. You can’t have all of your pitchers thrown out of the game. You could, however, walk him each time he comes up. That comes with a cost too, but one that I think would be worth it for the greater good of The Game. I wish that all the MLB owners would conspire not to sign him each year, and that every manager (or general manager, whatever level it takes) would conspire that Barry Bonds would never see a strike for the rest of his career. Let him go finish his record in Japan or something if it means that much to him.

By chris

August 30, 2006 12:14 PM | Link to this

Just read KC’s blog. He nailed it— my words exactly. All bullpens really only need about 4 solid guys. We need one more. Offense is great and starting pitching is three-deep.

Chris

By johnny

August 30, 2006 12:16 PM | Link to this

I TOO HAVE BEEN CRITCAL OF ROACHY=MAYBE ITS THE FACT THAT FANS SEES HIM BEING LAZY=AND IT MAKES HIM STEP IT UP A FEW NOTCHES. WILL ALWAYS BE A BRATHROUGH THE THICH AND THIN. DOUBT IF THIS WILL MAKE IT. FOR SOME REASON, THE BLOG DOES NOT EXCEPT MY COMMENTS. JOHNNY

By johnny

August 30, 2006 12:20 PM | Link to this

Johnnyevans@cox.net I TOO HAVE BEEN CRITICSL OF ROACHY=COULD IT BE=THAT SEES THE FANS ARE WATCHING HIM, AND OBSEVING HIM, MAKES HIM TURN IT UP A FEW NOTCHES, AND IF THAT IS RIGHT==LOOK OUT FOR WHAT HE CAN DO IN THE FUTURE. A BRAVE FAN FOR OVER 50 YEARS. AND ALWAYS WILL BE, JOHNNY

By NY Mets Fan

August 30, 2006 01:36 PM | Link to this

Please, the Braves are six games under .500. Why don’t you guys work on getting to .500 first, build a winning record, and then worry about the Wild Card.

Season is running out guys…do I hear Taps in the background?

By Donna Money

August 30, 2006 02:07 PM | Link to this

All I can simply say is that the Braves should NEVER be counted out, the “fat lady” hasn’t sung yet! Run for that Wild Card spot guys!!!

By mark

August 30, 2006 02:49 PM | Link to this

Face it.. you people want this Braves team to do something that they havn’t been able to do all season long…..BE CONSISTENT!!! Bobby Cox has gotta feel like that manager from Major League. “Alright fellas we won a big game last night, we win tonight that’s two in a row, we win one tomorrow night, that’s called a winning streak, it has happened before.” Not hardly this year!

By LC F*, Jr.

August 30, 2006 03:40 PM | Link to this

When I saw the dug out reactions to Jones tripping, I had a flash back to my Army days. In the face of danger of being eliminated from the playoffs, members of the dug out found something to laugh about. During my Army days during the 1960s and seventies, there were times when we thought we were about to be eliminated, especially in Vietnam, but we found a reason to laugh too. Laughter is good!!

By Casey

August 30, 2006 04:03 PM | Link to this

THERE IS ACTUALLY A BLOG ABOUT THIS??

By michael

August 30, 2006 04:17 PM | Link to this

Ray and Yates need to go. It is sad when you have a large led and you have to bring in your closer. This had been the problem all year long. McDowell needs to be sent packing also. He has done nothing to straighten out the problems of the bullpen. I see that Sosa is pitching much better in St. Louis that he did here. That should tell you something about McDowell.

Michael