Braves 14, Mets 6
New York Mets vs. Atlanta Braves – Box Score – April 18, 2012 – ESPN.
Tim Tebow was unable to lead a game-tying last-minute drive, and… Okay, I’ll stop. It was certainly not a pitchers’ duel. Not much surprise, how he’s pitched so far, that Jair Jurrjens was knocked out in the fifth with no outs recorded and four runs allowed (one that inning) with two runners on base. It was a surprise that the Braves still had a two-run lead on R.A. Dickey.
The Mets struck first with a solo homer in the second. But Juan Francisco, getting a spot start, hit a two-run job in the bottom of the inning to make it 2-1. And then David Wright doubled in two to give the Mets a 3-2 lead. And then Martin Prado hit a two-run double, followed by a two-run homer (Dan Uggla‘s first ever hit off of Dickey).
Cristhian Martinez got out of Jurrjens’ jam in the fifth without further damage. The Mets left Dickey in to pitch the fifth, and Freddie Freeman hit a two-run homer to make it 8-4. The Lisp had some trouble in the sixth but held it to one run, stranding two Mets.
A pinch double by Chipper Jones in the sixth scored Tyler Pastornicky, and Michael Bourn singled in Chipper. Then Fredi Gonzalez brought in Chad Durbin. I can’t really blame him. I blame Frank Wren for getting the guy. Durbin loaded the bases but got a strikeout to get out of it. Really, David Ross got the strikeout, pulling the ball back over the plate.
Matt Diaz singled in Ross in the bottom of the inning, then Bourn singled in Pastornicky, making it 12-5. The Mets got a couple of hits to score a run off of Livan Hernandez — again, this one’s all on Wren — then Jason Heyward became the last Brave starter to get his first hit of the day with a triple leading off the eighth. He scored on a Freeman sac fly, then Francisco doubled and scored on a Ross double to make it 14-6. Then the most remarkable thing happened — Livan threw a 1-2-3 ninth. Weird.
Dustbin and El Fatty back to back is more than I can take.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:39 pmDamn, I’ve been JC’d!:
I think we finally reached an overload point where everybody and their mother was stacking lefties against us (I don’t really think it was entirely coincidental rotation scheduling, though I could be wrong) so much that we finally got enough ABs against them to figure it out. Let’s hope people keep throwing some lefties against us so that we don’t lose it again.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:40 pmCody Ross?
Don’t you mean David Ross? For framing the pitch?
April 18th, 2012 at 3:40 pmIt should also be noted that this offense that multiple people claimed was terrible is currently leading the league in scoring. (Yes, I know…SSS and everything.)
April 18th, 2012 at 3:43 pmI’m very sick. I’ll fix it.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:44 pmWe all knew who you meant. Feel better, Mac.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:47 pmWhen I saw Cody Ross, I was expecting a hilarious quip.
Get well soon, Mac.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:49 pmNick/4: More importantly than SSS, we’re up a game on most clubs. Let’s see who’s leading the league at the end of the day. However, I am really encouraged by the excellent offense in the early going, and I’ve always felt that if a reasonable number of factors broke right (Heyward getting back on track, Chipper making 120 starts, Uggla hitting to his career numbers, Prado hitting to his career numbers), there’s no reason this couldn’t be a top 3 offense in the NL.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:50 pmI understand the issue people have with Durbin, who is terrible, but Livan isn’t THAT bad (I need to learn how to do italics). Certainly the money could have been better spent but it’s not like he is incapable of getting anyone out.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:54 pmSecond try:
[i]My italicized stuff herre[/i]
Only replace “[" and "]” with “greater than” and “less than” signs.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:56 pmItalics – stuff you want italicized
remove extraneous period for it to work
April 18th, 2012 at 3:56 pmItalics – (i)stuff you want italicized (/i)
use < instead of ( for it to work
April 18th, 2012 at 3:57 pmThat was painful for me.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:58 pmdeleted
April 18th, 2012 at 3:58 pmDick Clark died and Levon Helm is dying. Sigh.
April 18th, 2012 at 3:59 pmDick Clark can’t die. He’s already undead.
April 18th, 2012 at 4:00 pmWe have a rested bullpen. Lisp, Durbin and Livan do not count.
April 18th, 2012 at 4:19 pmI saw about Levon yesterday. So sad. The last great voice of The Band to go silent.
I feel a little bit better knowing that he’s seeing the outpouring of support from fans around the world right now. And that, after a long period of not exactly taking good care of himself, he was able to fight for nearly fifteen years. Take a load off, Levon.
April 18th, 2012 at 5:17 pmI’ve lived with the silent shame of not knowing how to italicize ever since I started posting here – hoping that ALL CAPS would make do.
Now that I see Marc, Sam and (apparently) spike are similarly afflicted, I am liberated!
Where’s George Michael when you need him? FREEdom! FREEDOM!
I’m coming out!
Uh, ahem, so how does one italicize on Braves Journal again?
Thank you.
April 18th, 2012 at 5:27 pmHey! I can italicize the living crap out of some italics, buddy! I can also bold the shiznit out of some bolding and
strike through like a champion, and that doesn’t even get us into the wonders of myWhat I can’t seem to do is to type the directions for doing that into this little window of Mac’s here.
I admit, I usually look up, copy and paste href tags.
April 18th, 2012 at 5:30 pmI hope that beat down of the Mets made you feel better Mac
April 18th, 2012 at 5:34 pmWe spent a good bit of time on HTML in my programming class this semester. As a result I’m pretty good at the basics now. I don’t usually do it though because the extra 7 characters takes too much time. Those two sentences alone took like 20 extra seconds for me to type.
April 18th, 2012 at 5:39 pm#9 — I don’t mind Livan *that* much, he can at least go out there and throw slop for as many innings as needed. He wouldn’t be my first choice for that role, but employing him might also mean some wins due to him not being on some other NL team and mysteriously baffle the Braves every outing.
April 18th, 2012 at 5:39 pmHope that you’re feeling better soon, Mac. Let us know if there is anything we can do to help.
April 18th, 2012 at 5:50 pmIndeed.
April 18th, 2012 at 5:58 pmYuckHey it worked!
April 18th, 2012 at 6:02 pmI’venever beenWoah. Mind = blown.
April 18th, 2012 at 6:35 pm
April 18th, 2012 at 6:38 pmTa dahThanks for the help fellas. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one with this problem.
April 18th, 2012 at 6:41 pmI hope you feel better soon, Mac.
April 18th, 2012 at 6:58 pmA question: I’ve volunteered to provide the music for an “old-timey” themed event. Anyone have any favorite folk/bluegrass tunes to suggest? I’ve got the Carter Family/Stanley Brothers/Bill Monroe stuff covered but I’m open to suggestions. Difficulty: needs to be kid friendly. Thanks in advance.
April 18th, 2012 at 7:47 pmtesting testing
Ok, Ive learned something. Just took 10 years, thanks. How do you strike through or underline then? And how do I stop it once its started?
April 18th, 2012 at 8:10 pmIt’s a small thing, but Jurrjens’ hit today marked the sixth time in 12 games a Braves pitcher reached base this season. This modest goal was not achieved until game 34 last season. There have been a few other good swings that didn’t result in hits, as well.
April 18th, 2012 at 8:18 pmNot bluegrass, but whenever I start with Bill Monroe, I end up with the Louvin Brothers.
April 18th, 2012 at 8:19 pmLove the Louvin Brothers, but I had a hard time finding stuff that fit. The problem I’m running into is a lot of the older stuff is so double entendre (or about killing, drinking, etc) that I can’t include it. I’m also trying to stay pretty secular, which also rules out a lot of the Louvin catalog. Thanks for the suggestion, though. I’ll take another trip around YT and see if I can find something that works.
April 18th, 2012 at 8:28 pmI’m not as upset with
April 18th, 2012 at 8:44 pmfattyLivan being on the team, either, other than that whole business of him being a Braves nemesis.Use the / to end your HTML tag. Where [I] opens italics, [/I] closes the formatting.
April 18th, 2012 at 8:56 pmUse the / to end your HTML tag. Where [I] opens italics, [/I] closes the formatting.
April 18th, 2012 at 8:56 pmAs long as no one uses the blink tag we’re safe.
April 18th, 2012 at 9:01 pmtesting
Thanks
April 18th, 2012 at 9:09 pmMRSAI guess my only other question is how do you do both at the same time?
April 18th, 2012 at 9:15 pmEmbed one within the other. {a}{b}text{/b}{/a}
April 18th, 2012 at 9:19 pmYou guys are so cute.
April 18th, 2012 at 9:33 pmWelcome to the singularity.
/monkeyball
April 18th, 2012 at 9:40 pmI’m tempted to use a let-me-google-that-for-you link.
April 18th, 2012 at 9:44 pmBut I don’t want to be “that guy.”
I guess that even mentioning it, though, is pretty douchey.
The site’s good for some snark, though.
How does one link to something?
Ah. Interesting.
Chipper Jones’ Fangraphs page
April 18th, 2012 at 9:46 pm@31, the Doc Watson stuff, especially Songs for Little Pickers, is a ripe trove of family friendly tunes in the old time style.
April 18th, 2012 at 10:08 pmGattis with another HR (his 4th) tonight. He’ll be in AAA by June testing out LF.
April 18th, 2012 at 10:35 pmYes, Doc Watson.
45—I am never not tempted to use lmgtfy.
April 18th, 2012 at 11:21 pmThe Giants just beat the Phillies on a walkoff hit by Melky, of all people.
Where was this guy in 2010?
April 18th, 2012 at 11:47 pmMelky 2010: .255/.317/.354, 4 HR, 42 RBI, 162 TB
Melky 2011: .305/.339/.470, 18 HR, 87 RBI, 309 TB
Guy stinks up the joint in ATL, goes to KC and has a career year. F that.
April 18th, 2012 at 11:57 pmI third Doc Watson
April 19th, 2012 at 1:10 amYour trivia for today:
Braves’ ERA: 4.24, 13th in the NL.
Braves’ ERA without Chad Durbin: 3.87, 11th in the NL.
Yes, one man ineffectively mopping up can make a difference!
April 19th, 2012 at 7:25 amI think I saw somewhere that we are leading the league in runs scored.
April 19th, 2012 at 7:51 amWhere would we be without JJ?
April 19th, 2012 at 7:56 amClearly someone in KC went into Melky’s source code and closed out the [suck] tag with a [/suck]. Either that, or someone Googled “how to hit a baseball” for him.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:12 amOr he couldn’t find any strippers in KC and hasn’t found them yet in Frisco.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:16 amFun with numbers: the Braves are actually in the top half of the league in wOBA (.320) yet in the bottom half in FIP (3.99). If there has been a problem so far–and 12 games is probably too quick to name problems, admittedly–it has been more pitching than hitting.
Looking deeper, the starters have a 4.18 FIP (4.35 xFIP) while the relievers have so far posted a 3.69 FIP (3.24 xFIP). Getting Hudson back should help a little, though let it be noted that Delgado has looked a lot better than Jurrjens so far. As I see it, the best chance for the pitching to improve is for Jurrjens either to regress or be replaced.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:22 amPatsy Cline fan. Her first cousin graduated first in his class at UVA and was a rocket scientist for NASA. I knew his daughters at school. Neither could sing.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:37 am@58 The problem is I worry JJ won’t be replaced.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:49 amMac, I hope you feel better soon. Most of us understand the occasional ‘Betsy Ross, Bravqs Catjer’. I get quite amused by them, and quickly offer up an extra prayer. Dee just completed her 8th of 12 chemo’s. We’ll be in the middle of a conversation, I’ll glance at the TV, glance back, and her head will be down fast asleep. My reaction is the same, wry smile and a quick prayer. Stay strong.
When Hudson returns, will we disable JJ and keep Delgado in the rotation? For JJ, shouldn’t it be the Unable List?
April 19th, 2012 at 8:49 amFeel better, Mac.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:09 amMac,
I hope I didn’t offend by pointing out the Ross issue. If I did, I must deeply and humbly apologize, and can only add my wishes and prayers for your speedy recovery.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:11 amPlease consider the following:
A college would be crazy to hire Larry Brown to coach their basketball team.
A college would be crazy not to hire Larry Brown to coach their basketball team.
Is either of the two statements absolutely true?
April 19th, 2012 at 9:12 amThere seems to be a big disagreement on this in the sports op columns.
Thanks for the Doc Watson tip, spike. It’s exactly what I was looking for.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:23 amToday On The AJC Boards
Evidently this has been going on for a while, but I’ve just become aware of it this morning — there are people who believe that because the Falcons “swapped” first round draft picks last year and gave up four additional picks for the pick that became Julio Jones, the trade was four-for-one. They cannot be talked out of this.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:38 amSeat Painter, I apologize. I should be in therapy for my passive-aggression. My comment should have been ‘all of us’, not ‘most’.
I would have put those quotes in italics, but I don’t follow instructions well.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:41 amSo Bartolo Colon threw 38 straight strikes last night. I guess the A’s pitching coach told him to visualize that the ball was a fork and the catcher’s mitt was a lasagna.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:07 amI lol’d at that sansho.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:11 amNo worries Mark. I think we can all agree that Mac needs to get better soon.
(And Durbin sucks, but that goes without saying.)
April 19th, 2012 at 11:20 am55- Without JJ, the Braves’ ERA is 3.67. 10th in the league.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:26 am@57
.. [Melky] couldn’t find any strippers in KC and hasn’t found them yet in Frisco
There may be something to this. I spent some time in St Louis a few years back (in my young, single days) and was told (OK, shown) by locals that you had to go into East St Louis (Illinois) for the adult entertainment venues since Missouri had very stringent laws governing these places.
Show-Me State, indeed…
April 19th, 2012 at 11:31 amI read @15 as Livan Hernandez is dying, took it as a dig at his crappy pitching and had a chuckle. Now I has a sad.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:36 amAnd yes, I just learned how to italicize.
All right kids, fantasy advice needed.
Drafted Liriano in the late rounds because he had a great spring, but so far he sucks hard. Jair has just popped up on waivers. Do I pull the trigger?
April 19th, 2012 at 11:50 amSo I was perusing the braves schedule and after this West Coast trip they play 33 games in the next 34 days. 13 straight, day off, then 20 straight. That’s nuts.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:55 am@56 – LOL or LOL!
There have been a lot of players that prospered after leaving the Braves. Melky is the last guy that I thought would improve that much. Y’all might have to put up with some random bolding and italicizing from me. I tend to learn more by repetition than memory.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:56 am@74
Based on track record, I’d say yes.
April 19th, 2012 at 12:04 pm74—Depends on your league’s stat categories, but I seriously doubt I’d make that move.
April 19th, 2012 at 12:37 pm@74, In a league where Jurrjens would be put on waivers, there’s really nothing better out there? I’d rather stand pat.
April 19th, 2012 at 12:39 pmThe problem with Jair in fantasy baseball is he doesn’t provide a high strikeout rate. Group that with the fact that, as of right now, he cannot get anyone out making both his ERA and WHIP high, and he has no real fantasy value.
April 19th, 2012 at 12:40 pmThe K rate is definitely an issue. But JJ has posted xFIPs (I know it’s not a fantasy category, I’m just using it for its predictive value) in 2009-2011 of 4.28, 4.29, 4.23. He says he’s healthy, so I’m assuming he’ll work it out and be that type of pitcher. Not great, certainly, but worth having in a deep league. I’d pick him up but bench him when he pitches in bandboxes.
April 19th, 2012 at 1:00 pmYou might also bench him in parks where the mound is 60’6″ from home plate and the other team uses those wooden thingies.
April 19th, 2012 at 1:05 pmPat Summitt to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
April 19th, 2012 at 1:23 pmStu- For pitchers, it’s WHIP, ERA, QS, Ks, saves (which I intentionally ignore).
JJ would be fighting for the last spot on my staff, as it’s currently my team’s strength. I had both Cain and Lee last night, which, whoo.
April 19th, 2012 at 1:40 pmI tend to follow Ks and assume the rest will follow, as a general rule. And Jair is not pitching like the kind of pitcher who messes with my general rule.
April 19th, 2012 at 2:19 pmWhen he’s right, Jair throws strikes with good movement and doesn’t give up homers. This year, his velocity is down, he’s having trouble finding the strike zone, and he’s giving up longballs in bunches. I’d stay away.
April 19th, 2012 at 2:32 pmBut on the flip side, JJ isn’t annoying Sam like Hanson is. So, he’s got that going for him at least.
April 19th, 2012 at 2:35 pmUnlike all of us groupthinkers, who constantly annoy Sam with our illogical grousing about Fredi Gonzalez.
April 19th, 2012 at 2:40 pmI was the one that dropped Jair in the fantasy league.
It’s not really a move I wanted to make, but JJ seems to be steadily declining and, as others have mentioned, doesn’t strike out a lot of guys or go deep into games. As a result, his bloated ERA and WHIP were killing my fantasy team. I have Halladay, Strausburg, Beckett, Feliz and Buehrle highlighting my staff (with Capuano, Dickey, and Westbrook as “gambles”) so I decided to drop Jair for a guy who may get a chance to pick up some saves. Closers are tough to come by after all.
Curious to hear what you decide to do, DN Nation. I’ve had zero luck on the waiver wire thus far.
April 19th, 2012 at 2:46 pmAccording to ESPN, the Braves are the only team in the league who haven’t been hit by a pitch or intentionally walked this season.
April 19th, 2012 at 3:05 pmIt’s almost like you can’t read for comprehension sometimes.
April 19th, 2012 at 3:25 pm@31 – Woody Guthrie did a bunch of wonderful children’s music; when I’ve taught littler ones, “Why, Oh Why?” and “The Car Song” are both really great. Are you playing for kids, or teaching kids? As far as old-time stuff in general goes, I’m just now learning myself, but in the interest of brevity, ya cain’t get much better than Roscoe Holcomb – if you play clawhammer he kills “Little Birdie” (a great version here) and hearing him play really makes me want to learn clawhammer. I think that’s one kids could enjoy as well. Kids might also dig if you played “Freight Train Blues” and held the high note super long like Dylan did on his first record. Good luck!
April 19th, 2012 at 3:54 pmI very often can’t read for comprehension. Like every time I try to read Jurgen Habermas.
April 19th, 2012 at 4:01 pm@85
Actually, I do the same thing. Which is why I continue to take Ricky Nolasco every year, unfortunately….
April 19th, 2012 at 4:11 pmI only read for the pictures. Well that and so I know what prevailing viewpoint to parrot.
April 19th, 2012 at 4:33 pm89—And don’t get him started on the whinging!
(Seriously, don’t. Of the ~40 times I’ve seen that word used, ~30 of them were by Sam. One time was by me, in this comment. One time was by dictionary.com, when I looked up the definition, after the first time I saw Sam use it. And I think I’ve seen about eight times in which people have questioned or mocked Sam in response to his use of the word.)
April 19th, 2012 at 4:48 pmFor fantasy pitchers Ive always looked for high K:BB and low whip guys. Rest usually works out.
April 19th, 2012 at 5:26 pmI’ve seriously screwed up my lower back (trying to catch a wiffleball that one of my students drilled over my head). Aside from intervals of heat and ice, beer, and advil, what do any of you guys use to recover?
April 19th, 2012 at 5:30 pmI’m in a deep keeper league where I’ve tried drafting high K-rate minor leaguers…and ended up with Buchholz and Cahill. If it weren’t for Kennedy and Hanson, I’d have quit fantasy baseball.
April 19th, 2012 at 5:39 pmOn fantasy strats…
I like hoarding closers that rack up K’s. I had 5 in our 14 teamed league until Andrew Bailey went out for the season.
I also decided early on to completely ignore 1 stat. That stat was the stolen base. I had 2 last week and 1 of those were from McCann.
My other strategy: draft 2 strong offensive catchers and 2 strong offensive shortstops. So many teams end up having offensive duds at both positions due to an injury so it’s better safe than sorry (also, one could be used as a big trading chip). In our league there are 2 Utility spots so the extra C and SS can start each game.
One strategy that I decided to use this year that I don’t know if I’ll ever do again was to not draft SP studs. In fact, my first pitcher that I chose was Doug Fister. There are so many young, unknown pitchers that sneak in and receive the 5th starter job and pitch brilliantly throughout the season. I load my SP staff up with 6-7 starters and weed out the unproductive ones. Right now I have Delgado, Minor, Fister (DL), Nicasio from COL, Alvarez from TOR, Floyd, Arrieta, and Hudson (DL). It’s looking like Nicasio might be the first out of the door.
Lineup note: Chipperless with Don Juan starting at 3rd.
April 19th, 2012 at 5:47 pmAccording to DOB, Chipper again with the knee swelling during the flight. Not as bad as last time, no draining necessary, should play tomorrow.
Might I suggest lining up a John Madden bus for Chipper?
April 19th, 2012 at 5:58 pm#97 – Chiropractor
April 19th, 2012 at 6:28 pmYeah I avoid all closers since a lot of my leagues have hold categories with equal value. I look for high run, rbi, avg, obp guys. I choose to ignore SB also.
April 19th, 2012 at 6:30 pm#97
Flip your mattress if you haven’t lately (I just did this a few days ago for the first time in a couple years…amazing difference, although I didn’t think I’d be bringing it up here, necessarily…….). Also, don’t wear old or flat-soled shoes while you’re in pain. I’m old.
April 19th, 2012 at 7:11 pmThx for the tips sansho! On another note, Gattis hit his 5th HR today and his video game numbers continue:
April 19th, 2012 at 8:09 pm.435/.509./.848/1.357 5HR 19rbi in 13 games
Josh Collmenter’s delivery makes me want to vomit.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:43 pm¡Federico Freeman!
April 19th, 2012 at 8:45 pmFreddiee!!!
Another opposite field shot
April 19th, 2012 at 8:45 pmWhoo! Freeman!
April 19th, 2012 at 8:45 pmFreeman gets it going!
April 19th, 2012 at 8:45 pmIf this is the end of his typically slow start, NL pitchers are in serious trouble.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:46 pmDamn, Brian hit the hell out of that. He was robbed.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:46 pmI love watching Uggla run out routine grounders.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:47 pmI don’t know if I’ve seen a player get robbed more than McCann.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:48 pmUncle Charlie! Nice K to end the inning.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:55 pmI didn’t realize Upton and Young were both hurt. What good fortune.
April 19th, 2012 at 8:57 pmOkay, I’m an idiot… so how do I listen to the radio guys while watching MLB.tv?
April 19th, 2012 at 8:59 pm@112
Me too. I keep thinking he is going to beat one out.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:03 pmDoes anyone know if the 680 iphone app works during the games? I bet not, which is why I haven’t just tried it yet.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:18 pmHeyward has five SB’s. That’s kind of a lot.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:19 pmI’m pretty sure that the throw beat Heyward, but it was nice of the ump to give it to us.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:20 pm119—Sure is.
120—It’s about time we got one of those in our favor. Bourn has been called out at least twice on successful steals.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:20 pmMaybe someone has already mentioned this but Levon Helms died today. I was on my way home from Manhattan, KS when they played “Up On Cripple Creek”. I cranked it up and shed a couple of tears….
April 19th, 2012 at 9:28 pmGood Lord, Henry Blanco is still playing?
April 19th, 2012 at 9:29 pmWow – Henry Blanco. thought he was long gone.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:29 pmSpeaking of Gattis’ hot start, has anyone noticed the Cards have a team OPS+ of 146 and four starters at 190 or better?
April 19th, 2012 at 9:36 pmI guess they got a serious boost from no longer having to look at Tony La Russa’s hateable face.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:43 pmI think Bourn had to poo.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:48 pmAwesome throw by Martin!
April 19th, 2012 at 9:53 pmAtta boy Prado
April 19th, 2012 at 9:53 pmHeckuva throw.
April 19th, 2012 at 9:53 pmWell poo.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:17 pmI hate Collmenter.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:20 pmOkay, I’m an idiot… so how do I listen to the radio guys while watching MLB.tv?
Hover your cursor over the screen, that brings up the pause/rewind control thing. Click on the icon that looks a speaker. Select WCNN under audio overlay.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:26 pmThanks, man. Hm… I don’t see the “audio overlay” option. Maybe it’s a problem for me on a Mac?
Oh my Lord! I can’t believe Heyward got in there. I love this inning.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:27 pmStay hot kid.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:28 pmNo idea why Francisco was allowed to hit, but I’ll take the result!
April 19th, 2012 at 10:28 pmAnyone else thinking this may be a good time for Wren to lock-up/extend Heyward?
April 19th, 2012 at 10:28 pmYes. Always, yes.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:29 pm137, I’ll pitch in if I have to.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:29 pmI love that Heyward’s last two at-bats have both resulted in line drives to the opposite field.
Well, I hope Minor has some more left in the tank. With O’ having some trouble, I guess he may just be thinking of going with Ventbrel tonight.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:30 pmAAR, I’m on a Mac too. Using Chrome. If you haven’t installed the NexDef thing, that’s probably the issue.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:32 pmAlright, I’ll be the one to say it. I think Francisco was a pretty good pickup. Everybody who thought he would compete for Whipping Boy was pretty far off-base IMO. He and Prado >>> Prado and Diaz.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:33 pmI use Chrome, too. And I’ve installed NexDef at least three times, but it never seems to work. It keeps on popping up and asking me if I want to install it again.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:34 pmMake sure you have NexDef toggled on. If you click on video quality, you can see if it’s on standard or NexDef. I had some issues installing it as well, then one day it was working.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:42 pmFreddie Freeman is unconscious right now.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:46 pmDamn, have yourself a game, Freddie
April 19th, 2012 at 10:46 pm#97: I think I can help you.
My lower back goes out from time to time. I jumped out a first floor dormitory window after Sid’s slide in ’92, fell down the steep hill outside the window and rolled all the way down the hill. Boy, it sure was fun, but it fucked my back up for a while.
And in the last few years, it’s reared up again something fierce. It got to lingering for longer than I’m accustomed to that I was really worried I’d have to actually do something about it other than suffering. Being a Braves fan since 1982, suffering is something that comes easy. But as much as I like to hate on Fredi, back pain is even worse.
Now, it turns out that my dad goes to visit a retired massage therapist who used to work for the Marlins. He worked on the ’97 team that won the World Series. He’s worked on Livan so you know he’s good. So I go in to see this guy and he works me over for an hour and I come out of there feeling pretty good.
I describe my pain to him and after finding a few of my pain thresholds, he suggested that it might have something to do with my sciatic nerve being pinched or pulled or whatnot. I don’t know from sciatic nerves, but he did give me a stretching routine that he promised would show results.
I did the routine for 2-3 days and every bit of the pain went away and it hasn’t returned. My back feels amazing, even thought I’ve been lazy and haven’t really continued with the stretching like I probably should.
I’d be glad to email you a copy of the stretching routine. It’s Marlins approved, so you may or may not want to use it. But the main exercise that helped me was to lie flat on my back, pull my right knee up toward my chest, and slightly pull it in and over my body. You want to feel the sciatic nerve in your posterior getting pulled a bit. Hold that position for a minute or so, then switch to the other leg. Do it a couple times. Repeat daily.
There’s a bunch of other good exercises he gave me as part of an organic routine that work well, too, but that one’s the big mamma jamma.
Hope that helps!
PS: Go Freddie!
April 19th, 2012 at 10:47 pmBrian actually made it in there. But the throw beat him, so he’s called out. Anyway, we have a five-run lead.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:48 pmIt’s so unfair how slow McCann is.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:48 pmBrian McCann is a s-l-o-w “runner”.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:49 pmToo bad Durbin pitched yesterday as it is now DURBIN TIME~
April 19th, 2012 at 10:52 pmMinor has pitched himself an absolute gem.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:57 pmThis Minor guy can really pitch.
Say, where’s he from?
April 19th, 2012 at 10:57 pmThe future of this team looks bright tonight.
@147, Is that true? Wow, that’s some story.
April 19th, 2012 at 10:59 pmChapel Hill, Tennessee
April 19th, 2012 at 10:59 pmIf he didn’t already have such an incredible nickname, I’d propose the following for Francisco:
The Slug.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:00 pmSurprised Minor hit for himself…
April 19th, 2012 at 11:03 pm154: Yeah, it’s true. Guy’s a pretty cool dude. Crusty old guy, looks like a former Merchant Marine. He’s all business with his massage! He’s got a special massage chair the Marlins gave him for their WS win.
Things I like about the Braves right now: We’re running up the score on our opponents. We didn’t do that a lot last year. We’re also scoring runs in multiple innings. Not just 1 or 2 innings, but 3 or 4, and in bunches.
Makes games a little more fun and helps you pace your best bullpen arms over the long haul. All good stuff.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:05 pmAfter an 0-4 start, I was one of the ones calling for Fredi’s head. I tell you, things look a lot different with this team right now. I love being wrong if this is what it looks like.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:06 pmWho does Freddie Freeman think he is, Joe Adcock?
April 19th, 2012 at 11:06 pmThis is fun.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:07 pm…and we pick up a game on the Nationals. Never thought I’d say that.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:13 pmDoresDoresDoresDoresDores.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:14 pm@John R.
Wow! Thanks. My email is cothrjr at hotmail dot com. My sister says she goes through a back stretching routine (both parents have degenerative back disease and my mom’s bottom 5 vertebrae are fused together) and she says it helps but it hasnt worked for me. Send it on out!
This team sure is fun to watch right now!
April 19th, 2012 at 11:15 pmI hope our best reliever can hold this eight-run lead.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:24 pmWhen did Venters last pitch? I am too lazy to look it up and I’m hoping he actually needs this work.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:24 pmI guess I don’t care, but Venters? Really?
April 19th, 2012 at 11:26 pmJoe Simpson said it’s Jonny’s first appearance in five days. So it’s not a bad thing for him to get some work in.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:26 pm164: It may be a few days. I’m currently out of town and the printout is at my home address. But I’ll shoot you an email now so you can keep contact. I’ll probably forget!
April 19th, 2012 at 11:26 pmBy the way, I never thought about this before, but do you think that playing fantasy baseball would violate baseball’s anti-gambling rule? What if you played in a league with a $100 or $200 buy-in?
April 19th, 2012 at 11:27 pmNow I know where I’ve seen that guy.
April 19th, 2012 at 11:32 pmWhat an ass-whipping. Keep those bats hot, boys.
BTW, we made up those 4 games on the Mets (them 4-0, us 0-4) in a hurry.
#122
April 19th, 2012 at 11:57 pmYeah, we’ll be watching “The Last Waltz” DVD this weekend. Even though Levon had said that he wasn’t so crazy about the film—I think he thought that Robbie Robertson, who was big pals with Scorcese, got too much attention—I still think it’s the best rock pic ever made. Thanks for the music, Mr. Helm.
@153 – I think he’s from that place that chop-blocks everybody.
Seriously, Minor looked great. Simply great. In command, all business, just mowing them down. Eight strikeouts and ZERO walks.
April 20th, 2012 at 5:12 amI fell asleep after the second inning but had the radio feed playing on my phone. It cut in and out a few times but at midnight it came back in when Fransisco got 2 RBIs in the 8th.
So stunned to see the team hitting like this, and without having Chipper in the lineup most days and Uggla starting slow.
April 20th, 2012 at 5:33 amAs of this morning, Juan Fransico is OPSing .987.
Small sample size sure, but an encouraging number nonetheless.
April 20th, 2012 at 7:22 amI guess the season did not end on April 9.
April 20th, 2012 at 7:52 am“I guess the season did not end on April 9.”
Yes it did. Fredi is still at the helm, Jones has missed over 50% of the games thus far and Durbin and Hernandez still exist. This is all a mirage. Doooooomed!
April 20th, 2012 at 8:22 amSo 24 runs in two days without Chipper. Man, seems like the whole team is coming around with the bats. Also seems like they are crushing every lefty that they are seeing during these past 9 games.
If someone is bored, how many XBH and SB’s do we have in the past 9 days?
April 20th, 2012 at 8:28 amFreeman went from an OPS+ of 67 to 118 in one game.
April 20th, 2012 at 8:29 amWe have 8 guys with an OPS over .800
April 20th, 2012 at 8:31 amI saw the score and wondered why the D-backs scored only 2 runs. I mean, in a blowout like this Durbin or Hernandez had to pitch, right? Now I see that Minor pitched the first 8 and Venters the 9th. It makes sense now. The record for the combo of Durbin and Hernandez never going more than 1 inning without allowing a run remains intact – whew!
April 20th, 2012 at 8:46 amIn our last nine games, the Braves are 8-1, batting .297.356/.497 as a team, scoring 7.2 runs a game (and 7.1 LOB a game). The Braves have 35 XBH overall, 13 of them homers, and have 12 stolen bases in 14 attempts.
Just for comparison:
In the last nine games of last season, the Braves were 2-7, batted .199/.257/.320 as a team, and averaged 2.6 runs a game (and 6.1 LOB a game). The Braves had 21 XBH, 8 of them homers, and had 7 stolen bases in 10 attempts.
Seriously, who am these guys?
April 20th, 2012 at 9:15 amFredi has overused Durbin and Hernadez and Wren ordered Fredi to rest them. No chance they will go on DL,
April 20th, 2012 at 9:16 amThis Freeman kid is pretty good…where is he from?
Beachy and Minor plus Hanson, Huddy and JJ…I am sure JJ will rebound soon. This is pretty good.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:17 am#182 – Thanks. Pretty impressive numbers there. We probably didnt have 12 steals before June last season. I like seeing Jason run more. He’s got 5 steals in 13 games. He only had 20 in his previous 270 games.
JJ will either rebound or be placed on the DL.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:24 amSo are people of the opinion that firing Parrish worked?
April 20th, 2012 at 9:26 amI’m worried about our offense.
I mean, they let the Cardinals score a safety on them! We need to get a stronger o-line in my opinion. Plus putting up only one TD and a measly FG? That’s not gonna cut it come playoff time.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:26 am#186 – Hitters are definitely making better adjustments.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:28 amExactly right, csg. This year, we got our 12th stolen base on the 12th game of the season. Last year, we got our 12th stolen base on the 61st game of the season, June 7th. What’s more, as of the end of that game, we had 13 stolen bases and 16 caught stealings — we had a stolen base percentage under 50% for much of the season.
I think that beyond hiring Walker, it was a great step for them to hire a second hitting coach, which is something that Mac has advocated for years.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:34 amIf firing Parrish got Heyward to hit fewer groundballs (probably) and got Freeman over his early-season hump in mid-April (not likely), then yes.
Prado and Uggla still have yet to get it going. It’s nice to know there will be players to pick up the slack when some of these guys cool off.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:35 amPrado made a couple fantastic plays last night, cutting down a guy at the plate and making a fantastic running grab. Judging from body language, he doesn’t appear nearly as frustrated with himself as he did last year. I’m not worried about him.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:37 amAlso, as I mentioned yesterday, the pitchers’ OBP is about 100 points higher than last year (small sample size etc), which might indicate a more thorough job of coaching. The line drive percentage has gone from 15% last year to 19% this year, which is a big jump.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:38 am173—Nine strikeouts, and I see that you still haven’t learned the definition of a chop block.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:38 amThis is baseball; one week you look like the worst team in the history of baseball, the next you look like the ’27 Yankees. It’s going to be awhile before we know what this team really is. I think even more encouraging than the offense is getting good pitching from Beachy and Minor. Plus, the offensive explosion has given Venters and Kimbrel some rest so maybe they won’t be so overworked late in the season.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:42 amI just hope that he teaches Sean Gilmartin how to gain a few miles an hour on his fastball and make the Braves look smart for drafting him.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:42 amNice outing from Minor! The Braves are red hot right now, and the only think masking it is the 0-4 start. Gotta love what they’re doing. TBH, I have more confidence in Minor than JJ and possibly Hanson right now. :-0 Granted, the Astros and this Diamondbacks lineup aren’t the best in the league, but he’s looked really solid. Everything he gave up was a dinky single. Nothing behind the OFs.
Also, it was really good to see Freeman get some knocks. He’s been hitting the ball hard lately but he’s had a lot of ‘at-em’ balls. Guess the solution is just to put it over the fence.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:50 amBraves have had the benefit of some nice scheduling lately, missing Greinke and Gallardo in the Brewers series, no Upton or Young in this series and we miss Kershaw and Billingsley in the LA series.
April 20th, 2012 at 9:53 am195—Yeah, maybe. I think Wren took the wrong lesson from Minor’s success, though. The lesson was not to draft crafty college lefties and hope they add velocity to become legit; the lesson was to draft Mikies from the SEC and profit.
April 20th, 2012 at 10:00 amRecap is up. Sorry for the delay, I have decided to not push myself at all right now.
April 20th, 2012 at 10:29 am