Braves Report

Well, I had it all figured out. I was going to use this space to complain about the botched double play call that the umpire made in the 5th inning. Then I was going to mention that sometimes umpires make mistakes and it’s part of the game (it shouldn’t be), but really that this is just something that the Braves need to deal with if they want to be a good ball club. Well, fortunately, they did, and it allowed them to continue out of the gate strong with a 2-0 record.

So, what happened? Jurrjens started this game and was pretty good for the first 4 innings. Going into the 5th, however, he started having some control issues and began walking people. A Glaus error then led to 2 runs being scored. Overall, Jair didn’t have a bad line: 5 innings, 2 runs (0 earned), 3 hits, 2 walks, and 2 strikeouts. Medlen followed him in the 6th and was pretty impressive. He allowed 2 hits and struck out 2 in his 2 innings of work. Moylan came in after him, and would eventually earn the win by only allowing a hit and a walk. Wagner came in to close out the game and was phenomenal. He hit 98 mph several times and only allowed 1 hit while striking out the side. It was his first save recorded as a Brave and his first since July of 2008. Once again, the bullpen continues to impress.

That leaves the offense. One of the main problems Jurrjens has always had during his career with the Braves is a lack of run support. Of course, today was no exception. The Braves quickly got on the board in the first inning thanks to a J-Hey RBI double. After that, however, they became eerily quiet. At one point, 13 consecutive Braves failed to get the ball out of the infield (9 of these were strikeouts). Glaus had a golden sombrero in the game, and Escobar had two strikeouts. I get that Dempster is a good pitcher, but this was in such contrast to yesterday’s hit parade. Fortunately, this all ended in the 8th inning. Martin Prado doubled to left-center with 1 out. Then Chipper came up. The count went to 3-1, Joe Simpson said something about Chipper wanting to be more aggressive in these situations, and then…

Gone.

Chipper ripped it out of there amidst intense fist-pumping by me. Great timing, and it was enough for the win. They held them after that and the rest is history.

Do it again tomorrow.

Braves win, 3-2.

Tomorrow’s game @ 7:10 PM EST on Peachtree TV.

Hanson vs. Wells.