ESPN.com – MLB – Recap – Braves at Dodgers – 05/13/2003
Go ahead, Dodger fans. (Those of you still in the park after the seventh, anyway.) Boo Gary Sheffield. Please. Why don’t you follow the Braves on the road so you can boo him some more? Gary hit a solo shot in the eighth to break a 1-1 tie, Andruw scored a little later, and the Braves won again.
The most exciting play of the game was in the third inning, when Rafael Furcal and Marcus Giles were standing on second and first and took off on a steal. Kaz Ishii threw a wild pitch and Furcal kept running, coming all the way from second to score. For most of the game, that was the only way the Braves could score, as Ishii kept pitching out of trouble. The Braves had thirteen combined baserunners (H+BB) to the Dodgers’ seven, but couldn’t get anyone home, even runners from third with less than two out.
Ortiz had probably his most effective start as a Brave, going eight innings and allowing only four hits, two walks, and one run. And he had his best ball/strike ratio of the year, 72 strikes in only 103 pitches. He’s still not striking anyone out, but he’s making progress. Smoltz of course got the save.
Another late late game tonight, Maddux versus Kevin Brown. Shame nobody will get to see the end before they fall asleep.
I already want Bobby to give Bong more playing time, but now it could be a matter of life or death:
“[Bong] hopes publicity will lead to an invitation to join the South Korean national team. If he wins any medal in the Olympic Games or gold in the Asian Games, the government would waive the mandatory military service required of all South Korean males.” -AJC
Well, Russ Ortiz pitched wonderfully–his change-up was really on the spot! Pity he didn’t get the CG, he looked like he had enough fuel left in the tank to start the 9th. Why does Bobby seem so insistent upon getting Smoltzy saves? It’s almost an insult to his starters and to Smoltz as well. Ortiz deserved a shot at finishing the game and Smoltz deserves more than just 9th inning saves.
Nerdqueen, I think the reliance on using relievers has gotten out of control in recent years, but putting Smoltz in last night was a no-brainer. Ortiz was pitching well (but frankly, over his head), Smoltz hadn’t thrown in two days and 4-5-6 in the lineup were coming up. I was actually surprised we didn’t see Hernandez in the eighth…
As far as insulting Ortiz, he’d feel a whole lot worse if McGriff and Jordan had hit back-to-back homers off him … or ever worse, if he walked McGriff and Jordan and Beltre hit a three-run shot…
If Cox hadn’t pitched Smoltz and Ortiz coughed up the lead, every critic in the country (mainstream press and otherwise) would be calling for Bobby’s head … and they’d be right.
I’m not sure how a quality major league pitcher like Ortiz throwing eight strong innings in a great pitchers park against a punchless Dodger lineup qualifies as pitching over your head. By the end of the year, Ortiz will have been the most valuable pitcher on the staff. It’s not like we are talking about Shane Reynolds here.
As for using Smoltz last night, I don’t have a problem with it. Might as well get the maximum bang for the $10 million.