ESPN.com – MLB – Recap – Braves at Mets – 05/31/2003
One wonders if the umpires of this game were aware that you’re not supposed to play baseball in a driving rain. I suspect that they are, and that they didn’t want to allow rain to stop a network game. Otherwise, it made no sense to play the game, considering that they have a night game tomorrow (and could easily have played a twi-night double-header) and that the Braves will play in Shea later this year.
Anyway, Mike Hampton gave up four runs and a bunch of hits and walks, but I don’t really blame him in those conditions. He’s dependent on his defense, which couldn’t give him much support under those conditions, and how can anyone get a firm grip on a soaked baseball? So he gets a mulligan on this one.
Jae Seo pitched another great game against the Braves, allowing one early and one late run. The Braves got the tying run to the plate against Armando Benitez, but Matt Franco struck out looking at a 3-2 pitch that wasn’t a strike last night. So much for consistency.
Andruw was 3-3 with a walk, but the rest of the lineup did little, five hits (two by Fick, who got both RBI), no walks, and the 1-3 hitters were a collective 1-12. Marcus Giles returned to the lineup, but Javy Lopez’s hamstring is bothering him and he gave way to the Personal Catcher.
Horacio Ramirez starts tomorrow night; he’s been the Braves’ second-best starter this year and Bobby decided to skip Reynolds to give him a shot. He pitched seven good innings against the Mets last time out.
I was at the game today, and it wasn’t as bad as it probably looked on TV. Except for a couple of 2-3 minute stretches it wasn’t anymore than a light drizzle, and there were innings when it was just mist. My scoresheet’s a mess, but otherwise it wasn’t really much of an issue. Best part for this fan was when the Braves tried to mount their ninth inning rally, the fans around me started looking at me like they were worried and commenting on how lethal the Braves offense is this year. It feels really strange to have our offense being the part of the team that’s putting the fear of god into the other team’s fans. While I was behind home plate, I was in the mezzanine so I can’t be sure of the height of the pitch, but Benitez’ last pitch to Franco looked like a ball to me.
I got to speak with Marcus Giles briefly after the game Friday night (amazing the opportunities that leaving your cell phone at your seat can open up), and he basically said he was feeling fine but that Bobby wouldn’t let him play and that he was definitely playing Saturday. I complimented him on his improved defense this year, which apparently pleased him. The funny part was watching him turn down 4 separate baseball annies in the 2-3 minutes we spoke.