ESPN.com – MLB – Box Score – Braves at Cardinals
That could have gone better. If the Braves can’t beat the Cardinals when they’re crippled (no Walker, Rolen, Sanders, or Molina) and with John Smoltz is on the mound, can they beat the Cards at all?
The Braves were crippled too, as Chipper was held out. And Bobby for some reason is platooning his catchers now, starting Estrada against lefties even though he can’t hit righthanded and Smoltz likes to throw to McCann. Don’t ask me. Smoltz didn’t have his A game, for whatever reason, and allowed five runs in six innings and gave up two homers. He did strike out six.
Whatever slim chance there was of a comeback got slimmer when Jim Brower came in and gave up a homer to the legendary So Taguchi (He’s So Taguchi!) to make it 6-1. McBride came in to pitch the seventh and had a horrific outing, allowing five runs, four of them earned, in 2/3 of an inning. He was so bad that Kolb had to bail him out.
The Braves got only one run until the ninth, even with ten hits and four walks. Estrada’s 0-3 with a GIDP didn’t help any. Andruw left the game after fouling two pitches off his foot; hopefully he will be okay. Marcus, Francoeur, and Betemit had two hits each.
Tomorrow is a day game on Fox, hooray, McCarver is sure to be there with Joe Buck, two guys with deep Cardinal connections so you know they’ll be fair. Hudson will face Jason Marquis, so get ready for fifty renditions of “How’d the Braves give up on this guy?” Phillies and Natspos lost, Marlins and Mets won. The Braves stay 4 1/2 up, but only 5 1/2 up on the Marlins, who are still the team I’m worried about.
And of course, we’re the second thing on SportsCenter. Thanks, guys. This was just an awful game.
But tomorrow is another day. I’ll be optimistic.
McCarver is bad, but ESPN finally carried a Braves game in Singapore and Hrabosky was the colour commentator–naturally he was no less a Cardinal. Before McBride got lit up, Hrabosky surmised that he had the chance to be another Ray King…
For a bellwether series this was a terrible beginning. Just horrible. Horrible, I say. So bad that I am infused with the spirit of Bill Walton. I hope that the 96 Rock feed isn’t too time smeared to make it unlistenable while I’m watching the game. I may just run the feed through a delay pedal if it is because Fox games are the worst. Stupid graphics taking up too much of the screen, not to mention McClueless and *uck. Gah! I would gladly listen to the Mad Hungarian instead.
“Hudson will face Jason Marquis, so get ready for fifty renditions of “How’d the Braves give up on this guy?”
At least until the fifth inning, when Marquis unravels because he didn’t get a strike call.
If it’s any help, urlhix, Fox games aren’t nearly as “time smeared” as FSN-S games. They’re more like ESPN games. If Skip’s calling, you’ll probably know the result of the pitch as it’s leaving the pitcher’s hand, as opposed to FSN, where you know as the pitcher starts his motion. So it’s not so bad.
Also, for all I know, 96 Rock might have a delay. I listen on a local affiliate. If that’s the case, there will be no difference at all.
And by “96 Rock feed”, I hope you don’t mean the internet feed. They don’t broadcast Braves games over the internet. The one time I checked it out, they had a rerun of a morning show. MLB.com has all “new media” rights to game broadcasts.
Well, tomorrow is another game. Go well, just don’t put Smoltz with Estrada again. For whatever reason, they don’t work well together.
A playoff like atmosphere tonight. Our offense didn’t show up, our big name starting pitcher was awful, bullpen took a bad situation and made it worse, and the team was lifeless from start to finish. Essentially it was like every playoff game in the past ten years. Sickening.
Thanks JoeyT, I don’t get FSN as one of my 70+ channels one hour from Atlanta so I wouldn’t know about them (/snark). Fortunately, I mean the 96 Rawk feed from my stereo. I do audio engineering from time to time so I have the gear (not just a delay pedal) to make it match up. I just hate having to do silly, stupid things to make it work. I’ve actually found a site that carries shortwave broadcasts of VHF/UF programming from the US and around the world and one of these days I’ll see if I can find some of the games on there. Yes, I do know I’m a geek *grin*.LET’S GO BRAVES!!!!
These games happen. Forget about it. More than most teams, the Braves seem to shake off these short episodes of misery. Mulder pitched well. Hopefully, we’ll have the chance to face him again.
I heard on TBS that “Chipper may play tomorrow.” Hmmm…
Of course, living in NYC area, my Fox game is Mutts-Schlubs from LaGuardia Stadium. Ugh.
I defintely hope our $15M man be healthy and start producing again. We may survive the regular season without a healthy Chipper, but we need him to be healthy if we have any chance in this year’s playoff.
Just checked my listings… At least you guys get the game. We benighted New Yorkers get Brennaman and Lyons and the scintillating Mets-Cubs matchup. See, there are things worse than Buck and McCarver… much worse.
Cox says that Estrada can’t hit against righties without pain so he is trying to give hime some ABs against lefties. Let Estrada heal completely McCann is hot and he in not needed now anyway.
Did not having McCann throw Smoltz off or something? It was bad enough not having his bat in the lineup, but then it messes up our ace pitcher? I don’t know why the announcers were making such a big deal about pitching around Pujols because of his earlier home run. That pitch was so bad and so fat that David Eckstein could have hit it to New Orleans. And McBride? Oh, well. The game was pretty much out of reach anyway, he just put the stamp on it.
Fortunately, we here in Maryland actually get the Braves on FOX today. Any more of that Scooter graphic may cause me to put my foot through the screen. We shall see.
In VA we get the Mets. Barf.