Over/Under on home runs hit by Soriano in this four-game series:Â 3 1/2.
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Over/Under on home runs hit by Soriano in this four-game series:Â 3 1/2.
Use code “Journal” for a 5% discount.
Sadly…with our staff, I’ll take the over
I’ll bet he gets off to a good start tonight w/ 2 Hr’s. It will be over.
I’ll go under. He’s not going to hit any against Smoltzie. Smoltz especially won’t give up any on Wed because I’ll be there cheering him on.
I’ll take over. 2 vs James, 1 vs Cormier, and 2 vs Yates.
I’ll take the under, cause… you know… I enjoy losing bets.
didnt Soriano hit 2 off Smoltz last time?
Unfortunately, these are my predictions for this series. Its basically all or nothing.
1. James wins tonight, Smoltz also picks up his win, and we steal a victory w/ either Cormier or Barry’s start.
2. James loses tonight, Cormier and Barry also lose and our season is completely finished as we fall to 7 or 8 back in the WC. Smoltz still wins his start, but its too late and doesn’t matter anymore.
I think this series will be determined by the first basemen – we need LaRoche to be huge, they need Nick Johnson as badly.
If we don’t win 3/4, we might as well lose ’em all.
And I believe Soriano will hit 3 HRs in 4 games.
I am going with Sori to go deep in his first at bat.
Erik Ainge sucks, by the way
Soriano hit 2 off of Smoltz in one game already this year.
And this season’s already over, folks.
starting lineup for tonight:
claudell
otis
blauser
perry
horner
oberkfell
virgil
hubbard
rick mahler
this might be the ugliest team in history
Random poll: who do you fear more, Alfonso Soriano or Ace Chumbley?
Ryan, that is one ugly list. But Claudell? The man who Skip used to say looked better in a baseball uniform than anyone he’d ever seen? I’d like to nominate Rowland Office to take his place.
I’ll take the under. After all, how long can Soriano’s domination of our pitching staff go on? Then again, I’ve asked similar questions for most of the season, and things haven’t gotten any better.
1914 Update:
NY Giants 58-42 (–)
Boston Braves 53-46 (4.5)
Chicago Cubs 54-49 (5.5)
St. Louis Cardinals 55-52 (6.5)
Philadelphia Phillies 48-53 (10.5)
Cincinnati Reds 47-55 (12)
Pittsburgh Pirates 46-55 (12.5)
Brooklyn Robins 45-54 (12.5)
Today’s Game:
Braves 022 021 000 – 7 11 2 WP- James
Giants 010 000 101 – 3 6 2 LP- Tesreau
The second game of a must-win series goes the same way as the first, with a HR from Joe Connolly the biggest blow. The Braves are closer to first than they have been since the 25th of April, when they had played just 8 games (and gone 2-6).
diaz gets a start versus a right. i guess he is the regular guy now. i dig it.
giles
renty
chip
druw
mccann
franc
laroche
diaz
lets put up some numbers!
Bobby just said that he’s contemplating starting Villareal in the series.
Can’t be much worse than Shiell/Barry/Cormier….
I know it’ll never happen, but I’d switch Diaz and Francoeur. Francoeur won’t see a strike unless the pitcher makes a mistake anyway, and this way maybe Diaz will see more pitches to hit.
Bob Carpenter and Tom Paciorek.
Oh joy.
I really detest Directv.
Soriano is 15/37 against Braves pitching. As Skip would say, “That’s a cool .405.”
Meh…
It sounded like Don Sutton said “Marlins strike first”
Ugh. Somebody please make Jeff Torborg shut up.
I just got on…I will be AT tomorrow night’s game, the Cormier start, because I am a glutton for punishment.
I am stunned that Francouer struck out…he NEVER does that?
I think Diaz has the job now.
Let me say this again to everyone on here as a Northern Virginia Resident: I HATE COMCAST. This continued BS of blacking out Nats games pisses me off everytime…they play the Braves.
When I see ‘C B. Harper’ in the box score I can’t help but think of Lonnie Smith.
Mike Hampton for pitching coach
I would like to admit this to everyone here…I actually used to WORK for Comcast SportsNet (this is a few years back and prior to the existence of the Nats) and it embarrasses me that I did with this B.S. of them screwing 2 million subscribers out of Nats games
Diaz is so much better (offensively) than Langerhans and Thorman. Finally Bobby Cox sees that. That lefty-righty match-up is overrated.
Smart move by Bobby to walk Sorriano. I think we shold do it everytime
I agree…walk Soriano every single time
“Bobby just said that he’s contemplating starting Villareal in the series.”
Why Villarreal? Why not Lerew? Bobby hates rookies.
Alex R.: I’ll be there too, taking on the Cormier punishment… so you won’t be alone, buddy. 🙁
Lerew sucks worse than Villareal
Hey everyone…just got in and I see we are winning.
How was your trip Jay
I just got in, LaRoche had an impressive 11 pitch at bat then walked and was driven in on the 2-Run Homer by Diaz.
I bet Jeff was taking a leak while that happened…..
“Lerew sucks worse than Villareal”
Lerew’s last start was great, and I’d rather see him even if he fails. It’s better than Cormier and Villarreal.
But who am I kidding? Our manager (while good) would rather have Brian Jordan backing-up LaRoche at first over Scott Thorman.
Diaz is the worst defensive outfielder in the national league
Got in from the living room….
I never thought I would make it past the couch.
I almost tripped of a chewable dog toy.
Long Drive! Off the top of the wall…..
Lerews other starts have been terrible
Matt Diaz can hit, he should play DH.
Oh wait…
“Lerews other starts have been terrible”
And yet I’d still rather see him over Cormier and Villarreal.
BTW,
Lee Suggs( a former Hokie)got traded today to the NY Jets.
Just thought I mention it…well because I like him.
I remember Lee Suggs, a true gamer
Greg Maddux pitched 8 Innings yesterday with 68 pitches. Is he a FA at the end of the year?
I know, I know he’s old. So is Smoltz……
Villerreal can’t be worse than Cormier and Sheill….why not…let him go out there and see what he can do.
Was Suggs the TB for VATECH during the 1999 season?
Villareal should be allowed to start, AJ HIT ONE FAIR!!!
Yeah I think he was the tailback in 99.
Come on Torborg, a left-hander grounding out to the right side ain’t that impressive.
BMAC, gets the runner over.
“Francouer in his own right, a *great* hitter”-LIE
Terry Pendeleton is wrong.
Jeff will “mature” into this…..
I hate Jeff Francoeur so much right now.
Jeff popped to first, but can we just skip the bashing for one time. We have all heard it and it is getting repetative
3-1 and Francoeur pops-up after swinging at three straight ball-fours. Ugh.
Anybody watching the Raiders/Vikings game?
I’ll be back in a little while.
Wow, ESPN just has a small little score thing on the screen, thats it!
Yes it is, Torborg might have got soemthign right, BMAC made a positive play, he got the runner 90 feet clsoer increasing the chance sof the run scoring, a lot better than an out in that position.
BMAC should want to GO if he has too, to the right side, to get the runner to third. After Bmac without 2 outs, the chances of a sacrifice are psossible SACFLY/BUNT etc. or wild pitch or a single which normally the runner doesn’t score. But Jeff was up so it was hamrless pop-fly.
C’mon Matt -8 for 8.
DIAZ! The kid can’t catch a cold, but he can hit
YeSSSSS!!!!
Diaz does it again.
FOX ahs the same small strip,these guys are trying to make it harder to tell the score, for those with even good eyesight!
I flipped over to ESPN just for a second to see it (I don’t give a damn about preseason football) and that score-thing is horrible. Why the heck would you stick it right in the middle of the screen?
In my day, we didn’t have a score box at all! And we liked it! The only score updates we got were when the game was at a lull and they’d put them all up at once, and we loved it!
Looking at ESPN… Dear God. That is an abomination.
Vick can’t pass worth a crap, but I watched him and Suggs in the backfield on some of those ESPN games, I saw two people run over everyone.
At some point, you’d think that maybe Diaz and Francouer would be flip-flopped. But that’s probably not going to happen given that at some point you would also think that Francouer would sit down a game or two…
Hell,I remember waiting for several minutes to get the score of the game you were watching, you never had out of town scores posted on the tube.
Fox’s is only smaller and less ugly.
They should have the score not horizontal to each other but vertical.
7
0
not
7-0
Fox’s is minscule.
Who decides the graphics need to be changed?
What was so wrong about the old ones?
I liek the small score, but I would like it at the top in the corner
If we had Bob Wickman from the beggining of the season, we would have at least 15 more wins.
I like Tony Kornheiser, but so far, not so much on MNF
I don’t care about the score updates 40 years ago, Now they ahve the money for graphics, keep the old ones in the top corner and stay with it, no one cares…
3-2
Wow, that was a terrible throw by McCann
That crap that the Vikings play on looks afwul…
Tie game, lets blow this thing Braves style….
Error, hit, walk, error, hit, walk, etc.
There goes the lead…
It’s all melting down.
If the Braves had Wickman from the beginning, Reitsma’s BS would be in the eighth.
Pratt would have thrown Sorriano out
Vikqueens(a Packer’s fan name for them if I remember correctly)have a history of ugly, look at the uniforms.
Why is Diaz batting 8th? Actually, our luck, he’ll get hits in the rest of his at-bats tonight, Bobby will put him in higher in the lineup tomorrow, and he’ll go 0-for-all.
“If’s and But’s were candy and nuts”
…sigh. This is all so familiar.
Pratt? HAHAHAHAHA
Warren Sapp is disgusting.
McCann’s bad throw is another sign that his discipline behind the plate is terrible. we should tradr him to the A’s right now and see what Billy Beane can do with him.
Diaz should be 5th in the lineup, why is Jeff stuck so high?
Because he his Bobby’s baby.He is the Braves “future” and so he get undesserved special treatment.
Diaz is hitting .339, put him in the 5 hole.
“Pratt? HAHAHAHAHA”
I’m pretty sure that was sarcasm by Smitty.
Wow, those Vikings unis are horrible.
Correction: CJ is back, so make that the 6 hole, but when he goes back on the DL put him in the 5 hole.
Diaz will cool off again soon and go back to striking out
What’s with Renty’s steady decline?
McCann *ain’t* Pratt and *ain’t* Jeff, bad sarcasm *ain’t* funny.
CHIPPA!
CHIPPER JONES!!!!!!!
Chipper took two days this time off the DL….
Chipper!!!!
Yes, Smitty, McCann making a throwing error is exactly like Francoeur’s assault on the outmaking record books.
Chip!!
Ugh..I don’t know what’s more ugly…
Vikings uniform, Vikings turf…Viking fan in the stands…Warren Sapp..
I just realized something, the key for the Braves winning, is Chipper Jones if he’s healthy we win, if he’s not we suck.
AJ!!!! NO!!!!!
McCann does it again.
AJ IS OKAY…SO IS BMAC!!!!!!!!
Let me guess, Pratt would have hit a homer.
B-Man!!!
Brian is my hero
Jeffrey’s going to go deep
Well everytime someone outside of Smoltz, McCann,and Chipper doesn’t get a hit they get killed on this board. I know some right fielders are struggling at times, it just get a little silly.
Sapp is fat. Really Fat. And Old. And Ugly. Inside and Out.
Is he still cheap shotting OL’s?
Francoeur isn’t “struggling”. He’s been making outs over seventy percent of the time all year. I doubt you could find a five game stretch where his OBP was over .320.
Smoltz doesn’t get a hit .850 of the time, what are yout alkign about.
Another bad at abt by Jeff he swung at some crappy balls, and got his loose swing flailing around.
At least that one was inside. He will never see another fastball strike until he stops swinging at pitches that in other circumstances are known as “intentional balls”.
BOO! Pitch to Adam!
Guess I was wrong…
Yeah I know he is making outs, he is also 22 and our best option for the outfield and he isn’t going anywhere. NOting can be done about it. He is going to hit 30 homers and has won a couple of games for us. (As I type this he strikes out)
Sitting him on the bench isn’t going to help him learn how to hit. I am sure he is working on it.
Adam commands respect.
Adam “Bonds” LaRoche
9 for9.
Adam with 3 walks, two intentional!? Diaz has already made them pay in the form of 3 RBIs, is the ability to have a force play at second worth putting LaRoche (a slow runner who has had an occasional knack for a grounder to second himself) on intentionally?
Oh well, I’m not complaining!
LaRoche has respect, Jeff does not.
3 intentional I think.
Adam “Albert” LaRoche
Why not walk Diaz and make James hit?
This is getting silly.
Again?
DIAZ!!!!!!!!! 4 RBI 9 FOR 9!!!!!!!!
Aaron “Suck” Brooks…
Some Viking has some sort of hammer on his hand.
Yesssss!!!! You better respect Diaz.
Should have walked Diaz
9 consecutive hits is not normal.
Insanity = doing the same thing over and over while expecting a different result
See, we could have Frank Robinson
Diaz gets all the ladies
James is hitting in the 9 hole….are there 2 outs?
Diaz rocks! I’ve been high on this guy since watching him at spring training. He played great at FSU and it’s good to see him getting his shot. Fixing his vision has done wonders.
Matt “Babe” Diaz
yes, I would walk the bases loaded and make James get a hit
In the old days (1991-2001 or so), a four run lead with a starter on the mound meant a victory. More recently, not so much. Time for James to step up and get us to the 7th without allowing more runs. The offense, after all, has done its job already.
Diaz just needs a bigger glove. He makes Kelly Johnson look like Andruw JOnes in the outfield
With LaRoche being a LH who apparently had success against Ortiz(I’m guessing), and Diaz comign up, Frank should have walked signaled for them both to be wlaked and Ortiz should have gone afetr the pitcher James, DUH!!!!
Adam LaRoche, tonight: 3 walks
Jeff Francouer, since July 6: 3 walks
I bet that girl didn’t paint that room
Excellent bat, Horrible glove, Good arm….Diaz
“The offense, after all, has done its job already.” Ain’t it the truth. The grocery lists for the rotation and the pen is pretty long.
Where is Landogarner?
He;s actually walked 3 times since July 6th?…I was expecting less..
we should hire Wade Boggs, just to find out if he really drank 64 beers on a cross country flight
Jeff is htting .250 something with a .270 something OBP.
There is something wrong with that….
The Monday Night Football crew is terrible
I eat a whole chicken before I watch a Braves baseball game.
4 Seam, send Dennis Miller and inflatable cooler
Whoa. Phillies up over the Mets 13-0.
MNF is dead.
Deader than a doornail….
I miss Michaels and Madden…
Sunday Night Football is alive!!!!
I miss Hank Williams Jr.
I’m listening to the Braves on the radio…so MNF is muted.
What are they saying that is so bad??
That’s not good, we need the Mets to win
Francoeur will probably end the season with a batting average around .250, 30+ home runs and around 100 RBIs and he’s our best goat?
Hank is going to be on MNF when the season starts.
The crew: Theismann is terrible, Tony K. isn’t fitting in well, and Mike Torico is, eh…
Sankes on a Plane reference, no fear of snakes, but Joe mentioned a fear of flying….
Tony sucks….Tirico nees to bring his excitement back to golf….Joe needs to be hit Lawerence Taylor again.
Smitty, you really need to quit saying Lerew sucks. Since you stopped following him back in May, he’s healthy, got his mechanics straightened out, and has turned it around. He was 4-1 with a 0.76 ERA in July at Mississippi.
I can’t stand to listen to Theismann.
CHIPPA
Nice Chipper.
And Jeff will end the season not driving in 50 RBI he should have driven in.and wlakeing 14 times
CHIPPER!!!!!!
If Chipper can carry us, we might get back in this thing
Chip!!!!
CHIPPER!!!
WOOHOO! CHIPPER!
Theismann should be hit by Matt Diaz..
Snakes on a Plane, that’ not a good thing
Will Diaz break the Braves’ record with ten straight hits?
Wow, I will say it, nice play by Diaz
Smitty,
Lay off the kool aid. We are not getting back into this thing. The best we can hope for at this point is to teach the baby braves something about winning by reaching .500. Perhaps james will learn how to pitch and be a good starter for us. And perhaps Frenchy will learn not to swing at everything (heck, I’d settle for him just swinging at 85 percent of the dog doo-doo that he does now).
I will end the season misspelling 1,000,000,000+ words….
Jeff’s numbers are horrible. He never walks, which means he ain’t being driven in as much as he should be. In clutch situations for every good thing he does, 10 times he fails miserabley….
His overall RBI/RUN production is sub-par, because of his impatience.
It’s not his long swing(although that effects certain things), its him deciding to swing at balls that are in the other batter’s box.
Nice Double-Play
I have been away the last while writing the Georgia football preview for the site, but thank god the Nats suck.
I am rooting for the Wild card still
Regarding the MNF comments I read, I have to agree…Kornheiser is completely out of his element there. He needs Wilbon.
I’ve unmuted the game..and I see what you guys mean.
Tony just doesn’t fit in there…
Snake Pliskin on a Plane….
Jake the Snake Plummer on a Plane
Inflatable cooler sent, I also sent him an inflatable dictionary…
MNF is terrible
Has someone started a “Snakes on a Plane” thread here? what’s the game about?
Jake The Snake Roberts on a Plane…
Diaz is coming up….
I like Kornheiser, I hope he finds his role on MNF. Theisman is an ass, Tirico is blah.
Kenny Snake Stabler on a Plane…
Here comes Diaz….
One more thing about Francouer– his k / bb ratio is just about 10 to 1, having struck out 96 times and walked only 11 times. Wow! That’s impressive. I’d love to have a pitcher with the same ratio.
Wow he could tie Bip Roberts!
Leave Francoeur alone. Tom Paciorek says he’s a future superstar. So there.
NO more Frenchy stats, good or bad, for the rest of the night. THey make me dizzy
Bip Roberts name mentioned!!!
Drink a keg full of bourbon…
I’ll be back…
Diaz HIT!!!!!!!!!!
Diaz did it.
Hopefully Paul LoDuca has an exotic bet involving Diaz…
Matt Diaz is a World Record Holder…
nope,just an NL record holder
Raiders vs. Vikings 1973 awesome matchup
Radiers vs. Vikings 2006 just wrong…..
Actually, I like Francouer. I think he has a chance to be quite good. I just disagree with the approach the Braves are taking towards him. It is unrealistic to put him in the minors at this point (even beginning the season would have been difficult. Now, it’s virtually impossible). That said, letting him play 162 in a row is wrong too. It’s true he won’t learn by riding the pine. But the bench would be helpful occasionally to let him get his head together. Moreover, it would allow us a fighting chance when he’s in one of his funks, especially since our starters and pen suck so much (Smoltz and Wick excepted).
Correction:
Matt Diaz is The World Record Holder for the National League.
Thats better.
I want to have lunch with Clontz, Belliard, Lockhart, Bobby Dews, Wickman, Orr and McCann
serioiusly…can I get some insight on the “snakes on a plane” bit? If not, should I just go old school and make Cobra Commander jokes?
There’s that Tarvares Jackson kid we keep hearing about…
I guess Theismann made some Snakes on Plane refference during the MNF game
Snakes: It is just a funny movie title that eveyone found on the internet and sugested lines for the movie and the producers worked them into the script
Yes you should make Cobra Commander jokes
Alex, its taking the word Snake and thinking of nicknames that correlate with the word snake.
I want to have lunch with Walt Weiss and Walt Disney…
AAHHH…they said Snakes on a plane again on MNF…
Yeah, Walt Weiss should be there. Sorry Pete Orr, no lunch for you…
“I guess Theismann made some Snakes on Plane refference during the MNF game”
Yep, and it wasn’t a funny one either, soemthing about Tony beign scared of flying. It was inappropiate to the context of the game being played, and to the topic being discussed.
They did it again? Wow!
Lunch with the Braves Bullpen would be a thing to see.
Paronto, Baez, Villareal, Wickman, and Mcbride.
Close down the restaraunt and let them rummage.
That wouldn’t be a lunch… it would be a hunt
Okay…but in thinking about it, how gmuch better would be the Samuel L. Jackson flick if the “snakes on a plane” thing was a plot to take over the world by Cobra Commander and Destro and Jackson had to battle Zartan & Major Blood on the plane.
I also think Destro and Cobra Commander would do a better job then Kornheiser on MNF.
No Deer on the North American Continent would be left alive….
three homers, we are back!
CHIPPER!!! UPPER DECK!!!!!!!
amazing
Cobra Comander: ssssss, that Chipper is a good hitter, ssssssss
Wow that ball was destroyed.
Go Chipper!
i would love to see him get an at bat for the 4th of the game.
And McCann gets a 5 PA night.
Chipper is insane. However, I’m hoping he’s saving something for the rest of this series…
McCann should be batting cleanup? Ha!
The Cans are dancing…
chipper 7th up in the 9th…just maybe
Wow… 3HRs for Chipper and a 4 hit day for Diaz? Wow…
Maybe it was some sort of reverse hex, that question at the start of the game thread. Would love to see 4 HR for Chipper tonight; that’d blow any over/under out of the water.
Maybe these trips to the DL give Chipper time to re-energize? I would still rather have him around more often.
We should’ve put an over/under on Chipper’s homeruns
hey…anyone remember that Sunday game in the 80’s when Bob Horner hit 4 homers against the Cubs? I still remember being at Baseball practice with my friends and the game on a transister radio…
Alex R., yep. That was awesome.
good times. Go Chipper!
Why does Paronto pitch in a blow out, and Yates in a close game? Yet another mystery of life…
Rissa, well said…it should be Yates, who, well, STINKS.
diaz blew it 🙁
Well, that ends it for Diaz, unfortunately…
Was Diaz a little too anxious? Oh well, 10-for-10 is pretty doggone impressive.
Tony Pena Managerial Record – Baseball-Reference.com
Shut up, Torborg.
well, chipper won’t get to bat…
Any chance Yates gets sent to Richmond when Cormier comes up tomorrow?
Well, congratulations to Diaz on his share of the record. So between Diaz and the Braves’ offensive surge earlier this year, Atlanta’s made the record books a few times this year. And looking at the way things are going for Francoeur, he’ll probably enter in them, too. Sort of a banner year for the Braves despite their troubles, no?
The Braves would have the Wild Card lead right now if CJ was not hurt for 2 weeks. CJ in the lineup makes the Braves 2-6 absolutely awesome.
Renteria, CJ, McCann, AJ, and LaRoche….
BMAC should bat cleanup. AJ is great vut BMAC hits for the better average and the Braves would score more runs that way.