ESPN.com – MLB – Box Score – Cubs at Braves
Whee, a win. Frankly, playing out the string has lost its appeal.
The Braves took a first-inning lead on a homer by Marcus, then had one of their catastrophe innings in the second, allowing three unearned runs on two walks, two errors, and two singles, one on the infield. I’m numb to this at this stage.
But McCann, who made the second error (allowing the third run to score) hit a homer to make it 3-2 in the bottom of the inning. Then in the fourth, he doubled in LaRoche and Andruw, and came home himself on a groundout to make it 5-3. LaRoche hit a homer in the sixth to make it 6-3. After a run in the seventh to make it 6-4, Hudson was done, the last one the only one of the four he allowed to be charged as earned. He struck out seven, which is a good sign, but I’m sick of looking for positives for that guy.
Francoeur drove in one in the seventh, and Diaz scored on a wild pitch in the eighth. Meanwhile, McBride pitched a good seventh, Kali just missed allowing a two-run homer before getting a double play to end the inning, and Wickman took nine pitches for the Atlanta Save.
LaRoche was 3-4, missing the elusive cycle by the triple; his metamorphosis into Fred McGriff continues and he’s now hitting .293 and slugging about .590. McCann, Francoeur, and Giles had two hits each, and Francoeur drew another walk. His OBP is getting dangerously close to .300 (the Guillen Line).
i cant believe LaRoche doesnt suck anymore
Frenchy for .300 OBP!!!
.500-O-METER: 14-8
Actually, LaRoche looked like McGriff a lot the last couple of seasons- if we’re talking the 1997 version instead of the “Fire Dog” of 1993-94, which he resembles this year.
It’s crazy how good LaRoche has gotten. He’s 8th in the league in slugging now. I always rooted for him because he’s really not overly athletic, the under-dog kinda deal, and it’s good to see his talent really developing now.
Atleast Adam gives us a reason to smile..
Watching Damian Miller get hit in the head supplies us with a good working definition of minor concussion: one that happens to someone other than you.
I will have to say that I’ve officially given up on the WC, but it’s sad because there is no team out there that deserves it. The Braves simply aren’t that good, but actually they’re in good company with about everyone except the Mets. There are so many “what ifs” this year, it’s incredible. Probably the biggest one being, “What if Hudson pitched like an ace?” (What he was supposed to be when he got here.) I know he’s 12-10, but it would be interesting to see what the Braves’ record is when he starts. If he lived up to his worst year in Oakland (even last year with the Braves), we would have easily won 6 or 7 more games and be leading the pack for the WC. Then again, another first round elimination wouldn’t be much to look forward to.
My plan for next year may sound crazy, but I think it would give us a chance. I say we go back to what started the streak – starting pitching. Believe it or not, I wouldn’t get rid of Hudson – his value is as low as it will ever be now. He may not have the kind of career we had hoped, but I think he’ll improve enough to at least up his trade value significantly. Let’s plan on him as the 3rd starter and get a legitimate ace (even if it means giving up guys like Andruw, Giles, Thorman, or even LaRoche.) Let’s end the experiment with HoRam (he looked good at times this year, but he’s too injury prone) and let Davies try his luck as a fifth starter elsewhere (he may be great, but it will be a few years away, and injuries are also a concern). Here is my proposed starting rotation, although I’m also not opposed to trading Hamption, but I don’t think we could get anything for him.
Ace
Smoltz
Hudson
Hampton
James
Let’s make a priority of re-signing Wickman and Baez and try to get some relief pitchers from trading HoRam and/or Davies. As I see it Stockman, McBride and a healthy Boyer and/or Devine, along with Wickman and Baez would be a decent start to the bullpen.
Anyway, that’s my rant for now. It should be a very interesting offseason .
For those not yet willing to give up, San Diego lost to the Giants 4-0. Six games out.
I thought the McCann error was a horrible call. Francoeur’s throw was way up the line, and McCann’s good attempt at a catch-and-tag stab was the only thing that made it look close.
19-12
19-12
I couldn’t be more shocked to learn that.
When Smoltz starts: 16-14
James: 8-5
Everyone else: 24-42
Wow! Hudson has gotten incredible run support. Smoltz definitely hasn’t – Smoltz has also felt the full effects of a terrible bullpen.
If Wickman doesn’t retire at the end of the year, bringing him back should be the team’s first order of business. The Braves would probably be above .500 if they had Wickman from the very beginning.
I saw a stat last week that Trachsel was leading the league in run support with over 6 runs per game. Hudson, I think, was 4th with about 5.5.
Do you guys realize that this will be the easiest of the last 15 years for the Braves to win the last game they play? That only happened once during the streak (as we are all too aware of), but we can shoot for it this year. A good, solid last week of the season might actually leave us all in a better mood then the last 5 years worth of last weeks have.
Now, let’s play the spoiler and get that record to .500!