It’s Oliver Perez! How hard can it be to hit Oliver Perez?
Morning recap again.
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It’s Oliver Perez! How hard can it be to hit Oliver Perez?
Morning recap again.
Use code “Journal” for a 5% discount.
Here’s to hoping that Tex and Escobar (who I don’t think was with the team yet when they played the Mets earlier in the year) won’t have trouble hitting Perez.
Yes, and enough talk about the 85 Missouri World Series. Let’s focus our venom at the Mets.
I’m calling a Braves series sweep. Perez will get hit hard tonight and Smoltz and Hudson will be lights out. Looking forward to this series.
timo,
I wish I could have that much blind confidence. But I do believe that Perez has to mess up sometime against Atlanta. Tonight is as good a night as any for him to do so.
There you go, sam. Watch it happen tonight! Looking at our lineup and the guys knowing what’s on the line, damn, it’s gonna happen tonight!
And I look for Buddy Carlyle’s single best start in an Atlanta uniform tonight.
I know my man is ready to play tonite…he seems to like pressure situations. I think the whole team will be ready…Perez is not Sandy Koufax.
I know its like two threads late, but I believe Kelly Johnson has more than enough speed to be a leadoff hitter, if that is whats even required(it’s not). He doesn’t have nine triples out of pure luck, or because defenders were falling down in the outfield.
Re last thread–the Mets fans must be nuts–Mac couldn’t have given a more benign interview. Though he didn’t cite it, I suspect his response about Tex not helping other batters in the lineup is based on JC’s research. Fans like that give even greater motivation to pull for ATL this week. Sheesh.
BTW, I bet the Braves have better luck with Perez tonight. He’s due for some reversion to the mean–he’s not Sandy Koufax.
Ok Justin…we believe you.
Tony–nice line about Koufax. 🙂
Could someone post some portions of Mac’s interview if it’s not too long? The office devil (internet proxy) has the mets blog blocked. Normally a good thing, but not now. In fact, I take it as a sign that God is a braves fan that I can get on the journal.
To enter the fray on speed–the way Cox has run the Braves out of innings lately, I’d prefer a team of Sid Breams. 🙂
Kidding aside, speed is good if everything else is equal, but I wouldn’t sacrifice much power or ability to get on base for a player with more speed.
That’s the spirit. Buddy has an ERA under 3 in his past five starts, I think, winning 4 of them. He is hot and the Mets are not the BoSox!
I, for one, don’t blame the Mets fans for responding to Mac with righteous indignation.
He doesn’t believe in protection!
Frank that is exactly why KJ is so good for this team, he has power, ability to get on base, and above average speed. Now his defense is another matter, but its more than made up for on the offensive end.
I heard a radio interview with Paul LoDuca today & he almost sounded like he was bequeathing the Thursday afternoon game to Hudson.
He said something to the effect of, “Huddy’s been impossible for us and we’ve had some success with Smoltz. But really, that’s why tonight’s game is so important.”
Re: Mets fans
Now you know what I deal with every day.
AAR, I think that was the one comment that genuinely annoyed me — I’m ignorant because I don’t believe in something that has been found in study after study to have little or no effect.
#8 –
If I remember correctly, the outfielders actually were falling down most of the time. I’ve seen some of the worst “dives” at KJ liners that become triples for him.
I think he’s a solid player, I just wanted to say most of his triples actually were luck. I don’t care where he is in the lineup, but he’s certainly earned the right to be there. I don’t know what else a player could do.
Although I attended Catholic School K-12, I tend to believe protection has its place.
BTW, against the Braves & the Yankees, Oliver Perez has been Sandy Koufax.
Ethan,
Any office that blocks METS FANS in whatever way–sounds like a dream job 😉
For more, see chapter 2 of JC’s book.
Mac,
Do you have a link to one of the studies on protection in the lineup? I never heard of that before, and have been a big believer in lineup protection, but I would like to read an article or two.
I think hitting Oliver Perez is a little more difficult than hitting Buddy Carlyle, but we will see. Carlyle has been effective recently and O.P.P can’t keep this up forever.
I really like KJ as most do. I have to admit, I wasn’t so sure when he first came up and especially Mac advocated for him. Kudos to you, your were spot on with him. I would love to see him everyday. Same with Diaz, the most underrated Braves player. I love this guy!
And I thought that hitting Mark Teixeira fifth was a good idea…
Maybe I need to change my thinking? Heh.
Just read your interview, Mac. I can see where the Mets fans are coming from. And I like it. It;s annoying for them because that’s the same problem they’re having with the Braves, they are classy.
Cox hasn’t run the team out of innings. I actually thought running Chipper the other night was a good idea – he had a huge jump. And if he is out, Tex starts the next inning. You have to think about it this way, Tex pretty much has to hit a homer to score Chipper from first – a double probably wouldn’t do the trick. And if Tex was going to hit a homer, it could have waited another inning. Besides, I somewhat think that decision to run was Chipper’s and not Bobby’s.
I can’t get any work done today because I’m sitting in my office reading Braves Journal. Anyone else having that problem?
Mac you did a nice job over on the Mets Blog. Don’t understand their responses though! Have you said something in the past to piss them off?
ububba, loved your story a couple of threads ago about Amsterdam!
Still no word on roster moves for tonight?
The Protection Mini-FAQ by David Marasco
Also, again I’ll suggest JC’s book, the second chapter. He also has several pieces at Sabernomics.
Thanks, Mac.
As a followup, I think JC’s study is the best, but it’s not a new finding. This goes back maybe thirty years. It might pre-date the Abstracts.
Come on, Bravos…kick the Mets in the damned mouth.
Joel…MULTI-TASKING I do it everyday.
The Mets fans are more jumpy and paranoid than usual, by the comments left on Mac’s interview.
They have mental damage because of years of “our” domination of the NL East. They never have the comfort of a sure win against “us”.
They (seemingly) fret and lose sleep and just aren’t right when “we” play “them”.
I actually kind of like that, whatever the outcome may be.
I’m hoping for a sweep, but I’m actually more worried about the Phillies.
Good day everyone, and GO BRAVES!
The whole protection/batting order studies are really neat. My baseball mind is screaming bull shit, but my statistics degree says I should agree. There has to be a more efficient way to calculate some effect (or non-effect) than simulation–which is the only studies I’ve seen done.
And don’t look now, but the Braves rank #3 in the majors for VORP by top 3 SP’s.
117.5 Padres (Peavy, Young, Maddux)
114.7 Athletics (Haren, Blanton, Gaudin)
109.2 Braves (you know who)
100.9 Cubs (Zambrano, Lilly, Hill)
The Mets come in with 83.8 (Maine, El Duke, Perez) with Glavine killing Buddy, 19.4 to 10.6.
Thanks Kyle…I was going to comment on KJ’s triples, but I didn’t want Justin to think I was putting down KJ.
You guys are really putting a lot of pressure on KJ tonite. Is it possible Bobby sits him against Perez?
To play Woodward at second base? I certainly hope not.
Mac,
I wouldn’t worry too much about those Mets fans. Judging from the level of the discourse, I doubt that these are a bunch of Columbia Ph.D’s. The funny thing is, I was reading some this morning and a constant refrain is that they are much classier than Yankee fans. Paraphrasing Woody Allen in Annie Hall, comparing Mets and Yankee fans is sort of like awarding a prize for best fascist dictator.
OK just looked it up…KJ is 0 for 5 with 5 SO vs. Perez this year. He can’t get no worse…right?
My brother, a more “reasonable” and less “angry” Mets fan, is just dillusional.
As I mentioned 2 weeks ago, my brother actually thinks Pedro will return on his white horse and pitch just like he used to.
Even Gammons, who loves big market teams, said he watched Pedro throwing and he’s lost a LOT on his fastball.
I hope we get to face the 2007 Pedro. Then I look for a big offensive explosion that night. Please, Mets, please let your arrogance get the better of you.
Buddy has never faced the Mets. Also good!
In fairness Alex, Gammons said that Pedro could be an effective pitcher without his best fastball and I agree. Pedro knows how to pitch. I wouldn’t underestimate the guy. No one really thinks (except your brother apparently) that he is going to be the same Pedro he was several years ago, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be effective.
Re Buddy, I agree with Timo that it’s good the Mets have not seen him. I suspect Buddy will not be as effective the second time around.
@36,
Remember that VORP takes into account playing time. That is, you are X good for Y innings and that generates Z VORP.
Therefore, the more innings that you pitch, the higher you rate. When you adjust for innings, Buddy isn’t that far off of Glavine.
According to DOB, Prado has been called up.
Sorry… he expects that it’s Prado, not 100% certain. My bad.
Yeah–no Pete Orr!
We may see Prado at 2nd base….if you are Bobby do you play KJ even though he is 0 for 5 with 5 k’s? One bad night could screw a hitter for a series or maybe it’s KJ’s night to come through…
I’d sure as hell play KJ. He’s by far our best option out there. Martin Prado is not what you’d call good.
As far as I’m concerned, the only advantage he has over Woodward is that he has a name that Jon Miller is more likely to mispronounce.
Would I, Tony? No. It’s non-sensical.
Will Bobby? Yes, because he has it rattling around in his mind, for some reason, that KJ can’t hit lefties. I don’t think that it will happen, but I wouldn’t be totally shocked out of my mind of Cox starts Prado as many as two or three times a week, depending on how many lefties we face.
I seem to recall a couple months ago when KJ was theoretically the everyday 2B that Cox would start Woodward or Prado an infuriating amount against lefties.
Maybe we get Escobar & Diaz hitting 1-2 tonight.
And joel,
dank u
For this reason, I actually kind of wish we’d brought Orr up. He does suck, but since he also bats lefty, Cox wouldn’t be tempted to spell KJ with a player that sucks almost as badly in Prado. Although I guess he could’ve always spelled him with Woodward.
Plus he can pinch run, which I guess is kind of useful…sometimes…maybe. Although I guess Prado can do that, too.
i noticed that the d’backs extended eric byrnes for 3 years at 10million per. a couple of weeks ago there was a thread with a few guys that were curious to see where he’d go (even though it was a given that he’s not a CF, and so probably wouldn’t come to atlanta… just a general wondering).
I think Prado will do okay. If he gets 50 at-bats during his call up, I expect a .270 BA out of him… He is hitting .320 or so in AAA. I think he’ll continue to hit over .300 against average major leaguers, and will hit around .220 against GOOD major league pitching.
i know why bobby has been platooning KJ and Esco: he wants to play Esco as much as possible. I don’t really agree with it but thats the reason.
this platoon certainly should not extend to prado. prado should only see the occasional pinch hit/run and maybe some mop-up duty in a blow-out.
i don’t understand this KJ can’t hit lefties. he’s has a .283BA, .377OBP, .441SLG in 127 ABs.
Honestly, KJ 0 for 5 with 5ks sort of surprised me. I don’t remember the 4 SO game. I don’t know…hate to just give up outs. But I think I would start KJ…give himself a chance to redeem himself.
i’d much rather see KJ play everyday than a platoon with prado.
Well, how about Orr & Prado and KILL CHRIS WOODWARD.
There, I had to get that off my chest – but yes, I would rather see Orr than Woodward.
Which is indicated by his .179 BA the last time we had him up here. I don’t think the fact that he’s hitting in Richmond means very much. Isn’t he kind of a 4A player anyway?
4 k’s in a game? try dropping a bunt…
It’s not that KJ can’t hit lefties…it’s just Esco hits them better. I believe that’s the case, don’t feel like looking at the stats.
There’s a difference between ‘lefties’ and ‘tough lefties.’ There are guys that Bobby doesn’t even like to put McCann in against.
Against those pitchers, I expect to see Prado in there. Oliver Perez might be one, even though we will see McCann in there.
ALSO, I think that platoon situation at 2nd is paying dividends right now, and will continue to next year. You can’t expect Escobar to be as sharp as he’s been if he hadn’t been platooning with KJ.
PLUS, by putting him in there, and having him prove isn’t hurting the team by taking KJs at-bats, it enables the club to decide if Renteria should be moved for pitching in the off-season.
Alex, glad to hear you get that off your chest.
Not that I disagree or anything…
jjschiller stole my thunder…but totally agree.
I could definitely see Bobby playing woodward or prado tonight, though KJ’s numbers against the mets should warrant a start tonight.
I am pumped for this series.
Hate King….
KJ is O for 5 with 5 Ks vs. Perez this year.
@62..
Nick:
Martin Prado had only 28 at-bats this season. He hit .262 in the bigs the previous year.
Kelly Johnson began his career 2 for 33 for a solid .059.
Well it can’t get much worse than that.
Bobby does like to get the feet wet for newly called up players. I’m guessing Prado tonight.
Ok, I think it’s a pretty solid consensus that no one wants to see KJ in a permanent platoon with Prado. But KJ was really, really bad against Perez earlier this season and there’s no reason to put him out there against him again. I’d say 0-5 with 5 k’s is stark enough to forgive the small sample size.
If the platoon is Escobar and KJ, that’s one thing, although I would still prefer KJ get all the starts in that situation too.
But platooning KJ and Prado? That’s something else entirely.
I’m on the phone with a Met fan. We finish our business & I say, “Hey, big series at Shea this week.”
Him: “Yeah, could be. Willie even changed the rotation.”
Me: “Of course, we’d love to see this 2-out-of-3 trend continue.”
Him: “Goodbye.”
OK, consider me officially enthused.
This Oliver Perez thing is obviously out of hand. It’s time to apply some knowledge from the great mind of George Constanza: “If every instinct you have is wrong, the opposite would have to be right”
Whatever we have been trying to do in the past, let’s switch it up. Tried working the count? We’ll let’s jump on the first pitch. Were looking for a fastball down and away? Well, start looking for a curveball up and in.
Hey, it got George a job with the Yankees.
Gosh I hope Bobby doesn’t platoon Kelly with Prado.
Ububba,
I think it is great that Willie decided to change his rotation just for this series, it should send a signal to both his team, and the Braves that he is scared of the Braves for the rest of the season.
Lineups already posted:
Y. Escobar ss
M. Diaz lf
C. Jones 3b
M. Teixeira 1b
A. Jones cf
J. Francoeur rf
B. McCann c
K. Johnson 2b
B. Carlyle p
Best possible lineup under the circumstances. Well done Bobby.
Agreed, Robert.
For some reason Francouer after Jones and McCann and KJ back to back doesn’t leave me excited. But that’s just me.
Great lineup. Let’s do some damage — game on!
I think Franceour will be fine.. And even against a lefty, I expect McCann and KJ to see some pitches and put up good at-bats..
I just don’t like lefty – lefty – pitcher at the end.. Seems like it optimizes the quality that the mets will get out of their LOOGY late in the game.
Anything George Costanza says can’t be good for the Mets!
Interesting lineup. It’s good to see Druw back up there. Big series from Druw; I’m feeling it.
Andruw 5th. Yuck.
But I am grateful both Escobar and KJ are playing. the scrubs should remain, scrubs.
I’ve been feeling a big series from Druw for a while….I will quit feeling and just hope.
I’m expecting a huge series from Frenchy for some reason.
Question for you guys: Who’s the better hitter KJ or McCann? I’ve really never thought about it…
I like Kelly Johnson in that hole. I protects the pitcher from actually hitting,. Give us a chance to play some small ball. Wish Edger could be hitting 2 though!
ESPN shows
Carlyle as being 6’3 185lbs, but has Perez at 6’3 217lbs. Is it me or does Carlyle look bigger than that or Perez smaller than that. I would’ve guessed that Carlyle is the bigger of the two.
Whats the Mets lineup for tonight?
What’s the Mets line-up?
Pedro Feliciano, the Mets’ LOOGY, has been terrific this season. He has, however, been a little shaky lately.
His last 5 appearances: 2.1 IP, 4 ER, 4 H, 4 BB, 2K
His ERA “jumped” from 2.11 to 2.88.
Ububba, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. You’re a bad man. I’m just glad you’re fighting on the side of good instead of evil.
Check back with me midway next year. I’d like to see a full year of McCann healthy before I make a decision on that (don’t forget he was hurt last year as well). I will say this though – I like both of their approaches at the plate. I do feel that KJ gets better wood on the ball a greater percentage of the time…
Kelly or McCann? It really depends on how things develop over the next couple of years. If McCann returns to last years numbers then he’s the better of the two, if this is what we can expect every year from KJ then he’s the better one. I’ve got a feeling that McCann and KJ will both give you a .280 season on average. Some stat guru might come tell us why one is better than the other
AAR,
When you live in the belly of the beast, you gotta pick your spots & maintain your sense of humor.
Mets Lineup
Jose Reyes SS
Jeff Kent 2b
Carlos Beltran CF
David Wright 3B
Darryl Strawberry RF
Gary Carter c
Keith Hernandez 1B
Moses Alou LF
Oliver Perez
pitch to Strawberry, his nose is bleeding
I shouldnt have said that
Alou 8th – stupid Mets
Oliver Perez over Tom Seaver?
his son is a very good bball player
Joshua, notice the names in the lineup
Ethan…
I thought about Seaver or Gooden in their prime, …but that would have been so unfair lol
did the Mets activate Rickey Henderson for tonights game?
csg –
I did notice the names in the lineup, but I still wouldn’t have put Alou in the 8th spot. And yes, I know it is a theoretical lineup – I was just saying it was something the Mets would be stupid enough to do.
Chiming in a little late (we’re still allowed to do that, right?) 🙂 – on the matter of ‘momentum’ – I don’t believe in momentum. I believe that there are events that occur in one team’s favor, and that subsequent events are not specifically related to the event in question.
Three major points come immediately to mind (by reverse chronology):
1) The Yunel Escobar steal of 2nd & game-tying hit by Willie Harris against the D-Backs the other day
2) Game-saving (for the moment) catch by Endy Chavez (Mets) against the Cards in last year’s NLCS
3) Alfonso Soriano hits a go-ahead HR for the Yankees in the 2001 WS (w/ Riviera coming out of the pen to close things out – and this after the already incredible comebacks earlier in teh series)
I’m sure I’m not making my point as thoroughly as I’d like, but (to me, at least) there are too many examples (high-profile ones, not to mention lesser-known ones) where the team who should have had momentum was not able to pull out the victory.
And, just to add (FWIW) – I absolutely do believe in momentum in football & basketball…
my bad
The Met Lineup I’d Prefer To See:
CF – Don Hahn
LF – George Theodore
RF – Ron Kanehl
1B – Ed Kranepool
2B – Brian Giles (the other one)
3B – Wayne Garrett
SS – Tom Veryzer
C – Mackey Sasser
P – Anthony Young
RP – Rich Rodriguez
That’s what I like you bravesjournal bloggers…you come in read all the posts, apologize for your lateness and make your comment. I disagree with you Jonathan, but very thorough post.
Ububba…
Now that’s just cruel but against…
Albert Hall CF
Andres Thomas SS
Dale Murphy RF
Ozzie Virgil C
Gerald Perry 1b
Dion James LF
Craig Nettles (the old Braves version) 3B
Glenn Hubbard 2B
Zane Smith
It might work….
The worst part about the throwback lineups you guys are throwing out is that I would be able to watch that game on TBS. Tonite it’s me a Corona and Gameday. 🙁
Tony,
You can do much worse than that.
Braves win because they have Murph & Zane Smith wasn’t that bad.
Y. Escobar ss
M. Diaz lf
C. Jones 3b
M. Teixeira 1b
A. Jones cf
J. Francoeur rf
B. McCann c
K. Johnson 2b
B. Carlyle p
Speaking of Murph, the Mets fans may not have appreciated Mac’s Ice Man moment, but I really liked the story. How could you plunk Dale Murphy? That would be like asking Tony Cloninger to hit Eddie Mathews when he was an Astro.
Going 4 and 2 on the road trip doesnt make up that much ground. Need a sweep on one of these to turn the corner.
I’m so fired up for this series. Too bad it’s not on tv up here…
I am, however, going to Friday and Saturday’s games in Philly.
and I loveeeeeeee Diaz in the 2-hole
I’m pretty sure the average Met fan can’t read. Those comments over at MetsBlog are awe-inspiring.
Going back to the earlier conversation about speed, Baseball Prospectus posted a list of the best and worst baserunners last week. Basically, they looked at how often a runner attempts to steal a base, take an extra base, or advance on balls in play, along with their success rate for each play. The top NL baserunners:
1) Marcus Giles (!)
2) Juan Pierre
3) Jimmy Rollins
4) Willie Harris
5) Shane Victorino
.
.
.
dead last) Carlos Delgado
Baseball Prospectus: Pointing out what I did more than a year and a half ago.
Stu,
I like to attempt civility in the often challenged world of cyberspace, but I gotta to agree with you: Not a bunch of Spocks on that blog.
I have agreed to appear on “MetsBlog Radio” tomorrow before the game. Should be fun.
I should mention this is for the 2007 season.
Wow, Mac. That’s awesome.
Did the person asking you to appear say anything about the comments on the site?
Nope, just an invite. This is a podcasty sort of a deal, I guess. I dunno. I did an audio interview with them before last season, went pretty well.
Hopefully Prado will hit while he’s hear and we can can Woodward finally. Is the game on Thursday really a 1210 start?
Yeah, Marcus has always been a good baserunner. He just can’t get himself to first as much as he used to.
I tell you, nothing says New York and/or Atlanta than a song by a guy from Detroit.
sonofabitch! where is skip?
8 pitches. That’s the way to start off a game baby.
Matt Diaz.
Sweet!! Attaboy Diaz!
Diaz’s .340 BA has been a lot less “empty” lately….
Figures. Diaz is the one that gets the home run but the guys who are SUPPOSED to hit the big flies make easy outs. 😛
Now, let’s see what Buddy’s got.
Anyone else going to the game tomorrow?
The most exciting player in baseball…
I’m sorry. Maybe I missed this, but are any of these games on ESPN or TBS? I’d kinda like to catch one on tv if I could.
That long fly by Wright makes me nervous…lets score seven or eight runs.
What’s with the radar gun? The fastest pitch Oliver Perez through in the first inning was 89 MPH and Buddy Carlyle’s fastest pitch was 85 MPH.
That’s one inning down.
Look on the bright side, the Braves are already doing better against Perez than in their first three games against him earlier this season.
Quick, more cortisone shots.
Close…
Sounds like Frenchy done good. Done real good there.
Perez seems to be throwing a lot of pitches- that bodes well! Lots of strikes according to gameday but they are all getting fouled off, maybe he doesn’t have his best stuff tonight…
Beautiful.
Nicely done, he’s human after all.
Looks like Perez is still in Johnson’s head, though.
Kelly is, um, consistent.
But it’s probably like Wagner is in Chipper’s head, so I guess we can live with it. Better than Prado.
That’s a nice sign.
AHAHAHAHA, Carlyle singles.
Wonder what the record for consecutive K’s by one batter vs one pitcher is? Probably a lot more than 6, but Kelly’s working on it…
YUNEL
hahaha . . . stupid Mets.
Well, I was hoping we’d win 1-0, as I have Ollie on my fantasy team…eh, I’ll take it.
Fantasy teams, the ultimate conflict of interests in sports.
Nice. 50 or more pitches for Perez after two.
Yups fantasy sports Well Perez wont help my one today
Eh. Two’s fine. Just wish Diaz had gotten a hit there.
Even with Renty out, what a solid line-up.
Need a zero here Buddy. Let’s get the O right back out there.
I hope this game is as good on TV as it is on Gameday….
Wow, that is one WEAK charge horn
Spitter,
It’s nice, but I’m still a bit nervous.
Phew. Another inning down.
nice, chipper on leading off the inning
Not nice: Teixeira flying out.
Salty batting .148 with 8 strikeouts in 6 games. hmmm.
sam,
he made good contact, just missed it.
Nice: Andruw getting a single.
Ollie clearly doesn’t have much today. We need the knockout blow.
Atta boy Andruw.
Frenchy HR nice!!!!!!!!!!
FRENCHIEEEEEEEE
Francoeur!!!
The Mets announcers called it!
YES
That a way Jeff
Put the women and children to bed and go looking for dinner!
Robert,
THERE’S your knockout blow!!
Anyone here think that this may be the most important game Tex has played in the majors?
Yessir!!!
And there it is
Spitter,
You know, that’s not a far-fetched assumption.
Well, now all we need is a great pitching performance overall from Buddy and at least KJ didn’t strike out.
It would be nice to get into the Mets’ bullpen and wreck it as much as possible as well… Too greedy?
Oliver Perez’s ERA looks good, but he has given up a bunch of “unearned” runs. Wouldn’t be surprised if Perez lead the majors in “unearned” runs surrendered.
Perez at 71 pitches through 3.
Bwhahhahahahahahhaahhaha
Once again — what a sweet lineup! I hope Bobby doesn’t screw with it the rest of the series, but I know he can’t help himself. Let’s hope Buddy keeps on rolling.
And absolutely we need to jack their bullpen up as much as possible tonight.
Tomorrow might be rained out, so who knows if burning their pen would do any good. I have tickets so I’m crossing my fingers.
Too close to take, Lastings. Shut up.
Nice bunt by Perez and nice play by Buddy.
Carlyle pulled a Chipper!
The Most Exciting Player In Baseball (TM) is up again.
Anyone thinking stolen base attempt here?
Castillo apparently likes the Rocky IV soundtrack.
Please let us keep kicking ass tonight. This is big fun so far.
Rob,
I have tix for tomorrow. Mez Sec 32, Row A.
Gimme a holla & we’ll share an adult beverage.
Third inning gone by, life keeps on truckin’.
We got our tix free so we’re in the upper deck. I know there’s scattered thunderstorms tomorrow. Do you know anything more, ububba?
We will absolutely have a beer.
Go, Esco!
Yunel is feeling it.
Who said they didn’t want to see Frenchy in front of McCann? Take a look at their stats for the year and get back to me…
This is what I like to call good clean fun!!!
Supposed to rain during the day, but perhaps clear up by game time.
http://www.weather.com/weather/hourbyhour/USNY0504?begHour=8&begDay=220
Of course, like the Yankees, the Mets are terrible about not declaring rainouts before everybody shows up. If there’s a chance to play it, they will.
If there’s a washout, I wouldn’t mind having tix for Game 2 of a day/night DH for Thursday either (if they did that). Wouldn’t be a big deal for ATL, who goes to Philly on the weenend.
I’ll be there tomorrow night in the mezz. I hope I’ll be able to hear other Braves fans because I’m always stuck in the middle of Mets fans with no “friend” in sight.
Scattered storms doesn’t mean anything. It’s the same forecast as tonight.
That would be one long double header for the Mets with Smoltz going in game 1 and Hudson in game 2. I hope we get to see it.
Thanks for the link, ububba. That’s promising. I’ll be in my Smoltz away jersey, look forward to chatting in person.
If Escobar keeps this up, we are going to have a pretty interesting situation when Renty gets back. As much as I hate platoons, I cant see keeping Escobar on the bench when a lefty is pitching…
I would guess Escobar would still spell either Renteria or Johnson when Edgar gets back.
Lousy cable went out just after the Diaz homer. Glad to see the lead has grown to 6-0. At least tonight, Perez is no Koufax.
Ububba,
Can I get your e-mail? I’ll send you my cell so I’m not just wandering around aimlessly shouting “ububba!”
RobBroad4th@gmail.com
C’mon, Buddy, let’s get a ground ball here.
Rob,
I’ll look for you.
Unless it’s stifling hot, I’ll be wearing my black Georgia cap with the big serious G logo in the front.
Well, I’ll go play some more Resident Evil 4. I haven’t beaten the Castle Area yet and I need to make it happen. Plus, I don’t want to potentially see a Carlyle meltdown. Too nerve-racking.
Whew, nice double play.
Awesome, Buddy. Awesome, Tex.
Rob,
I’d love to see that actually, but I’ll save you the humiliation. I’ll send it over in a few.
RE4 is awesome. Just bought the first one for GC, gonna go through it some time.
I’d stick around though, this is far from over.
Hard to say this with any certainty just from “watching” gameday, but it would appear that Buddy lacks a strikeout pitch. Or at least he does tonight, he seems to have had some trouble finishing guys off…
They were saying on SNY that his bread and butter is his high fastball, but yeah, he lacks the traditional sinking pitch to get strike 3.
I suppose one plus of Escobar’s good play is that there will be no rush to get Renty back in the lineup. I would hate to see him come back before he is well, and re-injure himself and be unavailable or not 100% come play off time….
Tack, tack, tack.
Don’t stop here, boys. They’re not finished scoring either.
Time for a triple, now, Frenchy.
I’m watching this on mlb.tv and got into late. Who are the commentators for this game?
#217
I think a lot of Braves pitchers lack a good finish pitch. Smoltz and Hudson obviously have them, and Moylan’s curve is sick. But Yates, Soriano & Dotel throw hard but don’t have great finish offspeed pitches. Wickman relies on late movement and balls in play to get outs. James has a decent change but he also relies mainly on balls in play, as does Carlyle.
The fifth inning is our kryptonite.
More Rocky IV for Castillo.
223 — seriously… the bullpen’s going to be so gassed at the end of the year (they are already)
Buddy needs to pitch atleast into the 7th tonite, just so we dont kill the bullpen early. We really need all fresh arms we can get for this stretch against NY and Philly…
Well, so much for that thought….
0 and 3 KJ.
Not sure why Buddy was pinch-hit for there, I guess the 5th was shaky but still.
Wow….
He did come out of his last game with an injury, so you never know, Rufino.
Can’t argue the result though.
I don’t want to be tortured by that almost-HR. Let’s get him in.
Anyone else have a sense of foreboding here??
McBride could have done that.
ALOOOOOOOU!
awesome possum
Was Ledezma claimed by anyone?
How about some runs here? This game is a little too interesting right now.
You are right, McBride could have done that. But then, he would have followed that up with another walk and a double before Bobby had to come get him and replace him with Yates.
Ledezma was traded, along with with Startup(?) to the Padres for Royce Ring.
What an effortless beautiful swing.
Oh, I didn’t realize he was included in that deal. Thanks Jeff.
That’s a little better.
BOOOOOOOoooooooooooooooooooo
They’re saying the Pads might release David Wells and plug in Ledezma. Good luck with that.
I know he’s our new guy, but I don’t trust Dotel more than Moylan.
Is there anyone we can pick up on waivers? Are we stuck with our 4 and 5ABC pitchers?
Have a game, Frenchy.
If you have the right situation, it wouldn’t be a bad thing to try Ledezma as a starter. We just had too many other question marks in the rotation to try it here (especially as the first few turns out for him will likely be 3-4 inning starts). And by question marks, I don’t mean that Smoltz or Hudson are problems; instead I mean that Chucky, while he has been good, only goes 5 and Buddy usually only goes 5-6. So our bullpen already gets extensive service time without having to work extra while a guy stretches out.
How about this Francouer guy? Frig!!!
When are you dorks going to start giving my boy Frenchy his due?
Texeria has been crushing the ball in bad luck tonight. He may have had 2 bombs if playing in a park like Cincy or Philly. He was also robbed by DP Alou.
I think Moylan may still have back problems.
According to Chip, LoDuca hit that one a mile and the ballpark was just big enough to hold it. I bet those outfield bleachers are a tough sell at Shea.
Injuries seem to be the only way our bullpen pitchers get a few days off. And as much as Moylan has pitched, it’s good to get him some rest for the stretch run. I think Soriano needs to claim his back hurts and get a week off that way.
Great Inning by Dotel!!
we need some insurance runs in case soriano drops a devine in the 8th
Well, I’m back. Glad to see that inning wasn’t too damaging. Plus, I’m getting back to where I remember in Resident Evil 4. Good day.
Eww…Prado.
A sure out with this guy!@@
Heh heh heh, Prado’s new number is 1.
Prado looks alright to me..
And his double is #1 too.
Let’s restate that! SURE DOUBLE FOR THIS GUY@!
jjschiller,
we just remmeber his very huge badness when he was up here the first time. Little slugging, so-so fileding, a Woodward-ish out.
Nice work Martin! Send Woodward to Richmond!!
That was ball 4!!!
The true test for Soriano…
Man, I’m almost tempted to go play RE4 again.
Actually, his first time up he hit .262 in almost 50 at-bats.
To start this SEASON he was 5 for 28.
And as I said earlier.. Look at how Kelly Johnson began his career.. And how he began this season, too.
let’s hope they got the live chicken tonight
Doesn’t mean Prado will be that good. I don’t think he has KJ’s power.
it’s a small sample size for prado. we should probably reserve judgment. but i think KJ has played well enough to merit plenty o playing time
Soriano’s stats are really weird. High Ks and pretty low walks, and that .199 OBA, but it’s those .199 hits that kill him. And this umpiring is killing him.
You don’t have to be good to be better than Woodward!
I didn’t say he’d be as good as KJ.
But he will be a capable back-up, more so than Woodward, and maybe he should get an at-bat before we cry about him getting called up.
Amazing, they’ve got Reyes to pop up twice tonight.
A good start for Soriano…
big out
jj,
I can agree with that. I support the idea of him being called up because of that rancid situation in the Houston debacle when Renteria got injured.
Sorry Annie has to get through this inning with a minimum of pitches… We might be playing closer games than this the rest of this series.. I’d like to keep him fresh.
Bad hop or bad KJ?
Deja vu? I hope not.
NOW WHY THE HELL DIDN’T PRADO GET THE START!!
j/k
doh
Ouch!
Looked like a bad hop to me. And he is a rookie second baseman, even now. I’ll give him a pass.
282 — dunno sam, i’m on gameday as per tbs’ wonderful program selection policy (argh)
How does Kelly Johnson look so great on balls in the hole and then look so foolish on all this slow hit balls right at him?
gamecast, i mean
BOO-YEAH
Nice double play.
I don’t miss Edgar yet..
Holy SH*T!
He looks good on the double plays. 😀
what?
Escobar!
I don’t think we’re going to miss Edgar for a while. Escobar is the real deal.
I’ll take Esco’s D any day.
escobar has great D, but Renteria was arguably team MVP to this point. hopefully he’ll come back strong
I’m one who usually supports Edgar, because of how he hits, and how he handles everything he gets to.
But I’m not sure Edgar gets to that ball, and in this case Yunel turned 2 on it.
To say we won’t miss Renteria is to be incredibly shortsighted.
jj,
Yep, you got that right.
didn’t Mota get a 50 game suspension for PEDs?
just curious… what’s he registering at on the gun?
Met Killer.
HEY!
Leave Sorry in there.. He throws harder than Wickman.
I’m sorry, but “sorry annie” is a really dumb nickname.
I don’t get it either. Think of something else.
Sorry, Annie.
Ooooooooooo, loaded.
Time for Frenchy to have a career night….
It’d be nice if Jeff could cap this off, remove what suspense there is left.
Yeah, I know that, but who is “Annie”.
How about McCann doing it instead?
Well at least they have to use one more arm tonight… That can’t hurt us later in the series.
i think it’s sori – ano annie comes from ano… ano means “anus” in italian. sorry anus?
nah…
i’ll just keep making references to live chickens depending on how his outings go
McCann would be fine–the bottom line is that a couple more runs would be nice….
choke
It’s not that I’m greedy, it’s just that I want more… runs (that is).
Ouch. Oh well. Johnson’s still up.
What’s Bmac’s stats since the break? He just is no where near his hitting of last year. Maybe we jumped the gun in signing him.
Awful.
If you guys let this kill you, I think you’ve got a problem. 😛 Yes, Wickman’s probably up. Yes, he’s not that good on the road. But it is still four runs up.
Now that was a choke. 0 for 4 KJ, that’s crap.
I’m scared to death of Bob Wickman
It’s Moylan.
I’m not… yikes. Moylan.
MOylan?
Wooooooooooow. I hope he continues his good work here.
Damn! We needed at least one run.
Please don’t remind me about Wickman’s road record–Bobby should have a quick hook.
Moylan has been our best pitcher….
Isn’t he facing a few lefties here?
Maybe Bobby is saving Wickman for extra innings.
Good call, bringing in Moylan.
jjschiller, I’m disappointed in you. How can you think of Moylan so lowly?
No I know… Bobby sent him out, said ‘Walk Delgado, get 2 out of Alou, and then I’ll come get you.’
…………………..
Lefties get a loooooong look at righty side armers.. I consider any sidearmer a situational reliever.
Don’t get me wrong, I hope Moylan shuts me up.
jjschiller,
Do you even know what Moylan has done this season?
You shut up, jj.
BRAVES WIN.
I don’t know that Moylan is a closer, but he has certainly been effective this year, really effective.
” consider any sidearmer a situational reliever.”
What about Byung-Hyun Kim?
Game!!!! It’s a good start to this week.
And he did.
And yes I do know. And yes, I know there are no lefties out there. I just don’t like a sidearmer against 2 lefties and only 1 righty.
1 down, 2 to go.
We win!
I wouldn’t put him at closer. What he’s doing right now is perfect.
Yeah!! Moylan rules….
What about Byung-Hyun Kim? Hows he doing lately anyway?
To answer Mac’s question at the top of the thread, apparently, “not very hard”.
Never let the facts get in the way of your opinion!
jjschiller,
He has been a serviceable starter, kind of like Buddy Carlyle.
Since we won the opener of this series at Shea w/ Buddy Carlyle on the mound, I can see why the bitchy little Mets fans had their panties in a giant bunch from Mac’s very mild interview.
What were the Mets bloggers saying?
Moylans splits do look great against righty and lefty… .219 BAA versus .221 BAA.
But in the case of Kim, it’s .214 for righties, and .268 for lefties.
That’s what I would guess to be the norm for right handed side-armers. So that’s my initial reaction when I see one against a lefty.
Ever hear of Kent Tekulve or the 1979 Pirates, jj? There was a right handed sidearm reliever who was more than just situational, and helped them win WS rings.
Moylan’s just a good junkballer, I’d guess.
I’d have to say in 1979 relievers weren’t quite of such a situational nature.
And by the way, speaking just of this season, Moylan has a split difference of .47 BA points.. But it more just highlights how well he’s done against righties this year… .180 vs .227.
Whoaaaaaa!
Ohhhhhh-oh-oh!
What an odd digression in the wake of a fine ballgame. I believe Frenchy may finally have arrived for good.
I’m with jjschiller in general here. Yes, Moylan’s been great. Yes, side-armers tend to struggle against hitters of the opposite hand. I was worried, too. Why do you take it so personally, Sam?
Moylan’s also walked 13 lefties in 103 plate appearances, and 9 righties in 137 PAs. OBP for lefties is .330, compared with a .250 OBP for righties.
What this suggests to me is that even Moylan knows he’s not going to be as good against lefties.
I sure hope you’re right, sansho1. Certainly a huge game from him. Looks like he was wise to turn down the same extension McCann accepted, after all.
Was Francouer offered an extension? I must have missed that…
So, the internet went out pretty much from the beginning of the game to the very end. I missed enjoying this beautiful, beautiful win
with you beautiful, beautiful people.
I’m a freakin’ loon…
Sorry, channeling the butler from Mr. Deeds.
Mike Bacsik will be this generation’s Al Downing. I’m going out on a limb.
Stu,
That’s because I don’t worry about Moylan in general. I see why there is reason to worry, but I just don’t see it with Moylan. He has given me little reason to think he’ll screw up big-time.
So I’m sorry if I rubbed anyone the wrong way, but I have the utmost confidence in Moylan.
Frenchy was offered an extension, but he’s a Boras guy, so I doubt he’ll be signing one. Still, we’ve got him for like 3 or 4 more years, and I believe the Braves will really try to sign him come 2010 or whenever.
Awsome start to the series. We’ve got Smoltz and Huddy left? Gotta win at least one of those! 😀
Peter Moylan, Buddy Carlyle and Willie Harris have been three of the most pleasant surprises we’ve had in a while. I don’t know where we’d be without any one of those 3 guys. We couldn’t have traded any of them for a pack of bubble gume at the beginning of the year.
bubble gum that is!
I don’t remember Frenchy being offered any extension. Whether he was, or not, he is not a Boras guy. His (and Adam Wainwright and Blain Boyer) agent is Steve Hammond.
Don’t even think about calling him a Boras guy again.
Here’s a link. Jeff was offered an extension, but Hammond is his agent (and used to be Chipper Jones’).
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070322&content_id=1854251&vkey=spt2007news&fext=.jsp
apparently murphy had some more words for bonds today. they quoted him during the SF game. i’ll see if i can’t find the quotes…
Will someone please tell me if the PA at these Giants games is a woman or a pre-adolescent male?
The voice scares me.
It’s a woman. I was there two weeks ago, and her voice is nothing but grating. How I long for the days of Marshall Mann!
ububba,
tell the girls in the art department it’s time to find a new team
GO BRAVES!
Guys, we’re only winning 70% of our games against the Mets this season.
we are 7-3 against them by winning 7-3.
God that sounds like something Tim McCarver would say and then act all proud of it.
nice, Hanan.
Don’t trait us, Hank.
Bonds hit #756
yes, and Hank had a speech on the jumbotron congratulating him.
Grr.
Splash hits currently on that dumb Old Navy sign:
44.
Weird.
Y’know, I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel when Baroid finally hit the HR because I did my best to avoid the whole subject. But I can honestly say that I actually feel a little sick about it. What a douchebag.
beedee,
What can I tell you? They’re Mets peeps all the way. Whenever one of the gal’s hubby would show up in the office, I used to enjoy gently baiting him because he’d get so bent out of shape over the Braves–stammering, veins bulging, the whole bit.
I don’t do it anymore because I’m afraid he’ll keel over from the frustration. Hope I don’t see him tomorrow.
Most home runs by a right-handed batter in MLB history: Hank Aaron
Most home runs by a left-handed batter in MLB history: Barry Bonds
Most home runs by a switch-hitter in MLB history: Mickey Mantle
most home runs hit by someone with a needle hanging out of him – Barry Bonds
unbelievable that ESPN is giving this over 20 minutes straight. Barry might be the best hitter ever, even without roids, but to watch him just stand at home plate with his arms raised makes me sick. Whoever pitches to him next should nail him.
Bonds uses roids and body armor, how many would he have hit without the two.
if anyone cares, Terrance Moore is about to be on ESPN news talking about Barry
great game from Carlyle and our pen tonight. I would’ve given us about a 30-35% chance of winning tonight with the pitching matchup. Carlyle has been huge for us, was he struggling tonight or did he look good? 4 innings out of the pen with 0 hits, Smoltz and Huddy coming up…Lets take this series
Re: Bonds
I agree with ububba. Tried to avoid the whole thing. I missed the HR and I haven’t switched over to catch any of the coverage. Still, it’s really bothering me knowing that such a tool now holds Hank’s record.
well, its now been over 30 minutes of coverage on ESPN and ESPN news, ridiculous.
Terrance Moore is now on ESPN news – not a fan at all
Seriously, how crazy would it be if someone plunked Bonds in retaliation? The camera would inevitably fall on Selig’s face, looking all goofy, trying to act serious but all the while suppressing a smile. It would probably be as big a story as the home run itself…
Anyway, I’m in Michigan and so the only game I could watch tonight was the Tigers-Rays. I have nothing to add from it except this: I wish Curtis Granderson was my team’s center fielder. I love that guy’s game for like 45 different reasons.
Whatever… great win tonight. Let’s hope the big guys come correct the next two nights.
Thanks very much ‘Rissa @370 I had this bad feeling in my heart when mraver@367 said Frenchy was a Boras guy i nearly decided to hang up my Frenchy Jersey whew thats a sigh of relief.
“Steroids is something you stick in your butt. Period.”
… and, apparently, something you use to hit homeruns.
Big win tonight. Smoltz and Huddy going the next two games. You gotta like that!
i hope we can go back to baseball being the story instead of barry being the story.
here are some of murphy’s comments:
“Barry’s a great player, there’s no question about it, but he put an asterisk by his name on his own,” Murphy said Monday on AM radio 1280 The Show. “He’s deserved all the negative publicity that he’s getting. I mean, people are calling up and complaining, I’ve heard the last few weeks, that that he’s being treated unfairly. You know, life just usually isn’t like that. You don’t usually get treated unfairly. You usually get what you deserve. This is what Barry deserves. He’s a hard guy to like. He’s a hard teammate to have and, you know, he’s set a terrible example for our kids.”
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2007-08-08-1258368643_x.htm
I specifically wanted to watch the home run and I did and I appreciated it. Now that that’s done, I’m ready to move on.
Has anyone mentioned that the BoSox lead is down to 5 games? I’m getting worried.
@396:
Who?
1 down, 2 to go. Watch out for the sweep.
Dale Murphy: Bonds “terrible example for our kids”
http://www.ajc.com/news/content/sports/braves/stories/2007/08/08/bonds_murphy_0808.html