ESPN – Braves vs. Cardinals Box Score, August 24 2007 – MLB

So, it’s one of the two nights when the Braves should win, and they did. At first, it looked rather like one of those nights where they have a lot of hits but can’t score. In the first, Harris led off with a triple but was erased on a groundout by Chipper after KJ struck out. In the second, they loaded the bases with two out but Harris grounded out.

But in the third, McCann hit a double off the wall to score KJ and Teixeira. John Smoltz had his one rough inning of the night in the bottom of the inning, and the Cardinals tied it on a two-out double. But the Braves came back and busted it open in the fourth. The first run scored when gritty, gutty, putrid David Eckstein dropped a relay from the second baseman and let it run into center, scoring Escobar. Chipper doubled two home to make it 5-2. Teixeira singled home Chipper, and Andruw later doubled him home to finish the scoring.

Smoltz was extra sharp, allowing just six hits — just three outside the third — striking out six and walking none. He’d thrown 103 pitches, so with the big lead Bobby went to the pen for Joey Devine. Ha ha! Just kidding. He used Mahay and Moylan again. Their arms probably won’t literally fall off.

This Wickman thing is pretty disturbing. Andruw came out in the media saying that Wickman was whining about being used in non-save situations (like in a tie game in the twelfth). Bobby apparently got pissed off and had the Braves get rid of him. I can never recall any such thing happening before during Bobby’s tenure. For that matter, I can’t recall Andruw ever going after a teammate, or former teammate, in the media. I don’t know, maybe this will be a spark. More likely, a win tomorrow followed by another three-game losing streak.