“Hi, I’m Atlanta Braves outfielder Jeff Francoeur, and I suck.”
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“Hi, I’m Atlanta Braves outfielder Jeff Francoeur, and I suck.”
Use code “Journal” for a 5% discount.
Beat the Yanks
My sources at Turner Field have indicated to me that Garrett Anderson has, as of 3:15 PM, now retrieved Derek Jeter’s double, and is proceeding to throw the ball back to the infield.
If Anderson can keep hitting, then I don’t mind if he lolly gags for a ball from time to time
Here’s a thought: I know the Mets just released him, but Wily Mo Pena is a free agent. The Mets signed him in April and assigned him to Triple-A Buffalo.
Pena hit .276 and 5 homers in 41 games. His OBP sucks (at .296), but he’d be a cheap stab in the dark, with more power than we’re getting now.
5 BB to 28 K’s. Ouch…but unfortunately, as a cheap gamble, I’d take it for a few weeks.
Come on, Mac. You can do a better Jeffy tag than that! How about, “I just got a one way ticket from Delta to Kansas City! I wonder what this commercial shoot will be about?”
I voted someone else as defensive MVP: Dave Ross. Not only has he been great at throwing out runners but he has managed to teach it to McCann too.
I agree with Ron, I expected better than that from you.
Maybe, “Hi, I’m Atlanta Braves outfielder Jeff Francoeur, and I’m having an affair with a graduate student from Portland State. Please don’t tell Katie!!!”
Anybody else want to give it a go?
(Double Post)
Molina is awesum! McCan sux cuz hes got glasses! LOL!
NEway I can put Jeovannie Soto and Molina on the team at the same time? They good!
Haha, I like that one.
Same lineup as last night per DOB.
How ’bout USA soccer?
It’s over in South Africa. US wins 2-0 ending Spain’s unbeaten streak. On to the finals vs. Brazil.
Damn. If only soccer wasn’t boring…
AAR-
What do you think about Wily Mo Pena?
Braves are on ESPN2 tonight.
Also it’s the rubber game in the College World Series championship series, been a good one between probably the two best teams in college ball this year, Texas and LSU.
12 — AAR, overall soccer can be boring. But the way they don’t have any commercial breaks really sucks me in. Can’t stop watching because you don’t want to miss that one stroke of brilliance (or luck). I’ve surprised myself about how pumped I’ve been over US scores when I happen to be watching in my office at school. I don’t really follow soccer, but I like national team play. World Cup and European Cup are definitely fun.
Big win for USA.
By the way… I think the Braves are also on ESPN360 tonight.
I get to watch baseball!
Soccer is a cool game in person. Like basketball some of the more interesting action is off the ball. I’m jaded though as all 4 of my kids have played or are still playing the game.
ububba, thanks for the reply. I thought there was a chance that you might know him because he’s a drummer in NYC involved with electronic musicians and fairly active. He plays with some friends of mine from Athens, Ga as well as !!!(ChkChkChk)and the Juan McClain. He’s recently sat in on drums with the Field, Moby, MSTRKRFT and I think LCD Soundsystem.
Anyway, just curious…
I am not a soccer guy, but even I know this is probably the biggest win in US soccer history.
On Cory Hart. He isn’t a bad ballplayer. If cost is defined as what players it would take to obtain him then he may be too expensive. IMHO I’m not sure he is worth a good starter and the Brewers in a winnable division need an MLB ready pitcher. So unless Wren is willing to part with one of his starters or he can convince the Brewers that Medlen meets the definition of MLB ready I don’t see how we match up.
would you trade vazquez straight up for hart?
Sure, if I was a moron.
20- Not a chance.
If you trade Vazquez, its for an all-star or some serious prospects.
how about kenshin for hart?
I vaguely remember semi-watching the World Cup a few years ago in the mornings (extremely hungover) while working down at the Lake of the Ozarks.
Basically, it went: Team A kicks the ball down the field. Everyone runs after it. Team B then kicks the ball the other way. Everybody runs after it. Rinse and repeat 682048295774 times.
Very, very, rarely, the ball goes into the net, but most of the time I was already back asleep.
Please Braves, win a series tonight. Also, if we all chipped in, how much do you all think it would cost to pay someone to go Tonya Harding/Nancy Kerrigan on Frenchy?
My #9 comment was in response to #6, FWIW
Hart sucks. He only is good in comparison to Francoeur and Giles.
I’m holding my tongue on you guys’ soccer comments.
I mean, I objectively realize that the US beating Spain — who just won the Euro championship last year — is awesome for my country. And playoff soccer, like any sport, is electric, and fun to watch with other people who are really into it. Particularly when beer and salty food are involved. But soccer is a sport where 10 guys dither around in midfield for about an hour and a half, interrupted occasionally by a shot on goal.
It does not satisfy my American need for, you know, things to happen. It’s more like watching a foreign film or an indie drama than an action movie.
“Basically, it went: Team A kicks the ball down the field. Everyone runs after it. Team B then kicks the ball the other way. Everybody runs after it. Rinse and repeat 682048295774 times.”
…sounds like something Francoeur might say.
(That’s right. I went there.)
AAR – I’m not a soccer guy, but, your comment at 28 is just… willfully ignorant.
Well, it’s wilfully ignorant in the sense that I don’t watch unless it’s like the World Cup or the Euro and I’m with friends. But I don’t watch because it’s boring.
I’ve genuinely enjoyed watching World Cup matches in pubs—more for the atmosphere, actually—but I probably more enjoy tweaking my Euro friends about this country’s general disinterest for the sport.
“You people have no taste, mate, no taste.”
“No, we just have no attention span.”
dirt,
I like a lot of that stuff, and we’ve done stories & reviews on most of those acts you mention, but it’s always from the DJ angle.
For example, we’ve done stories on LCD Soundsystem, but it’s always on singer/producer James Murphy, who also DJs. We’ve done stories on Tommy Lee, but it’s always on his DJing, not the drumming—we’d leave that for Modern Drummer mag.
Too much energy expended for a game where very few points are scored.
In fairness to Douglass, I know I get offended when people say the same thing about baseball.
Lotta idiots with short attentions spans make the same argument about baseball — it’s slow and boring because nothing ever happens. Suppose it’s all a matter of preference. Personally, I think plenty is happening during a soccer game.
I was gonna type out a tongue in cheek rant about all you soccer haters being Francoeur loving, truck ball dangling, mantit jiggling, nascar liking, fake tit whacking, Toby Keith listening, American simpletons, but instead I’ll just point out that your arguments that “nothing happens” and “it’s boring,” in addition to being untrue and wrong, are the same things people who don’t “get it” say about our beloved baseball.
I enjoy watching baseball but I can definitely understand how people find the game boring. There are a lot of times where nothing is happening. What kind of ticks me off is when people say baseball is an easy sport.
Ah, soccer snobs. Gotta love ’em.
“The Beautiful Game” can indeed be tedious and if those damned Italians blew those fluggelhorns any longer, I think I would have shot my tv.
Still, the game as played by the Brazilians is a treat.
OT: I think today is the 25th anniversary of REM’s release of their best album. Damn, I’m old. So are you, ububba.
@26: i wouldnt say that hart sucks. im not a big fan, and i wouldnt be thrilled if we got him, but he provides value. and i dont mean compared to francoeur because everybody represents an improvement over him.
can david ross learn to play outfield, please?
😆
If you get to call me a “snob” for thinking that soccer, the most popular sport in the world, is slightly more complex than “people kicking the ball and running after it,” then I get to call you a knukcle dragging, mouthbreather for thinking that.
Soccer is not boring. Cycling is boring.
Okay. I’ll admit that “stuff happens” during soccer. It’s just stuff I find boring. Perhaps if I put as much effort into soccer as I put into baseball, I’d overcome my prejudice and love it… but look, it’s hard enough for me to watch the Pirates play the Nationals. I’m not gonna watch MLS, and I’m not gonna watch Albania play Luxemberg.
If it’s the playoffs, I’ll watch. Fair enough?
Sansho, I’ll agree with you there. Compared to cycling, soccer is Terminator 2 crossed with Lethal Weapon.
Ugh, A Braves Thread hijacked by soccer
Who is a realistic trade piece for Hart, tough to figure.
Jo Jo would have been…
@44: Medlen, maybe? I wouldn’t like that, but it’s not like we’re utilizing Medlen right now.
I don’t think Medlen fits what the Brewers are looking for. I think closer to Kawakami.
I wouldnt give up any SP that we have for just Hart, Im including Huddy and Medlen in that also. If they want to give us some top position prospects along with Hart, then maybe
edit: I would give them Jo Jo
Worked with a true English soccer hooligan for awhile. He was one of the most self-destructive people I ever met.
And absolutely hilarious. Went about the world with his middle finger in the air.
They let him run the bindery cutter – used a 5-foot blade they called a guillotine. No one died. I think.
IIRC, the hooligans would start drinking early, drink and blow horns all through the game and then fight outside the stadium. And then do it all over again the next week.
Hey, that sounds a lot like Clemson football fans …
I dnt like the idea of Medlen because we need some cost controlled pitchers for the near future.
KK might be a good fit, but is a soild SP worth an average OF, not really.
Is Hart even average?
“Jo Jo would have been…”
Nobody wants Jo Jo Reyes.
According to OPS+ Hart is about average.
2007: 126
2008: 93
2009: 102
His VORP this year is 5.9, so he’s better than replacement level…unlike a certain RF I know with a -8.9 VORP. I don’t know what average VORP for a RF is, but Hart is ranked 19th in MLB.
I would give up Jo-Jo for him in a heartbeat, but not Medlen of Kawakami.
Hart’s not great but he’s not awful, either. He’d represent a massive improvement over the current OF (but so would a lot of guys). No way you give up a proven starter for him, but Medlen and Frenchy for Hart? I’d think about that. Brewers might want another prospect, but frankly, they’re going to need to clear out a corner spot for Mat Gamel soon, anyways, since he’s less of a 3B than Ryan Braun.
I think the Braves see Medlen as depth. Lowe is signed through 2012, Kawakami through 2011, Hudson and Vazquez through next year, Jurjjens for 4 more years I think, and Hanson for 5 or 6. Even if Hudson’s option is declined, I still don’t see Medlen cracking the rotation until 2011, barring a trade or an injury. Point is, I think they see him as a step above James Parr, rather than just a step below Jurjjens.
Also… Nobody wants Jo Jo Reyes. Jo Jo is not much of a trade chip.
@29
I’ll accept that. I admit baseball, football, and golf are the extent of my sports interests. However, you’re correct in that if its the most popular sport in the world, there must be something to it I’m just not picking up. Not that I have any interest to, but I’ll admit that it’s probably there.
KK looks good.
It’s all a matter of taste & I could care less if someone likes baseball or not. Having a sense of humor is another matter…
hank,
I’m assuming you mean Reckoning, and yes, I’m so old I actually reviewed it for my college newspaper. It really does wear well over time.
espn guys really talking up bmac.
MCLOUTH!!!!
nate!
Touche, Nate
nice play.
For all the talk about McLouth being a crappy outfielder, he’s been pretty good so far.
ACHE is swinging a good bat.
So much for this inning.
Jeffy nickname of the day: Francoeut.
It’s too bad you cannot make prop bets about how a player would do in acertain situation during a baseball a game. Francoeur would make me millions.
I said it a few days ago, but watching the Groundhog continually go up the the plate to fail is like seeing a guy with ED getting continually cast as the main lead as a porno.
Shit
Ouch.
We are a snakebitten team.
why is kk out?
Drilled in the crux of the neck/shoulder by a comebacker from Joba
How bad is KK hurt?
Leaving aside the pain of losing Interleague Monster Kenshin Kawakami’s pitching, he has a higher batting average than Diory.
Hope KK is OK. If he is his new nickname is Neck.
NecKK.
Was that double off the wall again?
That’s perfect.
Edit: Go Medlen!
Ethan, you can do that, it’s called betting the under on most Braves games. Seems to be working pretty well for me this season.
MEDLEN!
they say medlen is 5ft 10. looks about Belliard like to me. Hope KK is ok.
Medlen now has 22 strikeouts in 22 1/3 IP.
just to the base of the wall. espn guys talking about Pirates salary dump.
man sutcliff talks incessently
Medlen’s fastballs seemed a bit much down the middle, but the two breaking balls were nasty. Might just be a little nerves.
That’s funny. ESPN2 is suggesting the low homerun/game rate at Turner Field is some sort of park dynamic and not correlated to our crap offense.
way to not bother, ACHE
For all the persistent suck of Francouer, and the prolonged slump Kelly’s going through, Kotchman has still been our worst hitter since coming off the DL.
Michael Kay does absolutely zero research of the opposing team. He’s of the belief that Furcal left the Braves for the Dodgers *last* offseason and that this Yunel Escobar fella that replaced him is a pretty good player in his first year with the Braves. Wonder where he came from.
Um… they’re not making that up. Braves pitchers have allowed 28 homers in road games, 17 at home. Braves hitters have 33 on the road, 20 at home.
Medlen has good stuff.
According to Gamecast, that was a perfect strike.
Beautiful pitch by Medlin
Nobody say it…
Ugh, Swisher has a fauxhawk and it looks somehow even worse on him than it does generally.
FWIW Yankee announcers are making same point re The Ted and HRs.
Totally agree on Kay. Discussion of Esco was assinine
@87
I should have clarified they were noting the shift in its hr/game rate. They were noting it is now the lowest HR ballpark in the majors.
Edit:
I think they will shut us out.
^^^
I said that as the pitch was in the air.
holy sh!t
edit–over/under on the time until gadfly shows up?
the GROUNDHOG!!!!!!!!!
Frenchy?! Dammit, we’ll never hear the end of this…
“stunned”
Frenchies the BEST!
Comeback Player of the Year!!
Really nice inning by Medlen.
(stupid delayed stream)
That’s at least twelve weeks.
Blind squirrel!
here comes a contract for Frenchy…
Half the posters on here could have hit that pitch out, but obviously I’ll take it. Again, at the moment Francoeur is a better hitter than Kelly or Kotchman.
here comes a contract for Frenchy…
time for one of those Delta to Copenhagen commercials
Hey, if Copenhagen wants to trade a bottle of Aquavit for Frenchy, that’s fine by me.
ahh.. nate just missed that hanger
guys, seriously, let’s not forget who sucks around here. i want to hear it. WHO SUCKS?
Yeah Kotch is ‘hitting’ the ball pretty softly lately. Last ab for KJ hits the ball hard at least.
hmmm ……… francoeur?
Bummer.
Gardner has an argument, I think.
@111–yep, he sure does
bad call
if ububba is around, I’d really like his comment on this from a NY perspective, but one thing I’ve never understood why it doesn’t get talked about is that nobody likes throwing to Posada. It’s always been this way, but now I think it’s at least getting a little run because Joba would rather have Cervelli behind the plate than Posada.
EDIT: Maybe that’s why he wanted Cervelli in there tonight.
Bigger bummer.
Are you kidding? Cervelli? Who the hell is this guy?
I hate Chip Caray. He would not shut up about it being a no hitter. 2 batters into the inning, home run. Screw you, Chip.
dammit
First career home run. Wow.
talking about a squirrel.
Cervelli got around the bases on a round tripper faster than ACHE ever would…
glad the ump gave that “pick off”
If Rick and Chip ever inhabited the same play-by-play booth, the world would implode upon itself.
Why does Bobby use Jeff F. Bennett so often? I’d rather see Acosta than him.
There’s no way Bennett doesn’t walk in a run here.
This is not the type of situation under which Bennett has known success.
The only redeeming factor is that you could say the same thing about AROD
acosta would be bad with the bases loaded. he walks too many. on the other hand, bennett is bad with the bases loaded because he’s prone to give up the grand slam.
brian cashman looks like frank gorshen or a creepy Bond badguy.
ugh. bennett?
Cox is a moron
Calling it.
Bennett + Fat Fastball + A-Rod = HR.
good Lord between sutcliff and carey its a wonder theres any oxygen left in Atlanta
Haha, Bennett is so bad.
That hit there was no surprise. Stupid Bennett.
opponents are hitting .313 against bennett. now it’s higher. bennett is some kind of shitty. holy hell.
Why do you throw a strike there????
The guy throws the same pitch 4 striaght times… 4 fast balls. WTF?
I think it’s wonderful that Cox get’s Bennett into so many high leverage situations where he performs so well.
not even in a different location… it was 4 fastballs in the same spot
what a surprise. bobby… haven’t you seen this before?
There again, just bad fundamental baseball.
No reason at all to throw a pitch he could handle with an 0-2 count.
this team just fails to “get it” far too often. Are you listening Bobby? Are you even awake?
OH my f*ck. Unreal.
It’s not just that the team is average at best… it’s that the worst players get so many chances to fail.
Ethan is right, that was a classic ‘pitcher that should only be used in low leverage situations’ vs ‘hitter that should only be used in low leverage situations’ battle
I don’t get Bobby’s irrational use of some players like Bennett and Francoeur.
Francoeur homered tonight so that guarantees a loss.
When Jeff does well, the Braves do not.
0-2 with ARod in a huge funk, why the hell not throw something for him to chase. That was just stupid.
+/- on additional Bravos runs scored tonight .5. Any takers?
can someone else please pitch?
An outfielder with any shred of athleticism might have had a play on that homer. We have ACHE.
“Blow-Up” Bennett strikes again. That 0-2 pitch, just awful.
jjbag,
Posada situation has been discussed a lot up here. Clemens hated pitching to him & he’s reportedly never gotten along with Girardi, even when they were teammates.
As it relates to pitchers, from what I’ve read and heard, it’s as much his personality as it is how he calls a game.
He’s a bit of a clubhouse enforcer, a get-in-your-face kind of guy, sometimes a little too passionate for some folks.
Mike Gonzalez must have been telling Bennett to suck, becuase that;s exactly what he’s doing.
Bennett = the new Grybo.
He would only give up Medlen’s runs.
If Bobby insists on bringing in Bennett, I’d rater have him in right and have Groundhog pitch.
Francoeur is sooo bad
ububba, if memory serves, I don’t think Randy Johnson pitched to Posada either, but perhaps he along with Clemens aren’t the two easiest guys to get along with.
I guess that point I was trying to make is that Piazza always got ripped on because of his defense and Posada seemingly gets a free pass for guys flat out no wanting to pitch to him (a worse problem to me), and nobody (maybe outside of NY) ever brings it up.
did Bobby call for a bunt when we are down three runs in the 7th with one out?
Prado continuing to hit well
jjbag,
Well, it’s not like Posada & the team haven’t been successful since he became a regular. He’s a borderline Hall of Famer.
Hey, it’s a Prado!
as of right now, nate mclouth and i both hate turner field.
If Girardi were smart, he’d put Mo Rivera in for the eight. Once the Yanks are past Chipper, McCann, and ACHE, it’s nothing.
If this were “Yankee Stadium” (as opposed to Yankee Stadium) the score would be 14-12.
This team is such a tease.
O’Failurety!
Stupid, Stupid, Stupid
Another free out.
a team with this many offensive holes can’t afford to play bad baseball. That kinda explains the record I guess.
Wow…you have got to be kidding me.
that was terrible
can O’Fl. get ejected again?
Can we give Bennett the nickname Ahmadinejad?
He JUST WON’T GO AWAY.
will these maroons ever show us a replay?
finally, we get the replay and see it’s a bad call
Simpson can’t gripe about bad calls going against the Braves after the Gardner “pick off” saved a run
Bobby is so trying to get tossed here.
Edit: not hard enough, I guess.
MLB regulations clearly state that the Yankees automatically get the benefit of all calls.
Seriously, a dead man could have made that call.
Chipper sucks at 3rd, McCann has been atrocious on defense this year. Glad they can hit…
Gave the 2 runs right back….
make up call at 1b?
in all fairness, it should be 5-3 right now, so we still get screwed.
I was trying to think of a time where I have, at any level, watched the runner get hit on that play and not called. When you hit the runner, it’s usually automatic, except for tonight apparently.
Kotchman should have made that first out. I guess he was too busy counting his unearned money
The home plate umpire was scared to death. He is a replacement umpire and clearly blew the call.
I agree O’fla should punch Kotchman right in the nose…
I can assure you, Joe Simpson, that Garrett Anderson is NOBODY’S worst nightmare.
Kotchman sucks.
Appreciate Sutcliffe assuming that fans don’t know about bullpen arms needing off days and how a manager has to manage the pen.
no need for anyone to get excited–Francoeur hit his June HR earlier tonight
edit–that’s something one doesn’t see very often–Jeffy laying off the slider in the LH batters box
2nd edit–that’s something even rarer–a productive AB from Jeffy
Shit Caray is a dumbass.
His 5th HR of the season? I know I haven’t been paying attention, but Frenchy only has 5 HRS? Man….
Wow, that was surprising.
You could throw a drunk fan from the Chop House in the booth and get more out of the game than what Shit Caray gives you.
Frenchy will be a 10-5 player (all with the Braves) now…
Damn. Two RBI for Fransewer. He’ll survive to September now.
For someone who sucks as much as Stenchy, that was a nice at bat!
Damn, that’s usually more pitches than Frenchy sees in a game.
Again, quick Frank! Trade him!
If Frenchy and KJ would do anything…this offense would not be too bad.
When will Infante be back?
well that was a mismatch
kj<francoeur? is it really true?
KJ looks pathetic. Prado needs to be starting
Yeah its true at least recently
terrible terrible outfielder. my first look at his defense.
Why is Diaz not replacing ACHE in the outfield
-Kotchman has the lowest OPS of any 1st baseman in the NL, 2nd to last in the majors
-KJ is 2nd to last in OPS in all of baseball for 2nd basemen
-Frenchy is only ahead of Brian Giles for rightfielders…
And Garrett Anderson should be a DH. That was just painful to watch.
Bobby Cox has officially lost his god damn mind.
that fastball went about 45 feet
I hate this Dave OBrien for espn.
This team is just embarrassing defensively.
Is it too hot in Atlanta or something?
This is a comedy of errors defensively.
throw in the fact Medlin, Acosta and Bennett have had to pitch and that;s just too much to overcome.
The Braves have won one World Series in Boston, one in Milwaukee, and one in Atlanta. In order for us to become competitive again, we have to move cities. Simple as that.
our bullpen…
where the f*ck is spooneybarger when you need him?
if only KK hadn’t jumped in on the ball like it was a live grenade…
what might have been?
The Braves had 11 outs to get. The first 15 were retired and the 16th batter reached and was picked off. 11 outs. And somehow the Yankees have scored 8 runs (and counting) in only 10 outs. Pathetic. Francoeur still sucks.
Shut-up Sutcliffe. They only started hitting when the Braves put in the midget Medlen, Bennett who is horrible, O’Fl, and Acosta who efforts have been well-documented in Atlanta.
Post #3…you still stand by that?
still only 4 back!
@207- Oh man, Tim Spooneybarger would be awesome.
Haha…well at least Moylan, Gonzo, and Soriano will be ready for tomorrow. McCann should be off tomorrow, hopefully.
This Dave O’Brien guy is terrible.
Are good bullpen arms really that hard to find?
Nice at bat diaz u freaking hack
i’m telling you spooney and “the thing” are just looking for a comeback
Medlen will work, but we SERIOUSLY need to get rid of Bennett.
When Campillo is back (when is that again?) will Bennett be gone?
Recap is up.