New York Mets vs. Atlanta Braves – Box Score – September 16, 2011 – ESPN.
Derek Lowe: Bad at his job. He doesn’t even eat innings: he just immediately regurgitates them. The Braves are desperately trying to hold on to the wild card, and every five days he comes by and jumps on top of their fingers. You get the idea.
In the first inning, Lowe gave up four runs, including a two-run homer by David Wright. He only got out of the inning when the catcher made the third out of the inning at third trying to advance on a two-run single. As a rule, when you only get out of a problem because of typical Mets incompetence, you’re in trouble.
The Braves actually clawed back, and got a run in the first and another in the second. So Lowe took the wind out of their sails by giving up two more runs in the third. Julio Teheran came in to relieve him with two out in the inning and he wasn’t any better. He gave up four runs in the fourth, highlighted by a three-run homer by Wright. The remaining runs off of Linebrink and Varvaro were just terrible gravy on the terrible game. Four Mets had three hits and Lucas Duda had four. The Braves had six.
Hey, Auburn with an actual lead early.
Prado back in the 2nd spot and chipper back at 3rd spot.
Mac Thomason: Good at his job.
Derek Dooley: Good at his job
I’ve pretty much resigned myself to the idea that the Braves are either going to fold in September and not make the playoffs or, if they do hold on, will go out quickly. I understand that “anything” can happen in the playoffs but, still, some things are more likely than others. One can hope to catch lightning in a bottle but expecting it is another thing. This is not a good team at this point; poor starting pitching, poor managing, zero offense except for home runs. Every September seems to be the same thing; when you live on the edge like the Braves do, it’s easy to slip off.
I understand sticking up for your players, but there is a point where it is simply insulting your intelligence.
I used to wonder how Mets fan must’ve felt in this situation. Now I know: I feel fed up. This team’s doing so poorly, what difference does it make if they don’t make it?
@1 I’m blaming this on you, Spike.
Will someone go over to PeteOrr’s and make sure he’s ok?
His analysis of where the Braves are vis-a-vis DLowe, while spot on, was heartbreaking.
—————-
So who does Vandy play for the SEC title?
All these young pitchers and the Braves are holding themselves hostage to sunk costs (Lowe). The Braves should have dealt him at the start of the year, when other teams saw him look halfway decent at the end of last season, and the beginning of this one. That was the small window of opportunity they likely had to dump this loser at a minimum loss.
Well, Auburn was going to lose eventually. I appreciate that they did it on the day I actually got to watch them on tv.
Previous thread, Alex R said, “Our second best starter is Beachy. Our third best starter is praying for rain.”
Seems like an obvious contest: In the spirit of “Spahn and Sain and pray for rain”, create a rhyme that best fits the current rotation of the Braves. Here’s my shot:
“Beachy and Hudson and pray for some sort of schedule disruption.”
Huddy and Beachy….the rest makes me screechy. The rest don’t matter. On them, I empty my bladder.
Hudson, then Beachy, then rain would be peachy.
As bad as Lowe is, he is not the entire problem. He is just one guy. Obviously, they have been hurt by the injuries to Jurrjens and Hanson, but, even more, to me, has been the ineptitude of the offense for much of the year. Too many guys have bad years, too many bad at bats in key situations. If the team had scored more runs during some of the other games, last night would have been meaningless.
This is a team issue, not just Lowe. Even if he had pitched well, they might still have lost scoring two runs.
Proctors pitching in the majors again with the Yankees and he’s already earned a loss. How did we miss this? Can we go back to making fun of him instead of our own club?
Ryan, it was most definitely not missed.
Crappy officiating kept VU from a well-deserved shutout.
‘Course, 3-0 (1-0) ain’t so bad…
Georgia’s up 59-0. The Bulldogs had some frustrations to work out on Coastal Carolina and its cats.
Hudson then Lowe, Brewers up two to oh.
Hudson and Minor, our team can’t do finer.
Minor, then Richardson, because Go ‘Dores!
I know I’m going to hell for watching this whole thing, but the UGA/Coastal Carolina game might be the most one-sided college football game I’ve ever seen.
I don’t think that Coastal had one offensive snap on UGA’s side of the field all day.
Alright, Huddy, it’s your time…
“Our second best starter is Beachy.”
Just to be clear, I wasn’t saying that Lowe was the team’s second best starter. I was merely responding to this beauty from CAC (which has now, admittedly, been beaten to death):
“With all of this in mind, let’s agree as a fan base to stop trying to kill Derek Lowe in both a figurative and literal sense. Rather, let’s look at WAR and accept the fact that Lowe has been the second best starter in Atlanta this season.”
Sure would be nice to watch this game. Frickin’ Fox.
I just can’t get over the potency of the Tennessee offense.
Adam, I don’t know much about WAR nor this CAC place, but can you link me to the discussion? I would love to see this guy’s logic on display.
Best part of the Lowe/WAR post is how comments were closed, as though the author knew he was writing something galactically stupid to begin with and would be flogged accordingly for it.
Nice DP, fellas.
John – Here ya go: http://capitolavenueclub.com/?p=4892
WAR just stands for Wins Above Replacement. Fangraphs calculates their WAR entirely from FIP (and innings) and doesn’t look at ERA at all. Baseball Reference, on the other hand, uses ERA in calculating pitchers’ WAR. For a guy like Lowe who has a decent FIP but terrible ERA, a WAR at fangraphs will be much higher than the WAR at B-R. In fact:
Lowe’s WAR at B-R: -0.1.
Lowe’ WAR at fangraphs: 2.6.
That’s a big difference. I wonder if Kevin Orris is aware that there is some dispute over the merits of an entirely FIP-based WAR, or that there are other people in the “stat community” who agree with those “ignorant and uneducated fans” who think Lowe is a bad SP.
I gave Tennessee too much credit. New prediction: 65-0.
Also, kudos to MLB for preventing me from watching a meaningful baseball game involving my favorite team on a day I don’t have to go to work.
Jim Powell at the end of the third inning: “We are zipping right along.” With that said, I dread the eight-AB, three-run Mets outburst in the top of the fourth.
Glad I was wrong there.
Huddy is on his game.. Why can’t the offense be, as well
Buddy is dealin. Just what we need from him tonight. He’ll go the distance.
RA Dickey may be the best knuckleballer of alltime, and yes I’m including Niekro. The way he throws it so hard and can just throw a fastball in there when you aren’t looking like he did to Uggla… wow.. almost unhittable
PgDn…
“RA Dickey may be the best knuckleballer of alltime, and yes I’m including Niekro.”
Oh brother.
That’s an insight worthy of next week’s episode of Lawson Unleashed from our very own Skip Bayless in training. Niekro: 24 seasons, 115 ERA+, HOF. Dickey: 9 seasons, 98 ERA+, MET.
I know I shouldn’t be doing this, but I’m curious in an anthropological sense:
Emma, you said “RA Dickey may be the best knuckleballer of alltime, and yes I’m including Niekro.”
In the time it took you to formulate this thought, type it out, and then click “Submit Comment”, how did you reckon with comparing the lifetime stats of the Hall-Of-Famer Niekro with the perpetual journeyman Dickey? Or does your premise not rely upon data like “lifetime stats”?
Hudson is trying to choke
Thanks, Adam. The link in #29 further reinforced to me that I’m an ignorant and uneducated fan. I think I’m happier that way!
Kinda not thrilled I turned in just in time for the inning where Hudson stopped doing anything right.
Attaboy Huddy
When I said RA Dickey was possibly the best knuckleballer of alltime, I was hoping somehow it could be a reverse psychological way to make him start to falter immediately
So, not to stir anything up, but didn’t Emma get banned?
45: Now THAT makes sense! I try to do that from time to time. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to be working…
I believe it was Chipper that said everytime they play Dickey, the offense goes into a week’s long slump after the match. Geez…
Well, I’m afraid we are not going to score in this game.
48. I answered the question…
Hudson has seemingly lost the ability to control his pitches these last couple of innings
He was out
He was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo out
I’d walk Tejada here
Oh, Jim Powell … I don’t need you to come down with Chip Caray misjudgment disease.
I just tuned in to see that Dickey has thrown six shutout innings on 69 pitches. Keep hacking away boys! It’s bound to work eventually!
55: Cut him some slack, that’s a hard play to judge right when it happens, unlike the catch/out distinction on a ball to the outfield.
This is our inning.
Alright Chipper! Let’s get him in now.
Eric Karros is so annoying
@55
One mistake out of many inning is forgivable, and he’s still a great listen. But when you can’t watch despite paying $129 to MLB and can only listen (rare for me, since I own my own company and don’t have a rule against watching games in the office) … it’s tortuous.
This is what happens when you let Gonzo hit ahead of Heyward
@61: Yeah, I can see that. MLB blackout rules suck. Just glad I don’t have to deal with the regional ones (much) where I live, but the weekend blackouts are still annoying and often inexplicable.
AAG back to his old self. The only good thing about missing the playoffs will be not having to watch him any longer.
55: And now he does it again. Oh well, not a good day for Jim or the Braves offense.
@60
I’d like for you to challenge him in an “annoy off”. My money’s on you.
Take a bow, Huddy.
Regardless of the game’s outcome, mad props to Hudson for a gutsy effort when one was badly needed.
Tim, you beauty!!
Wish Jones was still batting second now.
YES!
CHIPPER!
heh. Chipper does it to the Mets again.
Chippah!
F’n Finally!
“Swing and a ground ball … up the middle and through!” Oh, that beautiful sound.
What a satisfying game so far.
Boy, will I miss Chipper once he retires.
Hinske in the dugout after Chipper’s hit: “Chipper Mother F$ckin’ Jones!”
Go get ’em, Craig.
EDIT: I didn’t mean quite like THAT. Based on how the first pitch looked on Gameday, yikes.
Attaboy, Kimbrel.
And what an effort from Hudson today. Way to step up, Timmy.
Beautiful. Go Phils (even though it makes me visibly retch to type those words in juxtaposition).
That is how we do that! Well done, Craig!
Playoff atmosphere. I like it.
Hudson is the first pitcher to go 8 innings since last August 15th…when he last did it.
Good to see Kimbrel blow everyone away. What a special year he’s having!
Magic number is 8. Now go lose, Cardinals.
Recapped.