Quickly reaching “what’s the point” status, the Braves again took an early lead and then blew it, and didn’t mount any sort of challenge to speak of.
The Braves got the first run of the game in the first inning, when Michael Bourn tripled leading off and Martin Prado followed with a groundout to bring him home. In the fifth, Jason Heyward and Andrelton Simmons singled, and with one out Bourn singled Heyward home. And that was all the runs that the Braves would get.
Mike Minor actually had a no-hitter going through four, but allowed a leadoff single to Alex Rodriguez in the fifth and the roof caved in. Three runs on three hits, two walks, and a wild pitch in the fifth, and another run in the sixth on a Mark Teixeira homer made it 4-2. The Yankees got a run in the seventh off of Kris Medlen, and Anthony Varvaro allowed a solo homer in the eighth. The Braves never mounted any real threat.
JC’d
I saw that too. I think everyone knew the team had a number of ifs to begin with, though. Realities of a mediocre budget seem to be that you need things to go your way.
All I know is that the Yankees are better than us at every single position. At least we’re not in the AL East.
Trade everybody.
@2
They might be playing their best ball in team history too. They have never won 10 in a row against teams with winning records.
They just did.
Livan was just released. At least we have that…
Minor looked so good through the firs three innings. I have no idea what happened, but allofasudden, the FB was wild. He couldn’t hit the zone with it and when he did, it was up. It’s so frustrating, because just a little more consistency is all he needs to be a quality big league starter.
From the previous thread:
Bourn has plenty of trade value. Gold Glover, high OBP leadoff man with good SB potential, hitting for power this year…if you can’t resign him you get a sandwich pick.
I don’t know about you guys, but I’m totally ready for the Braves to start their next winning streak.
#8
Yup, it’s time to start.
Just a little food for thought—it’s June 19 & we’re 3 games over .500, playing poorly.
In 2011, on July 20, the Cardinals were 3 games over .500, playing poorly.
Too early for trade talk, IMO. I don’t think it’s impossible to be in the hunt for a playoff spot in 6 weeks. July 31 is way off.
And by “trade talk,” of course, I mean “back-up-the-truck” trade talk.
@ajcbraves Great teams, or even really good teams, deal with injuries and have others step forward and pick up slack. These #Braves haven’t done that.
Great teams win and one that doesn’t isn’t a great team, and since winning comes from players stepping up, if there is no winning it’s because the players wouldn’t step up.
I don’t think I’d feel too safe in the locker room after saying that.
Gators got hosed by that home plate ump last night. Guess he was feeling sorry for the Golden Flashes.
Kent State – SEC killer.
Anybody else think they need to bring in the fences in Omaha? Seems to have been designed for a different (gorilla-ball) era.
Was I the only person that didn’t know this? Stop following for one week and you miss everything.
http://blogs.ajc.com/atlanta-braves-blog/2012/06/14/chipper-wife-separate-after-12-years-of-marriage/?cxntfid=blogs_atlanta_braves_blog
Brooks Conrad dfa’d by Milwaukee.
Melky F’n Cabrera is currently third in the All Star voting for outfielders. Third. He passed Ryan Braun.
@9, I’d feel a lot better if Beachy had been injured before the season, like Wainwright was last year, and I still saw the Braves 3 over .500 in June or July. But yes, now’s the time to see if we can buy what we need, not sell.
#14
And if there was ever a story that required “disabled comments”…
Freeman is playing, but so is Hinske. You have got to think that one of Hinske/Fransisco/Wilson is going to be DFA’d soon.
Bourn
Prado
Bmac
Uggla
Freeman
Chipper
Heyward
Simmons
Hinske
They are probably giving Hinske a few more shots to prove he can be useful.
My DFA Watch List would go Wilson-1, Francisco-2, Hinske-3. I still remember Hinske’s .793 OPS from ’10.
My DFA list: 1. Diaz, 2. Diaz, 3. Diaz.
DFA Wilson, and Pastornicky is your utility infielder. You want that?
The problem with being a seller is that it isn’t as if there is some great young core to build around. Our minors are very empty of MLB prospects right now. i would rather go all in and try and win, and hope for some luck. If we trade vets to rebuild, we are a long way off; an Astros type of distance from being good again.
I just realized that JJ will be pitching in Fenway for the game I’m going to Sunday.
@23 – Fair enough. Ruben Gotay? Josh Wilson? Any free agents out there? Wilson’s strength (if you can call it that) was as a defensive replacement over Pastornicky. That issue has been resolved.
COMPLETELY off-topic, but did anybody else see/hear this clip of the Ranger’s play-by-play guy lose his mind last night?
http://deadspin.com/5919477/rangers-announcer-dave-barnett-starts-speaking-nonsense-during-broadcast-claims-go+ahead-run-is-at-fifth-base
“A two-to-one game, tying run at second; a lead-off single by Chase Headley. Go ahead run.. is at… fifth… on what Adams is insisting on calling it a ‘botched-robbery.’ What actually happened was, his henchmen, took a piece, literally out of, my, his…”
Kinda scary…
It’s good to have Freddie back in the lineup. I still don’t understand why he wasn’t put on the DL retroactive to the last game he played.
Bring JJ luck, Bethany.
@27
Still called the action better than Chip Carey.
Great start.
Talk about depressing. Not only are we doooomed this year, but our 4th round pick,Justin Black went 0 for 3 with 3 K’s in his Gulf Coast League debut. We are dooooomed for all time. To add insult to injury, it was against the GCL Yankees. Somebody break out some Phil Collins.
10 pitches for Kuroda in the first. Remember when we used to make a starter work a little?
End of one, still not trailing.
I hate the Yankees, Right now, I’m not crazy about my Braves either.
Probably Bourn’s worst play as a Brave.
Despair, doom, gloom.
I am taking a Braves break.
Nice play, Freddie.
I saw someone say “ennui” last might. Me too, me too.
Jason! Hope you saw that before your break, Bethany.
You know what? Jason Heyward looks an awful lot like a ballplayer. I still wish he’d quit sliding in headfirst… but I sure do like seeing him motor so fast on a double into the gap that he turns it into a hustle triple.
Nice to see JD Drew (Freeman) show up for the game. Harsh?
OK, good. Thought Heyward would be stranded at third.
Chip is surprised to learn that Curtis Granderson is good.
Good inning, Huddy. Dare we hope for another run?
Nice, Martin.
The only two positions where the Yankees are not better than the Braves is catcher and left field.
That was funny.
Ugly, Uggla.
Somebody should have told Dan that there was a runner on third.
The reason the Yankees aren’t better in left field is that Brett Gardner’s on the DL.
@46, When Gardner returns, our LF advantage will be debatable at least.
Good at bat, Freddie.
I’ll be damned. Who’d athunk it, Chipper?
Braaaaaains!
I should take a break more often.
God I love Simmons.
Andrelton! Jason?!?
Did Zombie Chipper score or not?
Ah, hell. Live by the hustle and die by it. Jason shouldn’t have tried to stretch that. But it’s awfully nice to have a lead. Feels like the first time in a long while.
Jason, NOOOOOOO.
Ugh, Heyward makes a rare base running blunder there.
Isn’t Bourn like 2nd in fWAR among position players? I’d say he’s at least on par with Granderson, who isn’t a great CF.
Also, h
Ugh–how the hell did Heyward not at least get into a run-down?
Prado would have made that play.
Heyward is probably close to Swisher when you consider defense and baserunning.
@mlbbowman
Prado would have had it.
Oh, sweet Lord almighty. Chipper, that was appalling.
Chipper giveth, and Chipper taketh away.
DANGIT CHIPPER.
What a crappy effort, Old Man.
Chipper, if that’s your best, I’m sure there’s enough time for us to put together a fine retirement ceremony before the Braves get back to Atlanta.
Prado would have made that play.
Asking your pitcher to get five outs against this lineup is insane.
Where was that, ump?
Poor Tim.
He’s called that a strike all night. Against ARod and Uggla at the very least.
You are the man, Huddy.
One run in a five-out inning isn’t bad, but we’ve made sure Huddy can’t go more than five.
Whew.
Lotsa Braves fans in the house tonight.
If Huddy can get thru this inning, I’ll feel a lot better. Empty the tank, Timmy.
Jason finds redemption.
Still a douche.
@ 82: chortle.
BMac!
Ground rule doubles: the only way that Brian McCann can get from home plate to second base in one play.
I love the guy.
Zombie Chipper does his thing. Waaaaaalks…
Hason Jeyward!
Jason Heyward, on the other hand, isn’t a zombie. Quite.
That hurt. Way to rip, Jason.
LUCK!
Heyward has got to be moved up in the order. Tomorrow.
The Braves have come from behind all night, and Huddy pitched his heart out. I hope the pen can hold them.
War is peace, freedom is slavery, and Chad Durbin is a needed member of this bullpen.
Durbin did well. Getting the Yanks to hit them towards Andrelton sounds like a plan.
Outside of Kimbrel, Durbin is the most trustworthy reliever on the Braves’ team coming into a game.
Jonny ain’t right.
Venters, on the other hand, needs to not be out there in close games until his command returns.
Gonzalez still thinks it’s 2011.
Okay, Chipper, that was big league.
Yeah for other teams’ running like the Braves!
And yeah for traces of the 2011 Venters!
Jonny Houdini.
Not scoring there is really something I’d only expect from the Braves.
Chad Durbin now owns the sixth longest Braves’ streak of relief appearances allowing 0 runs since 1991:
Kimbrel — 38
Venters — 24
O’Flaherty, Smoltz, Mercker — 22
Durbin (and others) — 19
Four k’s for Dan.
Dan Uggla is our designated non-hitter tonight.
I covet Swisher.
Whoa.
Ouch, Andruw.
We can’t beat the Yankees, but we can maim them.
Keep hitting them to Simmons, Yanks.
NICE!
Let’s close the deal on this one. Please.
Anyone know what’s going on in the Nats’ game? Peter Moylan is going crazy about it on Twitter…
Andrelton’s the man.
Looks like the Nats caught a Rays pitcher cheating.
I keep waiting for Simmons to turn into a pumpkin at the plate, but he has been pretty damn impressive.
On top of the stellar defense.
Alright! One of them wins! We need more like that.
Ta-da!
I’ll take it but I was really rooting for him to fan Arod on 3 pitches too.
And Kimbrel is the man’s man. His new nickname should be President Madagascar.
“Shut down everything”
/old school
One game winning streak!
I got that, urlhix. I’m scared.
Meanwhile, in Washington, it’s a final. Rays 5, Nationals 4, Davey Johnson mind games 0.
This a really good basketball game, and I hate basketball.
That was a fun basketball game to watch at a bar here in South Florida.
“DFA Wilson, and Pastornicky is your utility infielder. You want that?”
Honestly: yes. Why is Wilson still here?
Because Jack Wilson has been known to catch a ball, which one cannot say of Tyler Pastornicky.
I’d take Pastornicky over Wilson any day. Except that Pastornicky needs to play, and Wilson is fine riding the bench.
Also, Russell Westbrook is incredible. Too bad it looks like the series is going the other way.
Man, if I could kick Davey Johnson’s ass.
I don’t want to seem greedy or anything, but you know what would be nice? A series win. Let’s do this, Tommy.
That game was Russell Westbrook to the extreme: Completely unstoppable & mesmerizing for much of the game, but a head-up-his-ass play (the intentional foul on Chalmers after the jump ball) cost his team a chance to tie the game. You gotta know the shot-clock situation there & he didn’t.
A couple observations from Yankee Stadium:
* Way more Braves fans there tonight than last night, all pretty nervous until #46 came into the game.
* Hudson certainly wasn’t great & threw a million pitches, but I love how he gutted out the 4th inning, giving up only 1 run, despite no hits, 2 errors & (what looked like) some serious squeezing from the home-plate ump.
* Baserunning mistakes make me more nuts than just about anything & Heyward’s run-nullifying gaffe at 3rd was really painful at the time. However, I love just about everything else he did tonight.
* Speaking of which, that line-drive he hit off Teixeira’s ankle was audible in the upper-deck, as was Teixeira’s shout when he went down. That ball was smoked.
* Nice defensive redemption from Chipper. He looks pretty bad on his error, but he makes a really nice play on Teixeira, throwing out Granderson at the plate.
* Yanks radio guy John Sterling is so bad at describing the action sometimes, you almost feel sorry for him. In the 8th, Swisher hit a pop to medium-deep LF, a jam shot that carried some to the corner. I don’t think anybody in the stadium thought it might be a HR—but Sterling did. “It is high… It is far… It is… caught!” If you weren’t actually watching the game (or watching the outfielder, which is what you do), you would’ve thought that the ball was up against the fence.
* I just dig Andrelton Simmons.
Playing hooky tomorrow for the afternoon affair. Hanson vs. Hughes in 97-degree heat—yikes. Still, sure would be nice to win this series.
129: I’ve been there both nights, and it seemed like there were more Braves fans in the stadium on Monday. Maybe just different concentrations in different parts of the park.
Anyway, Jonny’s inning was extremely stressful, but Craig’s was pure fun. Christ, that kid can throw.
Yay! Heyward is so fun to watch when he’s right. He’s had a really good month. And Simmons is just…. I’m not sure how long he’s going to keep hitting, but I’ll enjoy the hell out of it while it lasts!
ububba: See? Keep me away from the stadium and wins are easy!
Trade Westbrook for Rondo and OKC wins the next five championships.
His name is Kevin Durant. He’s pretty good. He should touch the ball every now and then.
Just curious: why didn’t the Braves send Freeman down to Gwinnett for a few games to groove his swing before re-inserting him in the lineup?
I mean, one of the huge benefits to having the AAA team ten miles up the road is the ability to do such things.
@133, there is no way OKC doesn’t get blown out in that game but for Westbrook in the 4th quarter. He made about 6 impossible shots in a row at one point – and drives, not hero jump shots. If Durant does a better job on Chalmers defensively, OKC probably wins.
http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/playbyplay?gameId=320619014&period=4
@133 – I know you’re speaking hypothetically, but the Celtics would never make that trade. Rondo signed a 5/$55M extension in ’09. Westbrook signed a 5/$80M extension earlier this year. Rondo is better and cheaper.
Off topic, but Rondo is the least likeable UK basketball alum I can remember. I’m a HUGE Kentucky homer, and Rondo rubs me the wrong way.
OKC will not and should not make a trade like that. Take away Westbrook and you have one scorer, and in the nba you need two. He’s not really a point guard, either, but more of a Dwayne Wade type slasher.
If the Thunder are looking to blame someone for last night, blame the defense for allowing so many wide open looks to 3 point shooters as well as James Harden for his major disappearing act. Without Westbrook, Heat win by 25.
Durant was on LeBron for much of the game, but he wasn’t much of a factor defensively. Hard to blame Westbrook for taking all of those shots he made. Oklahoma City lost that game because James Harden had a brutal game offensively — he missed at least three wide-open threes — and because Mario Chalmers had the best game of his life. The Thunder lost on Sunday because they missed more than a third of their free throws.
Basically, they’re choking away the series, and LeBron is doing absolutely everything that I ever wished he would do. He is absolutely crushing it. The Thunder aren’t a less talented team, but they are crumpling and the Heat are manning up. Who’da thunk it?
Rondo’s only problem: Not much of a shooter. And I agree: Where was Harden last night?
#130
From my perspective, more Braves attire on the subway to and from the game. More in the concession lines, more in the bathrooms, & certainly more in my section—and I sat in the very same seats as Monday. And, of course, there was a lot more to cheer about.
JonathanF,
The definition of obstructed-view seats: A row of kids who all want something from the cotton-candy man.
13—No way.
Westbrook is so overrated. Best thing the Thunder could do this offseason is deal him for whatever they can get (which would be a lot).
Was also at both games at Yankee Stadium last two nights (Field Level around 1B) and felt like stronger Braves contingent on Monday. That said, area around me was really buzzing about Kimbrel in ninth. Never seen that kind of reaction to visiting player in NY.
If anyone noticed/heard two kids in Braves jerseys just above Yankees dugout last night getting into it with all the fans, they were mine – and I’m damn proud of it!
@139: I hope all they wanted was cotton candy! (Too much time reading about the Sandusky trial.)
Recapped. You do realize that Heyward leads Braves regulars in slugging? (Not counting Simmons, who hasn’t played enough.)