A Cardinal? that means to me
those Senate hearings  just to see
McGwire’s pathetic pose
‘The past? Â Gosh, no one knows
as Sammy says, Â just let it be.’
The Odyssey over, I-75 beckons, a thousand miles and more… Sirius consoles, a conduit to MLB live baseball and the Braves.
…there’s a shameful fear of the Cardinals in this car –  where it comes from I’m trying to define…it likely started at that World Series a couple of years ago, games 6 and 7, when heroic last minute deeds poured on top of each other…players you’d barely heard of came through in the clutch and not just once…amazing stuff, thrilling to watch whosever shirt you wear…our man Elvis as shell shocked as the rest of the Texans…
Then there’s their RISP numbers this year… good God…did someone make them up? And Molina – which one I have no idea and could care less – he and Posey the stuff of nightmares… and Wainwright, we gave him away and now he’s pretty good they say…are they smart?  With Pujols they were VERY smart…so we’ll see…
Shall we compare them now, the way they play
To prior teams so very profligate
No Coleman here to steal our hearts away
No Musial to presuppose our fate.
‘tis often not the Cardinal who wins
And all too soon his chances may be dimmed
By Gattis and the neo Upton twins
Those masters of the fickle Georgia wind.
Then our eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose remembrance of that game they owe
Nor shall they boast we wander in their shade
When to the infield fly again they go
As long as Braves fight on and bloggers cry
So long we know we’ll have another try.
game notes via Sirius…
finally worked out how the damn thing worked, joined  game in third Braves leading 2/1…need i say Molina got theirs, CJ and Minor our rbi’s…all the scoring in the second…Minor on a roll…2 hits, 7 innings, just over 100 pitches…
BMac doubled first AB, scored, deep fly ball out his second….
fabulous catch by Jason in the middle innings…neither Upton can come in on a line drive without looking horrible, he can…Mr. Glass, eh? Â ask Mr. Met about that…Topped that off with a homer to left center, love it when he goes that way…Braves 3/1…
Cardinals helped greatly around this time throwing the ball away twice…Braves 4/1…
also around then Andrelton guilty of atrocious bunt when Fredi called a suicide squeeze…the bunt was so bad, popped up so high, the runner had time to turn round and get back to third safely…i will defend this young man to the death against the haters but never his bunting deficiencies, absolutely no excuse…
FF, Golden Sombrero if i heard it right…Wow…first one? i remember JHey with 5 in LA a couple of years ago…SO embarrassed was he…
Walden very impressive 8th – 1,2,3… Kimbrel walked one, struck out most of the others, no sweat, save 28 i think…
very good all round win by the Braves against the team with the best numbers all over in Baseball…first game i have heard in years on the radio, did they really say the crowd was 51,000?? fantastic…FWIW the recent yammering here about Sutton i quite disagree with – if you don’t hear any inflection in that voice when he’s on  PBP get those ears checked…
what a win, we beat the Cardinals.
Righteously recapped, Blazon. Terrific game all around. Too bad we couldn’t have done that in the WC play-in last year.
The script written about the awesome Cards offense and their likely Cy Young winner was thrown out as Barves win.
You suck Beltran! I’m going to the game today
Anyone know what’s up with Gearrin? He hasn’t pitched since he was sent down.
Minor looked pretty sharp. Lots of called strike 3’s. When he hits his spots, he’s really, really good.
Well done, Blazon. Thank you.
As for frontline pitchers, we might have to grow our own. Peavy might be the best of the available sorry lot.
@5 Location, location, location
Per ESPN: “Wren said adding payroll is not an issue.
“‘It’s going to be the talent we have to give up and it’s also understanding how much of an upgrade a particular player is for us,’ he said. ‘In the market are there pitchers out there who would make us better? Yes. The number of them is pretty low.'”
@8 – I’m calling Cliff Lee to Atlanta for B-C level prospects and taking on the contract.
Ruin Tomorrow, Jr. seems pretty content to not rebuild, and instead rearrange the deck chairs some more as he did this past offseason.
Since the Braves almost certainly wouldn’t be among the bidders for Cliff Lee, I welcome RAJ’s insistence that the Phillies are contenders.
@9 no way in hell we can take on 90 million dollars over the next 3.5 years. Maybe you were kidding…
Ryan, fandom is about the suspension of disbelief and blind faith that all will magically be well for your preferred laundry. I’m telling you, man, Liberty’s going to wake up and give us 20 mil per year extra to win the WS!
Wren did just say money is no object. My first thought was, “So long, McCann,” and my second thought was that maybe we’d trade Medlen and a prospect for Lee. Him, Minor, Teheran, any two of Beachy/Maholm/Wood…that’s pretty good.
And we have this….
@ajcbraves: #Braves lineup: Heyward 8, JUpton 9, Freeman 3, Gattis 7, McCann 2, Uggla 4, CJohnson 5, Simmons 6, Teheran 1
Maybe Gwinnett refused to take Gearrin back. Joking but not really.
Love that lineup!
@15
You forgot to mention that I will be there. Lol
That’s pretty much what people have been clamoring for, isn’t it? Or it’s at least one of the acceptable alternatives to the unacceptable tactic of batting Simmons leadoff.
Amazing that it took an awful bunt on a suicide squeeze (that was just as much an awful call) for Simmons to get pushed down the lineup and allow Fredi to better utilize his lineup.
I’ll take it. Shouldn’t have taken this long, but I’ll take it.
My only objection to that lineup would be that I’d like to see a more patient hitter bat 8th. However, there’s an outside possibility that Andrelton develops more patience hitting 8th.
When you start complaining about getting what you want because the hitter batting eighth is too impatient…I just don’t know. Aren’t eighth place hitters supposed to expand their strike zone anyway? At least when they have people on base?
EDIT: Additionally, Andrelton did absolutely nothing wrong on that bunt. Complain about the suicide squeeze if you want (though as times for suicide squeezes go, it wasn’t a bad one), but there was no chance for Simmons to do anything with that high-and-tight fastball. He was trying desperately to get a bat on it so that Terdo wouldn’t be hung out to dry. There was no chance of controlling where that ball went off of his bat, and he did exactly what he was supposed to do, which was make sure Terdo didn’t get put out.
Yeah, that’s a good damn lineup. Now just stick with it, Fredi, and it may help us a bit down the stretch.
Re: Lee, that’d be thrilling, but in-division blockbusters of that kind are rare for a reason. I would be okay with them going out and getting Peavy if the price was low, but Santana is my main realistic hope. Jeff Sullivan over at Fangraphs pointed out that he’s having a great all-around season, seems to have regained some of the velocity that made him so good for the Angels a couple seasons ago.
Obviously Santana or Peavy or a LH reliever are the more likely options, but I like the way Wren is talking about “we’ll go get what we need, and if we find someone that pushes us over the top, we’ll do that.” Might as well dream a little of the days the Braves used make blockbusters and bring in the big guns to win it all.
Who would have figured that Johnson and Delgado are having the best seasons of all players involved in the trade?
We better score at least 5 runs today or else Fredi will decide that this lineup doesn’t work.
@15, Thanks, Fredi. Great lineup! Now let’s go score some runs!
But isn’t Dayton Moore as reluctant to sell as Ruben Amaro Jr.?
I think they all saw the return for Garza and are having second thoughts about their futile pushes to contend this year.
@Nick
With runners in scoring position, sure the 8th place hitter is supposed to expand his K zone, but not the case when there’s a runner at 1st or no one on, which is far more likely than risp ABs. Id think that it’s the 8th place hitters responsibility to clear the pitcher at all costs, which in my eyes, would be taking a pitch or 2.
Best lineup of the year.
@25
For whatever it’s worth, Brandon Drury is having a great year in single A. He’s repeating the level, but it’s what you want to see from a guy repeating a level.
Knowing Wren, if he gets a starter it won’t be one anyone even thought was available.
Also, kudos on the lineup Fredi, now the boys have to show him it’s a good one.
The time to sweep in and get Josh Johnson for next to nothing is now. Today’s line: 5.2 IP 7ER…Offer them salary relief and a low-level and get it done, Wren!
Well, Fox has begun the broadcast by claiming that the infield fly call was correct. Nice start.
Buck is a Cardinals homer for obvious reasons. I don’t know Karros’ excuse.
@35 Make no mistake, Joe Buck is a Cardinals fan. They’re the best fans in baseball. You don’t even have to ask them; they’ll happily let you know.
@36
Even Buck just kind of went along with what Karros said to keep him from looking like a dumbass, adding a whole bunch of qualifiers to it. If Buck thinks it was the right call, he appears far from certain. The stampede through the china shop was all Karros.
It’s kind of amusing that Heyward made an out on his first pitch as a leadoff hitter. Not saying it means anything, it’s just amusing.
Maybe Andrelton was never the problem. Maybe its some kind of curse.
Good for Jim and Lemmer calling out Fox for their approval of Fucking Sam Holbrooke’s infield fly call. I am still livid about that disgraceful moment in baseball infamy.
No, Andrelton is definitely at least part of the problem.
Can’t hide Simmons.
I am so tired of Andrelton Simmons. Just make him go away.
It shouldn’t be that hard to get him to stop trying to pull every single pitch.
Simmons popped up on a hanging curveball. Nice.
The Fox guys suck so terribly, awfully, and the radio is waaay ahead. Even with Lemke on air, I had to turn off the set. I’ll take Don Sutton doin an entire game of PBP over these guys.
Maybe we ought move CJ up in the order.
I wonder if the Braves will try to get Simmons to stop diving into the ball this offseason.
Simmons is causing as many problems hitting eighth as leadoff.
Mr T. strikes out the side – pitcher included, but still.
Teheran!
Top of the order, third time through the order… big inning.
Starting to feel like someone had better homer from our side.
Freeman is officially in a slump.
What does it mean that Gonzalez says he’s a “keep the train moving” guy instead of a three-run home run guy?
Because it sounds like Gonzalez is opposed to rally-killing home runs.
I wish Joe Buck would stop talking about the Yankees.
Simmons is gonna homer this inning.
Fredi will have to decide if Teheran hits.
depends if there are two outs and nobody on
Fredi, you made the right call on the lineup, you made the right call to pull Julio here. Really good managing so far today.
Infield fly!
Thanks, Cardinals outfield.
Re:Ed Johnson or Laird
INFIELD FLY.
Beaten by a few seconds by @62. I think we were all thinking it.
joey gets a real hit rather than a faux triple
65 — Zing!
Let us all take a moment to remember that Matt Holliday is a terrible, terrible defensive outfielder. Thanks again, Sam Holbrook.
Cards are best defensive team in all baseball
@68: He didn’t even try to get that ball. Weird play.
Is this the 2nd straight game that J-Terds has pinch-hit into an error/bad defensive play?
Really?
You’re joking
Last night was just a RISP aberration. Sigh.
Ugh, Justin. Isn’t it about time that you were decent again?
I miss April Justin.
Justin has been BJ since May…suddenly our super outfield looks below average.
Ok…time for Gattis to add to the legend.
I am slowly becoming convinced that young master Teheran has turned the corner from “promising young prospect” to “reliable young ace.”
Well, it’ll be another last at bat win for somebody.
If we don’t score with this lineup it’s back to Simmons at the top tomorrow.
Do your thing, Oso.
Gattis loves LHP. Let’s go.
Damn – he missed two to hit there.
Calling ball four a strike. Umpires, you can stop helping the Cardinals any time you’d like.
Gotta swing at the 2-0 pitch right down the middle.
Bases loaded. They have us right where they want us.
Simmons in high-leverage at-bats today reminds me of Brooks Conrad in the field in the 2010 NLDS — the key situation always finds the weakest link, no matter what tactical tweaks you make.
EDIT: Reverse jinx works again.
AHHHHHH YEA SIMBA!!!!!
Woooo!
Andrelton!
Ha ha! Foiled their fiendish plot! Finally some runs!
There it is
FINALLY!!
Andrelton redeems himself!
Simmons loves hitting 8th!
See Fredi, the lineup works!
97- Now Fredi will think, “Ha ha! Simmons is the best run producer and therefore needs to lead off!” And we’re back where we started.
CJ looking good in the field… and Uggla gets the last one!
BRAVES WIN!
All hail the pitching staff! And Simmons, I guess.
Great win, stellar pitching again. Would have been great if they could have broken through earlier, but a win is a win is a win.
I love beating the Cardinals.
Up here in NY I had to watch the Mets until they went into a rain delay. They switched over to this game with Uggla up in the 8th. Thanks, all of you, for keeping it even until I could exert my efforts.
Minor-Teheran… a very solid 1 and 2.
Thanks for coming through in the clutch, Jonathan.
Potential thing in our favor for the playoffs (though it’s far from scientific): We always seem to play better against good teams.
Kimbrel made Beltran and Holliday look pretty easy.
This is going to be a very good rotation for the next few years at least.
107- Especially at home. The Braves are now 13-2 at home against teams with winning records.
The best thing, obviously, would be if beachy rounds into form. That’s a tough trio for a 5 game series.
105 – I was just going to say the same thing. Now we just need to figure out who our #3 (and #4) are over the next couple months before the playoffs start.
@105
Yeah. If Beachy can get to be a reasonable facsimile of his former self by October, I’m gonna start to feel more sanguine about our playoff chances.
Oh, and I HATE THE FOX MLB CONTRACT.
recapped.