Liveblogging Isn’t Much Fun
When I agreed to recap games, I didn’t realize that I’d have to work. Watching a game, wrangling food and a spouse, and trying to type witty aperçus into a phone is really too much work. I got through it and I don’t think I embarrassed myself (YMMV) but I don’t think I’ll be doing it again.
Game 2
I got home after the top of the first inning of the second game, so I didn’t watch RAJ get hit on the shoulder by Tylor Megill live, but I heard it on the radio. It sounded painful, and didn’t look any less painful on replay. Apparently it’s just a bruised shoulder. That said, of Ronald Acuna Jr.s many, many virtues, stoicism is not one of them. I’ve learned not to take his many, many expressions of agony at face value.
Charlie Morton took the mound in the nightcap and put together a Charlie Morton performance: 6+ innings, 92 pitches and 4 runs allowed, although to be fair two of them were anti-Avilaned in a Gulf of Tonkin Incident.
Megill (whose ancestors, I assume, changed a “c” to an “e” at some point) pitched well after hitting RAJ to start the game, but finally had life catch up to him with a double to Chadwick Tromp, walks to Olson and Murphy and a bases-clearing double by Eddie Rosario, although the final run required replay, and Murphy was just about as safe as Sid Bream. (Bream said in an interview two Sundays ago that if replay had existed in 1992, the end of the game would have been really weird when instead of a big celebration there had been a twenty-five minute review. He’s right.)
It will come as a surprise to no one that the Braves bullpen as currently performing is ill-equipped to provide eight innings of flawless relief. Juggling semi-competent relievers effectively is what pays managerial salaries. Giving up tons of runs and winning 9-8 is a sign that you’re actually using your bullpen well – you don’t want to waste competence. By the second game, you’re using Tonkin in a critical situation because… well… the rules of baseball require that you put somebody in.
In any case, after the Braves took a lead in the top of the sixth, the pen gave the lead back. You have to depend on the rest of the team to get a run somewhere off of somebody. Or more… because Joe Jiménez was taken deep by Jeff McNeil in the 8th to make it 5-3.
But it was not to be. The Braves made a little noise, but fecklessly. The lesson to be learned: I guess I have to stick around for both ends of the doubleheader. Over half of doubleheaders are split: this was one of them.
Ozuna Watch
You’re down by two runs with two outs in the ninth and a runner on. You have a choice of using Chadwick Tromp or using Marcell Ozuna who you didn’t use all day. You let Tromp bat. (Note: you’d have lost the DH and made Murphy come back in behind the plate, but is that a serious problem?) Ozuna’s days are numbered, and they look like fairly small numbers.
Go Get ‘Em Tomorrow
Down to Miami. Fillet the Second-Place Fish.
Thanks Jonathan. Nozuna, no cry.
Thanks, Jonathan! I haven’t seen the HBP, but am I right in thinking that he wasn’t throwing at RAJ?
And taking 2 of 3 in NYC? I can live with that.
There are a lot of people who can judge intent from result. I’m not one of them. The argument that he meant it is based on the fact that three Mets were hit in the first game and RAJ hit a mammoth homer. The argument that he didn’t mean it is that he’s Tylor Megill, not Tom Glavine. When he means to throw inside (as everyone does against RAJ) he might miss. Again: others might be certain it was intentional. I am completely agnostic.
Short of an admission (which is rare in baseball and in criminal cases), the only way to infer intent is from conduct. But juries manage to convict folks every day by drawing an inference that the defendant intended to do the act. And they make that finding beyond a reasonable doubt. Having said that, in this case the evidence is inconclusive that Megill intentionally targeted Ronald. I’m not convinced he didn’t, but I’m not sure he did.
Now, when the Marlins kept hitting Ronald, I had no trouble inferring–beyond a reasonable doubt, in fact–that Mattingly directed his pitchers to target him. For that reason, I still haven’t forgiven Glavine, who was in the booth and made excuses for Mattingly and the Fish pitchers. (I like to imagine Tom lying awake at night worrying about my disapproval.)
I agree with you entirely, Counselor, with the proviso that, unlike fans, juries are admonished to be fair, giving due weight to both sides of the argument, however much they honor that admonishment.
I think Charlie can give up a go ahead double on his own without any help from the Gulf. He was at 92 pitches; why not let him pitch to another couple of batters? Especially after going through a lot of relievers in the first game. The Gulf was OK after the lead was lost.
Sean Murphy trade – winning all ends up
Joe Jiminez trade – not so much given what Malloy is doing to AAA pitching
I agree that there was no intent in hitting Acuña, especially considering the 0-2 count. I’m sure that he was trying to scoot him off the plate so he could go low and outside on the next pitch, but it looked like the pitch just got away from him and from his body language matched this theory. I’m guessing Acuña won’t start today’s game, but could see an AB later if the Braves need him. Surely you all remember “stingers” back in football playing days. This is much the same, but on steroids because there’s no pads and it’s a hard round ball coming in at a speed of a lamborghini.
@JF
I’ve also thought of doing live blogging, but realize that I like staying married. 🙂
Braves split, end up taking 2/3 from our Gotham rivals — good. Devils defeat Rangers in Game 7 — excellent.
Almost had the trifecta yesterday, but I won’t get greedy.
Since the beginning of the Houston series, the Braves’ bullpen has dropped from 2nd to 7th in NL ERA, from 3.30 to 4.07. That’s a bad 10 days.
Is that regression to the mean?
Ronald in the lineup tonight!