As you all know, a vomitorium is either a large passageway allowing people to enter or leave a stadium (see above), or the nickname of every dive college frat bar (looking at you, Rudy’s in New Haven.) A third definition is when Ryan writes you at 11 am and asks you to throw up a recap and game thread for today’s tilt.
Recap
We lost. We lost because Bryce Elder had a terrible second inning and Grant Holmes had a terrible ninth inning. If you don’t feel the Elder love (and as I near 70, everyone should feel Elder love) you will focus on the second inning. But a little like Mrs. Lincoln’s theater review, there were things to like in the performance. Would I give Elder more starts? Certainly not if Ian Anderson will be available, for example. But managing the pitching staff is something tht other people are paid for, and I’ll let them do their jobs. [Note: I wrote this before I knew that Max was on the DL. It doesn’t actually change anything, but it makes it way more likely we’ll see Bryce again, no matter what.]
Grant Holmes had a bad outing. I’m OK with that, even though he entered the ninth down only one and left down four. And it was the second game of the double header, so they’d used a lot of others. Over 50% of doubleheaders split, and this was one of them.
Offensively, four homers! Two from Marcell Ozuna, one from RIley (and one barely foul in the first) and a wallscraper from Eddie Rosario. If you read my piece from last Monday, you’ll know that you win 86% of those games. One out of seven times, you pitch Bryce Elder and you lose.
Today
So Spencer Schwellenbach was pushed back to the rubber game. He seems to know how to pitch, so I’m ready to win the series. He is being opposed by veteran Miles Mikolas, the Eminem of pitchers. He has an sub-4.00 ERA against the Braves, though without much of a record to show for it, other than the 2019 playoffs where he ended up with two “wins” in a series which ended badly despite no absurd infield flyrule calls or rainouts two outs short of a Braves win. So we can get some sort of revenge, I guess, so we might as well do it.
A 2-0 deficit isn’t anything for our murderers row lineup to overcome
The Cardinals may have our number this year. They took 2 of 3 at their place, and now lead and may take 2 of 3 again.
Four outs in four innings from our first baseman…I’m ready for him to be hitting 8th
The what ifs of trading Contreras and not signing freeman are killing me.
These long term extensions have a big chance of killing the competitiveness of this team for the next 5 years
Edit: agreed, Putter. A 3-1 deficit seems insurmountable this year, 4-1 is in turn it off territory
If the Cards had one guy on defense Olson would hit it to him (if he didn’t strikeout).
I can honestly say I have turned off more games this season in the middle than I did during the rebuild. This has been the most frustrating team to watch in years.
At least Olson is 5 years younger than Freeman. In 5 years, Freeman will be retired while Olson will still be posting a .690 OPS for us.
If I had known that Miles Mikolas ate a live lizard in the minors, that would have featured prominently in my barf-thread.
At least Olson can’t hit into a double play this time
The team we fielded this series is not a playoff team. Hopefully Fried will be ok.
We may see Nacho at second base instead of short.
What an absolutely cursed season. In non-injury news, Matt Olson’s transformation into Chris Davis is startling.
AA really, really should have given that sixth year to Freddie.
Imagine trying to squeeze a future hall of famer who had played the first 12 seasons of his career for your team at a steep discount for a few million bucks in the age of $300MM contracts. I’ll never get over it, no.
Ozzie has a fractured wrist and is out at least 8 weeks. I would assume that the best hope is that he could be back for the playoffs (if we make the playoffs).
Bowman says Nacho is likely to come up and play 2nd in his absence.
I hope it’s Nacho. I don’t think 8 weeks of Zack Short is going to make anyone happy, especially with the way 7-8-9 has been hitting before his insertion into the lineup
The injuries have been absolutely ridiculous this year. Could everyone please stop falling apart?
Sale last pitched on Sunday, July 21st. Why didn’t he pitch last night instead of Elder?
Because they were gonna have to call up a 6th starter anyway after 6 days, and they could call up Elder as the 27th man without using an option.
Don’t worry everybody, we’re signing Whit Merrifield! The season is saved!
NAILED IT
If AA manages to somehow turn this team into a serious contender for this season, he deserves a statue.
So much bad luck. But if anyone can do it, it’s him.
I don’t love Merrifield but I prefer him to Short, which would have been the non-Nacho option.
I do like the “spaghetti at the wall” attitude towards it all. WGAF? Olson has a sub-700 OPS, Ozzie/Riley/Murphy/Harris haven’t hit. What does it matter? Until half of your lineup hits, does it matter that the other half can’t stay on the field? it’s crazy that we’re still in the thick of things after all these injuries and struggles:
https://x.com/BillShanks/status/1815247059122807123
Going with the classics,
Gloom, despair, and agony on me. Deep dark depression, excessive misery. If it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all. Gloom, despair, and agony on me.
thumbs up
With regards to the HR thing, Braves hit 4 solo shots and lose and Cardinals hit 4 solo shots and win.
Was it Bobby that would plug the backup into the same lineup spot as the regular when the regular was getting a day off? That’s what happening here with Nacho in the 2-hole tonight.
I mean, why not? Nobody else on the team has shown any ability to hit there so we might as well give Nacho a shot.