ASG
Reader TLB-GT points out that while the All Star Game and Home Run Derby suck, the meet-and-greet events make the event worthwhile when it comes to your town. I fully agree. Of course, it doesn’t come to your town very often, and it only comes to one town a year.
To clarify my position: baseball seasons are too long, and a half-week break in the middle of it is a good idea. But then telling your best players: “You don’t get a break. You have to fly somewhere, do days of interviews, participate in dumb contests and then play a game that proves nothing, followed by a flight back home” is a terrible way to treat your best players. Of course, holding the game in your home town mitigates the travel impact, but that doesn’t really redeem it.
My other objection is that it’s a “marketing opportunity.” I understand they need to market baseball. I just hate the term “marketing opportunity.”
Finally, I accept that it’s better than all the All-Star Games, which in descending order, are Hockey, Basketball and Football. It’s kind of like picking a best Kardashian.
Riley
He’s on the IL, with a strained abdomen. It doesn’t sound all that serious, but this is 2025, so you never know. Nacho called up.
The Game
The Cardinals pitched Erick Fedde, a guy who has been uniquely feckless against the Braves. although he was cromulent in his only other appearance against the Braves this year back in April. Fedde has the single worst ERA against Atlanta for any pitcher who has gotten over 100 Braves out in his career. (#2, for what it’s worth, is Zach Day.)
Ronald Acuña Jr. hit 3rd for the first time in his career, and hit his first homer hitting third. 1-0.
Marcell Ozuna leveraged his day off yesterday into a solo shot in the 2nd inning: 2-0. Another run made it 3-0.
Fedde then settled down a little and was pulled with two outs, men on first and second, and Acuña at the plae for his third at-bat in the fifth, But Ronald struck out, giving Fedde a game ERA of 5.78, a good appearance for him against the Braves.
The Braves went with a bullpen game… the sort of thing you have to do when you only have three pitchers who even claim to be starters, and one of them is Bryce Elder. Bummer gave up 3 in his two innings of work, replaced by newly-picked-up Joey Wentz. This was Wentz’ first appearance in a Braves uniform since he pitched on July 27th 2019 for the Mississippi Braves against the Mobile BayBears. Three scoreless innings kept it at 3-3. Welcome back, Joey.
Enter Rafael Montero. He got two quick outs, but then Yohel Pozo hit a solo homer to break the tie.
The Braves then had to waste an inning with the guys who can’t hit, giving them chances in the 8th and 9th. But Dylan Lee gave up an insurance run and things started to look grim. But not for long: against the top of the order, Phil Maton gave up a double to Profar, walked Acuña and then gave up a wallscraping homer to Sean Murphy to give the Braves the lead back.
Daysbel got the 8th. It was an adventure, including an argued time violation by the Cardinals and three walks to load bases with two outs. A two-strike wild pitch evened the score.
The Cardinals gave their closer, Ryan Helsley, the 9th against the normally moribund bottom of the order. But Nacho led with asingle, was sacrificed to 2nd by Michael Harris II and made it to third on a sharp single from pinch hitter Drake Baldwin. A Profar groundout gave the Braves the lead back.
The newly trustworthy Raisel Iglesias for the save attempt. 4-3, K, 6-3. Easy Peasy.
All props to the newest Braves: Wentz, who we let everyone else turn into a pitcher, and Nacho, who scored the winning run. Nacho is pictured above because I don’t know what a Wentz looks like…. other than Carson and Pete and Joey.
Sweep tomorrow. Why not? Another bullpen game? Why not? Another one run win. Why not?
From last thread:
Acuna is right at a homer every 15 plate appearances this year, which is 40 homers over 600 PAs. I’m glad he figured out how to come back.
Richie looked pretty solid in the Future’s Game. Keith Law doesn’t think he has a true plus pitch but can mix what he has to be an effective third starter.
The Braves have called up Davis Daniel to pitch. I know little about him other than the fact that he has too many first names, unless his first name is actually a last name, in which case his middle name should be “Comma.” Actually, according to BRef, “Davis” is actually his middle name. His first name is “Robert.” I hope he confuses Cardinal batters as much as he has already confused me.
Should change his name to Roberts Davis Daniels
Davis Daniel really does sound like a last name followed by a first name. Like one of my favorite singer songwriters, Hayes Carll. I used to work with a guy named Hadley Edgar and another named Harris James. I know absolutely nothing about Davis Daniel, except that BR says he was born in Atlanta and went to high school in Montgomery. It’s pretty common for southern guys to have their mother’s maiden name as their first or middle name. Like James Dansby Swanson.
I disagree that Davis Daniel has too many first names. I just think he got his first and last name mixed up. Daniel Davis would be much less confusing. Can someone request that he change his name if he wants to stick in the rotation? If he does that and continues to pitch like he did today, he will stick in the rotation.
Edit – just seeing your post tfloyd. We are both thinking along the same lines.
Boob Nightengale saying we’ve made Ozuna and Iglesias available, and “a few others”. People citing Bummer’s $9M salary next year as a reason he might be traded. Why does that matter? We trade a $9M reliever so we can outbid on the FA market for $16M relievers? When has that ever worked for us?
Because Bummer isn’t worth 9 million and that $16 million figure is for backend guys. Pierce Johnson is actually worth his salary
38-year old Kirby Yates got $13M last offseason. I’d be interested to see what Bummer would get as a FA.
We actually have a surplus of LH relievers. Lee, Dodd, Cox have all looked good at the major league level. Hayden Harris is waiting for his shot also. And there’s a non-zero chance they figured something out with Wentz.
So if they can move Bummer and actually use that 9 million this offseason to improve the team, by all means do it.
Kenley Jansen got $10MM. Kyle Finnegan got $6MM. Lots of middling guys got way less. Yates was coming off a 3.3 season. He was maybe the best reliever in MLB in 2024. Nobody is paying Bummer $9MM
Braves take a SS/OF out of a NV HS with their 1st round pick.
Harris shows plate discipline and the umpire absolutely hoses him.
Would have been a nice time for Snitker to get his rear end out of the dugout, but you only get one of those per annum.
Recapped.