[ed. note: ububba rejoins the commenting team with a bang. AAR also posted, which shows what a poor job the editor does of organizing things. Enjoy them both.]

Happy April Fools’ Day, y’all!

Lucky for us Braves fans, we didn’t have to endure any pranks (malicious or otherwise) as our Bravos won their second consecutive home series to start the season – a 4-2 record sounds pretty good compared to the horror of last year. No, this time we got off on the good foot.

Now, this isn’t anything quite like April 1982 when many of us remember that 13-0 start. For me going back in time, I always remember working this part of the year on the April Fools’ edition of The Red & Black, our school newspaper at the University of Georgia. Transformed for the day into The Rude & Bleak, we’d take the piss out of the whole school and our Athens surroundings with preposterous stories, ridiculous names & Dada-esque moments.

For example, hoops star Dominique Wilkins would become Slaminique Dunkins; a soon-to-be-fired R&B columnist who went onto great wealth (and relative ignominy) was re-named Ralph Greed; feisty gymnastics coach Suzanne Yoculan would be Suzanne Yakalot; upstart local rock band R.E.M. (as in Rapid Eye Movements) would become R.I.M. (as in Real Important Male Nurses), etc. Not everybody liked it – the J-school profs certainly didn’t. But it was a buzz…

Not unlike this April Fools’ Day contest. Always good to get that early home getaway game in your pocket. With Chris Sale on the mound and in prime fighting form, you like your chances and Sale did what an ace does, delivering a win – with the help of a very locked-in Drake Baldwin. 

Onto the game… not to pick too many nits, but Ronald Acuña’s baserunning adventures are becoming worrisome, as he was again picked off, this time in the first inning after inducing an ABS-assisted walk. It hurt to give the A’s the out because their starter Luis Severino, who was doing his best Ryne Duren impersonation all day, walked 2 of the next 3 Braves… but eventually wriggled out of the inning.

Severino’s command continued to escape him in the 2nd inning as he bookended walks around a Dom Smith single to load the bases… bringing up Drake Baldwin with 2 outs.

Funny thing… sometimes a tasty offensive situation presents itself and, as a fan, you think: “There’s nobody I’d rather have taking an AB right now than this guy.” I remember thinking that about Brian McCann early in his career – for me, now, it’s Drake. Somehow, you just know he’ll have a good AB in a big spot. And how do you like that? Baldwin didn’t disappoint, as he sliced a 2-run single to left, 2-0 ATL.

Early on, Sale was a master of efficiency, going 9 up/9 down on 37 pitches. When he’s comfortably dropping that sharp curve in for a called strike 1, you know the hitters are in for a tough time. And thru 3, he was untouchable.

However, top 4, Andy Ibáñez drove one high & deep to LF, where Yaz eased to the fence & robbed the HR, as described by Ben Ingram, “about as casually as you can imagine.” Then, the very next hitter, ex-Brave Shea Langeliers, turned around on a mid-level heater & blasted it in the exact same direction… but about 3 feet further, just over a leaping Yaz and his glove this time, for a solo shot… 2-1 Bravos.

Bottom 4… After giving up consecutive singles to Smith & Mauricio Dubón – ATL’s Nos. 8-9 hitters – A’s manager Mark Kotsay had seen enough & pulled Severino after 91 pitches in favor of… Elvis Alvarado, yes. Acuña flew out to deep CF on the first pitch, advancing Smith to third. Then it was up to that man again… Drake Baldwin. After an 11-pitch battle with Elvis, Drake rapped a base-clearing double to the RCF gap, 4-1 ATL. Life is good.

Matt Olson immediately followed up by snaking a worm-burner single up the middle, barely eluding the A’s tumbling keystone combo and driving in Baldwin. 5-1 Braves.

After Elvis left the building, lefty Hogan Harris took the mound. (This club does have some great names, I gotta say.) Unfortunately, he made the Braves look about as competent as Col. Klink by retiring them in order in both the 5th & 6th innings w/ 2 Ks – Hogan! (BTW, I wish I could’ve been in the network pitch meeting for the “Hogan’s Heroes” TV show: “No, see, instead of evil ruthless killing machines, the Nazis in this show will be bumbling fools. Trust me, it’ll be hysterical.”)

Now with a somewhat cozy 4 run lead, Sale was Sale, as Mike Francesa might say – and, by now, you know exactly what that means. He had another routinely terrific outing, but this time he was even more efficient than usual. He went 6 IP, threw 79 pitches, gave up 1 run, 1 hit w/ 3 Ks & 0 BBs. The guy’s a nasty, strike-throwing machine. Please let him finish the season.

Bottom 7… after knocking in 4 runs on his previous 2 ABs, Baldwin hit his hardest smash of the day – a screamer hurtling toward the top of the LCF wall. Unfortunately, CF Denzel Clarke – again, with the names! – reached over the top of the fence with a spectacular, leaping snag and a finish that saw him land on his feet like he’d merely hopped over a pebble.

After Sale hit the showers, the relief pitching was lockdown variety. In came #75 Robert Suarez, who got a K, gave up a single, then induced a ’round-the-horn DP to neatly face the minimum in the 7th. Dylan Lee cruised through the 8th inning, only surrendering a bloop single. In the 9th, Raisel Iglesias gave up a one-out double to Jacob Wilson, but earned 2 Ks, including a weird one with former Met/eternal redass Jeff McNeil, who tipped strike 3 about a foot in the air where Baldwin caught it for the out. McNeil kicked dirt and cussed his way back to the Athletics’ dugout. A pop-out finished things.

Now, it’s onto the desert with a 4-game set with the D-Backs that starts tomorrow night at 9:40 EDT. It’ll be followed by 3 more vs. the Orange County Halos. Hopefully, this West Coast road trip will offer better results than last year’s traumatizing April trek. Go Braves.