Results tagged ‘ major league baseball ’
Repeating A Pattern
As soon as I made the statement that I was disappointed in the Braves 1 run loss to start the season, the attackers pounced. Claiming I was throwing in the towel, giving up on the season, over reacting and a multitude of other things. All of which were wrong. I was just pointing out that the Braves are repeating a pattern and it’s not a good one.
Over the past couple of years, the Braves have had a repetitive pattern to their game play. They have decent to very good pitching. They have some hitters who can get hits. They can get runners on base in most games. The pattern is that they can’t get runners across home plate to score runs. They end up losing games by 1 run in tight matchups, 1-0, 2-1, 3-2, over and over and over again throughout the season. It is a pattern they have repeated consistently for at least the last 2 years.
I realize that pitching has gotten much better. The science of pitching has greatly outpaced the science of hitting. The use of PEDs not withstanding (and it is still going on in large numbers don’t kid yourself) has not helped batters to overcome the improved pitching (and they may also be using PEDs). All things being equal (use of PEDs or not), the Braves have been unable in many games to get runners across the plate and win games. The RISP has been rising every single year. They can get runners on….they just can’t get them around.
The game to start the 2012 season was a perfect example. The Braves pitching was very good. The Mets had 4 hits and 1 run for the game. That’s very good pitching. The Mets pitching was very good. The Braves had zero runs, but they had 7 hits. That means they had 7 chances to score a run and didn’t. At least 7, this is based on hits only. Not walks or any other base reached event. They had those 7 chances off hits to score runs and could not do it. They lost the game 1-0. This is repeating a pattern and it’s not good and it does not bode well for the 2012 season.
The Braves have the pitching to compete in the NL East. They have some batters who can hit the ball. But if you cannot move those who get on base around the basepaths and score runs, you just are going to keep repeating the same pattern over and over and over again. This Braves fan is just pointing that out.
I never give up hope for a season until the last game is played. But it would be foolish to ignore what is so obvious and so repetitive. This is a pattern that the Braves have got to stop repeating if they want to get deep into the post season or into the World Series. You cannot do that if you are unable to stop losing games by 1 run. That’s just a fact, not a sign of giving up.
Happy Baseball Day
I like holidays for the most part but I think there are a few that are missing from the calendar. I truly believe that Major League Baseball opening day should be a national holiday. Luckily for me, it’s spring break here and I have the day off. Happy Baseball Opening Day day!
My Braves open the season today against the Mets. An NL East rivalry that has been in play for a long time. The Braves had had the winning end of most meetings with the Mets and it would seem likely they would win today, but the Braves have a lot of unanswered questions to start the season.
The biggest question is Tyler Pastornicky, the Braves new shortstop. Pastornicky’s spring totals went like this: 25 games, 68 AB, 9 runs, 15 hits, 2 doubles, 3 RBI, 5 BB, 6 SO, 2 stolen bases, 3 caught stealing for a .221 average. He also committed 3 errors in spring training in 146.1 innings played. The Braves have him batting 8th in the lineup today. He has a lot of questions to answer yet.
Another question is how things will play out at 3rd base with Chipper having surgery, announcing this is his last year, and playing probably only sparingly this season. Martin Prado will be playing 3rd today for the Braves. Chipper will be out for a while yet. Prado had an outstanding Spring and will bat second for the Braves today.
Still another question is the performance of Jason Heyward. Having worked on his swing and rehabbing his injuries of last year through the off-season, Heyward’s spring was encouraging but not overwhelmingly convincing. He did have 4 homeruns in the spring but carried an average of .227 in 25 games. The Braves have him batting seventh today to open the season.
Braves pitching also has a few questions with Hudson on the DL still and some shifting of starters and relief pitchers. Today, Tommy Hanson will open the season for the team. He had 1 win and 1 loss in Spring Training in 3 games. A 2.77 ERA giving up a total of 11 hits and 5 runs in 13 innings pitched.
The Braves line up for opening day is as follows: : Bourn cf, Prado 3b, McCann c, Uggla 2b, Freeman 1b, Diaz lf, Heyward rf, Pastornicky ss, Hanson rhp. To start the season, the Braves are counting on McCann, Uggla, Freeman to be the power of the lineup. Against the Mets, this may be good enough. Against the Phillies, well that remains to be seen.
It’s a very long season and this is the first day of many, but it’s opening day and for me it’s Happy Baseball Day.
Sneaky Dreams
Have you ever had a dream sneak up on you? Something you didn’t expect and you were jolted from a deep sleep wondering WTH just happened?! The Braves are sneaking a dream up on the NL East and the Wildcard and people are just barely paying attention. They are taking one light step at a time towards the division or wildcard.
As of today, 8/12/09, before the game with the Nats is finished the Braves are 4.5 games back in the NL East. The Phillies are in the lead with the Marlins 3.5 back and the Braves just lurking 4.5 back. Ever so lightly they have been sneaking up on the top spot. Only just now have the other teams started to look over their shoulder and say WTH, where did THEY come from.
The Wildcard race is no different. The Braves are slowly sneaking up, chipping away. They are tied for 3rd 3.0 games out. The Rockies are on top followed by the Giants 0.5 back, the Marlins 2.0, and the Cubbies tied with the Braves at 3.0 back. Each game sneaking up just a little bit more. Each win moving them closer, keeping them in.
I keep watching the dream. Replaying it in my head like so much YouTube video. Over and over not wanting to miss a single step and hoping no one else notices. Keeping it sneaky, keeping it quiet. Doing work. Until October is here and the rest of the NL is jolted awake from a deep sleep yelling WTH…where did THEY come from.
Dream on Chop Heads, dream on…
Even
And so we are even – 500. Middle ground and perhaps a place from which to climb. A foothold in a sea of mediocrity. Now 2.5 games back the Braves sit in a place of centered calm. One can always hope anyway.
A week of more wins than losses is always a good thing. The team took 2 of 3 from the Mets and split with the D-Backs in a rain postponed series. Lowe, Reyes, and Vazquez were all very good in their starts allowing a combined 6 runs in 3 games. Gonzo is performing brilliantly whether he’s in the 8th or 9th. Discounting Carlyle’s dismal performance against the D-Backs the team pitching performed very well for another week.
Our problem remains, as it has been, RISP. The Braves were abysmal with runners in scoring position. Let’s recap: Mets 5-17, Mets 2-12, Mets 4-12, DBacks 1-9, DBacks 0-5. The total LOB for 5 games was 46. FORTY SIX. That’s ridiculous. It doesn’t matter how wonderful the starting pitching is or the relief pitching is if you can’t get runners on and then move them around to score. You can’t win games just hoping your pitching can keep the other team off the bases. If you get runners on they have got to come around and score.
The team has 3 batters over .300, but they can’t bat all the time. Everyone has to produce. The pitching is doing their part…now we just have to get all these runners across home plate.
The team starts a 3 game series with the struggling Rockies tonight. It should be an interesting series with the Rockies up and down struggles. Maybe this time next week, we can be better than even.
Glimmers
Another week down my fellow Chop Heads and there are tiny glimmers of light. Ever so small, they peek through the fog beckoning us to follow, to believe. In the week that was, the Braves were 4 and 3. Glimmers, my friends, glimmers.
The start of the week had me believing we were still trapped in the fog. Two tough losses to the Mets 6-4 and then another of those dreaded 1 run games losing 4-3. The team then moved on to the struggling Marlins and took 2 wins with Derek Lowe picking up his fourth win of the year and Jurrjens with another strong outing and an overall ERA of 2.01. Next up, the Phillies. The Braves took 2 of 3 in the series with some very strong pitching by Vazquez and a nice recovery for the week by Kawakami.
The Braves starting pitching is among some of the best in the Majors right now. Lowe is 6th in total wins, Jurrjens 6th in ERA, Vazquez 3rd in Strikeouts. Here are the Braves starters latest ERA stats:
Jurrjens 2.01
Vazquez 3.88
Lowe 3.98
Reyes 5.48
Kawakami 5.79
The team still struggles with RISP and once again Chipper has hurt himself swinging the bat. McCann is still getting used to his eyeglasses. Schafer is still the king of the strikeout. But 4 wins is 4 wins in a week. Glimmers…it’s a small ray of light struggling to get through the fog. Today, a 3 game series with the Mets. Glimmers, Chop Heads, glimmers…
Deborah Horton
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