Do you think Braves can do it?

(more...)

2,474 comments Add your comment

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
10:58 pm

Nice numbers Joe

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
10:59 pm

Oh I’m fine Soph. They call me Cucumber

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:00 pm

Caleb King…he’s a Gwinnettian

Jurrjens4NLCY {Knoble.MLBlogs.com}

September 19th, 2009
11:00 pm

Soriano comes in with a 6 run lead…stinks up the joint, and that’s Bobby’s fault?? The logic some of you use is lost on me. It can’t be Bobby’s fault every single time things go bad…it just isn’t possible.

He could have been pulled, and should have been, he should have never been used…

kirkinga

September 19th, 2009
11:00 pm

WBC, well I just ask because he might not like how he is used, even though he’s the closer. I’m just speculating, but he might prefer to go where he doesn’t pitch but in close situations. As for salary, he’s going to make more than $3 million. He won’t get K-Rod $$$, but he and Gonzo both will get more than $3 million/year.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:01 pm

That was awesome.

Tomahawkin

September 19th, 2009
11:01 pm

Touchdown!

49-35 Now, Hell Yeah!

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:01 pm

AJ Green: “Sit down, ho!”

Brandon from Warner Robins

September 19th, 2009
11:01 pm

No one can cover #8!!!!

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:02 pm

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well I’ll tell you this right now, my face is in AJ’s poster.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:02 pm

Caleb went to Parkview, right?

And, it’s ho’ sit down. :-)

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:02 pm

And how bout Joe Cox eh?

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:02 pm

nolie – i got it today, will probably start it tonight.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:03 pm

And, GAC if I’m not mistaken.

rico43

September 19th, 2009
11:03 pm

Some Peter Gammons tripe FYI:

Kotchman a valuable addition

An overlooked deadline acquisition for the Red Sox is Casey Kotchman, who has yet to start hitting, but has clearly exhibited gold glove defensive capabilities. He had played in only 26 games and had 57 at-bats since coming over from the Braves for Adam LaRoche. There was a time when the Angels thought Kotchman was going to be a star or at worst Nick Johnson. He had more walks (158) and extra-base hits (148) than strikeouts (139) in his climb through the minor leagues.

“I still think he’ll hit, and I think he’ll hit big,” says Angels hitting coach Mickey Hatcher. “I hope he gets the chance in Boston, because this park is made for him. A lot of things have happened. He’s been hurt. He’s put too much pressure on himself. He gets too mad at umpires. But he’s only 26, and there’s plenty of time left. He could be a very important player with the Red Sox.”

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:03 pm

I think Caleb went to Parkview before transferring to GACS his senior year.

braves4ever

September 19th, 2009
11:04 pm

this Cox kid has shown a lot the last few weeks, and it doesn’t hurt having AJ Green either he was good last year.

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:04 pm

Joe = not as bad as I feared.

I’m not ready for his poster yet though. I need a few weeks before i just go jumping in people’s poster.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:05 pm

I was at the David Green 5 TD pass game :)

David O'Brien

September 19th, 2009
11:05 pm

How ’bout the Phillies getting two more hits against Soriano in one inning than they got in seven against Vazquez, not to mention four more runs against him….

Giants lost, but Florida won and Colorado blew it open in ninth and won big.

Here’s game story with quotes, unedited.

By David O’Brien
dobrien@ajc.com

Add Pedro Martinez to the list of streaking pitchers taken down by the Braves in eight days, and don’t write off Atlanta’s playoff aspirations just yet.

The Braves got another dominant start from Javier Vazquez and dealt Martinez his first loss with Philadelphia, keeping alive slim postseason chances with a 6-4 win against the Phillies on Saturday night at Turner Field.

The only negatives for the Braves: Rafael Soriano’s four-run ninth inning misadventure, and Adam LaRoche’s sore back that forced him out after 6-1/2 innings and could keep him from Sunday’s series finale.

Vazquez (14-9) pitched seven scoreless innings (three hits, three walks, six strikeouts) and got the kind of run support the Braves failed to give him for most of the season, particularly in home games.

“Vazquez was just sensational — he picked up right where he left off in St. Louis,” manager Bobby Cox said of the right-hander, who took a three-hit shutout to the ninth inning of a complete-game seven-hitter Sunday vs. the Cardinals.

Cox added: “Raffy had a rough ninth inning, for whatever reason.”

The Phillies scored all their runs against Soriano, including Ryan Howard’s eighth homer in as many games against the Braves. The potential tying run was at first when Ben Francisco flied out to end the game.

The Braves evened the series and send rookie sensation Tommy Hanson to the mound for Sunday’s rubber match against Phillies ace Cliff Lee.

The Phillies hold a commanding seven-game lead over Florida and 7-1/2-game edge over Atlanta in the National League East, with only 14 to play for the Braves.

The Braves are fourth in the wild-card standings, still 4-1/2 games behind leader Colorado. Atlanta closed to within one game of San Francisco and remained a half-game behind Florida.

“We’ve just got to keep winning games and see where we are at the end of the season,” Vazquez said. “That’s the only thing we can control, winning games.”

Vazquez is doing his part, going 9-2 in his past 13 starts. He’s just 5-7 in 15 home starts despite a 2.85 home ERA, and the Braves scored one or no runs while he was in six of his previous nine home games.

“It’s much easier when the guys score some runs for you,” said Vazquez, who gave “props” to the Braves for giving him an early lead the second game in a row.

They racked up seven hits and three runs in the second and third innings against Martinez (5-1), who left after that with neck stiffness. It was the 100th loss of the three-time Cy Young Award winner’s career, against 219 wins.

Matt Diaz kept up his thing for Phillies pitching with a two-run homer off Chad Durbin in the fifth. Diaz has hit .419 with 14 extra-base hits (six homers) and 19 RBIs in his past 24 games against Philadelphia.

Martinez had his worst start since he signed with Philly after returning from shoulder surgery. He was 3-0 with a 1.66 ERA in his past three before Saturday, including eight scoreless innings in a 130-pitch outing Sunday against the Mets.

The Braves beat Cardinals pitchers Joel Pineiro and Chris Carpenter last weekend, snapping Pineiro’s 8-0 streak and Carpenter’s 11-0. They jumped on Martinez with three consecutive hits to start both the second and third.

Garret Anderson got it going in the second when he beat a defensive shift by punching a double through the wide-open gap at third base.

LaRoche had a pair of RBI singles in the second and third, two hits matching his previous career total in 21 at-bats against Martinez. Brian McCann had a run-scoring single in the third, giving him 12 RBIs in eight games.

Lowe ready to go?

Derek Lowe said his blister is healed and he’ll be ready to make his scheduled start Monday against the Mets in New York. Cox said that was still uncertain and the Braves could start Kenshin Kawakami instead.

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:05 pm

TD Auburn too….lemme check and see if Texas Tech wants to play my “i turn to your channel you score a td” game.

Roman Gal

September 19th, 2009
11:06 pm

“He definitely does a lot of things that a lot of veteran guys do,” Broadway said. “But … he hasn’t done nothing else that I haven’t seen.”

I wonder was Broadway thinks about AJ now?

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:07 pm

David Greene = Gwinnettian too.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:07 pm

I think at the very worst Joe will be average. But he could be one of the best QBs in the SEC who doesn’t carry around a harp.

Problem is we’ll have to play this “how’s our QB gonna be?” game next year too.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:08 pm

Jeff Francoeur – Gwinnettian t….

nevermind.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:09 pm

Jeff Francoeur – Gwinnettian t….

nevermind.

Yeah, I only claim B-Mac.

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:09 pm

Forget this, I didn’t switch to this channel to see texas score

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:09 pm

My goodness….we’re 1 point from 50. I don’t think Stafford and Moreno ever got 50.

David O'Brien

September 19th, 2009
11:10 pm

RHR, yeah, the boys play a little football at KU. Gotta do something to get everyone loose and ready for basketball season. Last I checked, the football Jayhawks were ranked down there between 20 and 25 in the national polls — right there with the ‘Dawgs.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:11 pm

I was wrong…we scored 50 against Central Michegan and LSU last year

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:11 pm

Hey I saw your team beat Carroll’s team today. And yeah, I saw them in the rankings too, impressive! I told you not to be cutting me with your keyboard. I felt some air go by but you missed me that time.

YUNIFAN

September 19th, 2009
11:12 pm

ESPN Boston was launched in this week I believe.
ESPN Chicago was launched this past spring.
ESPN Dallas is supposed to launch in late Sept./early October.
ESPN also plans to launch New York and Los Angeles early next year.

I had to read an article about it this week for my sport management classes. The article was in the Sport Business Journal.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:12 pm

Yeah Kansas was top 10 a couple years ago, I believe.

beachcomber

September 19th, 2009
11:13 pm

“Raffy had a bad ninth for whatever reason.” It’s the same reason we lost last night. Our pitchers refuse to exploit the hole in Ryan Howard’s swing that is as big as Arkansas. Instead they keep feeding him stuff middle out that he can extend on. There is a reason he strikes out 200 times year. We apparently haven’t figured that out.

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:14 pm

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:14 pm

Dacula had a couple guys in the NFL (Kenny and David Irons) but they’re not around anymore.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:15 pm

Jurrjens4NLCY {Knoble.MLBlogs.com}

September 19th, 2009
11:15 pm

Screw College Football!!

nolie

September 19th, 2009
11:15 pm

he should have never been used… (JJ)

why in the world should he have never been used? It’s his damn job, ..he gets paid well to do it.
He has succeeded more often than failed, so again why shouldn’t he have been used? and he finally succeeded, and they didn’t have to burn another guy. Sheeesh!

nolie

September 19th, 2009
11:17 pm

i got it today, will probably start it tonight. (RHR)

let me know what you think when you finish.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:18 pm

Drew Butler you are the man

Ew…Bret Favre, you are not.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:18 pm

Yeah…Meadowcreek didn’t.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:19 pm

I think Meadowcreek’s got a couple of future NFLers on their team this year.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:20 pm

David O'Brien

September 19th, 2009
11:20 pm

Got a couple of quotes that couldn’t fit in the tight space we had for everything in the paper tonight.

LaROCHE ON FACING PEDRO (LaRoche went 2-for-2 against him tonight, was 2-for-21 against him previoiusly):

“He’s different from the old days, when you had to worry about 96 [mph] by you. You’ll get any pitch in any count now, no rhyme or reason, no pattern. You have to be ready. You look for him to miss up with something, and try to hit it hard. We got lucky and found some holes tonight.”

DIAZ on GETTING SOME RUNS FOR VAQUEZ:

“Vazky’s [time out: how do you spell 'Vazky'?] been one of the most consistent, best pitchers in the game this season, him and J.J. It’s a shame we haven’t scored enough runs to give them enough wins to have their names mentioned as much as they should be nationally.”

Missouri Fan!

September 19th, 2009
11:21 pm

Hey DOB, M-I-Z F-K-U!

Haha sorry man, but i gotta show some love to my Tigers.

David O'Brien

September 19th, 2009
11:21 pm

Garrett Anderson, who’s not a dead-pull hitter by any stretch, was surprised to see that shift employed against him in the second inning.

“If you’re going to give me that much room, I’ll make an adjustment,” he said, and that’s what he did by hitting that double through that huge unoccupied space at third base.

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:21 pm

will do, nolie.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:21 pm

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:22 pm

That’s because he’s a professional hitter. I’ll miss Loaf. He’s been one of my faves this year.

MIBravesFan

September 19th, 2009
11:22 pm

DOB, your spelling of “Vazky” is as good as it gets!

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:22 pm

Hmmm, I probably would’ve spelled it Vazqy but Vazky works too.

Mitchell

September 19th, 2009
11:23 pm

Tomahawkin

September 19th, 2009
9:46 pm
I Second That, Both Me and Mitchell feel a BF coming on…This might get Nasty!

Somebody seriously has to explain what BF and MFIKY mean.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:23 pm

I love how the Razorback mascot is wearing a cape. Like he’s a magician or something.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:23 pm

Alright Caleb! Success lives here

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:24 pm

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:24 pm

Alright Caleb! Success lives here

Dork. :roll:

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:24 pm

Except when it moves to Flushing.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:25 pm

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:25 pm

You’re a dork.

Roman Gal

September 19th, 2009
11:26 pm

how do you spell ‘Vazky’?

That sounds Russian.

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:27 pm

I can see Russia from ….. nevermind

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:27 pm

Hair could be your friend, Joe

Missouri Fan!

September 19th, 2009
11:27 pm

“How do you spell ‘Vazky’”

“Cy Young.”

:)

Couch Tater

September 19th, 2009
11:28 pm

When did UGA & Arkansas join the WAC?

MIBravesFan

September 19th, 2009
11:28 pm

Yes, DOB, Kansas can play football too — congrats! I used to believe MSU could play both, too, but, alas, ….

Missouri Fan!

September 19th, 2009
11:28 pm

Oh, DOB, did you see the Nebraska/Va. Tech game? I was so happy.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:28 pm

Joe Cox looks nothing like his dad.

glord1

September 19th, 2009
11:32 pm

I have to admit it is fun watching Petrino lose.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:32 pm

Yay, Petrino lost!

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:32 pm

Ballgame! UGA/Braves are 2-0 today

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:33 pm

And 9-1 since last Saturday

MIBravesFan

September 19th, 2009
11:33 pm

Congrats Bulldogs

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:34 pm

My daughter just sent me this text “Yay! USC lost!” :lol: I love how she’s my little mini me.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:34 pm

Joe Cox sure is red

TnBrian(Vazquez ace 2010)

September 19th, 2009
11:34 pm

Here’s an idea:

Give Javy an extension as soon as possible. The more I watch this man dominate great lineups, the more sickening it is to imagine him getting traded. I’m saying this because from the outside, it seems like a no brainer to trade him with his value so high for other needs(p-hitter). Once you’ve seen him start after start be this good than no fu*** way.

Let Hudson walk. Find another way to get a hitter… period

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:35 pm

Maybe he’s blushing, jeffrey. You don’t know.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:35 pm

When is he not red?

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:35 pm

If I texted my mom “USC lost!” first, it would take her about 10 minutes to figure out how to read it. Then she’d be like “what’s USC?”

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:35 pm

omg another auburn td as soon as i switch to that channel

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:37 pm

Maybe he’s blushing, jeffrey. You don’t know.

Then Joe Cox must be embarrassed a LOT

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:37 pm

RHR, use your powers for good.

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:39 pm

i love how espn and abc show crowd reactions every time something happens…unless its my team they’re showing the reaction of. But I mean, its always good tv to see the stunned, mouth hanging open, face of a fan whose dream for the night has just been crushed.

TnBrian(Vazquez ace 2010)

September 19th, 2009
11:39 pm

The Braves shouldn’t be anywhere near the playoff race. It’s a miracle they’re this close. Bad,bad,bad and even more inconsistant hitting through the year, especially the first half, would have had most teams under .500 right now and thinking all about next year. Talk about a pitching staff… My God!

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:40 pm

Just saw the replay of the USC game….wow was Corp ugly

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:41 pm

haha sounds like my mom, jeffrey. even better, my mom CALLS me and tells me to text my daughter something for her. From my phone. I’m like WTF? she has voice mail you know.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:41 pm

They probably won’t drop too much in the rankings. The voters seem to use Bobby Cox logic

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:41 pm

Just saw the replay of the USC game….wow was Corp ugly

Don’t get cab started on him.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:42 pm

oooooh moms are funny.

jeffrey d

September 19th, 2009
11:43 pm

Oh I can imagine….Corp just had ball after ball swatted away

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:43 pm

Mixxo, if you’re here:

Falcons tomorrow! :-D

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:44 pm

i gotta go to the gro store. hope nobody gets bozo’ed while i’m gone

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:44 pm

Or, has a BF…

RHR

September 19th, 2009
11:45 pm

and you’re right about sc and the rankings…they’ll drop to like … 5, 6 at the very worst. :roll:

Acorn

September 19th, 2009
11:45 pm

Is there any doubt that Javier Vazquez is the Braves MVP for 2009? Wren needs to make the right decision for 2010 and keep Javy and Hudson. Trade Kawakami. Even if it is a salary dump, trading Kawakami makes the most sense. Work out a contract with Hudson where you decline the option next year, yet sign him to a three year 30 million dollar deal.

Lowe – 15 m
Vazquez – 11.5 m
Hudson – 10 m
Hanson – 400 K
Jurrjens – 500 K

37.5 million starting rotation

The offense didn’t cost much this year. The bullpen is losing their two most expensive players. There is money to add what this team needs. The issue is replacing Soriano and Gonzalez. I think there is enough in the bullpen now for a set-up by commitee. Signing a closer like Billy Wagner for one year would be the route to go. He won’t cost that much, he just wants a place to close. 4-5 million should do it.

That would leave tons of money for the offense.

this just in.................

September 19th, 2009
11:46 pm

Caleb King transfered out of Parkview because he couldn’t pass the senior exit exam for public schools.

TnBrian(Vazquez ace 2010)

September 19th, 2009
11:46 pm

I’m on a roll here… We should all be willing to give Wren time to fix this team. Fixed the rotation and he will fix the offense. Hopefully he can somehow do it over the winter… we’ll see.

Gant was harping on the fact that the team definitely needs speed. Oh yeah, do they ever. But, when you have power missing from the lineup and speed missing there, how does one fix both and still manage to keep the pieces that are here right now… especially with a tight budget?

Jimmy Joe

September 19th, 2009
11:47 pm

I think it’s hilarious that bloggers continue to demand that Wren extends Hudson while no one is asking Wren to extend Vazquez, who is clearly the better pitcher at this point in their careers.

Soph

September 19th, 2009
11:52 pm

I still haven’t seen the Va Tech highlight. McFann said it was a great game.

MIBravesFan

September 19th, 2009
11:53 pm

I have come around to the keeping Javy over Huddy school of thought, and that frees up money for the offense, but who is the power bat you can buy in free agency? And how much will it cost?

Add your comment