Freeman feeling better, heating up
Between his finger injury and vision problems, Freddie Freeman’s sophomore season has come with its share of frustrations.
But the Braves the 22-year-old first baseman has been picking up momentum at the plate, and he said it has a lot to do with feeling better physically. Freeman said he feels as good as he has in two months, which has given him his confidence back.
“You have confidence in your body – in your eyes and your hand – and you can go out there and not think about things,” Freeman said. “Just play.”
Freeman had a second cortisone shot in his left index finger over the All-Star break which has helped him grip the bat better. The only time he said his finger has really “rattled” lately is catching a hard throw to first base by Craig Kimbrel or by shortstop Andrelton Simmons before his injury.
“It’s a whole lot better than it was,” Freeman said. “I don’t even think about it anymore.”
For a while there Freeman said he wasn’t even taking any practice swings in the on-deck circle, just taking one swing at the plate before preparing for the first pitch. Now he’s back to his usual seven to nine practice swings.
Freeman is seeing results at the plate. He entered Tuesday’s game on a seven-game hitting streak, while batting .426 (12-for-26) with three doubles and two home runs. He’d hit .342 (26-for-76) with 10 extra-base hits and 17 RBIs his previous 21 games.
“He’s had some nagging stuff that’s tough – his eyes and he was hit in the hand,” said Jason Heyward, who went through his share of injuries as a second-year player too. “Those are two tough things when it comes to hitting. It’s already tough enough. He’s battled through it and we appreciate that – not going on the DL, staying in the lineup as much as possible and fighting through it. Things like that help teams go a long way.”
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37 comments Add your comment
Chief Knockadouble
July 17th, 2012
8:03 pm
OMG would Joe Simpson please SHUT UP about the call at second base. For one thing, he was safe. I didn’t hear much about the missed call at second where the Giants runner was probably safe.
kerryb
July 17th, 2012
8:25 pm
If this doesn’t show the Braves they need to make a deal for an established starter and dump JJ I don’t know what will. JJ is not a top line pitcher anymore. He is a 5th starter at best.
SOS Braves
July 17th, 2012
8:27 pm
JJ threw nothing but meatballs all night. Had a feeling the Giants would WAX us tonight.
kerryb
July 17th, 2012
8:29 pm
Why can’t our hitters hit like this? Oh I forgot, we are not facing garbage pitchers like they are.
SOS Braves
July 17th, 2012
8:30 pm
Straighten your hat JJ. You can’t pitch either.
Glenn
July 17th, 2012
8:32 pm
would someone tell the braves the day off was yesterday.
kerryb
July 17th, 2012
8:34 pm
Freeman might be felling better but JJ still sucks.
kerryb
July 17th, 2012
8:35 pm
JJ has not been the same since he refuses to have his knee worked on. They just need to option him and be done. He is not the same pitcher and looks like he never will be. Boras has lost a lot of money on this one. He will be cutting him next.
Virginia Brave Fan
July 17th, 2012
8:35 pm
I want JJ to succeed, really I do, but I find it difficult to root for him when he pouts so much on the mound. Throw the ball and stop grandstanding. I look forward to a rotation of Hudson, Beachy, and three of Minor/Sheets/Delgado/Tehran/Medlen/Vizciano. (I don’t see Hanson here long term)
extremus
July 17th, 2012
8:37 pm
Jurrjens’ initial outings since his return were encouraging, but the other shoe definitely dropped tonight. By now we all know that Frank Wren isn’t one to make hasty moves, but this starting rotation can’t be considered anything but dangerously inconsistent right now. I sense some turnover in this team’s future, definitely during the winter if it doesn’t happen by the trade deadline. The bigger question is, will the pieces that are in place/brought in be enough to get the Braves to the playoffs and a possible World Series? No way to know right now, but I know one thing: if Ben Sheets stays healthy and pitches like he did the other night it’ll be the biggest mid-season pickup they’ve made under Wren’s watch.
Mookie
July 17th, 2012
8:42 pm
Why did Freddy wait to make the change when he had the lefty/lefty matchup? The Braves ack like there is an issue with handeling pressure! McCann getting mad, Prado acking like a gold glove ? in left, Chipper showing his age. If I was Freddy, I would call everybody up in the dugout and let them know this is not the way we play Braves Baseball!
the don of the real
July 17th, 2012
8:45 pm
As a Giants fan, I don’t watch many Braves games, but is this Braves team always this lethargic? Chipper Jones barely ran out that last double play, didn’t really try to get Baked Zito’s grounder; pitcher can’t touch 1st base. Was there a big party last night & the team is hungover?
I was worried flying across the country, and then playing in the ATL’s hot & humid air would slow the Giants down….
mountain_jim
July 17th, 2012
9:13 pm
This game was within reach, even with all the mistakes, until Chipper ole’d that potential double-play to allow the next 6 runs.
But JJ looks like he’s headed back down to the minor leagues.
mountain_jim
July 17th, 2012
9:15 pm
No, the don of the real, the whole team looks like they are in a stupor tonight – very disapointing plays from multiple usually reliabale folks, plus JJ reverting to his below-average pitching.
mountain_jim
July 17th, 2012
9:16 pm
reliable – I guess I caught the stupor as well.
Nerdville
July 17th, 2012
9:16 pm
What a joke. Completely exposed. You are seeing what Frank Wren’s team looks like when it has to play a good team. The Giants will probably sweep them.
alex
July 17th, 2012
9:50 pm
can’t win them all,but Uggla is really a mess:hey Frank,sure could use that 13.5 million ??
Carl Farvman
July 17th, 2012
10:12 pm
“OMG would Joe Simpson please SHUT UP about the call at second base.”
Simpson makes a living out of properly covering 1/2 of each game. By his count no bad call has ever happened to the opposing club. I stopped listening to that nitwit. He will rant about a ball/strike only when it effectsthe Braves. A review will often confirm the call and he will still actas ifitwasnot correct. He is horrible.
Yogi Berra
July 17th, 2012
10:13 pm
yea, uggla batting about $1.99
Yogi Berra
July 17th, 2012
10:14 pm
Game tonight is another good reason Braves need to trade for right handed hitter.
BravesfaninWis
July 17th, 2012
10:27 pm
They can’t win them all, I get that. But to come out that flat and get completely embarrassed on your home field is down right unacceptable. My god, show a little heart will you. The Giants had more hits through the 3rd inning than the Braves had all night, and obviously more runs.
That is the thing with this team, they look so good for 7-8 games in a row, then look so god awful in the next. How can a team go from one extreme to the next? This team has done it many of times this year already. What now, a 8 game losing streak? That wouldn’t surprise me in the least bit, we have all seen it several times this year alone.
Now don’t talk to negative about these Braves everyone, especially when you have the AJC Board Police out like Tampa Gator and Reckingball, they will put your right in your place quick, fast, and in a hurry.
kennyj55
July 17th, 2012
10:30 pm
Nice!. Thank God we got that outing from Jurrjens. Seals the truth for Wren that the Braves need to go all-in for a 1 or 2 starter by the deadline. Hopefully they can land the right stud in the mix of so many other GMs looking for the same thing. Last year at this time, when they were playing top 5 baseball, I was totally with them on holding their key prospects and seeking a prudent roster adjustment (Bourne for essentially nothing) to balance both worlds – present and future. This year, I’m all for trading a future blue chip or two to go for it right now. Jair removed any doubt tonight. That should help our GM muster all the courage it takes to make the bold trade(s) he needs to make. My hopes are up and my fingers are crossed.
BravesfaninWis
July 17th, 2012
10:32 pm
Oh and surprise, surprise, the Nationals won their game. The Braves always get right there, just withing striking distance, then boom, they get brought back into reality. They can’t just ever seem to find a way to play good enough to take the division lead and keep it. They have the makings of a very good team, they just don’t have the heart or passion to get where they need to be. This team will not be the division champions this year because they simply don’t have the desire to be. Now lets see if they can win 1 of the 2 wildcard spots, I have my doubts on that as well.
Andrelton Simmons
July 17th, 2012
10:53 pm
Freeman needs to be hitting 3rd not JHey. If Freeman hadn’t hurt his eye he would have better offensive stats in every category than JHey just like he did before he had the eye injury.
Don’t believe all the hype, Heyward is nothing other than a streaky offensive player whose an average hitter a lot more than he is a big time hitter. Heyward had a hot month, but not he’s back to the regular J-Hey that strikes out a ton and hits a meaningless HR every once in a while.
JHey in April – .273 avg, .341 OBP, only 7 XBH, 9 RBI’s, and 8 walks, but he had 20 K’s
JHey in May – .200 avg, .315 OBP, 9 XBH, 14 RBI’s, 14 walks, but he had 30 yes 30 K’s
JHey in June – .348 avg, .379 OBP, 16 XBH, 15 RBI’s, only 5 walks, and only 15 K’s
JHey in July – .270 avg, .339 OBP, 2 XBH, 6 RBI’s, 5 walks, and already 15 K’s.
3 months he’s nothing other than an average at best hitter, but June he was great. Think this shows june was an outlier and April, May, and July are what we should come to expect from “the real” Jason Heyward.
Alan Baseball
July 18th, 2012
5:58 am
Did anyone see JJ throw a pitch above 90 MPH? he was around 87-88 all night with his fastball, and we know from experience that when he’s not healthy his velocity drops. i can understand that. what i can’t understand is his body language….he looks defeated when he starts struggling. hitters feed off that, and battle you even more when you look like you’re done. as a starting pitcher for an MLB team, you need to be tough, and battle every pitch. if he can’t do that, he doesn’t belong in The Show.
Kashi
July 18th, 2012
9:14 am
Whats the problem that we can’t develope a PITCHER of our own from farm system? Is it a bad luck, wrong draf picks, manager not doing their job, or a pitcher just can’t pitch? What the heck is wrong?
Ken Stallings
July 18th, 2012
9:15 am
This criticism of Joe Simpson is so stupid! You folks who do this are not watching the games. Many times I have heard him directly say the Braves got the benefit of a bad call that went against the opposition, and this includes strikes and balls. The Braves can win 7 games in a row and then lose one and the trolls come out of hiding. Truly ridiculous!
VinceVanGo
July 18th, 2012
9:53 am
Don’t forget that this story was about Freeman. It shows how upset the Braves fans are. So I guess I”ll join in. Since Freeman & Heyward are showing good signs of hitting since multiple injuries, maybe someone should poke Dan Uggla in the eyes, break his finger, put him on the DL, and then maybe he can improve when he comes back. Problem is that you probably can’t get all of that done in the time left in the season.
FireFrediot!!!
July 18th, 2012
10:08 am
There’s something about Sunday baseball . . . after a game on Sunday, they come out flat the next game be it on Monday, Tuesday or whatever. What is it guys, just can’t get in the “work mode” again????? Seems to me these guys make enough money at their “jobs” they would even work on their “off days”!!!!! Somebody needs to be fired to get their attention . . .
VinceVanGo
July 18th, 2012
10:28 am
I’ve said before that I believe that Frank Wren reads these fan blogs. He would not be a good GM if he didn’t because a good GM knows that the pulse of the fans is important to a team organization, and that many of the avid fans have watched the team as intently if not more so than the GM. So here is my suggestion to you Frank. After last night you know that you need another starting pitcher. Dempster apparently has the Braves in his top two. If you intend to go for Dempster do it now. I mean by the end of business on Thursday. Why? The Braves are playing two of the division leaders. If they go 2-5, or 3-4 it could be the end of any hope to win the division, and a big stake in the wild card heart. If you wan’t Dempster, don’t give the farm away but get him in time to pitch in the Nationals series this weekend. It’ll show the fans and the Nationals that you mean business. If you don’t intend to get Dempster or anyone else, then please maker Fredi plug Medlen into the rotation and make Minor & Jurrgens battle for the 5th spot.
CRMAC300
July 18th, 2012
10:53 am
Hey, guys, lighten up. Braves have won 7 out of 8! Even Sandy Koufax got rocked once in awhile! I certainly am not comparing JJ to Koufax, but every pitcher has a bad day. This is the first bad outing for JJ since he came back. Cut him a little slack! Let’s see what he does in his next start before choosing the firing squad! Maybe we should see if Uggla can pitch. He might contribute that way!
PEPr
July 18th, 2012
10:57 am
Guys and Gals
I think that the Braves should “take the rag off the bush”
and go all out (top prospects,etc) for King Felix! Don’t waste time with these other suspects.
DJ
July 18th, 2012
11:34 am
sutton is worse than simpson
willieghateslibertymedia
July 18th, 2012
2:39 pm
the braves need to go to colorado and choke the life out who ? liberty media take them out to supper made them payrfo the meal and kick the crap out of them frank wren.
willieghateslibertymedia
July 18th, 2012
2:42 pm
yes get ichiro and king felix from seattle for minor, delgado and pastornicky and matt diaz and 2 from the minors .
takeiteasy
July 18th, 2012
4:58 pm
I see that the BOO-BIRDS are out again. OK, so we lost one. I’ll take 7-1 all day. It is not the loss, but how we come back that matters. If all you BOO-BIRDS would cheer and support as much as you criticize, we might develop a good fan base. OK, so the pitching is not what we expected. Try supporting instead of spewing the horrible words I read in this blog. We can state opinions with being so hateful.
reason
July 19th, 2012
12:39 pm
Cabrera, the other moron are very low-class individual with no real education.
Bourne and Uggla are hurting the Braves real bad, to the point they strike out more, then they contribute to any win.
The Braves do everything half way, they WILL NOT MAKE IT THIS YEAR, OR IN THE NEAR FUTURE.
They just don’t have consistence, or the fortitude , and the back bone of it all desire…….