If Braves send message to Phillies, it will be done nicely
Braves and Phillies meet for first time since 2010 finale, when Atlanta won to make playoffs.
The Braves and Phillies don’t conjure up thoughts of a great rivalry, probably because the teams generally involved in great rivalries usually have a certain degree of contempt for each other. They think the other brags too much or whines too much or is too arrogant or is just kinda dumb.
Do you ever get that sense when the Braves and Phillies meet?
“We have a healthy respect for the Phillies,” Braves general manager Frank Wren said.
“I think of them as a model club,” Philadelphia general manager Ruben Amaro said.
Group hug.
The 1 and 1A of the National League East Division meet for the first time this season in Friday’s home opener at Turner Field. It’s chapter one of 18 for the mutual admiration society.
It seems difficult for Braves’ fans to work up a good hatred for the Phillies. The problem with the Phillies is, they’re just good. They’re not really obnoxious when they win. They’re not all that much fun to mock when they lose.
They almost don’t belong in Philadelphia. Maybe somewhere closer to Lancaster, with the Amish.
Little did the Braves realize after this division-clinching win over Colorado in 2005 that it would be their last East title for a while.
When the Braves were battling the New York Mets for the N.L. East, that defined a rivalry. Chipper Jones loved tormenting the Mets and their fans so much that he named his son Shea. (Jones was a career .313 hitter with 19 home runs at Shea Stadium. When it was demolished, it was a wonder he didn’t hold a candlelight vigil.)
When Tom Glavine went to New York, the reaction was, “Of all the teams, he signed with the Mets?” But when Glavine went 9-14 with a 4.52 ERA in his first season as a Met, it was much funnier than if he was a Brewer.
Even Wren, who’s not one to take shots at opponents, contrasted the Mets’ rivalry with the Phillies. And he put it so nicely: “I would say in our head-to-head rivalry with the Mets, the teams were not as mutually respectful as in this one.”
Why?
“I just think it always was the tone. I don’t know why. It predated me, starting back in the ’90s. There was a little additional animosity there.”
The Braves won 14 straight division titles, the last nine coming after realignment moved them from the West to the East. The Phillies have won the last four. The Mets had one sandwiched in between in 2006 — kind of like the off-ramp connecting two interstates.
Nothing will be decided this weekend, any more than the results from the Braves’ first week of games in Washington and Milwaukee mean they’re going to be a .500 team (being two-hit by Yovani Gallardo in Milwaukee was not on anybody’s radar). But even Amaro said, “It’s a great gauge for us as far as seeing where we think we stand against the elite clubs in our division. We play each other so many times that there’s no surprises, but obviously both clubs have made some changes. We understand it’ll be a difficult series. They understand it’ll be a difficult series.”
The Braves are 18-18 against Philly in the last two seasons. They won the regular-season finale at Turner Field last year to win the wild card berth. They would rather not make that a habit.
They will officially unveil a wild card banner against Philadelphia, but that doesn’t nearly carry the same weight as if they were unveiling a division title flag. Actually, it’s a little strange, given the team that beat them out will be in the other dugout. The Phillies also have stolen a page out of the Braves’ past by building one of the greatest starting pitching rotations in history — Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt — possible positioning them to extend this streak of division titles for years. But the Braves probably have a better lineup, with the Phillies missing the injured Chase Utley and departed Jayson Werth and the Braves adding Dan Uggla. Amaro acknowledges Atlanta’s bullpen probably is better.
“They have some great young arms,” Amaro said.
“They are the reigning division champions,” Wren counters.
Not expecting a bean ball war.
By Jeff Schultz
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143 comments Add your comment
Philly Phan
April 7th, 2011
6:18 pm
Being a diehard Phillies fan for over 55 years, I don’t have the slightest of ill feelings towards the Atlanta Braves organization. I think I admire and respect your team much more than the majority of your own bloggers. Atlanta is the only team that has the potential to take the NL east away from Philly. I think this weekend’s series will go a long way to see if that potential is real.
dean
April 7th, 2011
6:27 pm
Damm, Joe Tess.
I was hoping you’d stay away until football season. It’s not still snowing in Nebraska, is it? (Is it hard herding sheep in the snow?)
Have a Great day.
By-the-way, 4% of the season has been played. Jeff’s right. Nothing has been decided yet. Let’s talk at the end of June.
Wildcard Banner
April 7th, 2011
6:28 pm
hahahahahahaha!!!! wild card……hahahahaha
dean
April 7th, 2011
6:35 pm
Philly Phan,
We just don’t like anything from Philly. Sorry. Nothing personal. I hope the Eagles suck this year. Bad luck (but wishing No injuries) to the Phillies this weekend. I hope the Braves kick their assses with each game being a 4 to 5 run bottom of the ninth win. Psyche-killer wins.
dean
April 7th, 2011
6:36 pm
Yeah. No chit. “Wild Card” banner?
Leave it in the closet, please.
bruce
April 7th, 2011
6:43 pm
the Philly players may be respected but the Philly fans in Philly are rude, nasty, even hateful to their fans of the opposing team. My wife says she will not go again. I wear a shirt over my braves t-shirt going to and from my seat. Several have tried to pick a fight after the game on the subway train. I am glad to know that the Braves Organization believes the Philly organization is worthy of platitutdes, their fans are not.
mjn
April 7th, 2011
7:13 pm
All this hype for nothing. They look the same as last yrear, no offense. I’m sick of this crap. They went up against no name pitchers and did nothing. I fear what is going to happen this weekend. After the first week, they could already be 5 or 6 games out.
anotherbrave
April 7th, 2011
7:20 pm
What do you expect? With Bobby Cox as manager, and Terry Pendleton as the hitting coach ……. no, that can’t be it. It’s got to be Joe Tess and his fish house. Every cents he got on hear, tha Braves hav bin loosing!
Rodney Dangerfield
April 7th, 2011
7:23 pm
So Bruce, Philly fans are really gator fans?
ab initio
April 7th, 2011
8:02 pm
Why panic? Well, I wouldn’t panic, but there is a very real possibility that the Braves could be 3-7 after Sunday. Either way, the hitting is crap, Hanson is atrocious, and at best a number 5 starter on 3/4 of the teams in the majors.
Mark
April 7th, 2011
8:10 pm
The braves suck. You can’t win with a weak offense. 8 runs in 4 games. Shutout in one game. The pitchers will start giving up soon because the offense is so pathetic. Bobby must be smiling.
Series
April 7th, 2011
8:13 pm
Fri Philly 5 Atl 1
Sat Philly 7 Atl 2
Sun Philly 6 Atl 1
See those phillies scoring runs? 11-0 today. Your offense is a sad joke. Bunch of wanna be’s.
Brody
April 7th, 2011
8:14 pm
6 game losing streak on the horizon
Kyle
April 7th, 2011
8:31 pm
Matt,
You are the kind of guy that is probably thrilled that they went to the playoffs all those years and got one World Series in a Strike shortened year. Philadelphia would never loose 3 of 4 to this “playoff team” you are high on and that is the difference in a team that can win a World Series and this crap. I’m one of the few from here so I’ve seen this for 42 years and it just gets old.
jl
April 7th, 2011
8:33 pm
Different year same old S##T ! Can’t hit, and new guys really SUCK!!! Freddie, Jason and Fish Face could not hit the barn with a bag of rocks. Why Chipper would come back to these jerks is beyond me, he would have to really love to play baseball. These guys are going nowhere!! Oh yeah, how about Nate McOUT???
Brotherly Love
April 7th, 2011
8:35 pm
Grinch, get over yourself buddy. Its all media driven, and that is why we in Philadelphia have the right to defend our fandom by asking writer to stop spewing generalities about our city. Do you know know when the infamous snowball at Santa Claus happened? Probably not, bc if you are under 50, you probably don’t remember it…..I don’t, I wasn’t born yet. How does that have anything to do with today’s fans? Its just a way for the media to lead in with some bs story how we are always doing something to keep up our reputation. Sure, some fans do stupid things, but only in Philadelphia does it become such a national headline based on an incident that happened over 40 years ago. Every city has idiots, even Atlanta as based on some of the post I have read here. Maybe because now we have good teams every year, people now more than ever need to hate on us bc they can’t laugh at our team. All I know is NO other city would stick with a franchise of 10,000 losses or a horrible NFL team through the 80’s and still sell out games and be passionate about their team. I mean you can hear a pindrop at Falcons games in a dome, aren’t they blacked out every week? I feel bad for Matty Ice as we went to the same high school…….I know he’d rather be here. So lay off us and lets enjoy the games on the field.
Worm
April 7th, 2011
8:38 pm
Message sent-BRAVES pitiful.
cheshire
April 7th, 2011
8:48 pm
it’s a great question… i mean everyone hates NY teams, so it’s not a surprise there. And I think that has more to do with New Yorkers and the media love for all things New York. People just get tired of it.
The fact of the matter is that the Phillies are a classy organization, so you can’t hate them. But most every sports fan I talk to agrees that Philadelphia has the most disgusting, easy-to-hate fans of any city. So it’s surprising we don’t hate them more. I think it’s just that the Phillies outclass the city they have to play in.
Jeff Schultz
April 7th, 2011
8:50 pm
Wow, some of you folks are going off the deep end. Seven games down, 155 to go. Chill folks.
Jeff Schultz
April 7th, 2011
8:51 pm
Tucker T — I would love to see an Amish Beer Softball League game. How great would that be?
cheshire
April 7th, 2011
8:51 pm
I agree Jeff, but it’s understandable. I mean how many times do the Braves have to let us down before we just start expecting it? It’s ridiculous.
Jeff Schultz
April 7th, 2011
8:52 pm
LY – I know what you mean. I can’t believe I get paid to do this either. Wow, sucks for you. OK, back to work now. Cleanup on aisle six.
cheshire
April 7th, 2011
8:53 pm
People are definitely overreacting, but it’s understandable. You’re seeing all the same crap you saw last year… Hanson imploding, offense failing to score runs against terrible pitchers. It does get old after awhile.
Coop
April 7th, 2011
9:06 pm
Nice comeback on LY, Jeff:) I think part of the reason it’s harder for me to hate the Phillies the way we’ve always hated the Mets is Charlie Manuel. He seems like the guy you’d run into at the corner store on a Saturday morning. Comes across as a good guy, kind of down home like. Get rid of Manuel and hire Bobby Valentine and let’s see what happens.
JSS
April 7th, 2011
9:29 pm
See comment #2 and #3, yep told you that this blog would head off Acapulco cliff… Braves Fans Timeline moment: 1969-1977 “Big Red Machine fans are the most obnoxious in the World!” 1978-1993 “Dodgers fans are the most obnoxious in the World!” 1994-2005 “Mets (and since 1996 Yankees too) fans are the most obnoxious in the World!” 2005-present “Phillies fans are the most obnoxious in the World!”
New season, same problem with transference…
Greg Mendel
April 7th, 2011
9:29 pm
I’d like to be an optimist, and It’s only a week into the season, but there’s a familiar pattern:
Three Braves up, three Braves down.
Bases loaded with Braves. No runs.
Braves pitcher walks two, gets out of inning after holding opponent to one run.
Braves lose 1-0.
Braves win next game 14-2.
Braves lose next three games, with 5 hits and two runs.
Repeat.
We can’t count on all the other teams to play worse, which is what happened last year.
Skeezix
April 7th, 2011
9:31 pm
Braves fans don’t like the Phillies but they really, really don’t like the Mets. Those feelings go deep and go way back in time. After all these years, many Braves fans still look at it as though Glavine sold out and for a few more measly bucks, betrayed Atlanta, and went over to the enemy’s camp.
Darryl Blackberry
April 7th, 2011
9:47 pm
I admire the Philly fans’ dedication to their team. One can’t argue with ticket sales.
Unfortunately, they have no sense of humor…at least if you go by the overly defensive comments here. I mean, honestly, this article was very complimentary towards the Phils, and some folks have already read something into it that just wasn’t there.
Dr. Phil
April 7th, 2011
9:52 pm
It has been a bad week for the Braves. If they can win two out of three from the Phillies, there will be hope.
Jamie
April 7th, 2011
10:40 pm
Awesome Blog entry. Funny.
J. Book
April 7th, 2011
11:03 pm
So, Mr. Schultz couldn’t resist taking a swipe at the Philadelphia fans by stating that the Phillies better fit the mold of the Amish people. Well let me tell you Mr. Schultz I have spent time in both locals and Lancaster is no picnic. As an officer in the Philadelphia Police, I was shot by officer McFee, a rogue cop, during an attempted murder of a child witness. I escaped to Lancaster in order to recover from my injuries. While there I was a witness to some local toughs smashing an ice cream cone in the face of my good Amish friend, Daniel Hochleitner. Despite my loyalty to the locals none of them picked up a gun to defend me from officer McFee when he came after me. I don’t have time to tell you how I defended myself against McFee and his partner by trapping them in the barn and in a corn silo. Go Phils!
Brotherly Love
April 7th, 2011
11:09 pm
The Grinch – I had a 3 paragraph response and I hit submit and it went into cyber limbo somewhere so rather than retype it, i’ll keep it simple. Philly fans are the best fans period. Media gives us a bad wrap for a snowball incident that happened before most of us were born so get over yourself. Stop hating on us because we are good.Talk to me again when 2 million strong show up to our World Series victory parade in early November while you hope to add another Wild Card banner. Tomahawk chop that! Oh and if you are watching the games this weekend, notice how many Philly fans are there bc without them there would be plenty of empty seats “Notlanta”.
Let them have it
April 7th, 2011
11:45 pm
WHY ARE PEOPLE STILL HATING ON THE PHILLIES!!! RESPECT US WE RESPECT YOU!!! Sorry braves fans NOT THIS YEAR (AGAIN) is hard for you Braves fans to see us win RIGHTT.. SORRY LIVE WITH IT.. HAYWARD WAS A PHILLIES FAN, GO AHEAD AND ASK HIM.. JERSEY KID C’MON
James Adams
April 7th, 2011
11:51 pm
What have the Braves done to be considered 1A? Maybe a solid 2. Do not put them in the same realm as the Phillies. Wow.
Let them have it
April 7th, 2011
11:56 pm
I’ll take the Phillies lineup PLEASE!!! And the rotation ANYTHING ELSE SIR!!! andddd 8a Cheesesteak. THANK YOU!!
Let them have it
April 7th, 2011
11:59 pm
Halladay, Lee, Oswalt, Hamels, Big Joe and lineup (THATS NOT FAIR)
Lucie
April 7th, 2011
11:59 pm
Brotherly Love, you should keep your comments to yourself or blow all your hot air on your own fan page. Don’t flatter yourself by thinking that Phillies fans wil be taking up most of our seats – you are way off base, so get your facts straight. You are sadly mistaken. We love our Braves and love a good rival with the Phillies, so let’s all keep that in perspective. This should be fun…Go Braves and let’s have a great opening night!!
Let them have it
April 8th, 2011
12:02 am
SERIES: Fri Philly 7 Atl 0
Sat Philly 4 Atl 0
Sun Philly 8 Atl 3
The Dude
April 8th, 2011
12:05 am
I don’t know a Braves fan who doesn’t hate the Phillies. Do you actually live in Atlanta, Jeff?
Wright
April 8th, 2011
12:27 am
The Braves have about as much chance against the Phils as the proverbial one legged man in an ass kicking contest.
PhilPhan
April 8th, 2011
12:42 am
Braves fans on here hating the Phillies are just jealous plain and simple. . . there is nothing to hate about this current Phils team. .they are about as classy and hard-playing of a bunch you’ll see. . .we in Philly are blessed to have this squad and it starts with the manager Charlie Manuel. . . Cliff Lee freaking turned down millions from the Yanks to come back to Philly. . .as the losingest team in the history of american sports, it’s about time the Phillies had something so enjoyable to watch.
The offseason prognosticators that said the Braves would beat out the phillies, win the world series, etc were a bit off. . the Braves offense is much improved, but their starters are a tad over-rated. . .also, you can’t overlook the Marlins who could be a serious sleeper in the NL East. Also, injuries can affect any team.
Its very early. Last year the Braves started 8-15 if I recall. . and the Phillies were a .500 team around the allstar break. . . its a long season enjoy it
51WTGW50
April 8th, 2011
12:43 am
I FEEL HER caress. She is working on my shoulder. She moves deep in the muscle and she makes me feel good.
I lay my head in the soft cradle of her caress.
I close my eyes and slow my breathing. I am RELAXED in her comforting caress.
I have to pay every time I visit the Message Therapists for this same Relaxing Therapy.
TAP TAP on the cold metal.
I smell the WIND. I check my Breathing again and I can feel my Pulse throbbing against the Smooth Rosewood. I hear the CLICK….CLICK….CLICK as I dial the PHONE.
This CALL is not from a Cell, Internet, Land-line, or Sat-Phone. This call is more like MORRIS CODE. I Make the TAP and caress the the CRADLE.
My Call is from 300-1500 yards. My call takes anywhere from .8 to 3.2 seconds to complete. When people hear the RING of my call you are DEAD.
DO you KNOW ME?
My name is SNIPER. KILLING is MY J.O.B.
LOVE me, FEAR me, RESPECT me, HATE what I DO, but know Your TAX money pays me, one of your friends gave birth to me, and I will never ask you to LOVE ME.
I am the American Soldier you never knew and the Soldier you will always need.
GB CPT. Wayne “PEE-CAN” Sparks THANK YOU. I wish I could have know you better and MORE. NGC has another HERO in their RANKS.
People you never knew did things you never want to know.
Green Bennie We stand tonight.
Brass between the lips
Green Line Hooked TIGHT
Johnny YUMA Claimed another Man TONIGHT.
Stand-Up Hook-up Shuffle to the DOOR.
57 RANGERS Headed out for MORE.
Grease Gun K-Bar and a 45
I Jump Out Knowing I should DIE
If I die on the OLE Drop Zone
Box me UP and ship me HOME……………
51WTGW50
April 8th, 2011
12:46 am
I LOVE you WAYNE.
Mrs. SPARKS your son was a Great MAN and Friend. I am PI..ed I can no longer talk with him. I cry as I type. Your SON was a great & honorable man.
brian
April 8th, 2011
1:47 am
lol i think joe tess needs hooked on phonics instead of a tv and a computer at the fishhouse. this guy is dyslexic and uneducated wow total retard
scottbravesfan
April 8th, 2011
1:59 am
Phillies fans are the biggest A holes though. Their team is fine just hate their fans.
scottbravesfan
April 8th, 2011
2:01 am
Jason Heyward was all of 3 months old when he lived in Jersey. Also real people from Philly hate New Jersey.
Josh
April 8th, 2011
4:07 am
I cant hate the Phillies like I do the Mets!
Check out THE NEW BRAVES BLOG @ http://www.atlantainsight.com
tony
April 8th, 2011
5:45 am
I already don’t like the new manager. He rest a player every game? Freeman(OBP.200) batting 2nd?
I would like to see JH(OBP .444) as our lead off guy because he will baffle opposing pitchers with his ability to stead bases. Maybe the new manager know what he is doing.
MoreLikeCityofBrotherlyHate
April 8th, 2011
7:20 am
Oh, Phillies fans. I hate your guts. You are the worst, most obnoxious, rudest fans ever. Your team stands for everything wrong with baseball and the country might actually be in a better place if the city of Philadelphia didn’t exist.
Schultz, you’re so off-target with this blog. There will be plenty of expletives thrown around tonight, I’m sure.
Go Bravos!
WTF
April 8th, 2011
7:27 am
Stop complaining about the Phillie-folks bashing the Braves on the AJC blog. Remember – they are YANKEES.
And we all know about Yankees – no class, no manners, no vocabulaty,no education, no civility – well, this is a blog and ‘War and Peace’-sized entries are tedious, and no one reads them anyway – a hint to you guys who want to write reams about what is, after all, just a game. And it’s the first 30 yards in very long race.
Stuff like this is just a few more data-points nailing down our conviction that those ’sports’ in the NE, aren’t. Whether Phillies, Mets, or Yankees.