Live from the ballyard: The good news is Livan’s not pitching
This man has tormented the Braves for more than a decade. (AJC photo by Curtis Compton)
Thirty years from now, Livan Hernandez will beat the Braves in a key game. Doesn’t matter how old he is or what sort of year he has had. That’s what Livan does. As a Marlin, he did it in Game 5 of the 1997 NLCS, sometimes known as the Eric Gregg game. As a Giant, he did it in Game 4 the 2002 Division Series. As a Nat, he did it again last night.
He’s Livan Hernandez, and he beats the Braves when the Braves don’t need to be beaten. I can’t explain it, but there you go.
The good news: He’s not pitching today. John Lannan is. (And he beat the Braves last month.) But Lannan isn’t the nemesis Livan is. Nobody is.
The Braves trail Philadelphia by two full games. That’s the furthest from first place they have been since May 26. Suffice it to say, they need to win today.
And I’ll be here to watch and observe, and I hope you’ll join me. But I confess going in that I’m a bit distracted. Walking into the ballpark I got a call informing me John Guthrie, the former Georgia basketball coach who became the SEC and ACC director of officiating, died at age 70 last night in Duluth. I considered Coach Guthrie a friend and have written a little something about him.
Which is why I’m a bit late with this live blog. But I’ll try to refocus and do my best to concentrate on the task at hand. I’d appreciate it if you join me, and I thank you in advance.
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639 comments Add your comment
JT
September 15th, 2010
12:19 pm
Sorry for the loss of your friend, Mark.
Mark Bradley
September 15th, 2010
12:20 pm
Thanks, JT.
Mark Bradley
September 15th, 2010
12:32 pm
Meanwhile, the Nats have two on with one out in the second inning against Minor.
Swaga 1
September 15th, 2010
12:33 pm
Well it just seems like the Braves are treading water until the Phillies series where the Phillies will likely put them out of their misery. We may be able to hang on to the wild card lead but the Braves have shown that they cannot beat pitchers they should beat and our pitchers are giving up too many runs lately….nothing is working. and to top it off Bobby makes excuses by saying any team would have had trouble with Livan yesterday……that’s a cop out.
Josh
September 15th, 2010
12:33 pm
Gosh, this a frightening line-up today. Why is McClouth not in there?
ommyTa
September 15th, 2010
12:35 pm
Mark, do you believe the Braves will make the playoffs? I see some disturbing signs and am no longer as confident.
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
September 15th, 2010
12:35 pm
GAME OVER- Braves thank you for letting us down…once again. PATHETIC
Josh
September 15th, 2010
12:35 pm
Good gosh, here we go again…
J-Smoove
September 15th, 2010
12:35 pm
WOW!?!? Grand Slam to the 8th place hitter? At least it wasn’t Livan going yard again.
Mark Bradley
September 15th, 2010
12:36 pm
Minor has spotted the Nats a 4-0 lead. Grand slam by eighth-place hitter Justin Maxwell.
Dawglasville
September 15th, 2010
12:36 pm
A grand salami. Things are not looking good for today and beyond.
Mark Bradley
September 15th, 2010
12:37 pm
I think they will, ommyTa. But I share your concern.
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
September 15th, 2010
12:37 pm
so funny, you can actually script how the braves will play on a daily basis.
Matt
September 15th, 2010
12:37 pm
Sorry for your loss, Mark.
As far as the Braves go, do you think it’s a mistake for Bobby to not move the rotation around like the Phillies are to get our best for those games? The more the Braves screw up these eries against lousy teams, the more pressure there will be to take that series in Philly and the one in Atlanta. Especially with Minor pitching like a rookie. As I type this, he’s giving up a slam, so with the Braves 3 back, I guess my question is irrelevant.
Andy
September 15th, 2010
12:37 pm
I was about to type that if the Braves lost this game that they were DONE in the East. Now I can say BALLGAME and they are done in the East. Pray they can hold on to the wildcard.
DCBravosFan
September 15th, 2010
12:38 pm
will someone tell the braves pitchers that the nats are still a major league team . . . pretty much every hitter in the bigs can handle a belt high fastball!!! why are the guys serving up gopher balls to these hitters??
Sons of Rick Matula
September 15th, 2010
12:39 pm
Lannan is not Livan but tell me where the spark is coming from with this punchless lineup?
DCBravosFan
September 15th, 2010
12:39 pm
Mark, sorry to hear about your loss as well.
Matt
September 15th, 2010
12:39 pm
Maybe this team is just making up for playing over its head in May and June. Maybe what it is is a .500 team, no more, no less. You can’t expect much more from a bunch of unproven journeymen, kids, and over-the-hill vets.
Final Score
September 15th, 2010
12:40 pm
Braves: 9 Nats: 7
Billy Jack could fight
September 15th, 2010
12:40 pm
The ump seems to have a small stike zone….the Braves need to freaking HIT!!!
clay
September 15th, 2010
12:40 pm
atleast we still have the wild card fellas.
Matt
September 15th, 2010
12:40 pm
Attaboy, Matty. Get a rally going!!
Sons of Rick Matula
September 15th, 2010
12:40 pm
16 innings without a run against the Nats!
Final Score
September 15th, 2010
12:41 pm
Anybody remember how the game turned out the last time a grand slam was hit against us? Brooks Conrad does.
where have the braves gone???
September 15th, 2010
12:41 pm
I agree @Andy….i see no spark in this team anymore. if we get behind early, we just roll over and die. i’m afraid the same will happen with the division title and eventually the wild card.
this blows.
Swaga 1
September 15th, 2010
12:41 pm
well i guess we can all get back to our daily jobs now…lol….wow this Braves team really SUX. spotted the Gnats 4 before we even come to bat….
DCBravosFan
September 15th, 2010
12:42 pm
good baserunning from Diaz there . . . doesn’t make up for the gaffe a couple of weeks back, but the Bravos gotta get a run here!
LuisG
September 15th, 2010
12:42 pm
So…. the bad news is the Nats are still in town?
DEP
September 15th, 2010
12:42 pm
It’s over, lets call it a day, too much too little and too too late, Braves are choking down 4-0 and Halladay pitches tonight, can you say its been a Great 20 years Bobby, sorry you have to watch another season go down the drain, what an awful team, I was hoping better from UGA not gonna happen thanks to the Idoiot from UNC you can not tell me he did not know he would get AJ in trouble, the NCAA is petty if the players name was Jim Bob Smith no one would have cared.
\
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
September 15th, 2010
12:42 pm
this was a great team, now it’s just crap. this will go down as the biggest failure in Braves history. 1st place team for 3 months all to throw it away due to lack of effort by every single player on this team. pitching has gone to the crapper as well.
come on BRAVES!!!
September 15th, 2010
12:43 pm
we need to manufacture a few runs in the early innings. hopefully MM will settle down and we can creep back in to this thing.
Big Roy is going tonight for the Phils. We gotta win this!
TheAntiMe
September 15th, 2010
12:44 pm
It saddens me to say that even though the Braves are still in the thick of things record-wise for the playoffs, they seem to have long since packed it in. They no longer seem to care about the playoffs but are clearly focused on that October vacation in the Bahamas.
come on BRAVES!!!
September 15th, 2010
12:44 pm
D Ross is about to hit a BOMB!!!
Done....
September 15th, 2010
12:44 pm
Done in east and done in wild card.
Joe
September 15th, 2010
12:44 pm
Good season Braves but it has finally come to an end. No way should any decent team lose 2 of 3 to the Nats… Maybe next year….
ATLfan15
September 15th, 2010
12:45 pm
MB, you have my sympathies.
c’mon Braves. where’s your heart? your spirit? do you have ANY fight left in you?!!
@Matt: if the Braves keep playing like this against the bottom feeders of the division, we can send out whatever rotation we want against the Phillies and it still won’t matter.
Dawglasville
September 15th, 2010
12:45 pm
Are Lowe and McLoud our best options in Sept? Man, that is scary.
DEP
September 15th, 2010
12:45 pm
Choke,…. a choke,….. a choke,…. a Choke,…..lol The New Tomahawk Choke song
Matt
September 15th, 2010
12:45 pm
You people have to settle down. They were never as good as all of us hoped in May and June, they aren’t as bad as everyone is complaining they are now. Over 162 games, they just aren’t in the Phillies’ league. It’s not an insult, it’s the truth. Especially when you talk about payroll disparity. We’re a mid-market team.
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
September 15th, 2010
12:45 pm
there is no spark, it’s just dull flint
Mark Bradley
September 15th, 2010
12:46 pm
Weird DP. 1-6-4-3
Sons of Rick Matula
September 15th, 2010
12:46 pm
aaargh
DCBravosFan
September 15th, 2010
12:46 pm
double play does not help things . . . hard to stay positive here!!!
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
September 15th, 2010
12:47 pm
wow that was awesome, way to be clutch Braves. idiots, pure and simple
Matt
September 15th, 2010
12:47 pm
All you people who are complaining better not say a thing if they come back. We’ve seen it too much this year. Jeez, ATL fans are terrible.
TheAntiMe
September 15th, 2010
12:48 pm
There’s no shame in losing when you give it your all but clearly this Braves team stopped giving it’s all at least a couple of weeks ago. I really wish that they would prove me wrong.
Dr. Kenneth Noisewater
September 15th, 2010
12:48 pm
agreed Joe- also how about 2 outta 3 to the Pirates??
clay
September 15th, 2010
12:48 pm
this sux
come on BRAVES!!!
September 15th, 2010
12:48 pm
by “bomb” i meant a double play to the pitcher