Update: After 13 innings, the Braves’ epic failure is complete
Brian McCann can't bear to watch. Can't blame him. (AJC photo by Curtis Compton)
They’d been portrayed, not without cause, as choking dogs. They finished September having won two of nine series and having watched, numbly if not nimbly, an 8 1/2-game lead go poof. But even a choking dog can have his day, or night, and the 2011 Braves tried to give themselves one Wednesday.
They failed. They failed in the way this entire month had been a failure. They took an 8 1/2-game lead and threw it all away, and by the time they got done losing Game No. 162 they had made us suffer through all the failures that comprised this failed month.
They led 3-1 after three innings and 3-2 after eight, but Game No. 162, like the season itself, lapped into overtime. They hit early, then stopped hitting. They saw a key run thrown out at the plate. In sum, they suffered the kind of wobble that had gotten them into this mess in the first place.
Before Game No. 162, Chipper Jones had noted that the populace seemed ready to box these Braves’ ears. (Or words to that effect.) Attempting a tiny joke, someone suggested such civic outrage only went to show that Atlanta cares. Said Jones: “We care, too. We care more than anybody else.”
Fredi Gonzalez, lately portrayed as a do-nothing manager, cared enough to do something after Tuesday’s ugly loss. He sat his men down and told them he wouldn’t pick any other bunch over this to go out and win a game. Then, being practical, Gonzalez advised his charges to get some sleep and come back ready to play. “It wasn’t Knute Rockne,” he said Wednesday. But then, brightly: “Maybe 50 years from now it will be in a book of great speeches.”
It might not have been Henry V at Agincourt, but it — or something — did the trick. The Braves were loose and supple from the start of Game No. 162, which isn’t easy to do when your constituency stands ready to break out the rotten tomatoes. They had leadoff hits in each of the first five innings. They fell behind in the top of the first but answered in the bottom, and Dan Uggla’s crushed homer off Cole Hamels’ 0-2 fastball untied matters in the third.
And not a moment too soon. Uggla’s ball landed in the bleachers about the time the Cardinals were about to begin their game against 105-loss Houston, and sure enough St. Louis put up a huge early number. (Five first-inning runs on seven first-inning hits against Brett Myers, who like Chipper is an alum of Jacksonville’s Bolles School. Chipper had been hoping for “Bolles mojo.” No go.)
This became the game these Braves had played from April through the August: Tim Hudson gave them 6 1/3 innings textbook innings, and then the once-bulletproof bullpen took the baton. Eric O’Flaherty needed two pitches to induce Shane Victorino to hit into a double play to end the seventh. Jonny Venters walked/plunked the bases loaded in the eighth but struck out Raul Ibanez on three pitches.
Then it was the ninth and the kid closer entered to do as he’d done all season. Instead Craig Kimbrel, who’d blown two saves this month, blew another by slinging the ball around like a bad point guard. He yielded a leadoff single to Placido Polanco, walked the bases loaded, saw Chase Utley drive home the tying run with a fly ball and walked Hunter Pence to boot. The bulletproof bullpen had been hit.
Kimbrel was pulled for Kris Medlen, who in his second appearance in 14 months held the tie and got the Braves through the 10th. The Braves had a chance to win in the bottom of the inning, but Michael Martinez hauled in Chipper’s drive with Michael Bourn aboard. And neither Brooks Conrad, who struck out, nor Martin Prado, who tapped out, could drive home Jason Heyward in the 12th.
To the 13th. Scott Linebrink entered. Ahead 0-2 on Brian Schneider, Linebrink walked him. Chase Utley moved Schneider to third with a two-out single, and Pence brought him home with a broken-bat grounder in the second-base hole. (”Couldn’t have thrown it out there any better,” Gonzalez said.) Down a run, the Braves were three outs from elimination.
Jones led off against David Herndon and struck out. (The Braves’ at-bats from the ninth on had been little except hero swings, to unheroic avail.) Then Uggla induced a walk. But Freddie Freeman rapped into a 3-6-3 double play, and the season was done. There would be no trip to St. Louis, no 163rd game.
There will, alas, be only an aftertaste that will linger long. The 2011 Cardinals became the second team ever to trail by 8 1/2 games in September and reach the postseason. The 1964 Cardinals, beneficiaries of the infamous Philly Phold, were the first, and that’s the miserable company these Braves will keep.
Dan Uggla gives the Braves the lead. (AJC photo by Hyosub Shin)
They won their 81st game on Sept. 1. They never got to 90. They led by three games with five to play and never won again. They lost their 162nd game to a team that had no real reason to care about winning. They had the lead and the best rookie closer ever on the mound, and they lost. If you want to say they choked, nobody will argue.
The kid closer all but volunteered the cursed C-word. “You have to bottle up emotions and harness them,” Kimbrel said. “I didn’t do that today. September’s the hardest month of the year, and I let my emotions get to me. Things just started to move too fast, and I couldn’t put it together.”
Kimbrel was overthrowing. The hitters were overswinging. “We’ve been swinging really hard for a while,” Jones said. “When a guy’s living two or three inches off the outside corner, that’s not a ball you’re going to hit out of the ballpark.”
To return to Chipper’s assertion of eight hours earlier, these Braves absolutely tried their hardest. They actually tried too hard. But part, maybe even most, of being a champion is the capacity to perform under pressure, and these Braves buckled. There was, contrary to popular belief, no great mismanagement in this game: Fredi G.’s team was in position to win the exact same way it had all summer, except that summer ended and September arrived and the winning ceased.
“It just got a little wild,” Chipper said, speaking of Game No. 162 but actually the whole lost month. When the Cardinals began to close, the Braves were never the same. Even without Jair Jurrjens and Tommy Hanson, this team should have had enough to play into October. It won’t. It won’t because it choked. End of story.
By Mark Bradley
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874 comments Add your comment
jc
September 29th, 2011
8:13 am
The main difference between a player like Derek Jeter and Chipper Jones was on full display last night. That explains why Jeter has 5 rings and Chipper only has one..how many times have you seen Jeter strike-out 3 times in a huge game? Chipper has had a great “regular season” career-much like Bobby Cox did as a manager..but when it counted the most in the playoffs and world series, Chipper “choked” much as he did last night..time to hang up the cleats, Chipper-and take Fredi and D. Lowe with you!!
Mark
September 29th, 2011
8:14 am
I never thought we would see a manager with less fire than Bobby Cox. Cox would have been thrown out of the game on the third base call against Bourne – and all Fredi did was come out and point a few times and walk back to the dugout. The surrender was complete! Those youngsters should listen to Maddux – when you get someone down 0-2, put them away, don’t pick the corners. You have a 98-mph fastball for God’s sake – use it like you did to get 0-2. Our new guys go to 3-2 by picking the corners, a few close ones fouled off, then ball 4. Over and over and over. This team needs leadership – not Chipper’s nonchalance. And Fredi just didn’t bring any.
A-TOWN
September 29th, 2011
8:14 am
@CURTISJONES THAT RIGHT BLAME THE ONLY BLACK PLAYER ON THE TEAM! I GUESS HE THE REASON THE BRAVES LOSS!
sleepy
September 29th, 2011
8:14 am
Oh, and move Prado back to 3rd base, and, if he cannot handle it, get someone else. Heyward and Constanza back to minors. Get some more outfielders. Get a “bat”. Uggla is not it. Forget McLouth.
alex
September 29th, 2011
8:14 am
Not deader than, just deadlier than…
GwinnettDad
September 29th, 2011
8:15 am
Our manager sat Constanza so he could play Matt Diaz? The Braves slide started with that move, and has to rate as one of the dumbest decisions in Braves history.
AlpharettaGuy
September 29th, 2011
8:16 am
Guys, it was obviously a terrible collapse but they finished a game away from the playoffs and that’s a lot more than can be said for many, many teams out there. Baseball is a hard game, period. My son played youth ball, college, four years in the minors…in youth ball played against Davies & Francouer and against and with the McCann boys. At every level, it’s a hard game–we saw it first hand. The fact that it is a hard game makes it such an awesome game. The coaches and players are not trying to lose. Yea, there ought to be some changes but there are a lot of good players on the team. There’s one thing you can’t change about the players or coaches–they are human. It didn’t happen this year–cut ‘em some slack & turn the page.
beebee
September 29th, 2011
8:16 am
Will, there was no Game 7 of the 1995 World Series.
People, enjoy your lives. No longer look for comfort or joy IN THIS CITY from millionaires playing sports. Find other more useful and productive things to do with ALL the time you might otherwise spend on the Atlanta Braves.
Dazed&Confused
September 29th, 2011
8:17 am
Good pep talk Chipper – get those guys pumped up – then go o’fer. NICE!!
Ed
September 29th, 2011
8:17 am
Casey Stengel once said the best formula for success was to “Beat those teams you’re supposed to, and at least split with those equal to or better than you.” The Braves could not seem to handle such as the Nationals, Marlins, Padres, etc…This is where the first danger signals began to show.
GwinnettDad
September 29th, 2011
8:17 am
@alex – Heyward is a .230 singles hitter that can’t hit an outside pitch because he has one foot in the dugout. His swing is slower than a barnyard rusty gate. Francoeur was four times the player Heyward was in 2011. Heyward was a HUGE disappointment in 2011.
BWhit
September 29th, 2011
8:18 am
To say the game was not mismanaged is an understatement.There were 2 points in the game when Freddie G had an opportunity to bunt and move the runner over and did not.By doing this it puts pressure on the pitcher.I know his philosphy is to not give up an out ,but that a hit would score the runner.In essence the phillies would have conceded that run early in the ballgame.
The other coaching blunder would be Freddie not preparing for this game.By not giving Craig K some work prior to this game (had been 5 days since he had pitched) he would have have been more relaxed and sharper.Anyone could see he was tense ,overthrowing and was not going to be able to be successful.In addition the lack of coaching in the hitting arena is very evident as every brave hitter is unable to hit an off speed pitch.Off speed pitches must be hit to the opposite field,the braves hitters don’t understand that and try to pull every pitch. There must be some changes made in their coaching over the winter or the organization can predict the same outcomes in the future.
Charlie Hustle
September 29th, 2011
8:18 am
This outcome might be the best thing to happen to this organization in the sense that when the Braves would lose in the first round in the past they could fall back on the excuse that “at least we made the playoffs. How many teams can say that” yada, yada, yada. This collapse should be the wake up call this team has never received before that say’s we don’t have mentally tough, gamer’s. Yes, we have talent but talent alone doesn’t win this time of year. This calls for a change in philosophy in the coaches we hire, the player’s we sign, and kids we draft.
J Veal
September 29th, 2011
8:18 am
Jason Heyward was probably the biggest disapointment of the 2011 season. Whenever he would come up to bat I would tell my wife sitting next to me, here’s an automatic out. Unfortunately, I was correct 75 percent of the time.
John
September 29th, 2011
8:18 am
Very disappointing. To be honest, the Braves do not have the level of talent required to be consistent winners so this breakdown should not come as a surprise. The pitching staff was great most of the season. Kimbrel was a pleasure to watch. The lack of run production throughout the season wore the pitching staff down, the defense is not championship caliber, and neither are the manager and most of the coaches, Pendleton excepted. Catching is also a problem; the pitch calling and handling of the pitchers was questionable, to say the least. The people management picked up to give the team a boost, with the exceptions of Constanza and Bourn, were leading characters in the ensuing tragedy.
choke job
September 29th, 2011
8:19 am
We are young, but what a bunch of chokers. Good night Braves. Too bad.
JCH
September 29th, 2011
8:19 am
Mark – actually, when Fredi came out to argue the call at 3rd, I was hoping he didn’t choose this moment in the season to get thrown out! Like him or not, the last thing we needed was to go the rest of the game without a manager…
Overall though, I’m in agreement about Fredi, no fire, little discernible leadership and a seeming lack of interest (although I’m sure this is just his demeanor).
Pete
September 29th, 2011
8:19 am
Is anyone truly surprised at the total collapse of the hapless Braves ?
The franchise who repeatedly marched out the PATHETIC Derek Lowe to the mound to only destroy team morale and confidence. Are we supposed to think that a franchise so out of touch with reality, so mis-guided is capable of winning anything ??
What an insult to baseball fans not just in Georgia, but everywhere.
So pathetic.
Bulldog
September 29th, 2011
8:20 am
With the exception of Cleveland, this is the worst sports town in the nation. To win championships, you need elite players. Atlanta has none. The only elite players this town has ever had were Dominique Wilkins and Michael Vick. I hate to admit it, but Shaq was right. Joe Johnson was given all that money because the Atlanta sports market is so poor. Johnson is not elite, but is the closest athlete Atlanta has to an elite player. This epic collapse just reminded me of that. It is time for Chipper to retire. Yes, he has had a great career, but his time is passed. He’s just a liability now, not an asset, and the sad thing is the Braves are going to keep him for sentimental reasons. That’s only going to hurt this team. Parrish needs to go now, and if significant improvement doesn’t happen next season, Freddi needs to go too. That is going to be hard in this division, seeing the Philadephia pitching rotation is second to none. Pittsburgh had its dynasty in the 70’s, San Fran in the 80’s, Dallas in the 90’s, Washington has won, so has LA, Philadephia, Detroit, NY, St. Louis, Houston, Miami, and as much as I hate to admit it, even New Orleans. Atlanta? Its lone championship was won over the only sports city thats worst than ours: Cleveland. Without any elite players, the trend will continue. This isn’t going to be a fun sports city for a long time.
Jeff is goofing off
September 29th, 2011
8:20 am
I’m stilling trying to figure out what failure means when you’re making millions playing golf.
95 braves team
September 29th, 2011
8:20 am
@alex why you so raciest?
RGP
September 29th, 2011
8:20 am
Watching the Braves play in September was like having a root canal without a pain killer.
VABravesFan
September 29th, 2011
8:20 am
The long offseason will be tough on this team. They showed greatness at times, but sputtered out in the end. Time for everyone to start preparing for next year – Frank Wren’s got a lot of work to do.
Hoofty
September 29th, 2011
8:20 am
For all bashing the Braves, just remember that you had a ton of injuries to your starting pitchers. Take away even one of those injuries and the only excitement last night is the Rays/Red Sox drama.
A Phillies Fan.
Brant
September 29th, 2011
8:21 am
Overused relievers. Gonzalez follows everything Cox did and as last year they were worn out by year end. What happened to Costanza-they played great with him and Bourn playing? Heyward having a poor year and injured. They had a formula with the 2 speedsters, so why stop? Also you have a huge power hitter at Gwinnett in Stefan Gartell-shoudn’t he have gotten a callup?
Next year they need to use Pastornicky at SS, let others compete for Heywards job and move Prado to third and let Chipper retire or be part time. Costanza was a “nobody” and he helped. Gwinnett has some career minor leagues so why not give them a chance (Gomez etc)?
Lowe needs to go-would have been betetr having Teheran or Christian replace him as a starter,
Bobby Valentine
September 29th, 2011
8:21 am
Atlanta Braves fans: I am available for the right price to coach your team back to respectability, and I know what to heck I am talking about. I bring the wood, the heat, the passion. All of which your current team lacks.
During the last all star game, I pointed out publicly several things wrong with the your Braves (e.g., Hayward, Jurjens, et al) and heed was not taken, this advice, these observations were ignored, and most of all, were FREE. Thus, your team imploded and choked. Fredi is NOT ready for the prime time that the Braves can offer, and several changes are now required to correct major issues within your organization, if you wish to return to prominance within MLB. Again, I am available, just have Wren, or Terry “McSuirtt” call me, we can arrange a deal sans my agent, I CAN help!!
Any way, good luck to Chipper as he fades into his hunting hobby in Texas, and to Lowe on his fast cars, and drinking, and also to Hayward on his return to the minors.
Atlanta fans, I am hungry, motivated and eager to assist you…call your mayor, your congressman, and then Liberty Media…demand a change, demand satisfaction, demand Lowe to go, demand a Fredi fire, and then….demand ME!!
Yours truly and with all my love,
Bob (Bobby to my friends) Valentine
Braves Fan Since 1966
September 29th, 2011
8:22 am
I remember being relieved when the Braves – Giants playoff series finally ended….everybody hurt, couldn’t hit, blah, blah, It was a numbingly difficult series to watch. But they outdid themselve over the last month. Way to many underachievers. I’ve felt sorry for the announcers on TV and radio…must have been like announcing an execution.
Bulldog
September 29th, 2011
8:22 am
OOPS!!! Forgot about Deion!
sleepy
September 29th, 2011
8:22 am
Oh, and McCann! Have you ever looked at his face on TV when he comes up to bat?! What is he looking at? Can he see ANYTHING! He can hit, when he can see, (and, when his back is not injured). I am not sure he is that good a catcher, regardless – poor pitch calling and terrible against base stealers!
TechRon
September 29th, 2011
8:22 am
At least now we won’t have to listen to Chipper Jones say “we control our own destiny” anymore. The only thing they have to hang on to is that a blown call at 3rd base actually cost them the game. I hope that ump is proud of himself. If we had that run, the game would have been over in the 9th.
No matter. It is probably better and kinder to see us go out now. This team utterly sucks. There is no possible excuse for them. There are few that really deserve their pay. In fact, Hudson is the only one I can think of that really deserves a pat on the back for maximum effort. The rest, including McCann, just mailed it in. I hope the idiot Braves know enough to give thanks that the Red Sox are just a sorry as they are. Two teams, once proud, now down in history as gutless chokers.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE get rid of that worthless coaching staff! PLEASE don’t make us look at and listen to Gonzalez anymore. PLEASE!?
Tommy Davis
September 29th, 2011
8:23 am
Glad it’s over. These guys wouldn’t have made it past the playoff game anyway. No mention of the blown call by the ump at 3rd base. Had that call been correct, Uggla’s HR would have been a 3 run dinger instead of a 2 run dinger, and the Braves would have never lost the lead or their confidence. Came blame the ump for a single call though, they had their chances late in the game to soore and didn’t. Typical of the entire season.
Richard
September 29th, 2011
8:23 am
Beaning Chase Utley a couple of weeks ago and no retaliation. Just sweet revenge knocking the Braves out of the playoffs. Days like this I don’t know which town I would rather be listening to talk radio Atlanta or Boston.
Ted M
September 29th, 2011
8:24 am
I’m surprised more people on this blog are not griping about Heyward not catching that fly ball that lead to the second run. that was the game right there had he caught that, like he should have, Hudson would have pitched deeper into the game and our relievers could have been more aggressive.
Fredi made the wrong move.
VABravesFan
September 29th, 2011
8:24 am
Wait a second…. the Braves aren’t done yet! I’ve just received word that Fredi Gonzalez and Tony LaRussa have agreed to a playoff in St. Louis – double or nothing.
oldmike
September 29th, 2011
8:25 am
Philly had nothing to play for and they still won. Their approach at the plate was so much better than ours. They laid off all those sliders at the bottom of the strike zone and then just tried to put the ball in play somewhere. Our “hitters” tried to hit it to Charlotte. Really weak effort over an entire month. An entire month for ch@#!t sake. @Dan Gurian. Spot on. O’Flaherty 2 freakin pitches? He finds the strike zone. Gets people out. Pitch him 3 innings if you have to. This manager has no clue. 20 years of competent baseball. Not electrifying. Not mezmerizing. Competent. And that gets you 1 title over that time. Marlins won 2 with a smaller payroll and no long range plan. Ged new ownership, PLEASE!!!
Jimmy Crack
September 29th, 2011
8:25 am
Hey A-town, what is Michael Bourne, chopped white liver? Your racial math is showing. By the way, white, black, green, orange…Heyward is our new Brad Komminsk.
Bobby C.
September 29th, 2011
8:25 am
If I were manger we would have won. You ATL fans just don’t get. How you can blame the game on Heywards hustle? The guy didnt get come in until the 7th and went 1-2 at the plate. Then your rookie of the year closer blows the game, but you blame heyward? Your SS boots a sure double play ball hit right at him and allows an unearned run? What about the biggest fraud in sports history “larry Choke jones” 0-for forever in the biggest game of the year but I know you will find a way to defend him, if you can find him because you all know he wont show up till after the playoffs.
What they’re saying about the collapses | HardballTalk
September 29th, 2011
8:25 am
[...] Mark Bradley, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: “They failed. They failed in the way this entire month had been a failure. They took an 8 1/2-game lead and threw it all away, and by the time they got done losing Game No. 162 they had made us suffer through all the failures that comprised this failed month.” [...]
rebman76
September 29th, 2011
8:26 am
Bradley,
If Chipper retires, who will they get to replace him. The reason I ask is isnt there a slugger they can get to take his place. Isn’t tampa’s Evan Longoria available and would the Braves consider going after him?
Devoted Reader
September 29th, 2011
8:26 am
Now we take some 6 months off, with pay. As a matter of fact, with a good pay. Actually, with a great pay!
rebman76
September 29th, 2011
8:29 am
What is the status on Michael Bourn? Is he a free agent or does he have a year or two left on a contract. Whatever his status, Atlanta needs to keep him at all costs.
Gracie
September 29th, 2011
8:29 am
Too much glory from the old days, too much Chipper today, and no force like Phily. Get some new blood and get rid of Chipper
VABravesFan
September 29th, 2011
8:29 am
Tomorrow, David Ross, MLBPA representative for the Braves, plans to meet with Commissioner Bud Selig to discuss the benefits of a 120-game season.
Savbrave
September 29th, 2011
8:31 am
Many will say the loss of two very good pictures contributed to this collapse. I agree. However, the bottom line is your two all-stars, brian and chipper, choked and your coached failed. When McCann came up last night with runners on first and second with no outs and was not bunting, I turned off my television. That is fundamental baseball and the Braves did not play fundemental baseball. They still have a good team and I would rather see a collapse which was fianlized after 162 games than watch a team lose 106 games like the Astros. That is embassasing for baseball.
alex
September 29th, 2011
8:31 am
It’s quittin time,typical atlanta race baiting here…Bring down sharpton,now THERE’s a guy we can ALL respect! Sheeeesh,city of morons and posers!!
4realtho
September 29th, 2011
8:31 am
The Braves just aren’t good enough. I see more effort than talent. It could be that this team over-achieved just to be in position to make the post season.
meh
September 29th, 2011
8:31 am
Bourne was safe at third. Uggla’s homer should’ve been for three. Braves should’ve been up 4-2 in the 9th and won it 4-3. The Braves were robbed.
Jason Heyward's Gynecologist
September 29th, 2011
8:32 am
Whenever Hollywood remakes “The Wizard of Oz,” the production company should cast my patient in the role of SCARECROW.
DC Braves
September 29th, 2011
8:34 am
“Even without Jair Jurrjens and Tommy Hanson, this team should have had enough to play into October.”
No, they didn’t, because they didn’t. Braves without Jurrgens and Hanson (and Venters and Kimbrel, if you want to split hairs) weren’t a playoff team. Just like last year, without Prado and Chipper they weren’t a NLCS team.
Dennis
September 29th, 2011
8:34 am
Thank goodness for the Red Sox. At least the Braves collapse will only be the 2nd worst ever. The only way to get over this as a franchise is to start over. Chipper needs to retire. The entire coaching staff, is nothing special and not proven should be replaced. Heyward needs another year at AAA.
Keep McCann. Freeman, Bourne, Huddy & the young arms. Move Kimbrell to a set-up role (anybody who admits choking in a pressure situation doesn’t deserve the closer role). Other than that I think they are set.