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
Najeh Davenpoop
September 29th, 2011
12:51 am
Bourn underperformed compared to his last three years after coming to ATL.
Prado underperformed compared to his last three years.
Uggla underperformed compared to his last three years.
Heyward underperformed compared to last year.
McCann underperformed compared to his last three years.
Gonzalez underperformed compared to his career averages.
At the very least, Parrish has to be replaced. The entire offensive approach of this team has to change to something more along the lines of what it was last year, when they finished first in the NL in walks. I wouldn’t be opposed to replacing Fredi with someone more fiery who represents a clean break from the laid-back Bobby Cox culture.
G. Tampa Bedwetter
September 29th, 2011
12:52 am
Chipper can now go on the “til next March” disabled list
Disappointed in North Florida
September 29th, 2011
12:52 am
1. Happy with Frank Wren as GM.
2. Poor job down the stretch by Fredi, but he followed tough act in Bobby Cox.
3. Ownership needs to care (Show it with the GREEN!!!).
cowboys67
September 29th, 2011
12:54 am
Okay season over now lets look at next year. 1st thing when they take name plates off this week Derek Lowes nvever goes back on I either trade him and eat 12-13 million its a sunk cost or outright release him. 2nd Chipper platoons with Prado who becomes my super utility guy plays almost every day but different positions. Last send Costanza 2 Arizona league or winter ball to c if he can really play every day. Then I run run and run with Bourn n Costanza n Heyward. Pitch and Play speed game like Cards did in 80’s
KB
September 29th, 2011
12:54 am
Really nicely worded article, Mark. One that wish was never written, however. This choke job is almost unreal. I still can’t believe it. At least we won’t be disappointed in the playoffs again.
athens dog
September 29th, 2011
12:54 am
Phillyroni,
You guys are pretty good. Excellent manager, and a 170 million dollar payroll doesn’t hurt, either.
You guys will probably win the Series, you certainly should unless the Spankees take it from you.
Regardless, Philly, a city I’ve spent lots of time in, is a crap city full of rude, snot eating people.
Dirty, smelly and everyone laughs at your citizens because they seem to wear the whole ‘obnoxious craphole’ thing with a lot of pride, which tell you all you need to know about a snotbag city.
P Rose
September 29th, 2011
12:54 am
How about some hardcore, wholesale changes? I like the uniforms but am so sick of the chop. Why don’t we drop it. Maybe get a new announcer who doesn’t shout BBRRIIIIAAANNN MCCAAAAAAAANN. Stop with the Ozzy song when Chipper bats (Aye, aye, aye…) Do away with the tool race and cap shuffle. Let’s get back to baseball and lose all the circus theatrics. Now’s as good a time as any.
Najeh Davenpoop
September 29th, 2011
12:54 am
Oh yeah, and y’all owe Terry Pendleton an apology.
Stanley Crowe
September 29th, 2011
12:55 am
I think that there are two issues in considering the Bravos’ disappointing finish, one relating to pitching and the other to hitting. On the pitching, I’ll cut them some slack — we lost two good pitchers (Jurrjens and Hanson) and thus had a problem filling the bill when the veteran Derek Lowe demonstrated that age had caught up with him. Enter some promising youngsters — Beachy, Minor, Delgado, Teheran — who pitched well but seemed in the crunch unwilling to trust their stuff. They tried to pitch to the corners and the edges, and their stuff is good enough to allow them to be much more challenging AND much more economical with their counts. Did you see the young Philly relievers tonight? They went after us! Admittedly, the game was meaningless for them and they could be loose — but I’m just saying. OUR relievers, on the other hand, have been burned by overuse. Venters, O’Flaherty, and Kimbrel are wonderful — let’s use them more wisely next year. On the hitting side, I would like to see some more imagination — think of the Martin Prado of 2010 — foul balls off! Hit them where there they’re pitched! Drive up the opposition’s pitch counts. Teams like the Phillies are really good at that, but there’s no reason why the Braves can’t be. Dan, Chipper, Brian, and Alex G. can all take lessons from Rollins, Utley, and Victorino. None of these players have stellar numbers, but they get stuff done.
The Braves gave me many great moments this year, especially in mid-season when Dan got rolling. Thank you, and looking forward to next year. Special players for me? On offense, Freddie Freeman — a wonderful year for a rookie and a wonderful defensive player. Pitching? Special kudos to Christhian Martinez. He’s a keeper, but one has to give it to Tim Hudson. He pitches like he believes in himself: a great role model for the younger staff. . Defense? Freddie again, but kudos to Dan Uggla for fine second-base work, both our shortstops, and Chipper for the one-handed pickups! Thanks to the team — despite the nasty comments in these posts, you can’t fault the effort. Next year will be tough with the Marlins, Nats, and Mets all improving and exciting. The old guard — Phils and Bravos — will be challenged.
drunkIdiot
September 29th, 2011
12:55 am
Phillyroni…it takes a real man to kick a guy when he’s down…now go beat your kids or something.
Najeh Davenpoop
September 29th, 2011
12:55 am
“How about some hardcore, wholesale changes?”
If they are going to change anything about the fan experience, they can start by getting rid of the stupid ass hoedown song they play after Take Me Out To The Ballgame, and that song about the hoochie’s coochie they play during the 8th inning.
down the drain
September 29th, 2011
12:56 am
http://blogs.ajc.com/atlanta-braves-blog/2010/10/29/larry-parrish-hired-as-braves-hitting-coach/
how does it feel now a year later…..
Dr. Phil
September 29th, 2011
12:56 am
Mark Teixeira proved the difference in performance when quality hitters are surrounded by other quality hitters.
Jacketattack
September 29th, 2011
12:56 am
Heydays sucks!!!!!! Prado sucks!!!!!! Lowe succcccckkksss!!! Losers!!!!
P Rose
September 29th, 2011
12:57 am
Najeh, that’s a good one. I agree, let’s lose the hoedown, too.
atlworstfans
September 29th, 2011
12:57 am
the very first commercial after the braves post game show ends says it all: “BRAVES FANS–GET YOUR POST SEASON TICKETS NOW!” Even the network carrying this team is inept.
2late2apologize
September 29th, 2011
1:00 am
Frank and Freddi never played one inning this season so it’s not their fault. Most of these players that we see getting it done on other teams are homegrown and our homegrown players are only showing up to pick up a paycheck. I’ve already tossed all of my boys’ Heyward shirts in an attempt to fight off as much laziness as possible.
I agree with ‘no mo’ about the poor, rude service at Turner Field for the overpriced everything. The difference is that I realize that Turner Field is staffed with ‘Atlanta’s finest’ so I’m not surprised or disappointed with the level of service. How ironic it is that you will get robbed both inside and outside of the park by ‘Atlanta’s finest’. I’ve got two kids and too much time left to worry about poser baseball millionaires and getting jscked for spare change afterwards.
Jacketattack
September 29th, 2011
1:00 am
Stanley you dunno crap about ball!!
Mark Bradley
September 29th, 2011
1:00 am
Headed home. I’ve only been here since 3:25 p.m. Thanks to all for hanging with me.
P Rose
September 29th, 2011
1:01 am
Phillyroni, in 2001, the Braves attendance was 2.8 million, while the Phillies was only 1.7 million. It’s easier to sell tickets when you have the highest payroll and the best record in the league, and have recently won a world title. So stop your crowing.
I personally have 6 different friends from Pennsylvania, all from different circles, who don’t know each other; but they all have one thing in common. They are all smug, opinionated, loudmouthed know-it-alls. It could be a coincidence that they all happen to be from Pennsylvania; then again, it might not.
Bradley Blows
September 29th, 2011
1:01 am
Just one more “you suck Bradley” before I head to bed.
Jacketattack
September 29th, 2011
1:02 am
Atlanta Braves Suck!
David Smith
September 29th, 2011
1:02 am
A disappointing end to a promising season . The Braves had a golden opportunity to show all of baseball that they were ready to take the next step to being a perennial Playoff contender. How do you let a 8 game Wild Card lead to evaporate in less that a month will haunt this team until they can erase that bitter taste with a World Series win.
P Rose
September 29th, 2011
1:03 am
Sleep tight, Mark. Good job covering the Braves this year. I have enjoyed your articles.
wild'n
September 29th, 2011
1:04 am
Most of the team tried its hardest. Heyward did not. He hustle’s to Utley’s 13th inning single, and Schneider never gets to 3rd, and so he never scores on Pence’s infield single. Heyward has really shown a lackadaisical sense of laziness this year. Troublesome, because the kid has all the talent in the world.
If you can’t put forth 110% effort with every movement you make when the playoffs are on the line, you don’t have a pulse. If Heyward’s future is to have a pulse, kid better focus more and simply start trying harder.
G. Tampa Bedwetter
September 29th, 2011
1:04 am
Bobby Cox and George Bush both want to know …………………
“Miss us yet?”
athens dog
September 29th, 2011
1:05 am
Wohlers to Leyritz not as bad as this?? Are you serious?? That was the World Series, you idiot. This was a regular season game to back into the playoffs!! Geesh, between the idiots who think that bringing up an athletes’ shortcomings makes one a racist, and the hyperbole spouting ‘me’ generation
bloggers who have a new ‘greatest ever’ or ‘worst of all time’ every week, the real Braves disappointments, such as the Series loss to the Yanks, starts to seem not so bad!
Grow up! It’s SPORTS !!! It doesn’t really matter in a country that’s coming apart because the leadership is clueless. Oops, there goes that racist statement again.
Hooah Dawg
September 29th, 2011
1:05 am
Bringing in Linebrink was the equivalent of throwing in the towel!!! Nuf said, this is sickening!!!
bravo-n-knoxville
September 29th, 2011
1:05 am
Jason Heyward needs to be ready to catch the fly ball in RF in the 7th that wound up a double and Tim Hudson’s glare told the story to the loafing, uncoachable pheonom…if you are not hitting use the leather and the arm to justify your roster spot.
Constanza should have seen more action these last couple of series…hands down a better fielder than Heyward (slow as mud getting a jump on flyballs) and his speed never slumps…thanks Freddi for mimicking Bobby…wait on the 3-run HR and you end up watching postseason instead of participating. Speed scares pitching staffs and defenses…bobbles mean extra bases. Poorest fundamental team in baseball for last 20+ years!!!
wild'n
September 29th, 2011
1:05 am
Can I get any sort of explanation though as to why we pitched to Pence…?
athens dog
September 29th, 2011
1:06 am
No. I do not miss Bobby yet!
NO MORE PARRISH
September 29th, 2011
1:06 am
Najeh Davenpoop – TP sucks also so no apology.
G. Tampa Bedwetter
September 29th, 2011
1:07 am
Heyward is playing right field for one reason only ………………… it is Atlanta and he is black?
Frenchy in light years ahead of him in every category ………….. but Honkie must go
wild'n
September 29th, 2011
1:08 am
And why in the world did Constanza’s playing time drop so significantly. I thought there was a clear advantage when we coupled his speed and ability to get on base with Bourn’s abilities to do the same at the top of the lineup.
athens dog
September 29th, 2011
1:08 am
bravo n knoxville, your Constanza/speed comments are absolutely spot on! Pretty good for one from Vol country!
TK03inATL
September 29th, 2011
1:09 am
I am usually not a fire and brimstone type of fan but, this collapse was disgusting and I am totally turned off as a Braves fan. If the Braves want to create a new mindset and show the fans that winning really does matter, fire Fredi G. right now. Somebody has to say this is not acceptable and that we are going to do things differently. Please go get a left fielder–we have not had one in 10 years!
pseudonymion
September 29th, 2011
1:09 am
I have to believe that the Braves’ players feel the worse of everyone. But before you go home to your ranch/mansion/yacht/etc. understand that there are those of us who have followed you for DECADES and these losses are painful. Some of these folks on this board say their from “Atlanta and their used to it.” Don’t you believe that’s how we all feel. Some of us live and die by what happens on the field. So don’t think that this is no big deal. It is. This collapse will haunt me for years. I won’t watch a minute of baseball until next year.
M10
September 29th, 2011
1:11 am
I knew the game was over when Linebrink was brought into the game.H** Im sure there were other options.Fire F.Gonzalez
bigstack19
September 29th, 2011
1:12 am
Well Braves…after years of causing me heartburn, heartache, and heartbreak tonight you guys just made me plain sick. Oh well! See you in Spring Training. Maybe over the winter you all can learn how to hit something other than rock bottom. Hopefully they rid themselvers of Lowe first then hire someone to actually coach hitting. I would also trade Jurrjens and look for a replacement for Gonzalez for next year. I would send Heyward to winter ball to work his crap out. This one hopefully won’t carry over into next year. For the first time in my life long love of the Braves they made me wish I wasn’t a fan.
Grace
September 29th, 2011
1:14 am
Fredi looked uncertain and didn’t know what to do. This September and tonight especially is beyond anything I could have imagined in my worst nightmare. Even if we inexplicably lost our pitching, what happened to the bats??? Where have their heads been? Michael Bourne and Tim Hudson were the only ones who showed up tonight for the entire game.
Hell, I’m going to say it. I don’t even enjoy the broadcasters anymore. I miss Skip. I’m sick to death of the generic comments. You always knew Skip was on our side. These guys seem to be all about themselves. I’ve never heard anyone as impressed with himself as is Joe Simpson. Half the time it seems they have to force themselves to call the game and talk about the Braves. I used to turn the sound off the TV and listed to the radio. Now there are no choices.
There’s no juice in this team. Is it the fault of corporate management? Could we be so much better with an Arthur Blank?
MHARP
September 29th, 2011
1:15 am
dawgonit you don’t know a d@mn thing if you think chipper hasn’t done anything down the stretch.
We’ll be fine next year. We don’t need to change much.
Without Larry Pairdick, Derek Blowme, and Linebrick we’ll be a much better team. Frank Wren go get us some right handed relief pitching worth something.
Jason Heyward's Gynecologist
September 29th, 2011
1:15 am
Paging Dr. Kervorkian!
Paging Dr. Kervorkian!
Phillies fans worst
September 29th, 2011
1:16 am
Philadelphia Eagles and Philadelphia Phillies The Meanest Fans in America
http://www.gq.com/sports/lists/201104/worst-sports-fans-in-america#ixzz1ZJbDyecy
Over the years, Philadelphia fans have booed Santa Claus as well as their own star players. They’ve even booed a guy who just helped the city win a friggin’ World Series title—while he was getting his ring. Boooo!
Admittedly, there are some things fans have cheered. Like Michael Irvin’s career-ending neck injury and a fan being tased on the outfield grass. Things reached their nadir last season, when Citizens Bank Park played host to arguably the most heinous incident in the history of sports: A drunken fan intentionally vomited on an 11-year-old girl.
The truth is this: All told, Philadelphia stadiums house the most monstrous collection of humanity outside of the federal penal system. “Some of these people would boo the crack in the Liberty Bell,” baseball legend Pete Rose once said. More likely, these savages would have thrown the battery that cracked it.
Do a search on “worst sports fans” and that article comes up #1.
bigstack19
September 29th, 2011
1:16 am
Well Braves…after years of causing me heartburn, heartache, and heartbreak tonight you guys just made me plain sick. Oh well! See you in Spring Training. Maybe over the winter you all can learn how to hit.
MHARP
September 29th, 2011
1:17 am
Imagine if Derek Lowe was capable of going 1-4 in September instead of just 0-5. $15 Million well spent.
Jason Heyward's Gynecologist
September 29th, 2011
1:17 am
My heartless, timid patient would NEVER be allowed to play for a real MLB manager like Joe Maddon.
DEPORT FREDI GONZALEZ!!
bravo-n-knoxville
September 29th, 2011
1:17 am
athens dog…thanks for the kindness…just know that this is the 44th year that my heart has chomped Tomahawk Blue…I don’t say alot on here, but Jason Heyward is a loafer, pouter, and when Chipper Jones has to call you out for not being able to play with pain…a wimp too.
Yes. I do not have or never have had his ability…but I give my all at everything that carries my reputation along side it…grow up J-Hey, and then you will deserve the Tomahawk on your chest
Dash RipRock
September 29th, 2011
1:19 am
Of all the stupid stuff being thrown around in this blog..The worst has to be blaming Parrish for the big choke..Get real folks.
MitchC
September 29th, 2011
1:20 am
You deserve a rest, Mark. Unless they settle the NBA lockout, you’ll only see me if you’re writing things about the Braves. I’m not a fan of football or hockey. Never have been for some reason, sorry.
MHARP
September 29th, 2011
1:21 am
Hey DashRip Rock. Grow a pair and get your facts straight.
We’re 21st or worse in the league in every single major hitting statistical category.
I can blame Larry Parrish all I want.