Braves Finally Steal a Win

It was good to see the Braves win a close game in which not everything was working for them. They didn't hit all that well, but they hit enough to squeak out a win. Horacio Ramirez pitched really well through three and two-thirds, and ran into some two out trouble in the fourth. He worked his way into and out of some trouble in the sixth and finally relented in the seventh giving way to the bullpen.

Tyler Yates gave up a bloop hit to the first batter he faced and allowed the tying run to score when Matt Diaz over-ran the ball in the outfield. In the eighth a Jason Bay error allowed Willy Aybar to reach, and after a perfectly placed Marcus Giles bunt Aybar made it to third which set up an Edgar Renteria sac-fly to give the Braves the lead...

...A lead, a one-run lead mind you, that their rebuilt bullpen was able to HOLD. Holy crap! When was the last time we held a one-run lead for two innings. Answer: May 27th against the Cubs, with a combination of the killer R's - Ray, Reitsma, and Remlinger (who saved it for Ramirez). What a refreshing change it has been to have Danys Baez and Bob Wickman at the back end of the bullpen. Let's hope they can keep it up.

Box Score >>

Atlanta 3, Pittsburgh 2 at PNC Park
Atlanta Record: (50-56)
Pittsburgh Record: (40-68)

Winning pitcher - Tyler Yates (1-1)
Losing pitcher - Salomon Torres (3-5)
SV - Bob Wickman (19)