I thought I would do my best royhobbs impersonation, and post about my trip to the Ted. For those of you that don't know, my birthday present from my girlfriend was Braves tickets.

Not too shabby! I had to post a picture, not only to show where I sat, but also that was the only picture of Smoltz that I could get.

After yesterday's dreadful game, I was pretty excited that today would be a better game. Afterall, the Nationals are one of the worst offensive teams in the game. Since this was my birthday present, I wanted to make the most of it, so we got to the park early. We went into the 755 Club, walked around the stadium, taking the obligatory photos.

I can't help but wonder what Jackie Robinson would think about his number being next to a giant chopping cow?

Minutes before first pitch, I was pretty excited to see Jo-Jo warming up. I thought to myself, "He's going to pitch well today. Just look at him!"

Maybe you didn't stretch well enough Jo-Jo, because your stuff just wasn't there today. Of course, the strike zone was nowhere to be found either. That's funny, what are all those numbers doing up there on the scoreboard? A short day for Jo-Jo.

Almost as short of a day for Bobby.

That was a bit ridiculous, in my opinion. That was a strike thrown by Buddy, then he didn't appear to do anything but turn away and he got the "the finger" from Gillooly or Gucci or whatever his name was. I understand arguing balls and strikes is an automatic ejection, but what about waving the finger at players? Apparently Mama Guccione never told young Chris its not polite to point. I was pretty disappointed that Bobby didn't just go on a rosin bag-grenade-tirade and kick dirt a la Lou Pinella's rant against the Braves last year. I thought maybe that was just what we needed.

I have to admit, it was hot, but I refused to leave until the last out of the game. I have the sunburn to prove it (I did wear sunscreen, just did not apply very well). The highlights of the game were seeing Chipper and Teixeira up-close and personal:

And Corky Miller lower his batting average:

But the ultimate, best highlight of the day was seeing former Brave and Canadian All-World Superstar Pete Orr pinch hit!

What were we thinking getting rid of him? All sarcasm aside, I enjoyed my trip and my present very much. I am still a Braves fan, although it has crossed my mind to jump-ship and become an Angels fan. Alas, I'm too old to switch loyalties now (kidding, kidding, will never give up on the Bravos). I did get a great souvenir with the $20 merchandise credit on my ticket! Call it pity, or a guilty conscience for all the name-calling, but I saw about 3,000 of these in the Clubhouse store and felt obligated:

My girlfriend will always love you Frenchy!

I'll leave you with one last image to ponder, as I am really not sure what was going on when I snapped it. It appears as if Mark Teixeira is holding his stick. Potentially a new victory picture, or for defeats, I'm not real sure which.

NOT PICTURED: Julian Tavarez*, jug's vomit

*Credit to Tavarez for the 1-2-3 inning, lowered his ERA to 6.85.