When the Braves acquired Dan Uggla in December, they did so knowing they already had one of the best second baseman in the game in Martin Prado. In typical Martin Prado fashion, he put the team ahead of himself and moved to left field without any complaints. The Braves should feel fortunate to have both of these players on their team. With two clutch home runs from Prado and Uggla in the 8th inning, combined with a masterful pitching performance from Brandon Beachy, the Braves defeated the Brewers 2-1 on Monday afternoon.

Beachy pitched six impressive innings and only needed 88 pitches to do so. Even more impressive, 61 of the 88 pitches were strikes. He allowed just one run on four hits and he really settled in as the game moved along. Beachy struck out seven Brewers on the day and only walked one. George Sherrill, Peter Moylan, Jonny Venters, and Craig Kimbrel worked the final three innings and didn't allow a run to score. Kimbrel struck out all three of the batters he faced in the ninth.

The Braves had a runner reach first base in each of the first five innings, but they couldn't do anything with the opportunity. As a matter of fact, they didn't have a single opportunity to hit with a runner in scoring position. Chris Narveson kept their bats at bay and worked six impressive innings. Kameron Loe worked a scoreless 7th inning and former-Brave Takashi Saito came in the 8th.

Martin Prado fell behind 1-2 in the count and then battled back to fill up the count. Saito threw a high fastball at the letters and Prado didn't miss it. He rocketed the ball towards the left field seats and the game was tied 1-1. Nate McLouth and Chipper Jones then recorded the first two outs of the inning, which brought up Dan Uggla. The new second baseman took a hanging slider and sent it just over the left field wall to give the Braves a 2-1 lead that they wouldn't relinquish.

It wasn't pretty early on, but the Braves didn't quit found a way to win the ball game in front of a sold out Miller Park.

Awards and more after the jump...

MVP(s):

Brandon Beachy - 6IP, 4H, 1ER, 1BB, 7K
Martin Prado - 2-for-4, HR (1), RBI (2)
Dan Uggla - 1-for-4, HR (2), RBI (2)

LVP(s)

Takashi Saito - L, 1IP, 3H, 2ER, 0BB, 1K

What's Next:

After playing four day games in a row, the Braves will finally be able to get in a routine of a normal day. The pitching match-up should be a good one with Derek Lowe facing off against Yovani Gallardo. First pitch is at 8:05 EST.

GameThreads:

#1
#2

Comments of the Game: (Just for future reference, there won't ever be any repeat winners. We all love the Uggla Smash, though.)

ATLandUNC wins once again...

Time to close the door

How do I feel? Like f**king success - Jordan Schafer

We had the midget mafia over at second base: Me, Uggla and Conrad - Matt Young

by ATLandUNC on Apr 4, 2011 1:55 PM MST reply actions   7 recs

TheLetter2 also wins once again with this beautiful picture, which was a reply to Freddie Freeman's legs making up 85% of his body.

ARTIST'S CONCEPTION (to scale)

LIVE EDT

Tape-delayed for the West Coast

by TheLetter2 on Apr 4, 2011 12:37 PM MST up reply actions   8 recs