Braves Win Behind the Bat of McCann in Ten
by moorebraves on Jun 11, 2011 11:20 PM EDT
in Braves Game Recaps
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For the second time this season, a late game Brian McCann homer off of Brandon Lyon helped lead the Braves to a victory over the Astros in extra frames. Tonight's blast came in the tenth inning and was crushed into the right field seats. Unlike during the May 17th affair, the Braves offense put on an impressive performance despite some squandered opportunities. Tonight's 6-3 win means Atlanta has now won five straight and gotten double-digit hits in back-to-back nights.
Early on, it seemed like the Braves just weren't going to be able to keep the winning streak going. Mike Minor came out and gave up two runs in the first off of base hits that sent Eric Hinske running all over left field. Minor pitched a gem after the rough first inning, though. He ultimately left the game after six, giving up just the two first inning runs, four hits, and two walks.
The Braves had several opportunities to break out with some runs, leaving nine men on base tonight. They finally broke through to score in the third when one of Chipper's two doubles on the night drove in Uggla all the way from first. Dan went 2 for 3 and drew two walks on the night! This is his first 2-game hitting streak since May 10th and 11th, and his first multi-hit game since May 15th. Could it be?
Eric Hinske tacked on a run in the fourth with a blast to right field to tie up the game at two. This score held until McCann's 3-run jack gave Atlanta the lead in the tenth. A Hinske base hit later in the inning allowed Chipper to cross the plate and gave the Braves all the insurance they needed. Kimbrel came on in the bottom half and gave up a run, but got the job done for the Bravos.
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DOB:
#Braves’ McCann has welt the size of a small grapefruit on l. shin (grotesque, seriously) and a big bruise on his r. shoulder. All tonight
Hmm…Ross again tomorrow?
Twitter: @TAlmeyda
Hell yeah we did!
I cant wait til i get back to atlanta and can actually watch these games live
"Welcome to the show, Brandon Beachy. I think you’re going to stay a while."
Recap of tonight's game:
"I'll give any teller who gives me a lollipop 4 stars."-Chip Kelly
by TennesseeQuackAttack8 on Jun 11, 2011 11:30 PM EDT reply actions
I don’t think TL2 would like that.
Twitter: @TAlmeyda
by TonyAlmeyda on Jun 11, 2011 11:33 PM EDT up reply actions
Oh, it's supposed to look like crap.
"I'll give any teller who gives me a lollipop 4 stars."-Chip Kelly
by TennesseeQuackAttack8 on Jun 11, 2011 11:41 PM EDT up reply actions
That wasn’t the point of the joke, but now I’m disturbed by the double post. Something is amiss.
LIVE EDT
Tape-delayed for the West Coast
i think the TC servers
just wanted to re enforce your point
"Welcome to the show, Brandon Beachy. I think you’re going to stay a while."
I liked the picture.
Don’t let artists hate.
"Insert witty and/or funny quote here" ~ The Person Who Spoketh Said Quote.
Uggla's
Slowly coming around. I feel it.
"Insert witty and/or funny quote here" ~ The Person Who Spoketh Said Quote.
So apparently there is a movie called Titanic 2
and one of the Characters has Nate McLouth Hair,
"Welcome to the show, Brandon Beachy. I think you’re going to stay a while."
Couple of things
1. Could our offense really be waking up??
2. Dan Uggla???? I hope his bat is really waking up that would be a BIG plus for this offense.
3. How about that Jordan Schafer kid?
GO BRAVES!!
It was great to see some nice approaches from Uggla.
He surprised me by going the other way in the first, and then showed remarkable restraint (for him) on breaking pitches in the third. (The last curve was nowhere near, but he has tended to whiff on the other ones in the dirt in days past.) His next at-bat was kind of meh because he seemed to forget exactly what made him so successful in striking out on pitches that weren’t particularly overpowering or well-located, but then he showed that same good restraint in getting on ahead of McCann’s towering shot.
Chipper’s making some good adjustments in trying to slice the ball the other way from the left side. If he gets that swing working permanently, we’ll probably see a lot fewer soft rollers to second from him.
Minor was gutsy, as was EOF, both in the face of getting astrohit™ to death after that first inning.
Hinske is a funny guy. He looks terrible in one at-bat and then he gets a badly located pitch and deposits it into the stands. I’m glad he’s on our bench to pick up the slack when injuries strike.
And of course, McCann is a king of kings. Look on his works, ye mighty, and despair.
I love this team, as frustrating as it is sometimes.
by Ivan the Great on Jun 11, 2011 11:54 PM EDT reply actions
“I love this team, as frustrating as it is sometimes.”
worded perfectly and agreed upon by 90% of us.
by chasemiddaugh on Jun 12, 2011 12:08 AM EDT up reply actions
Need 1 more to secure Series
"In the happy moments, praise God. In the difficult moments, seek God. In the quiet moments, trust God. In every moment, thank God." - Robert A. Wood
Just thought I'd throw this out.
http://braves.mlb.com/team/roster_active.jsp?c_id=atl
How sad does that look? 2 outfielders on the active roster? Granted, Mather should definitely be classified as an outfielder as well, but it’s funny that our outfield depth is basically Jordan Schafer, Matt Young, and nobody.
My buddy and I just decided that the braves would be set if we could get Matt Kemp, Jose Reyes, and Albert Pujols.
by willlinn on May 17, 2011 2:13 PM EDT
Awesome...
Yeah, Mather and Hinske have been in the OF, but goodness. So…why did we call up Hicks to replace Prado?
"Insert witty and/or funny quote here" ~ The Person Who Spoketh Said Quote.
I knew we would win
When Uggla got on base for the second time. Hell had frozen over and that’s always a good indicator of future performance.
If I had a nickel for everytime someone told me I should shutup, I'd probably have 5 or 6 bucks.
Countdown of best indicators for future peformance
3. Historic similarity data
2. Past Performance
1. Hell freezing over.
Got it.
My buddy and I just decided that the braves would be set if we could get Matt Kemp, Jose Reyes, and Albert Pujols.
by willlinn on May 17, 2011 2:13 PM EDT
It seems to me we're just changing it up everyday.
We’re missing our starting outfield so whatever is clever. Keep on doing what you do. We have long bouts of mediocrity with spurts of brilliance. It is beautiful and maddening.
If I had a nickel for everytime someone told me I should shutup, I'd probably have 5 or 6 bucks.
Short term...
Sure.
But when everyone’s healthy, Prado will be the 2nd hitter.
"Insert witty and/or funny quote here" ~ The Person Who Spoketh Said Quote.
by Jman781 on Jun 12, 2011 12:31 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
depends
if once McLouth, Heyward, AND Prado are back the team most likely will send Schafer back to AAA and Prado should go back to leading off with Nate hitting 2nd.
by drumzalicious on Jun 12, 2011 12:36 AM EDT up reply actions
I think Schafer has earned a spot on the big league roster.
Heaven forbid an injury occurs on the infield, Prado can move in that spot and Jordan can fill in.
If I had a nickel for everytime someone told me I should shutup, I'd probably have 5 or 6 bucks.
DFA Nate, and make him practice nothing but bunting. Sure would be nice to be able to count on someone who fills a role completely.
I think you are right
if past experience is any indication. But I still don’t like it. Schafer has just plain played better, in these ways: 1) Better fielder. Covers more ground, takes better routes. I don’t know if he throws better, anyone know? 2) Gets on base more often and more consistently. 3) Steals bases and hence manufactures runs.
Only way I see McLouth having the edge is in HR power.
I’ll take Schafer over McLouth.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 12:50 AM EDT up reply actions
Also Prado has previously stated that he doesn’t like leading off, and has proven to be a poor base stealer. I hope that part improves. I think we really benefit from having a speedy player who can get on base leading off.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 1:04 AM EDT up reply actions
Why would you take a guy off the field that is producing versus one (Nate) that you "hope" will?
Schafer should stay in CF.
He’s getting on base, stealing them once there and if he does get a hit his speed has the chance to turn singles into doubles.
He covers a lot of ground in the field and will actually throw the ball to try and make plays.
"In the happy moments, praise God. In the difficult moments, seek God. In the quiet moments, trust God. In every moment, thank God." - Robert A. Wood
There seems to be fewer comments
when we are winning.
If I had a nickel for everytime someone told me I should shutup, I'd probably have 5 or 6 bucks.
I have heard previous posters say
that they are more interested in trying to figure out what went wrong win we lose, and are content to sort of bask when we win.
I personally like talking about the good stuff that happens when we win more. But that is just me.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 12:58 AM EDT up reply actions
Maybe just a need to vent frustration when things are going badly.
Or maybe we’re all just still in shock (yes, I know, incoming puns related to my username) from scoring more than 2-3 runs per game over the last two nights.
It took extra innings tonight so one of these *
If I had a nickel for everytime someone told me I should shutup, I'd probably have 5 or 6 bucks.
well in my defense
I am 8 hours away from driving to Vallejo California, taking a cab to a greyhound station, taking Greyhound to San Francisco, taking a bus to the airport, then trying to fly standby from SFO to ATL. So im a tad preoccupied
"Welcome to the show, Brandon Beachy. I think you’re going to stay a while."
Dude, there’s got to be a better way.
As someone that’s traveled by Greyhound through California and made a fair bit of cross-country flights, there’s just no way that that’s optimal.
by Ivan the Great on Jun 12, 2011 8:56 AM EDT up reply actions
Oregon should invest
In an airport.
The Oregon Trail must be pretty worn out by now. Plus, one may get dysentery or die fording a river.
"Insert witty and/or funny quote here" ~ The Person Who Spoketh Said Quote.
Just rewatched the 10th and someone needs to tell Chip that Mac's walkoff earlier this
year, didn’t come off Lyon.
It’s now been one month and 11 appearances since Scott Linebrink’s been scored on…and nine of those appearances were an inning or more.
-C
It’s rough to sit through these games and not have someone that can’t hit a Ball?
That is the truth. And it seems to take an enormous body of evidence before a player is let up on. In some cases, like Linebrink, it is almost ridiculous. I’m glad cthabeerman has posted this regarding Linebrink; maybe he will be given more respect.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 2:30 AM EDT up reply actions
Bum rap? Are you kidding? I’m as happy as the next guy that he has been playing well but that is the upside of the term “take a flier on the guy,” and that’s all we did is take a flier on Scott Linebrink. And before we call him a rousing success let’s remember that he has cost us a competitive game in a few instances.
For eleven games, that squirrel has got something figured out!
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 3:36 AM EDT up reply actions
I sure do
Schafer
Uggla
Chipper
Freeman
Hinske
Ross
Gonzalez
Young
by Undocorkscrew on Jun 12, 2011 2:18 AM EDT up reply actions
Almost unbelievable. He has done so well, the only thing he does’t do well is run. I don’t think getting caught in that run down on Saturday was a product of bad baserunning, though, it seemed to be just one of those things. it is my understanding that the runner on third is taught to go on a ground ball in that situation, particularly one to the right side of the field. There have been a couple of other things, though, that indicate he does not have great baserunning instincts yet. I bet he will get better at it. Meanwhile, his fielding and hitting are just stellar.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 2:37 AM EDT up reply actions
While a lot of people have gone out on a limb and said that FF has cleanup power, almost no one predicted him in the 4th spot this year. With that said, it seems the transition period has gone. While we can’t expect the level of production we have seen lately on a daily basis (that being above .400 BA this month) we all know he has great potential.
Agreed, it is not likely that he keeps up the above .400 pace the rest of the season. He only got one hit Saturday.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 3:38 AM EDT up reply actions
Venters
I know tonight was all about the offense clicking and more great pitching all-around, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a stretch as dominant as Jonny Venters. Granted, I haven’t gotten to consistently see the likes of Rivera, Gagne, Wagner, etc like I have Venters.
In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a more dominant sinker from any pitcher. It’s remarkable that anybody manages to put it in play. I don’t take the All-Star game seriously, but it would be a travesty to leave Venters out.
Venters will be in the All-Star game. Baseball has taken notice, so I wouldn’t worry about that. Baseball Nation has called his sinker the best pitch in baseball. He is indeed the best relief pitcher in baseball, which is indisputable.
After watching baseball for 30 years, I can honestly say that he is one of the best pitchers I have ever seen. Before you say that I’m in left field, consider this: in all of the Braves runs, no one dominated like this. It does remind me of Smoltz in 96 and Maddux in 95 though. Venters has a few things going for him. He had a deceptive delivery, and he can throw a sinker faster than anyone else can. This is why I have faith in him.
I’ll say it one more time: Jonny Venters is the best relief pitcher in baseball.
I voted for him as a write-in candidate 25 times. The kid deserves it, he is pretty damn good at baseball.
I am tremendously impressed with Venters and the fact that the Braves consistently produce good to great pitchers with their farm system.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 2:32 AM EDT up reply actions
Hunter Pence was laughing
After he struck out against Venters all he could do. Jesus, that sinker is sick. I am not sure baseball is gonna learn how to hit it, either. I mean a 93 mile an hour pitch with a downbreak of 2 feet, how the fuck do you hit that????
I am sure the opposing players are asking themselves the same question!
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 2:53 AM EDT up reply actions
The Sinker is incredibly dominant, but lets be honest, the cutter is a better pitch when thrown at a level of dominance of the occasional elite pitcher. Venters right now is the best at what he does but the idea behind the sinker is to induce weak contact, and while it is unfortunate, that is valued much more highly in a starter than reliever. The point is that he is not the stereotypical reliever with the overwhelmingly dominant stuff. And while his stuff is really good, the point for Venters isn’t as much unhittable dominance as much as creating impotence with the best case scenario being a weak groundball.
With all that said, lets buck the conventional wisdom and put Venters in the closing spot. While with Kimbrel we expect the occasional baserunner, Venters is lights-out. And that is much more important in a reliever than groundball-flyball ratio.
I hope our offense can start to heat up so we can give Jonny some rest.
Our slim leads have meant we’ve depended on him a lot and it’s just June.
That arm is quite the asset for us and we need to keep him healthy so we’ll have use of his skills through October.
"In the happy moments, praise God. In the difficult moments, seek God. In the quiet moments, trust God. In every moment, thank God." - Robert A. Wood
I hate the All Star game
And that’s going to be another IP on Venters arm.
"Bunting's my favorite." Fredi G
Has anyone else noticed
how good the fielding was in the game on Saturday? Many highlights shown on MLB.com. Chipper showing off for his parents! Gonzales’ leap, Freddie’s pickups. Great stuff.
Chipper made a couple grabs that were webgem worthy!
Of course Gonzo and Freeman have spoiled us with their parade of excellent we get to see every game.
"In the happy moments, praise God. In the difficult moments, seek God. In the quiet moments, trust God. In every moment, thank God." - Robert A. Wood
As a big supporter of Dan Uggla its great to see him have a good game. Beyond that, I’m seeing his approach at the plate improve greatly. His frontside is now moving towards the pitch and while his left shoulder still is turning on the breaking ball I see a huge improvement. I think, fellow Braves lovers, that Dan Uggla has turned the corner.
Also, I felt that Brian McCann homer coming. You don’t pitch Brian McCann inside, you just dont.
By the way, am I the only one who heard Joe Simpson say that he has oftentimes called Chipper “the old gray mare?”
I have heard him use the term frequently in regards to Chipper.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 3:28 AM EDT up reply actions
I pray that Joe is using the right term and doesn;’t think that mare is an interchangeable word for horse….
Just a very dated expression now meant to indicate any older person.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 3:41 AM EDT up reply actions
It’s also great to see some movement on the basepaths. While I might not send Chipper, Jordan is a solid speed threat, and it is really nice to be able to successfully take advantage of it.
Agreed. I was surprised to see Chipper trying at all. I love seeing Jordan, though.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 4:03 AM EDT up reply actions
I’m not so sure that Chipper was sent though. I’m inclined to think that Chipper Jones is a much more independent entity than any of us realize. The term player-manager comes to mind. I saw what I perceived as a less-than-pleasant interaction between Freddi and Chipper that I personally account to the Heyward comments. While I think that Freddi is trying hard to gain leadership over the clubhouse, Chipper must inevitably have a gigantic pull and when the two are opposed I can imagine how the clubhouse must lean. Regardless, I think the influence of Larry Wayne Sr. and the need to step up has rejuvenated “old grizzly” (lightyears better than “old gray mare” right?)
That's a good one
But I like what Hudson called him the other day: the old battle axe.
If a woman has to choose between catching a fly ball and saving an infant's life, she will choose to save the infant's life without even considering if there are men on base. ~Dave Barry
by -InsertWittyNameHere- on Jun 12, 2011 7:25 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
I like “old grizzly” better, too. Someone should tell Joe.
by BravesFaninAZ on Jun 12, 2011 10:33 AM EDT up reply actions
I propose this should be our new theme song.
"Why do you continue to waste my time?" "I was wondering, if you're here, and I'm here, doesn't that make it our time?"
Ummm no thanks.
"In the happy moments, praise God. In the difficult moments, seek God. In the quiet moments, trust God. In every moment, thank God." - Robert A. Wood
Third...
Wow. That was awful.
"Insert witty and/or funny quote here" ~ The Person Who Spoketh Said Quote.
I saw Mac's HR was his 501 career rbi last night
looked at active leaders to see where he was and surprised to see that Frenchy is still 4 RBI’s ahead of Mac. Surprise anyone else?
Spring Training is the greatest thing that can't end soon enough
Definitely. Frenchy is trash.
by joshmaurer on Jun 12, 2011 12:11 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Am I the only one...
who is VERY excited about watching Jordan bat leadoff and steal bases?
He already has 6 steals…which is probably more than our whole team had last season.
No way we can bring McLouth back up and lose that spark plug in CF. Especially since Shafer is better in every way defensively.
Chicken pot, chicken pot, chicken pot pie!!
Well, there will at least be a couple of weeks for a desicion to be made. Prado will be out at least two weeks after McLouth is back. Another injury might put the desicion back even longer. The kid has a lot of time right now to show he belongs up.
When McLouth returns...
LF McLouth
CF Schafer
RF Young/Mather/Hinske
??
I guess Young might go down at that point, but there’s no guarantee there…Hicks could get moved back down, etc.
-C
It’s rough to sit through these games and not have someone that can’t hit a Ball?
by cthabeerman on Jun 13, 2011 11:48 AM EDT up reply actions
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