Open thread, 5/29, Braves vs. the World
UPDATE, 4:45: O’Brien tweeted that Medlen’s been sent down, presumably to stretch out for starting duties. Constanza called up and starting in left tonight, batting ninth. Freddie remains out until at least Thursday, when it’s hoped his new goggles will arrive.
On April 29, 2010, the Braves dropped their ninth in a row … to the Cards. JJ didn’t make it out of the first, starting OF’s Melky Cabrera and Nate McLouth were hitting under .200 and the team stood at 8-14. Jurrjens would continue to struggle through an injury-prone campaign, fifth starter Kenshin Kawakami won one game and the rotation was only three deep: Hanson, Huddy and Derek Lowe.
That team made the playoffs, of course, so not all is lost. The difference: the rest of the division, besides the Phillies was decidedly mediocre. Only Philly and Atlanta finished above .500. And the 2010 Braves had Bobby, a factor many dismiss.
And they didn’t have to face a killer schedule while they were at their worst. They don’t play an opponent with a losing record until June 26, vs. Arizona. By then we’ll know whether the 2012 Braves merit comparison to the ’10 squad.
It’ll be up to Randall Delgado to stop the skid tonight. He’s coming off two bad starts in which he’s given up eight runs and eight walks in 9.1 innings.
Where’s Troy Glaus when we need him?
There’s an aspect to this entire Freddie Freeman dry eyes fiasco that has just a hint of Nick Esasky to it. I’m not too happy with Jason Heyward, who doesn’t appear to be in the same echelon as Bryce Harper as a ballplayer, as he was supposed to be.
Hopefully we’ll turn it back around….whistles past graveyard…
Dammit Rob. Stay away from the “N” word.
Meanwhile, Melkey Cabrera leads the league in hits. He had 201 last year. Fucker.
This team is tired and banged up. We get Hudson back but still find ourselves a starter (or two) short. What we really need is a day off.
We have a 4-0 lead in the 4th and a chance to salvage the month with this series.
If Chipper plays 104 games and we win 80 of them, does that make him MVP?
Meanwhile Texas signed Oswalt for $5 million. So much for that payroll wiggle room we hear about from The Company Man (Terry McGuirk).
And so much for Oswalt’s lifelong dream of pitching for the Braves. He’s got a little Alex Rodriguez in him.
I don’t think that’s fair. The Braves never showed any interest. If you were Oswalt who would you rather play for: A team committed to winning or one run by penny-pitching conglomerate who could care less about championships?
If Oswalt really wanted to play for the Braves, I suspect they could’ve figured out a way to do it financially. The guy’s made $92 million in his career. He doesn’t need money. I never believe any pro athlete who has “a dream” to do anything. That said, if he wanted to play for Texas, who could blame him?
And it is frustrating to root for a team that never has money to do anything exciting or interesting in mid-season, and that doesn’t have an owner who cares.
Good win last night. Constanza’s run was the difference. Keep in the lineup as long as he’s getting on base.