May 01 2008
Disaster 12th inning dooms Braves in heartbreaking loss to Nats
By Bud L. Ellis
braves.today.com
Nationals 3, Braves 2 (12 innings)
Top of the Order: The Braves wasted a great pitching performance from Jair Jurrjens and let a 12th-inning lead slip away in another gut-wrenching, one-run defeat that sends the Braves home from the NYC/DC road trip on a four-game losing streak.
The Good: Mark Kotsay stepped up and led the charge offensively, going 3-for-5. The biggest hit by far was his single to right in the top of the 12th, plating pinch-runner Martin Prado with the tie-breaking run to give the Braves a 2-1 lead. Mark Teixeira, for whom Prado ran, had two hits to extend his hitting streak to seven games. Yunel Escobar also had two hits. Ruben Gotay, a late addition to the lineup when Kelly Johnson was scratched with back spasms, had a hit and a walk. What else can we say about Jurrjens? All the kid did today was hold the Nats to two hits through seven innings, allowing one run with no walks and one strikeout. He threw only 84 pitches, 60 for strikes, and got the majority of his outs to second, short and center. Another fantastic outing by the kid who is right now the only stabilizing force in the starting rotation. Where would be the Braves be without him … wait! Don’t answer that.
The Bad: Lo and behold, another one-run loss – the 14th in a row, dating back to last season. Manny Acosta held down the fort as long as he could, but ran out of gas in the 12th, his third inning of work. Five walks certainly hurt. So too did Prado’s butcher job on a liner that would’ve been a double play at first base, in his first game in professional baseball at the position. So too did Acosta’s muff of a double play after Prado’s blunder. Acosta threw a ridiculous number of pitches (49), giving way to Buddy Carlyle after walking in the tying run in the 12th. Buddy C. threw one pitch – ballgame. Can’t really blame the Braves’ offense, even though they finished with just nine hits. The Nats pitched well. Who’s not well? Mike Hampton, who removed himself from his rehab start at Richmond with discomfort in his chest muscle. Sometimes, I wonder if we’ll ever see Hampton pitch in Atlanta again.
View from the Sports Garage: Good grief, when will this end? It’s 0-9 and counting in one-run games in 2008. Lay this one at the feet of Bobby Cox, who didn’t have a good day at all. Bad Move By Cox No. 1: Yanking Jurrjens after seven. No way Jurrjens should’ve come out of the game. I don’t care if his spot was due up in the eighth inning or not. When you’ve got a dude pitching the way he’s pitching, and your bullpen is overworked and undermanned, you’ve got to ride your starter. Bad Move No. 2 by Cox was not starting the 10th with Jeff Bennett, who got the final out of the ninth inning. The bullpen is OUT OF GAS, and yet Cox brought Acosta into a game that still was tied. I know Bennett was pinch-hit for in the top of the 10th, and conventional wisdom dictates you don’t let relievers hit in extra innings. BUT, at some point you have to take the book and throw it out the window when you’re struggling. Had the Braves taken the lead in the 10th, then yes, you bring in Acosta, your closer. But not with the game tied, the bully running on fumes and Bennett having thrown all of four pitches.
Bad Move No. 3 by Cox was pinch-running Prado for Tex. I know Prado is faster, but come on … there’s NOT another first baseman on the freaking roster. What, you think Manny Acta was gonna let you borrow Nick Johnson for an inning or two? And Prado’s lack of experience at first base came back and bit Cox squarely in the butt in the bottom of the 12th. Bad Move No. 4 was leaving Acosta, who had thrown 28 pitches already, in for the 12th. Of course, if Bad Move No. 2 doesn’t happen, Bennett pitches the 10th, and Acosta would’ve been fresher.
One of these years, the Atlanta Braves are going to win a one-run game. I just hope I live to see it.
On deck
Braves vs. Reds
7:35 p.m. Friday, Turner Field
The Skinny: OK, first the good news. The Braves will miss both Aaron Harang and phenom Johnny Cueto during the weekend set at Turner Field. Now the bad news: Friday night starter Edinson Volquez is 4-0 with a 1.23 ERA for a bad baseball team. He struck out 10 in his last start. Yikes. Toeing the slab for the Braves is Tim Hudson, which means we’ll spend the off day leading into this series wondering whether we’ll see the Hudson who looks like an ace, or the Hudson who looks like he won’t make it past the third inning. Not exactly a cup running over with confidence as a six-game homestand begins at 755 Hank Aaron Boulevard.
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NL East is tough this year, who do you feel like is going to be on top at the end of the year. I personally don’t believe the favorites, New York Mets, will make it out on top this year.
What a freakin disaster that was yesterday. Excellent choices of bad moves. Bringing in Carlyle was a waste of time. Bases loaded with nobody out and the winning run on 3rd. Good luck finding a pitcher who basically needs 3 outs without giving up contact. Not gonna happen. What do you think about Smoltz going to the bully. NOt good in my opinion if he feels that is his best option left.
Yeah, this one was a meltdown of epic proportions. IF the Braves miss the playoffs by one game, I’m looking back to this one first. Horrible.
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Bbullis: Without a doubt, the Marlins have been one of baseball’s biggest surprises this season, leading the division at the one-month mark. I think it’s a matter of time before their inexperience and thin starting pitching catches up with them.
So now, to your question: All winter, talk centered on the Big Three — Atlanta, New York and Philadelphia. I’ve said since Christmas I think all three teams will be in the race until Labor Day, at least, and I could see things shape up where all three are within three or four games of each other entering the final two weeks.
I’m really, really concerned about the Braves’ health, though. All that accumulated depth in starting pitching has been plowed through already, and the bullpen is overworked. The good news for the Braves is IF Tom Glavine remains healthy, the emergence of Jair Jurrjens gives them three viable starters — if Tim Hudson ever finds his consistency. Jeff Bennett and Chuck James are good enough to hold down the fourth and fifth spots; James as the third starter last year showed just how weak Atlanta’s starting pitching was in 2007, and the need to bolster the arms. He’s a back end guy at best, not a middle of the rotation guy.
Plus, Atlanta is going to get Mike Gonzalez back for the bullpen by mid-May, it appears, and even if John Smoltz can only pitch every third day out of the pen, he’s shown this season a Smoltz at 70 percent is better than many hurlers at 100 percent.
I think the Mets have to worry about injuries, too. Both Pedro Martinez and Orlando Hernandez are rebounding slower than expected from injuries. Carlos Delgado’s inconsistencies at first base and the mystifying play of Jose Reyes at short are immediate concerns. Billy Wagner remains nearly unhittable, but the Mets’ middle relief — coupled with questions about whether John Maine can prove the first four months of 07 weren’t a fluke — makes the Mets an awfully shaky pick, too.
I love the Phillies. That top part of their lineup, playing half of their games in their little bandbox of a ballpark, is going to generate a ton of runs. IF Cole Hamels can pitch like a front-line guy and if they can get anything out of the back end of their rotation, the Phillies have to be the team to beat.
And therein lies the slippery slope for all three of these teams: If they get to October, all three are good enough to win a seven-game series. But who’s back end of the rotation will produce more consistently? The answer there probably will determine who wins the East.
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