Aug 30 2008
Another night, another loss as Braves’ slog toward September
By Bud L. Ellis
braves.today.com
Nationals 7, Braves 3
Top of the Order: Another rotten lowlight in a season full of ‘em – Yunel Escobar tying a franchise record by grounding into three double plays in the same game – as the Braves opened a series matching up the two worst teams in the NL East with their 14th loss in their past 18 games.
The Good: Chipper Jones still leads the majors in hitting, going 1-for-3 with a walk as his average dropped one point to .358. Brian McCann led the offense with two hits. Greg Norton hit a pinch-hit two run homer, his sixth of the season and just the ninth by a Brave this month. Buddy Carlyle retired the only hitter he faced. Blaine Boyer gave up a hit but struck out one in 1/3 of an inning. Vladimir Nunez fired two scoreless innings, his second consecutive solid appearance. Josh Anderson was back in center field and hitting leadoff for the second day in a row. That’s good; dude needs to play, and he had a hit and scored a run. Martin Prado doubled and drove in the other Braves’ run. Omar Infante scored a run.
The Bad: Escobar won’t remember this one fondly. He became the first Braves player in 53 years to ground into three double plays in the same game, and just the third in franchise history. In addition, Esco made an error. Ugh. Jorge Campillo just didn’t have it, giving up eight hits and five runs with three walks on 3 2/3 innings. Before the game, the Braves activated veteran Elmer Dessens – sending Charlie Morton to Richmond; don’t worry, rosters expand Monday and Morton will make his scheduled start for the big-league club Tuesday. Dessens gave up one hit and two runs, walking two, in 1 2/3 innings. Folks, he’s simply here to get this team to Sept. 28. That’s all, so don’t sweat it. Prado left three runners on in scoring position, as the Braves finished with eight left on base.
View from the Sports Garage: Back to the very place where this horrid march straight toward baseball oblivion started, the Braves whipped out a stinker of a performance. Hitting fifth for the second night in a row, Escobar came up with runners on all night long, but couldn’t come through. If it seems like that’s all Esco’s done lately, you’re right. He’s grounded into five double plays in the past three games, and his 23 GIDPs this season is one off the team record shared by Dale Murphy and Andruw Jones. Otherwise, this one is a different story, even with Campillo struggling in what was his worst start of the season. Hey, just think: One month from now, all of this will be over and done. In a way, I think we’re all looking forward to the season being finished, even the players and the coaching staff. At the same time, I think all of us will be more anxious than ever to get the new season started. It’s gonna be tough to deal with the bitter aftertaste of this bitter, spoiled season.
On deck
Braves at Nationals
7:10 p.m. today, Nationals Park
The Skinny: Even though the Braves are out of the race and there is plenty of room for young players to work on proving they can play in the majors, Jo-Jo Reyes (3-10, 5.34 ERA) may be on a short leash tonight. The left-hander followed up his strong showing against the Mets Aug. 19 with another rough start Sunday against St. Louis: nine hits, six runs (five earned) and four walks in 5 2/3 innings. Control continues to be Jo-Jo’s big problem. For the Nationals, right-hander Jason Bergmann (2-10, 4.56 ERA) has won just once in his past 10 starts. He allowed four hits and four runs Sunday in a loss to the Cubs.
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