Sep 24 2008
Rare feat: Braves knock off Phillies
By Bud L. Ellis
braves.today.com
Braves 3, Phillies 2
Top of the Order: Mike Hampton pitched six strong innings, and Kelly Johnson extended his hitting streak to 21 games as the Braves beat Philly for only the third time in 17 tries this season.
The Good: Gotta start with Hampton, who once again delivered a quality start: six innings, six hits, two runs, three walks, four strikeouts. Think the Braves would take that every day out? You betchya. Hampton, who improved to 3-3 on the season, threw 94 pitches, 57 for strikes. From there, the bullpen pitched well: Will Ohman, Jeff Bennett and Mike Gonzalez each pitched a hitless, scoreless inning. The Braves’ defense turned three double plays. Johnson continues to blister the ball, going 2-or-4 with a run scored, an RBI and a stolen base. Casey Kotchman hit his second homer as a Brave, a solo shot in the sixth, finishing 2-for-4. Ruben Gotay delivered a pinch-hit single.
The Bad: Chipper Jones did not play again with a sore shoulder, but his .364 batting average leads Albert Pujols by 14 points with five days to go. Yunel Escobar also did not play with his hamstring injury, and it appears he will not play again this season.
View from the Sports Garage: A win over Philadelphia has been about as rare a feat for the Braves as $2 a gallon gas. Yet with the veteran Hampton toeing the slab for Atlanta last night, the Braves went into a hostile environment, against a team closing in on a playoff spot, and played with poise. Hampton continues to impress; I think somebody will offer him a decent one-year deal, but I’d love for the Braves to at least extend him an invite to spring training. Again, I’m thinking there is a team that will take a flyer on him simply because he’s a veteran lefty who has proven the past two months he still can get out major-league hitters. As for Johnson? Yeah, he’ll be back next season. He’s hitting .415 this month with 15 extra-base hits. As good as Martin Prado has been filling in for Chipper and making the occasional start at second, I think Johnson playing 145 games at second gives you a better chance to win.
On deck
Braves at Phillies
7:05 p.m. today, Citizens Bank Park
The Skinny: I know, I had Jo-Jo Reyes (3-11, 5.74 ERA) pitching last night. My bad. Good thing the Braves didn’t follow my rotation, because Jo-Jo has been no-go in recent starts. It’s his last chance to make a good showing in front of management, and lately, Reyes has been pretty bad: a 7.79 ERA in his past 12 appearances. For the Phils, Brett Myers (10-12, 4.46 ERA) had a Jo-Jo’esque outing his last time out, giving up 10 earned runs in four innings.
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