Apr 02 2009
Braves pump up the power in win over Tigers
By Bud L. Ellis
braves.today.com
Atlanta 9, Detroit 3 (exhibition)
Top of the Order: The Bravos pumped up the power with three homer runs and Tom Glavine won for the second time in three outings as Atlanta moved to 19-11 on the spring with – mercifully – three exhibition games to go.
The Good: Glavine gave up three runs in five innings, but the Braves built him a 6-0 lead after the top of the third and the 305-game winner cruised from there. Jeff Bennett (one inning, one hit) probably nailed down a roster spot with another effective inning, his sinker returning to form just in time to save him from starting the season in Gwinnett. Boone Logan gave up two hits and a walk, but no runs, in 1 2/3 innings. Offensively, who says the Braves can’t hit home runs? Casey Kotchman’s two-run shot in the third, Chipper Jones’ solo homer in the fourth (his fourth of the spring), and Clint Sammons’ third of the spring, a solo blast in the sixth, fueled the offense. Omar Infante and Gregor Blanco each had two hits, Blanco drive in two and Infante scoring twice. Yunel Escobar drove in two and had two hits, as the Braves once again cracked double digits in hits (14).
The Bad: David Ross’ strained right groin muscle, injured during Tuesday’s loss to Houston while running out a ground ball, may send the veteran backup catcher to the disabled list. Ross has impressed everybody this spring with his defense and his power (three homers), and losing him definitely would sting. Brian McCann didn’t catch (bruised right thigh; he DH’ed) but is expected to return to action by Friday.
View from the Sports Garage: Here we are. Three days to go until the march to October begins for real. The Braves look ready, folks. Glavine got 10 of his 15 outs on ground balls, his change-up working very well against Detroit’s powerful lineup. The Atlanta offense continues to hit line drives all over the place, and the Braves mixed in the long ball Wednesday. Sammons, who struggled bigtime at the plate last season when called up to the majors, his hitting a cool .455 with three dingers this spring. That would help if Ross starts the season on the DL, which I think very well may happen. Gotta let the groin heal and not try to rush Ross back too soon. One more day in Florida, and then it’s on to Turner Field for two with the Tigers Friday and Saturday, then the flight to Philly for Opening Night. This long offseason, full of violent shifts and shakes, of renewed hope and promise, capped by the mind-numbing length of spring training, is nearly finished. The light is at the end of the tunnel, and it’s the light signaling showtime is almost here.
On deck
Braves at Astros
1:05 p.m. today, Kissimmee
The Skinny: Jair Jurrjens makes his final Grapefruit League appearance today against a bunch of Houston’s Triple-A players – the major-league Astros having vacated camp for a game against their Double-A team. It will be the seventh start for JJJ, who is 1-1 with a 3.20 ERA during a camp that’s shown the young right-hander is ready to build upon the success of his 13-win rookie season. All you want today is for nobody to get hurt, folks to get their work in, then wing it toward the capital city for two more tune-ups in advance of Sunday night.
Speaking of Opening Night …
For those of you in the Atlanta area, I’ll be watching Sunday night’s season opener with a group of Braves fans and baseball folks at Jocks N’ Jills Galleria (near the confluence of Interstates 285 and 75, on the northwest side of town). Come join us as the season begins!
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