The Atlanta Braves broke a 2-2 tie in the top of the ninth inning when Omar Infante singled to right field to score Jeff Francoeur and then got another run in the ninth inning when Gregor Blanco tripled to score Infante.  The Braves weren’t done however as they scored one more time on a Kelly Johnson infield groundout.  Nice comeback win for the Braves as they won 5-2 when it was all said and done.

Now that is a great win for the Braves who were up 2-0 earlier in the game.  Chipper Jones hit his 16th home run of the single in the first inning to get the Braves scoring.  In the third inning, Johnson had a rbi triple for the Braves second run.

Braves starting pitcher Jose Reyes threw the first seven innings of the game and gave up five hits and two runs.  Reyes walked four batters and struckout two batters.  Reyes ended up getting the no decision in the game but it was a quality outing for him.

Jeff Bennett pitched a scoreless eighth inning to keep the score tied 2-2 and then Mike Gonzalez made his first apperance of the year in the ninth inning as he finished the Rangers off.  Bennet got the win and is now 1-4 while Gonzalez picked up his first save of the season.

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The Atlanta Braves fell to the Texas Rangers 7-5 on Tuesday evening.  The Braves really struggled at the plate as they only had five hits in the game and left 11 runners on base.  This is a game that the Braves should be winning if you ask me.  Right now they just aren’t getting it done.

Tim Hudson only lasted 4 1/3 innings as he gave up six hits and six runs.  Hudson didn’t have his pitches working for him and you could tell right away in the game as Josh Hamilton took him deep for a solo home run in the first inning.

I will give the Braves bullpen some credit however as they did a pretty good job.  Jeff Ridgway pitched 1 2/3 innings and gave up one run but then Blaine Boyer and Royce Ring were able to pitched the final two innings of the game without any problems.

Brian McCann had a three run home run in the eighth inning to lead the Braves with three rbi.  Mark Teixeira and Omar Infante both had one rbi in the game to contribute as well but it still was not enough to get by the Rangers.

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Jair Jurrjens tossed 7 2/3 innings of shutout baseball as the Atlanta Braves defeated the Colorado Rockies 7-1 on Monday night.  Jurrjens gave up eight hits and struckout seven Rockies as he improved his record to 7-3.

Will Ohman recorded the final out in the eighth inning and then Jeff Bennett was brought in but he had some troubles in the ninth inning.  Two walks and a hit allowed the Rockies to score their one run in the game off of Bennett.

Chipper Jones stayed hot as he went 2-4 with two rbi in the game.  Jeff Francoeur and Brandon Jones both had two rbi in the game as well.  Mark Teixeira also contributed with an rbi of his own as the Braves had no problems scoring runs off the Rockies.

It was a good win for the Braves as they picked up a win on the road.  They will try for another win on Tuesday against the Rockies.

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Well, that sure is a different way to lose a baseball game.  The Atlanta Braves battled with the Chicago Cubs for 11 innings and ended up coming up short in the game as they lost 3-2.  Jeff Ridgway threw one pitch in the 11th inning with the bases loaded and hit Reed Johnson to score the winning run for the Cubs.

Manny Acosta actually took the loss for the Braves and is now 3-5.  It was actually a pretty good day for the Braves pitching staff before all that happened.  Well except for the blown save in the ninth inning when Jim Edmonds took Blain Boyer deep to tie the game.  Tim Hudson got the start on the mound and threw 6 2/3 innings and gave up seven hits and only one run.

The Braves offense once again struggled to put up runs in the game even though they had 11 hits.  Jeff Francoeur had a two run home run in the second inning and that was all the Braves could get off the Cubs as they left 25 runners on base.

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The Atlanta Braves were beat by the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night by the score of 7-2.  The Braves struggled all night long to get runners into scoring position and that only happened a couple of times.  They were taken to the woodshed in the game and that was shown on the scoreboard.

Jeff Bennett only lasted two inning as he gave up seven hits and seven runs to take the loss for the Braves.  Bennett is now 0-4 on the season with a 4.56 era.  The Braves bullpen did a pretty good job after they came in for Bennett as they did not allow another run to cross the plate or things could have been much worse.

Phil Stockman and Jeff Ridgway both pitched two innings each of relief while Royce Ring and Blaine Boyer both tossed one innnig of relief.  The bullpen was the bright spot for the Braves that is for sure.

Cubs starting pitcher Ryan Dempster sure cooled off the Braves hitters.  He tossed a complete game against the Braves who only had four hits on the night.  One of those hits was a two run home run by Corky Miller.  The ball was really helped with some wind that was blowing out towards left field.  If not for the wind, I think this came would have ended 7-0.

The Braves will try to avoid the three game sweep as they battle the Cubs on Thursday afternoon.  It will be a great pitcing matchup as it will be Tim Hudson and Carlos Zambrano.

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John Smoltz made his first appearance since going on the disabled list. Unfortunately for Smoltz and the Braves, the Marlins were able to take advantage of some solid hitting in the top of the ninth. Matt Treanor doubled after an inconspicuous foul out by Chad Ross who led off the inning. It was then former Brave Wes Helms following with a single to put runners at the corners. Hanley Ramirez followed with a fly out to right-field. Pinch runner Alfredo Amezaga held at third, obviously concerned with the power and accuracy of Jeff Francoeur’s throw. That was fortunate as Jeff Francoeur let sail with a high and wild throw which allowed Wes Helms to move up 90 feet to second base. It would take a two out hit by Jeremy Hermida to get the runs home. That’s exactly what the Marlins got as Hermida slapped the pitch into left field. Two runs scored after Omar Infante’s short game of futbol. Infante has been playing good for the Braves in my opinion so I see this as just a bump in the road for our trusty utility player. Smoltz was able to get out of the inning after the next batter, getting Jorge Cantu to popup to first baseman Mark Teixeira.

The Braves would not go quietly however. Mark Teixeira led off the bottom of the 10th with a ground out to second. Jeff Francoeur then drew a walk as did Brian McCann the very next at bat. Josh Anderson then comes to the plate and smokes a ball to Jorge Cantu at third as it turned out Anderson had hit in what could have been a game ending 5-4-3 double play. Thanks to Anderson’s speed however, the game was able to continue with two outs and runners at first and third. Gregor Blanco then cames to the plate. Blanco doubled and scored in the eighth but also struck out twice on the night. I think Blanco may be a candidate for the lead off spot. He can score runs but driving them in is a different matter. Thankfully, he didn’t have to get an RBI tonight as Jeff Francouer scored on a heads up play after Kevin Gregg let loose a wild pitch. Gregor Blanco than grounded out to the pitcher to put the game into extra innings.

At this point I would like to point out that Jojo Reyes pitched a very good game. He needed only a minimal number of pitches to get through the first couple of innings. In total he only threw 74 in six innings of work. Reyes look to becoming one of our top pitching prospects. If this guy is able to get some run support behind him, I think that he can gain the confidence necessary to be good member of starting rotation.
Manny Acosta also had a good outing even considering the fact that he gave up the tying run in the 7th inning. Chad Ross got the RBI after hitting a ball which Omar Infante made a great play on. Instead of being a run scoring single it was a fielders choice with an out at second and might have been a double play had Infante been able to get the ball out of his glove. Acosta then walked Jacque Jones putting runners at first and second. Acosta looked to be in trouble with Hanley Ramirez walking to the plate, but the Braves hurler was able to get Ramirez to strike out swinging.

Rafael Soriano pitched a scoreless eighth inning, but things got kind of scary. Soriano opened the inning by walking Jeremy Hermida. Jorge Cantu then followed with a fly out. Next Mike Jacobs came to the plate and was intentionally walked to get to Dan Uggla who then flied out to left. Next came Luis Gonzalez who Rafael was able to strike out swinging to end the inning.

To say that the game was an edge of the seater would be an understatement. This game went back and forth. There were lots of Marlins base runners late in the game and it was very disquieting. I know that Braves fans have got to be sick of playing in one run games, but it has to be done. I think that the Braves must play to win constantly as they did tonight. Bobby Cox made some adjustments to how he handled his pitchers and how he handled his hitters. He allowed the hurlers to throw the ball, even with the tough match ups. He gave the green light to his hitter in a key situation. These things won the game tonight. Not to mentions the awareness and hustle of Jeff Francoeur. A couple of mistakes were made in the field tonight, but all ended well as we ran the base paths well and we pitched well even if Smoltz had a tough night.

To continue with the recap of the game, the bottom of the 10th brought Kelly Johnson to the plate leading off. The score was still tied 5 to 5 thanks for a scoreless top of the 10th by Wil Ohman who faced the tough order of Jacobs, Uggla, and Gonzalez. Kelly Johnson was able to draw a walk, setting the stage for Yunel Escobar. Coming into the at-bat Escobar was trying to bunt the runner over to second. Two straight pitches for balls and then a wild pitch by Logan Kensing allowed Kelly Johnson to get to second base. Escobar then got the green light with the 3-0 count. He was ready. Kensing threw a fastball which Escobar was able to drive to left center field and out. The ball hit the top of the wall and right into the hand of a Braves fan for the victory. Braves win 6-4 on a Yunel Escobar 2-run walk off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning.

Notes: Tim Hudson’s strained hamstring from yesterday’s loss to the Reds does not seem to be serious enough to force him to miss a start. Blaine Boyer who injured his knee in yesterday’s game said that he was available in tonight’s game but was not used.
Jair Jurrjens then pitch

Number 32 for the Reds had a stellar performance Friday at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. Jay Bruce, a 21 year old native of Beaumont, Texas sparked the Cincinnati Reds with two hits and two runs helping in a three to two victory over the Braves. The center-fielder helped himself to a game tying RBI in the bottom of the sixth inning. After a sacrifice fly by Brandon Phillips the score was two to one in favor of the Reds. Tom Glavine who started the day was able to get through the sixth but the damage was done as the Braves were unable to finish the deal. Mark Teixeira opened the scoring a with a sacrifice fly in the top of the sixth, Kelly Johnson who had doubled to open the inning scored on the play. The Braves then answered the Reds in the seventh inning with a run scoring double play by Reuben Gotay. The Reds won it in eleven innings, scoring off two defensive miscues by Chipper Jones who also went 0 for 5 for the day, striking out once and grounding into two double plays.

Notes: Mark Kotsay was put on the DL list today. Josh Anderson was called up and has taken his place on the roster. John Smoltz is to pitch one more minor league assignment and may be available for action on Monday.

Second baseman Rickie Weeks hit a RBI tripe in the bottom of the 9th inning in yesterday’s game against the Braves. Jojo Reyes took the loss after putting the winning run on base by walking J.J. Hardy to start the 8th. The loss brings his record to 2-3 with a 4.83 ERA. Blaine Boyer came in after Reyes’ walk of Hardy; Jason Kendall then sacrificed the runner to second and while Boyer was able to strike out the next batter he faced he was unable to set down Rickie Weeks with two outs in the inning.

Bobby Cox indicated in a post-game interview that Reyes had pitched a good game, but it just wasn’t enough with Jeff Suppan’s eight inning gem. Suppan limited the Braves to four hits and struck out seven. The Braves had lots of opportunities early, leaving seven runners on base in the first five innings.

Tomorrow’s game starts at 1:05 EST and will feature the Braves right-hander Jorge Compillo (1-0, 0.86 ERA) against right-hander Seth McClung (2-1, 3.55 ERA).

Notes: Chipper Jones extended his hitting streak to 10 games after a single in the 3rd inning. Rafael Soriano was activated from the disabled list after Matt Diaz was placed on the 15-day DL with a posterior cruciate ligament strain and a laceration on his left leg which needed four stitches following a play in Tuesday’s game.

The Braves are now 2-14 in one-run games this season.

(Source: ESPN) Atlanta has lost 18 straight one-run road games.

Atlanta’s last one-run victory on the road came on Thursday August 9th, 2007 when the Braves defeated the Mets in Shea Stadium 7-6. Tim Hudson got the W while John Maine took the loss. Interestingly enough, this game could’ve also been a heart-breaker for the Braves if not for the heroics of Willie Harris who is now with the Washington Nationals organization.

Image: http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2007/08/09/sports/baseball/10mets.ready.html

Before that Mets/Braves game the Atlanta club had been on a four game slide in one-run games on the road (referring to 2007 season). The Braves finished the 2007 season with a 18-25 record in one-run games overall.

The Atlanta Braves have traded relief pitcher Tyler Yates to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for pitching prospect Todd Redmond.  Yates was out of options and couldn’t be sent back down to the minor leagues unless he would have cleared waivers, which would have never happened so the Braves got something back for him.

Redmond was a pretty good pitching prospect for the Pirates.  I’m excited to see how he does in the Braves farm system this year.

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The Atlanta Braves have sent Charlie Morton, Phil Stockman, Zach Schreiber, Matt DeSalvo, Jairo Cuevas, and J.C. Boscan down to minor league camp.  Just some moves to allow the regular players to get more innings and at bats here towards the end of spring training as opening day will be here in a few weeks.

One player that got sent down you just might see back in the Braves bullpen later in the season.  Charlie Morton is highly regarded in the Braves organization and should be in the big league bullpen later in the year.

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