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.

A nice divisional win for the Atlanta Braves tonight as they beat the New York Mets by the score of 4-2.  Tim Hudson pitched eight strong innings as he picked up the win and the Braves started the weekend series on the right foot.

Hudson gave up seven hits and two runs in the game.  Two solo home runs in the second inning was all Hudson gave the Mets.  Hudson is now 7-3 on the season with the win.  Manny Acosta came in and got the first two outs in the ninth inning before Will Ohman came in to get the last out and record the save which was his first of the year.

The Braves were led at the plate by Kelly Johnson who went 3-4 with an rbi.  Chipper Jones, Omar Infante, Mark Teixeira, and Johnson all had one rbi in the game.  The Braves offense had 12 hits in the game compared to 8 for the Mets.

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The Atlanta Braves completed a double header sweep of the New York Mets on Tuesday with a 6-2 win in the second game.  That was coming off a 6-1 win in the first game of the double header.

This time it was Jorge Campillo who shut down the Mets as he tossed seven innings to pick up the win and improve to 1-0 on the season.  Campillo only gave up three hits while striking out seven batters.

Jeff Bennett pitched a scoress seventh inning before Blaine Boyer came in and gave up two runs while only recording two outs in the eighth inning.  That is when Manny Acosta came in to get the last four outs of the game and pick up his third save of the season.

At the plate for the Braves, Mark Kotsay had a two run home run in the eighth inning.  Other then those two runs, the four other Braves runs all came within the first three innings of the game.  Chipper Jones had a rbi double in the first inning to get the Braves on the board.  Mark Teixeira then had a rbi single third inning before Kelly Johnson had a two run double.

Good day for the Braves as the win both games and improve their record to 24-21.  Braves Blog

The Atlanta Braves beat the New York Mets if the first game of their double header on Monday.  Tom Glavine said that he wasn’t feeling that good in the bullpen and was shacky in the first inning but then settled down to pitch the Braves past the Mets by the score of 6-1.

Glavine tossed six innings while giving up three hits and one run to improve his record to 2-1 on the season.  The one run that Glavine gave up came in the first inning with Luis Castillo took him deep for a solo home run.

Will Ohman, Blaine Boyer, and Manny Acosta pitched the final three innings in the game and all did a fairly good job.

The Braves were led at the plate by Brian McCann who had a two run home run and a rbi single to finish the game with three rbi.  Yunel Escobar, Mark Teixeira, and Kelly Johnson, all chipped in with one rbi as well.

It was a good win for the Braves as they are now 1.5 games back in the division.  The Braves, Mets, and Phillies are all 1.5 games back of the Marlins right now.  Braves Blog

The Atlanta Braves hit three home runs as they beat the Philadelphia Phillies 8-6.  The Braves avoided he the three game sweep by getting this win over the Phillies.  Good win for the Braves as they didn’t want to drop all three games.

The Braves hit three home runs as Chipper Jones, Kelly Johnson, and Yunel Escobar all went deep.  Mark Kotsay, Brian McCann, Jones and Johnson all finished the game with two rbi.  Escobar, Jeff Francoeur, Gregor Blanco, and Tom Glavine all had one rbi in the game as the Braves really spread about the offense.

Glavine was able to pick up the win in the game as he pitched 5 2/3 innings and gave up four hits and four runs.  Two of those runs came on a two run home run by Chase Utley in the sixth inning.

Royce King was the only Braves reliever to give up a run as he let a run in in the eighth inning.  Blaine Boyer pitched the ninth inning to record the save for the Braves even though he gave up one run and had to get out of a big jam to hold the Phillies off.

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The Atlanta Braves got RBI’s from four different players as they beat the San Diego Padres 5-2 on Wednesday night.  Kelly Johnson, Yunel Escobar, Mark Kotsay, and Greg Norton all had a RBI in the victory.

Tim Hudson picked up the win over the Padres as he tossed seven innings of six hit ball.  Hudson did allow two earned runs while walking and striking out three batters.  Hudson is now 5-2 on the season.

Blaine Boyer, Will Ohman, and Manny Acosta pitched the final two innings for the Braves.  Acosta  ended up picking up the save which was his third of the season.

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The Atlanta Braves struggled against the Washington Nationals on Tueday night as they lost 6-3.  One area that you can look at is the 21 runners that were left on base by the Braves.  Usually if you leave that many runners on base, you will not win the game and that was the case with the Braves.

One bright spot for the Braves was Chipper Jones who hit a solo home run in the sixth inning.  Kelly Johnson and Matt Diaz had the other RBI’s for the Braves as they just never could get that big hit with runners on base that they needed to get.

Starting pitcher Tom Glavine pitched six innings and gave up six hits and two runs.  Glavine got the no decision in the game as Blaine Boyer gave up three hits and four runs to take the loss.  Boyer is now 0-3 on the season and really needs to pick things up.

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The Atlanta Braves got a big win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday allowing only five hits and one run with a 6-1 final score.  This puts Atlanta at a split 9-9 for the season and this is the fourth game in a row they have won including the three game sweep against the Dodgers.

Jair Jurrjens in now 2-2 for the year with the win over the Dodgers on Sunday.  He pitched a full seven innings giving up only 3 hits and 1 run.  Blaine Boyer and Will Ohman were brought in to the close out the night.

Kelly Johnson hit his 3rd home run of the year and Mark Teixeira hit his 4th home run as well.  Martin Prado and Mark Kotsay were also able to get and RBI each. 

The Braves will welcome the Nationals at home in Atlanta on Monday to start a 2 game series.  Do you think they can stretch the winning streak to 5?

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The Atlanta Braves were shutout by the Flordia Marlins on Tuesday night by the score of 4-0.  The Braves just couldn’t get it going off Marlins starter Scott Olson as he shut down the Braves for the first seven innings before the Marlins bullpen finished the job.

Starting pitcher Jair Jurrjens took the loss for the Braves after tossing six inning and allowing four hits and two earned runs.  Jurrjens didn’t pitch to badly, he just didn’t get enough run support to stay in the game longer.  Relief pitcher Royce Ring gave up the other two earned runs.

Kelly Johnson and Chipper Jones both led the Braves with two hits each.  That was about it off the bats of the Braves.  They could never get a rally going and score any runs.

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