Saturday, October 5, 2013

Take a second to catch your breath

The Braves find themselves in a good position after the first two games of the NLDS.  The series now moves to LA for two games, Sunday night at 8:07, and Monday night at 9:37.  That's right - I said 9:37 PM, on a work/school night.  But then I remembered that tomorrow's showdown between the NFL's Chargers and Raiders doesn't start until 11-freaking-30.  This must be what it's like to be an American sports fan living in western Europe.  I shudder to think.

From the perspective of the Braves, the biggest variable they had to account for going into this series was Kershaw, and he showed why in game one.  That guy is unbelievable, and he wasn't even on his A-game.  You will be hard-pressed to find anyone that really thought the Braves were going to touch him up for a few runs, but the degree of sloppiness from the Atlanta defense was equally unfathomable, particularly from Elliot Johnson. 

Gattis also had a less-than-stellar showing, but the bar isn't set as high for him defensively.  Him making a play on a hard-sinking liner with some tail is about as likely as me winning an award for most hair.  With that said, his baserunning mistake, while it may not have made much of a difference anyway, was rather egregious.  You can't put yourself in that situation with Puig's arm in RF.  That's a fundamental mistake on his part.

Ultimately, defensive issues or not, game one against Kershaw is a tough way to start the series.  Without an equally impressive performance by the opposing starter (which didn't happen) and no fielding miscues (also didn't happen), beating him is a tall order. 

It's worth noting, too, that teams who faced Kershaw twice within a span of a couple weeks always fared better the second time around, which is consistent with what you'd expect from any pitcher.  As daunting a prospect as it may seem to face him twice in a five-game series, it could work out in Atlanta's favor. 

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Winning last night's game was absolutely essential if the Braves are to advance, and win they did.  They won in a fashion that is not foreign to this team - flashy defense, good starting pitching, timely hitting from the BABIP King Chris Johnson - so that's a reason to feel encouraged.  Plus, they beat the Dodgers' No. 1A pitcher in Greinke, and even rattled the cage of LA's second-best reliever, Paco Rodriguez.

I wasn't really crazy about seeing McCann come out of the game with a few innings left to play, but I also understand that one run in that situation means the world.  But why would you ask Simmons to lay down a bunt to move the runners over for Elliot Johnson?  That's asking a lot of a guy that is a defense-first type of player.  Had LA not inexplicably walked Constanza and allowed Heyward to do his thing, that move probably gets magnified and dissected by pundits and prognosticators ad nauseum.

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BJ Upton needs to start game three in CF.  Gattis is not a good fielder - it's ok, he has never portended himself to be - and there's no reason to set him up to fail on a big stage in a hostile stadium whose outfield he has never patrolled.  Plus, he hasn't exactly been raking lately, nor is he an OBP machine.  He really shouldn't be starting any of these games in the OF, but if it has to happen, it can't happen outside of Turner Field.

See you on Tuesday.  

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