These Braves Aren't Done Just Yet
For the last 14 years, there has been one constant in the world. No matter what else has gone on, one thing has always been the same: The Braves win the NL East. For the last 4 years or so, the Braves got to June or July a little further back in the standings than they were at the same time the year before. You turn on ESPN and all you hear from every analyst is that the Braves' run is over. This year is just the same as the other years. The Braves are way back in the race, and everyone assumes they're done.
Remember last year when Chipper Jones got hurt and they were forced to call Andy Marte up? Remember everyone asking how they would ever stay in the race with all those rookies? Remember when Andruw Jones wasn’t capable of carrying an offensive load by himself?
Better yet, remember a few years back right around this time of year when the Braves were 5 games under .500 and 10 games back in the division? Remember when Randy Johnson threw that perfect game? Remember how that was the omen that the Braves’ run was over?
Yeah. Remember how silly you felt when you picked up the paper on September 25 and saw the Braves running away with the division?
Don’t sleep on these Braves. I won’t believe they’re done until they’re mathematically eliminated. And I don’t mean “Oh, it’ll be hard to make up that ground.” I mean, “They’re 12 games back with 6 left to play.”
Don’t let the record fool you. The Braves had a bad June. A very bad June. You can’t deny that. But I’ve seen the signs that the Braves show every year around this time.
I was in Tampa Bay last weekend, and I saw something that gave me hope. I’ve seen quite a few of their games since then, and everything I’ve seen points to another amazing run. Am I guaranteeing another runaway division title? No. But don’t assume it’s over. They could very well still end up in the postseason. Where do I draw my hope? One simple popup to Edgar Renteria. Yes. That’s it. Just hear me out:
Routine popup over the shortstop’s head. Edgar Renteria backs up, hears the footsteps of Andruw Jones running in. Suddenly, he doesn’t hear the footsteps. He assumes Andruw just gave up on the ball, and he makes the play. When he turns around, he sees Andruw flat on his face. Andruw bit the dust in the Tampa turf. The entire team shared a good laugh about that, and they’ve looked relaxed ever since. Two days later, Matt Diaz was in left field, and nearly did the same thing. He and Andruw began to joke about it, and I knew it then. Andruw falling had given the Braves a chance to joke and laugh. They finally relaxed and stopped pressing. Since that day, the entire team has looked much looser.
Over the last week or so, the team has looked much better. Chipper Jones has started to heat up. Andruw Jones is showing signs. Jeff Francouer has been hitting. Wilson Betemit, Edgar Renteria, Marcus Giles. All of them are starting to look like the Braves of old. John Thomson and Kyle Davies are due back soon. Chuck James is going to be that impact rookie that shows up every year around this time. Tim Hudson will start pitching like his old self once he gets confidence in the team. Horacio Ramirez has looked absolutely masterful in his last two starts. Playing well is contagious. Jorge Sosa will get comfortable in the closer role, and I think he’ll be terrific there once he is. Remember, around mid-July last year is when he really started pitching well, and we just hit July. Look out for him. The Braves will make a deal. There have been a lot of rumors of a deal with the Royals for Joey Gathright. John Smoltz has drawn a ton of interest, and since he’d likely re-sign with the team after the season, they might trade him away for some more talent. They do have enough starters to still compete without Smoltz, so trading him wouldn’t a certain sign of giving up on the season.
Look for them to pick up some bullpen help from somewhere. If they get Gathright (or any other leadoff hitter) and some bullpen help, they’ll be a very tough team to beat. And don’t tell me there isn’t any pitching out there. They were able to pry Kyle Farnsworth away from Detroit last year. I’ve heard some things about Joel Zumya, another Detroit flamethrower who they may be able to get.
On top of all this, I just don’t see the Mets playing like they have for the rest of the year. I don’t trust Aaron Heilman and Duaner Sanchez to keep pitching at their current levels. On top of that, Billy Wagner got hurt the other day. It looked like he tweaked his hammy. If he misses any time, this bullpen will suffer, and if the pen gets too strained, the effects could last up to 6 weeks, just enough time for the Braves to get right back in the thick of things. I don’t like the depth in New York either. Sure, they have decent players who can play a bunch of positions, but I’m not sure they’re the types of players who can plug holes if there is an injury that puts a starter out for an extended period of time. The division is also working against the Mets. The Marlins, Phillies, and Nationals all seem to get up to play the Mets, and they all have the talent to take 2 out of 3 every series they play against them. If they can do that, and the Braves get back to their philosophy of just winning each series rather than taking the approach they had in June of “We have to win every game...but let’s wait until something bad happens of we’re too far out of the game to have a chance to come back before we start playing hard.”
I’m not here to announce that the Braves will make a miracle comeback and run away with the division or anything like that. I’m just saying that I’m not counting them out and that you shouldn’t either. Every year all the experts say “I’ll never say the Braves are done” and then the next year around this time, all you hear is that the run is over. I honestly believe that this team can compete for the playoffs, and that if they can pick up a leadoff hitter and a reliever or 2, they’ll be a tough team to beat and could make a move in the division.
