Enough
I don't know about the rest of you (who am I kidding: no one ever visits this blog), but I've had about all I can fucking take of this goddamn pathetic excuse for a team. After watching this game, I don't know what's worse: the fact that the Braves can't afford a decent pitching staff, the fact that their much-heralded bats could only deliver two runs in such an important game, or that Major League Baseball is apparently incapable of fielding a crew of four competent umpires. This whole sorry spectacle makes me SICK. I have wasted far too many potentially productive nights for this crap.

Yet it was my decision to start this blog, and it is out there for the record regardless of whether anyone actually visits it, so I might as well close this rant with a prediction:

Third in the NL East. Back home golfing, hunting, fishing, and impregnating their wives by the first week in October.

How's that? Can I go now? Good.

P.S. -- TODD PRATT??!! TODD PRATT??!! The bases are loaded with two out in the ninth with a solid hitter coming to the plate in Brian McCann, and you decide to play percentages by sending out TODD PRATT to strike out on three pitches? Has Bobby lost his fucking mind? Pratt didn't even smell that last one.

Torborg comes away from this game thinking that the Braves looked much improved, and it's going to be a "nice pennant race." Torborg's a fucking idiot.

I think by now, there is no denying that the Braves might be in serious trouble. A week ago, that looked like a certainty; but since then, the starting rotation has turned in three CGs, and the two out of three in the first Mets series wasn't half bad either -- especially after the New York press prematurely declared the season over and the Mets winners of the NL East.

That's the last thing any team with designs on winning that division needs: their hometown newspaper calling out the Braves in a particularly brazen manner, after you just defeated them at home, in the first series of the season, with your ace on the mound. The results were predictable, and immediate; for the next night's pitcher (I forget his name) tries to pitch like Pedro, but is -- regrettably for him -- not Pedro. Then Glavine turned in a fine performance yesterday, but Hudson, who came into the game with an ERA equal to the gross national products of some third-world nations, turned in a finer one. What's more, these two victories were achieved without the benefit of half their infield and their hottest hitter, Andruw notwithstanding.

So did the New York press speak two soon? Hell, yes; they are morons, and that is a condition that will remain constant as long as our civilization survives. Will the Barves manage once again to prevant the Mets from purchasing a division title? That one is still debatable.

Eddie Update 2
This is the second time I have tried to post this entry, and I am growing extremely weary of Tripod's blog service. I am growing equally weary of watching Hudson get pounded this afternoon, so I thought I would take this opportunity to pass along some news about a fan favorite, Eddie Perez.

At the beginning of the season, the Braves announcers were reporting that Eddie was on his way to Mississippi to serve as a player-coach under Jeff Blauser; yet I found no trace of him on the M-Braves roster. I finally located him on the roster for the Richmond Braves, with no number. I don't know whether he is supposed to be a player-coach there, os is just doing a "rehab assignment." If I find any additional info, I'll pass it along.

Sorry I missed last night's raucous victory, and even sorrier that I missed Bobby's first ejection of 2006. My wife and I were speculating just the other day about how long it would take him to get run for the first time this season.

Roster Moves. We Got Roster Moves.
OK, I'm a little behind the curve here. I went to bed early again last night, despite the fact that the Braves had come back to tie after three, because of this annoying little matter called a day job that I just can't seem to resolve. When I turned on this afternoon's game, I found out that the Braves had called up Joey Devine and Ken Ray -- apparently at the last minute, as there was some question as to whether they would get to Balco Field or whatever the Giants' ballpark is called this year. It didn't take me long to get the news of Horacio's injury, but I still don't know why two pitchers were called up. I saw no indication that anyone else was injured last night, and know of no other issues that would warrant such a move.

Holy shit -- McCann and Sosa go back-to-back! Sosa crushed it, and that's no. 2 of the young season for McCann. Two-zip, and Sosa's looking good on the mound, too. So far, so good.

Oof. That was ugly. Real ugly. Yet it was worth watching just to see a 31-year-old rookie strike out Bonds. I don't know who this guy Ray is, but he could be this year's Charles Thomas.

Oh, by the way: that shelling that Boyer took the other night got him sent back to Richmond, which is why two pitchers came up today.

Some Positives from Last Night:
1) The first five hitters in the lineup each got one hit, two of them homers, and as a group drove in three of the team's four runs.

2) The bullpen didn't allow a single run in three innings.

3) Wilson Betemit. He'd be starting on any other team in the NL.

4) Matt Diaz. Soft contacts are one of the greatest inventions of the late 20th century.

5) Brain McCann. Need I say more?

I would list more, but I didn't watch the whole game. In fact, I went to bed after the grounds crew covered the tarp. They don't get to do that very often in L.A., so I was kind of expecting some impromptu slapstick entertainment. Where's Vince Coleman when you need him?

The Lowdown on Eddie
I spent a good bit of time this morning trying to find information on the status of Eddie Perez, to no avail. But according to Skip Caray, Eddie will be joining the Mississippi Braves as a player-coach. There is not info up yet on either the Braves site or the Miss. Braves site (which is woefully outdated), so for now my dinky little blog has a web-scoop.

A Lot of Ifs
and I mean a lot. Here's a few that I've come up with while watching this game.

Will Brian Jordan make the team?

I thought that one would be easy, until I saw how good Matt Diaz and James Jurries really are. Still, I think his chances are good, as there are two positions open and Bobby likes to have a reliable, personable veteran on the bench -- and Julio Franco, his mainstay of the past few years in that role, is now gone.

Who's Going to be the closer?

For now, it's Reitsma. But how long is that batch gonna have to sit out before it smells? I mean, Rietsma is not as bad as his numbers seem to indicate. In fact, his changeup is so filthy that hitters sometimes squib balls through the infield like pool shots and cost him runs -- and games. What's more, he has been good in the past. Bobby likes him, and Bobby is going to give him a shot; but if he doesn't do the job, then Johnny is going to step in -- and when Johnny steps in ... well, that may not even make a difference, because there are no, repeat NO, closers on the market. In other words, it's Rietsma now by default, and out of desperation.

More questions later. I promise.

Too Little, Too Late
I have no excuses for my tardiness in reviving this blog for the 2006 season, other than my usual busy schedule, a lot of laziness, and a diminution of my interest in the Braves after Greenville lost their AA farm team. The general atmosphere of disappointment in the loss of the Braves and apathy over the continuation of baseball in Greenville in their absence is palpable, and has been exacerbated by the ham-handed manner in which the new team has been introduced to the city.

The crowing moment of ineptitude was the assignment of a new name to the Greeenville team. One might think, given the extensive baseball history that this town has, that there would have been a serious effort to choose a name that would do justice to that history; yet the only serious effort to do so was a "grassroots" campaign (as if anything that happens in Greenville is grassroots) to name the team the Greenville Joes, a name that was supposed to honor the late, unfairly maligned Greenvillian Shoeless Joe Jackson but was so silly-sounding that it would not have passed muster even if Major League Baseball accepted it -- which, of course, it did not.

So what name did they come up with? Get this: The Greenville Drive. That's right, Greenville Drive. What the hell is that supposed to mean, you might ask. It is supposed to be a reflection of the city's growing ties with the auto industry, given the presence of BMW, Michelin, etc. According to Wikipedia, the name is also supposed to reflect "the strong entrpreneurial spirit in [sic] the business community. Lovely. With that in mind, I could have suggested another name: perhaps the Greenville Greed would be more appropriate.

As construction workers struggle furiously to complete the stadium before opening day, the club is winding up a contest to choose a new mascot. I can't wait to see the result of that one. I think that they should make it a Bavarian auto executive. I mean, wouldn't that be fun for the kiddies? "Enjoy Zee Competition."

Now, after they've lost the best ballclub they could possibly have had in this town, they are pulling out all the stops to promote this joke of a team, in a joke of a stadium, in a location that can only hope to draw a few curiosity-seekers and party hounds looking for free beer and a new place to park their butts for a couple of hours.

I predict total failure for the "Drive" and its promoters, who deserve no less. For ultimately, Greenville's new ballclub, like this blog entry, is simply too little, too late.

Welcome Back, Remmy
Looks like the Braves are going to take a chance on Mike Remlinger's 40-year-old arm after all. Not a bad deal, I think. They allegedly passed the first time around, but after Remlinger rested his arm a while in the offseason, he found himself able to throw without pain for the first time in a long time -- shades of Dennis Martinez. Anwyay, Remlinger's been with The Organization before, so he knows how things are done there -- and he wants to be there.

Readers of the linked story will notice that he had high praise for Bobby Cox and Bobby Dews. Many fans will also recall that he did not seem very fond of Leo (remember the dugout shouting match?). I suspect that one of the reasons he wanted to come back to Atlanta so badly, presumably to finish his career, is that Leo is no longer around. He has a minor-league contract, and an invite to camp. Let's see what he can do with it. Perhaps some rest for the arm and a familiar, nurturing environment will breathe new life into his career and make him a valuable asset to the bullpen.

Happy New Year
Sorry I haven't posted in a while. It's been a busy month, for the Braves and for me, and a lot needs to be covered. But for me, paid assignments and course preparation must take precedence right now.

I do want to take this opportunity to recap the year. Have a good 2006, and I'll see you soon.