May 10, 2009

Show #60: Showing Life Against the NL East

What does this past week tell us?  Looking at Jordan Schafer’s strikeouts.  And discussing past Braves and PEDs.

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51 Responses to “Show #60: Showing Life Against the NL East”

  1. 1
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 12:34 am

    Bustin’ out the Bobby wife-beater reference and the steriod guess-a-thon on the same show? And you’re all YANKEES?

    My fervor is being tested.

  2. 2
    Will Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 7:51 am

    Bit of a nostalgia fest this week….Ham and Curt and I all grew up in Atlanta and went to middle and high school together, in case anybody is really worried about their A-town credentials.

    Bob Horner ate bacon for the hormones…

  3. 3
    Curt Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 10:05 am

    Sir, you have challenged my heritage. I demand a duel at sun up. Pistols at 10 paces.

    for the record, I can trace my roots in GA to the Revolutionary War. i think that covers that aspect of the conversation. We are 1 yankee and 2 rebs. but Steve has converted.

  4. 4
    Steve Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 10:42 am

    Bub – did you really not like the steriod speculation? I thought it was kind of fun. And yeah, the Bobby thing is always weirdly divisive for people. I mean it happened, right? And yet no one is supposed to talk about it. It is definitely a strange Atlanta sports thing. I’m going to hit up Google and find more about it. I think we may have a Long Ball for next week brewing: “Why are we not supposed to talk about the Bobby/wife incident?”

  5. 5
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 10:50 am

    My opening post was tongue-in-cheek, fellas. I haven’t sunk quite so low as to wish domestic abuse swept under the rug so I can feel good about a coach. I mean, if the Bible Belt can hear his mouth – (he ain’t screamin’ “Jebus Vulcan Cripes” out there) – and still defend Bobby’s halo, well… whatever.

    And the lack of typical (apologies to friends & family) southern-flavored sports radio conversation is one of the things that attracted me to the show to begin with.

    The steroid flinging made me feel icky, I admit. Seemed out of sync with a crew that has hosted Tom Glavine. But I’ll live. It’s a good show.

  6. 6
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 10:56 am

    And Steve, yeah, do that question for Long Ball, totally.

  7. 7
    Leah Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 11:20 am

    Thanks for the shout out Steve! Great win equals a great Mother’s Day. Unlike the year Adam LaRoche strolled to first and got beat by the runner which eventually scored causing the Braves to lose. Still haven’t forgiven him for that. He must have forgotten to take his ritalin that day.

    I totally agree about Braves fans lacking spirit and at times soul. I admit to being a crazed, must watch every pitch, mood change subject to wins and losses, in need of therapy kinda Braves fan. The strange thing is my Atlanta/Birmingham family and friends give me way more grief than my North Carolina friends. Why is that? Seems like they would understand.

    I enjoyed the steroid flinging because I’m done pretending and trying to cover for my favorite players past and present. Let’s just get it all out in the open and bring back the purity of America’s favorite pass time. How much would we all rather watch a KJ or even Schafer type struggle at the plate than hit it out of the park night after night because they were juiced. Andruw Jones? Seems his slump came about the time “the list” hit the fan.

    Great show! Thank your wives for me for letting you spend time on this podcast. Good luck getting some guys in for interviews.

  8. 8
    Curt Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 12:15 pm

    We did admit recklessness in our outing of past Braves. i can’t imagine we touch on that much more. i find it to be an unsavory part of the game and unfortunately it is part of the history of the sport. but it doesn’t diminish the 95 WS to me at all. we were just the best juicers that year.

    i love the Bobby Cox ‘sacred cow’ conversation. i’ve been amped up for that one for a while. this city tends to pick certain favorites and give them a long leash, while demonizing others for no reason – see Tom Glavine. so look for that one soon.

  9. 9
    Leah Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 2:07 pm

    Change the word “enjoyed” to “appreciated” in my last comment.

  10. 10
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 10:40 pm

    So, have the Braves lost since I went all “Screw-This-Team?” You don’t suppose it’s REALLY all about me, after all, do you?

  11. 11
    Steve Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 11:03 pm

    Bub – Reverse psychology, baby! It works every time. What a freaking pleasure tonight was. 16 hits. Season high. Beating Santana. Schafer only struck out once. Hugely good times.

  12. 12
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 11th, 2009 at 11:53 pm

    There have been some really fun games played by this .500 baseball team this year. This one’s probably the best, though.

  13. 13
    Leah Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 7:53 am

    I don’t know if it’s ALL about Bub but I’m pretty sure the skipper listens to the podcast. Two big moves in consecutive games. Switching closer with reliever and then last night’s hit and run. He must be aware of all your thousands of listeners and decided to manage lest we ask for his papers.

  14. 14
    Steve Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 9:30 am

    Yeah, I forgot to mention that last night. A hit and run! It was amazing. And stunning in its unlikelihood. And how about the offense doing all that with no Chipper, no GA and only one hit from Heap? What a great, great game.

  15. 15
    Curt Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 10:11 am

    Are we still talking about the Hawks game?

  16. 16
    Garrett Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 10:18 pm

    WTF

  17. 17
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 10:21 pm

    That almost made me cry. Really cry.

    Braves played their hearts out, though. Bobby let them down.

  18. 18
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 10:22 pm

    This heartache has brought to you by:

    Bobby, the wife beater, who beat his wife, as was reported, by the source that reported him as a wife beater on account of him beating his wife.

  19. 19
    Will Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 10:23 pm

    Ooop i just busted myself. Sitting here dwntn tokyo at lunch in stbks watching game on my iphone. Forgot i had used it last time pretending to be garrett doing it for the nookie. Anyway what a shite ending. Thought we had it

  20. 20
    Will Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 10:32 pm

    Now back to work how frrkkkkkkng depressing. Riding around visiting companies with my boss the philly fan. At least he hates mets too…

  21. 21
    Steve Says:
    May 12th, 2009 at 11:34 pm

    There was so much pain in those last couple of innings … but, the most painful thing, I think, was watching the Mets’ baserunners starting to crack smiles and laughs as it became clear that Bennett was going to walk Beltran and lose the game. FUUUUUUUUDDDDDDDDDGGGGGGGE! That one really hurt. We’ve got to send Bennett down, right? Right? Please?!?!?!

    I have to believe this loss cements a crappy start by Jo Jo tomorrow (reverse jinx now begins to work its magic).

  22. 22
    Leah Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 7:45 am

    There I go…breaking out in hives again. Courtesy of JoJo.

  23. 23
    Will Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 8:55 am

    like the pissed off chipper on that bs call…”never had a guy slide into my glove and be safe”…retarded ump.

  24. 24
    Curt Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 9:11 am

    It’s sad that much like that blown game in Philly at the beginning of the season kind of marred our good start, this loss is going to mar this trip. especially if we lose tomorrow. Good news is the Mets are throwing a guy who has 2 career starts. Bad news is that the Braves never play well against guys getting their 3rd career start.

  25. 25
    Curt Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 9:14 am

    Sorry – 5th career start

  26. 26
    Curt Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 9:19 am

    Just read the NY Times account of the game. No mention of the blown call. More of a mocking tone about Bennett’s inability to throw a strike. and how Carlos Beltran is the greatest player ever.

  27. 27
    Leah Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 10:14 am

    No doubt Braves would have won without the horrible, stupid, blind guy could see it better call but we still should have won. How about Kotchman getting the intentional walk to get to Frenchy? Ouch!

  28. 28
    Steve Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 10:24 am

    Yeah – and how about how many men Frenchy left on base last night? It had to be 7+. Again, we’ll get rid of Bennett now, right? Please? Bring up Medlen. PLEASE!!!!

  29. 29
    Hamilton Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 11:10 am

    What amazed me is how the third base ump scrambled to put himself in the WORST position to make that call, and then, surprise surprise, completely blew it. The NY apolojournalists can say all they want about whatever, but if the ump doesn’t f**k up that call, game over – end of story. Just brutal. I don’t know if they played a “perfect” game, like Chipper said, but they played a damn good one (Schafer has a gun, Kotchman is clutch, JJ is Cy Young material) and it was stolen from us (pardon the pun).

    I would have posted this sooner, but it took me all morning to clean the puke off my keyboard.

  30. 30
    Hamilton Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 11:13 am

    Also, if you are Bobby, don’t you make a defensive swap for GA in the eighth? If someone who doesn’t just jog around the outfield and half-ass his position is in there, we aren’t even in a position to have the game stolen from us. Sickening.

  31. 31
    Curt Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:00 pm

    i’m screaming Jo Jo right now in the same manner that Kirk screamed Khan. He has to go way before Bennett. bring on Hanson or Glavine or Campillo or Morton or someone. my god.

  32. 32
    Leah Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 3:44 pm

    Live KJ. Hate Sheffield. Itching from the hives JoJo always gives me.

  33. 33
    Curt Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:24 pm

    another game that should be in the books with a W. 3 blown leads. ain’t gonna do it.

  34. 34
    Leah Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 4:53 pm

    Am I crazy or should Bobby have argued the out called at 2nd when Reyes came off the bag but it was still counted as an out?

  35. 35
    Leah Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:01 pm

    Wahoo! Amazing win! Forgive all my typos. I get silly fingers when crazed.

  36. 36
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 5:09 pm

    This division is gonna be tight. How ’bout a bat, Wren? And Jo Jo…. get back to where you once belonged. His games are exhausting the team.

  37. 37
    Steve Says:
    May 13th, 2009 at 9:33 pm

    Yes, a freaking bat! We would be absolutely formidable with a real live home run threat on the team. And, call me crazy, but I really think we could get something for Jo Jo. He does show promise at times, and has MLB starting experience. The guy needs a change of scenery. And we need him the hell out of here. And, please send Bennett with him.

  38. 38
    Will Says:
    May 14th, 2009 at 8:42 am

    Swami sez:

    That defensive play by Schafer….gonna be the mental catalyst that leads him to regain confidence and he is going to start hitting.

  39. 39
    Hamilton Says:
    May 14th, 2009 at 10:55 am

    I want Matt Holliday. The A’s need starting pitching – they have Jack Cust waiting in the wings as an OF, and I am sure that we have some other pieces that might interest them. Seriously, who is untouchable on our roster, other than Chipper, Heap, and our SP’s (Jo-Jo notwithstanding).

  40. 40
    Curt Says:
    May 14th, 2009 at 8:45 pm

    A’s won’t want someone on this roster. They will want farm guys. Lots of them and guys at the top of the list – Medlen, Heyward, Freeman – to name a few. Not saying all of those guys in one package, but they will want some top grade farm products for Holliday.

  41. 41
    Steve Says:
    May 14th, 2009 at 10:01 pm

    30 games in and he’s not the Matt Holliday we’d have salivated over in years past. I know it’s easy to just point to Coors field, but there may be something to it. He’s on pace for 20/100, but for a guy that’s going to be a free agent at the end of the year – I don’t think the prospects are worth it.

  42. 42
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 15th, 2009 at 11:38 pm

    Good win tonight (Friday) vs. D-Backs. Oddly, I never doubted it tonight, even when Gonzo blew the save.

  43. 43
    Will Says:
    May 16th, 2009 at 3:29 am

    Shafer in the first inning gets his first R.B.I. in 41 tries and then a clutch 9th inning hit leads to the game winning run…going to have to start believing my own b.s. !

  44. 44
    Curt Says:
    May 16th, 2009 at 10:31 am

    starting to fret a little about the use of Gonzalez – see overuse – his history of arm problems, and now him starting to blow some games. Bobby needs to give him a break.

    All that aside, I can’t remember a stretch like this in 3 or 4 years.

  45. 45
    Leah Says:
    May 16th, 2009 at 1:05 pm

    Easy Curt…when Eeyore starts to say optimistic comments it gets my hopes up. I remember a few podcasts ago Hammy said this team would build us up and then allow us to come crashing back to reality. In any case…I’m enjoying the run! Go BRAVES! It’s good to see Chipper assuming team captain responsibilities.

  46. 46
    Steve Says:
    May 16th, 2009 at 1:34 pm

    Bub – I agree. I still felt confident after Javy’s two run first and Gonzo’s blown save. It has as much to do with the Dback’s suckitude as it does with the Braves new found swagger. Regardless, as Curt said, I can’t remember a stretch like this in forever, either.

  47. 47
    Curt Says:
    May 16th, 2009 at 3:45 pm

    Leah, don’t confuse my realism for optimism. We just have not had any runs over the past couple of years. I honestly don’t think we had a winning streak of more than 5 or 6 games since 2006. Baby steps.

  48. 48
    Leah Says:
    May 16th, 2009 at 7:51 pm

    Can you guys explain what it means to keep your hands inside the baseball while batting? Sorry if that’s a silly question…still learning.

  49. 49
    Bubdylan Says:
    May 17th, 2009 at 1:52 am

    12 Zip. Gosh….

  50. 50
    Anne Says:
    May 17th, 2009 at 6:16 pm

    I was there until the bitter end. What the. I don’t even feel responsible for thinking to myself that I hadn’t seen a grand slam in a long time. …and that was the FIRST time they loaded the bases and we walked ‘em home.

  51. 51
    Steve Says:
    May 17th, 2009 at 11:17 pm

    Anne – I was there as well. With my Dad in from out of town. What a slow death of an experience it was. That double pick-off in the first inning should have told all we needed to know about how things were going to go. Nightmare.

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