Braves swept in 3 by Padres
The Good: Believe it or not, the Braves still have some starters that are not injured. John Smoltz was magnificent again, allowing 1 run on 4 hits in 8 innings (before Kolb botched it again in the ninth). … Andruw Jones is sizzling but one man does not an offense make. Andruw clubbed two home runs in the series and his 11 homers are tied for second-most in the National League. … Wilson Betemit was 5-for-8 in the series.
The Bad: Dan Kolb blew another save (and another of John Smoltz’s wins) and has been appropriately dismissed from closer’s duties. … Horacio Ramirez was lit up for 7 runs in 4 innings Wednesday. … Rafael Furcal continues to ensure the Braves get few rallies going. He was 1-for-12 in the series and is now hitting .222 on the season. Is it time for a sister site to FireDanKolb.com? FireRafaelFurcal.com… … Trust No One. That’s the motto for both The X-Files and the Braves bullpen now. The one reliable Braves reliever, Chris Reitsma, faltered again when he surrendered 3 earned runs in 2/3 of an innings to lose a game. As speculated previously, overuse may be the culprit. … YAI (yet another injury): Chipper Jones missed Tuesday and Wednesday’s games with a left oblique (side muscle) strain.
The Ugly: The “pop” heard round the world… OK, just the diamond. Adam LaRoche heard the pop in the tendon of John Thomson’s finger halfway across the diamond. An MRI has now revealed a “partial tear to the supporting structure of the tendon". It’s now thought Thomson will miss two to three months. Just lovely… 
Kyle Davies will start Saturday but it’s not known if he’ll become a permanent fixture in the rotation until Thomson is back.
