Braves News World

Horacio Ramirez has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with a left hamstring strain. John Thomson moved from the bullpen to take Ramirez’s spot in the rotation. To fill the bullpen vacancy, the Braves purchased the contract of Ken Ray, a non-roster invitee to Spring Training this year. The 31-year-old right-handed pitcher impressed with his fastball while giving up only 1 run and recording 7 strikeouts in 7 innings pitched during Spring Training.

Blaine Boyer was optioned to Triple-A Richmond after struggling during the first series of the season for the Braves. His shoulder could not handle pitching on consecutive days. Joey Devine, who narrowly missed making the Opening Day roster, was recalled from Richmond to fill the bullpen spot. The 22-year-old right-handed reliever struck out 18 batters in 11 innings of work during Spring Training.

The Braves finalized their 25-man roster on March 31st when they optioned right-handed pitcher Joey Devine and first baseman James Jurries to Triple-A Richmond. Right-handed pitcher Brad Baker was outrighted to Richmond. Left-handed pitchers John Foster (who may require Tommy John surgery), Macay McBride, and Mike Hampton were placed on the 15-day disabled list (retroactive to March 24th) along with outfielder Kelly Johnson. The team purchased the contracts of outfielder-turned-first-baseman Brian Jordan and left-handed pitcher Mike Remlinger to complete their major league roster. The move to retain the veteran Jordan for his leadership over the youngster Jurries, who had a very productive spring training, was the most surprising to followers of the club.

The Good: The regulars got a few days of rest and these losses were meaningless. … Bobby Cox was able to audition a number of pitchers for postseason spots and, with 2 solid innings during the series, my bet is on 22-year old rookie Joey Devine to make the roster. Blaine Boyer, Macay McBride and Kyle Davies got lit up during the series and none of them should get the nod over him in my opinion. We don’t have much to go on other than his sparkling minor league and college record, but I have a gut feeling he’s just what’s needed to shut down the Astros in the late innings and rejuvenate the Braves’ lifeless bullpen. … Horacio Ramirez was sharp in his last tune-up for the postseason, allowing 1 run on 5 hits in 5 innings. He struck out 4 and walked 1. He likely will be the first left-handed pitcher out of the bullpen in the NLDS. … The Braves finished with a 90-72 record for the season.

The Bad: Marcus Giles was 1-for-7 in the series. … Jeff Francoeur continued his recent slide, going 1-for-9 in the set. He finished the year at .300. … Dan Kolb gave up 2 runs, 1 earned, in 1/3 of an inning. He has no business being on the Richmond Braves roster, much less Atlanta’s postseason roster! Bobby Cox better leave him off the roster even if it picking the inexperienced Chuck James to fill the spot.

The Ugly: Blaine Boyer was the stalwart of the Braves’ bullpen in August when he didn’t allow a run in13 1/3 innings. Injury and ineffectiveness plagued him down the stretch and now it looks like he’ll be watching from the sidelines for at least the first round of the playoffs. He gave up 3 earned runs on 3 hits and 1 walk Sunday without retiring a batter. That was not the kind of performance Braves’ management was looking for to assure themselves the shoulder sprain he sustained last Monday would not be a limiting factor in the playoffs.

The Good: The Braves’ took their 14th division title in a row. For those of us who suffered through the awful 80’s with the Braves this streak is doubly as amazing and rewarding. This run, unparalleled in the annals of sports history, will never be rivaled by another team. With this young team, hopefully the Braves have the makings of 14 more consecutive titles (but I wouldn’t hold my breath ). … Ryan Langerhans was 5-for-9 in the series and owns a 7-game hitting streak. … Adam LaRoche was 3-for-9 in the series with a pair of home runs, making him the 3rd Brave to hit 20 this season. … The hits just keep on coming for Rafael Furcal. With his 3-for-7 performance in the series his season average is .285, the culmination of a steady rise from the .220 mark he sported on June 21st. … Jeff Francoeur was 3-for-7 in the series with 2 runs scored and 2 RBIs.

The Bad: Dan Kolb gave up 4 earned on 6 hits in 2 innings of work during the series. Oops, that’s good. Now there should be no chance of him making the posteason roster. … Andruw Jones was 1-for-7 in the set and has 5 hits in his last 40 at-bats. OK, that’s enough for the customary Andruw slump. Now let’s get things going again for the playoffs!

The Ugly: Let’s commemorate the Braves’ bullpen blunders one last time this year. Chris Reitsma blew the lead Monday night, giving up 3 runs and retiring no one. That brought his ERA up to 3.93. What’s scary is that still ranks him as one of the Braves’ top relievers. Besides Reitsma, Farnsworth, and Boyer (who likely won’t be healthy enough to make the postseason roster), no Braves reliever has an ERA under 4.00! Ramirez (who will relieve in the playoffs), Foster, McBride, Davies, Lerew, Devine, James, Brower, Kolb all above 4.00 (with the final 2 pushing 6.00). Makes you wonder if Bobby Cox should ever take out a starter with a lead before the 9th inning this October!

With his left hip flexor tendon deemed healthy, right-handed relief pitcher Joey Devine was called up by the Braves from Triple-A Richmond for the 2nd time on Tuesday. Devine, the Braves’ 1st round draft pick this season, stands a good chance at making the postseason roster given Blaine Boyer’s shoulder sprain and subsequent ineffectiveness. Devine injured his hip during his major league debut on August 20th. He hasn’t pitched since the 23rd of that month when he became the first pitcher to give up grand slams in his first 2 major league appearances.

The Braves extended their major league record when they clinched their 14th consecutive division title Tuesday night after beating the Rockies 12-3. Only the Yankees have more than half that amount of consecutive division titles (8 from 1998-2005). Bobby Cox worked his magic again, this time getting the most out of 17 different rookies to plug a number of holes due to injury (Hampton, Thomson, Hudson, Chipper, Estrada) and underperformance (Mondesi, Jordan, Kolb, Martin). Between his time with the Blue Jays and Braves, Cox has won 15 straight division titles (when he managed the team for a whole season). With an unprecedented number of rookies on a division champion team, Cox should win his 3rd Manager of the Year award as Braves manager this season (he previously won in 1991 and last year, 2004). John Schuerholz worked a number of pivotal deals (Hudson, Sosa, Farnsworth) without which the Braves would not have made the playoffs. Now for the hard part: it’s time for the young Braves to focus on reaching the National League Championship Series for the first time since 2001 and the World Series for the first time since 1999.

The Good: Rafael Furcal remains hot as the season winds down. He was 5-for-11 with his league-leading 45th stolen base in the series. … Chipper Jones went 4-for-10 in the series while scoring 3 and driving in 1 on his 20th homer of the season. He has now smacked at least 20 home runs the last 11 seasons. … Adam LaRoche continues to see the ball well. He registered 4 hits in 10 official series at-bats. … Brian McCann was 5-for-8 in the series, including a clutch single to complete a 4-run comeback Friday night. He appears to be coming around at the right time. … Kyle Farnsworth pitched 3 scoreless innings and now has 10 saves in as many opportunities with the Braves. … On Saturday John Thomson enjoyed his finest outing since returning from the disabled list. He surrendered just 1 run and 4 hits in 7 innings pitched. He walked and struck out 4 in earning his 1st win since May 5th! … The Braves’ magic number stands at 2.

The Bad: Andruw Jones had only 2 hits in 11 at-bats in the series, dragging his average down to .265. That extinguishes his chances at winning the MVP for all intents and purposes.

The Ugly: John Smoltz’s sore shoulder is still not close to 100%. As his shoulder goes, so go the Braves’ playoff hopes in all likelihood. They are shutting him down for the rest of the year in the hopes he’ll be recuperated in time for the first game of the National League Division Series. Smoltz didn’t fool many Friday when he gave up 8 hits, 2 walks and 3 earned runs in 6 innings of work. He did strike out 6, an encouraging sign.

The Good: Who would have thought Jorge Sosa would win as many games as John Smoltz this year? If Sosa wins 1 more game he’ll do exactly that. His amazing string of dominance (and luck) continued Tuesday as he won his 13th game this season. “Houdini,” as his teammates call him, pitched out of trouble repeatedly as he gave up a career-high 6 walks. But he also registered 6 strikeouts and gave up only 2 hits in 6 2/3 innings. Sosa has 5 wins in his last 6 starts. … Rafael Furcal continues to cruise in the 2nd half, going 5-for-12 in the series with 4 runs scored and setting a new Atlanta record for career stolen bases. … Adam LaRoche and Johnny Estrada were each 3-for-9 with a home run in the series. … Ryan Langerhans was 3-for-8 during the series. … The Braves’ magic number stands at 6.

The Bad: Now he can’t even get it done at home. Horacio Ramirez gave up 5 runs, 4 earned, in 6 innings. 7 hits allowed, 5 strikeouts, 4 walks. … Marcus Giles was 1-for-12 in the series. .. Jeff Francoeur was 2-for-12 in the set. … The slumping Andruw Jones was 1-for-10 in the set and has only mustered 2 hits in his last 26 at-bats.

The Ugly: To relieve or not to relieve? That was the question Thursday when Tim Hudson was due to bat with one out and a runner on third in a scoreless game. Hudson proceeded to ground out and give up 4 runs in the 9th inning to lose the game. I wonder if Bobby Cox decided against pinch hitting because of lack of faith in the offense (he feared they would not get a run across and squander Hudson’s great performance to that point) or lack of faith in the bullpen (he feared the bullpen would blow the game in the top of the 9th). Probably the latter but it just underscores the enormous burden the starting pitchers shoulder down the stretch and in the playoffs every year it seems. Now, more than ever, the Braves live and die with the performances of their starting pitchers.

On Wednesday, Rafael Furcal stole his 44th base of the season, a career-high for him and a total that leads the National League in that department. That theft, the 187th of his career, also put him in the record books for the most career stolen bases by an Atlanta Brave. Otis Nixon previously held the Atlanta career mark with 186 steals. Herman Long, who played for the Boston Braves from 1980 to 1902, holds the franchise record with 431 stolen bases.

The Good: Marcus Giles was 6-for-11 in the series with 2 home runs, 2 doubles, 2 RBIs and 3 runs scored. … Adam LaRoche (yes, LaRoche) was also 6-for-11 in the set including a 4-hit performance Saturday when he drove in 2 and scored thrice. … The Braves’ magic number stands at 8.

The Bad: Chipper Jones was 1-for-12 in the series. … You have to wonder what good it would do to include John Thomson on the postseason roster. For the first 5 innings Sundayhe pitched the best he has since returning from the DL. However, he fell apart in the 6th inning when he allowed 4 runs. He ended up taking his 5th loss of the season against 3 wins. He is 0-3 since being activated on August 13th. … John Smoltz still isn’t pitching like himself due to stiffness in his right shoulder. He gave up 4 earned runs in 7 innings, striking out 5 but walking none, in a loss Friday night. … Tim Hudson pitched no better than either Thomson or Smoltz, yet registered his 13th win Saturday. He gave up 4 runs in only 6 innings of work. He gave up 6 hits (3 of them home runs!), walked 4, and struck out 4. These pitchers that struggled against the Mets’ bats are supposed to neutralize the best the National League has to offer this postseason!?

The Ugly: Through Sunday, Andruw Jones was 1-for-17 since hitting his 50th home run of the season. Not coincidentally, the Braves dropped 2 of 3 to the lowly Mets. It’s just another indication of how valuable Andruw is and how much trouble the Braves will find themselves in this postseason if his Herculean performances don’t continue into October.

The Good: Another win for Jorge Sosa, his 12th of the season (and he didn’t start games for the first 2 1/2 months of the season!). Why he wasn’t a finalist for National League Comeback Player of the Year is beyond me! He gave up 2 earned runs, 7 hits, 2 walks and struck out 2 in 5 2/3 innings Thursday. … Kyle Farnsworth notched his 7th save in as many opportunities. What a steal he was! The Braves would likely be neck and neck with the Phillies without him. … Adam LaRoche 3-for-8 during the series with 2 runs scored and an RBI from a home run. Hopefully he’s finally snapping out of his prolonged slump. … The Braves’ magic number stands at 10.

The Bad: Marcus Giles was 2-for-13 in the series and threw in a couple errors for good measure. … Julio Franco was 1-for-9 in the set. … Ryan Langerhans had only 2 hits in 11 at-bats. … Jeff Francoeur mustered 3 singles in 15 at-bats. … The Braves’ bullpen problems from the left side continue as Macay McBride gave up 2 earned runs in less than 3 innings of work.

The Ugly: Horacio Ramirez was battered by the Phillies offense for 7 runs, 6 earned, in 3 innings Wednesday. He gave up 8 hits, walked 1, and struck out 2. It was the 5th straight start during which he has surrendered 3 or more runs. That better put to rest any last shred of doubt as to who the 3rd starter in the rotation will be this October (Sosa).

With Mike Hampton unable to come back and John Foster nursing an injured elbow, the Braves needed another left-handed pitcher in their bullpen. Chuck James was called up from Triple-A Richmond Thursday to provide some much-needed relief from the left side. James started the year at Class A Myrtle Beach, progressed to Double-A Mississippi in and then ended the minor league season at Triple-A Richmond. He compiled a cumulative 13-7 record and 2.12 ERA during those 3 stints. Like fellow Braves rookies Blaine Boyer, Kyle Davies, Jeff Francoeur and Brian McCann, James was raised in Atlanta. Jorge Vasquez was designated for assignment in order to make room for James on the 40-man roster.

Andruw Jones’ solo home run in the 8th inning of Wednesday night’s game reached 2 milestones for him. First, he became the first major leaguer to hit 50 round trippers in a season since Jim Thome and Alex Rodriguez accomplished the feat in 2002 (Barry Bonds was the last to reach that mark in the National League in 2001).

With his 300th career home run, Andruw became just the 12th player in Major League history to reach that milestone before his 30th birthday. Jones turned 28 years old in April and is the youngest Brave to reach the 300-homer mark (Eddie Mathews 42 days older when he hit his 300th home run). The other players who have reached 300 homers by age 30 are: Hank Aaron, Jimmie Foxx, Mickey Mantle, Eddie Mathews, Harmon Killebrew, Mel Ott, Frank Robinson, Alex Rodriguez, Ken Griffey Jr., Juan Gonzalez and Vladimir Guerrero.

Braves MVP candidate Andruw Jones was named the Bank of America National League Player of the Week on Monday for the week of September 5-11. During the week he batted .381 with 5 home runs, 7 runs scored, and 10 runs batted in. Last week he also tied for the league lead with 24 total bases and led the league in slugging percentage with a 1.143 mark.

Through September 11th, he led the NL in home runs (49) and RBIs (121) and was also registering career highs in slugging percentage (.612) and OPS (.972). In conjunction with the award Bank of America will make a $1,000 donation to the Little League Urban Initiative on behalf of Andruw.

The Good: Make sure you save some for the postseason Andruw! Andruw Jones is on fire, going 6-for-11 this series with 4 home runs (his 49 through Sunday’s game set a new Braves franchise record), 7 RBIs and 5 runs scored. How do you spell MVP? A-N-D-R-U-W! … Chipper Jones was 4-for-13, including a clutch 2-run homer with 2 outs in the 9th inning to win Sunday’s game. That saved the Braves from losing a game in which the bullpen blew a 4-run lead (yet another John Smoltz win erased by the blowpen). … Jorge Sosa hurled another gem, registering his 11th win of the season. He allowed 6 hits, struck out 3 and walked none while shutting out the Nationals over 8 innings. He would be 5th in the National League in ERA if he had enough innings under his belt. … The Braves’ magic number stands at 13.

The Bad: Last year it was Chris Reitsma. Before that it was Mike Remlinger. This year its John Foster. Invariably Bobby Cox finds a hot reliever and uses him until his arm is about to fall off. Of course he didn’t have much choice, with Foster being the only halfway-decent left-handed pitcher in the bullpen all year. Through Sunday, Foster had made 56 major-league appearances this year (keep in mind all but 4 of those came after May 8th). Foster gave up 2 earned runs in 1/3 inning Saturday (with some help from Dan Kolb naturally) and 3 earned runs without retiring a batter Sunday. … Marcus Giles was 2-for-12 in the series. … It had to happen some time. Jeff Francoeur is coming back down to earth. He was 1-for-11 in the set but still sports a .325 season average.

The Ugly: As if Adam LaRoche’s offensive play has not been ugly enough, he took a hard-hit ground ball off the right side of his face Sunday afternoon. After absorbing the shot off of Nick Johnson’s bat LaRoche left the game. Team doctors have concluded it is not a serious injury and his status is listed as day-to-day. LaRoche said it best himself when he joked “it might help me get my head back where it belongs.” Amen!

Mike Hampton was activated from the 15-day disabled list on Sunday in the hopes he could spell the Braves lefty relievers, Macay McBride and the overused John Foster. Unfortunately it didn’t work out that way. Over the weekend and Monday, Hampton continued to feel the tightness in his left arm that had plagued him since May 14th. Team doctors met with him Thursday and recommended he have Tommy John surgery. The surgery requires approximately 10 months of rehab and will therefore cause him to miss most of the 2006 season as well! The Braves are on the hook for $43 million over the last 3 years on Hampton’s contract though insurance covers a portion of his salary while he is on the disabled list.

Catcher Eddie Perez was activated from the 60-day disabled list on Friday, September 9th. He has been sidelined since mid-May with tendinitis in his right shoulder. Up to that point, Perez had hit .216 with 2 home runs and 6 RBIs in 12 games. To make room for Perez on the 40-man roster, the Braves designated Richmond Braves pitcher Adam Bernero for assignment.

Andruw Jones passed Hank Aaron and Eddie Mathews in the Braves record books Sunday afternoon when he hit his 48th home run of the season in the 3rd inning (his 9th-inning solo shot brought his season total to a league-leading 49 dingers). With over 2 weeks to go in the season, Andruw now holds the franchise record for most home runs in a season and he shows no signs of slowing down. Mathews hit 47 home runs in 1953 while Aaron accomplished the feat in 1971. Jones’ previous career-best mark in homers was 36 which he achieved in both 2000 and 2003. Entering play Monday, Andruw was on pace to tally 55 home runs and 137 RBIs. Gary Sheffield holds the Atlanta record for RBIs with the 132 runs he drove in during the 2003 season. Eddie Mathews had 135 RBIs in 1953, the most by a Braves since 1900.

The Good: The Braves get their first sweep in over a month and 2nd sweep of the Mets this season. … No one can keep up with the Joneses these days. Chipper was 5-for-10 with 3 RBIs and his 16th home run in the series. Not to be outdone, Andruw was 5-for-11 with 3 RBIs of his own and his league-leading 45th home run. … John Smoltz outpitched Pedro Martinez for his 14th win of the season, giving up 7 hits in 7 innings, striking out 2 and walking only 1. … Tim Hudson turned in another great start but had nothing to show for it at the end of the night. He scattered 8 hits in 8 innings of work while striking out 3 and walking 3. The Mets managed just 2 runs off him but the Braves were not able to break through until the 9th inning. … Ryan Langerhans singled-handedly won Wednesday night’s game for the Braves, delivering game-tying and game-winning clutch hits in the 9th and 10th innings respectively. Combine his stellar defense with improved offensive production and he may have secured the everyday left fielder’s job.

The Bad: Marcus Giles was 2-for-12 in the series but, to his credit, he did make Pedro look bad when he scored from 2nd on a swinging bunt to the Mets pitcher. … Braves first basemen continue to struggle (one due to slump, one due to injury). Adam LaRoche was 0-for-3 Monday and has 4 hits in his last 82 at-bats (.049). Julio Franco was 1-for-7 in the set and is likely still bothered by his elbow injury.

The Ugly: Thank heavens John Schuerholz pulled off the Kyle Farnsworth trade! Chris Reitsma strained his left hamstring Wednesday after turning in another mediocre perfomance. It appears the only relievers besides Farnsworth the Braves can possibly count on now are Macay McBride and Blaine Boyer. No wonder the Braves are considering using the eternally-injured Mike Hampton in relief the rest of the year.