Braves Land Wild Win Over Toronto With 3 Weeks To Go

00:00:22
Speaker 1: Hello, everyone, Welcome to episode seventy eight of the Hammer Territory podcast. I'm your host, Brad Rowland, coming to you on a Sunday. It's September eighth, and I'm joined as i often am, by Scott Coleman. Scott in about thirty minutes on Sunday afternoon, the vibe of this podcast changed drastically.

00:00:38
Speaker 2: Hey, Brad, that's right, For once a Sunday seemingly went the Braves's way. You're right, I mean there was a real moment where the Braves were down two to one in the ninth inning and the New York Metropolitans were tied one to one in the ninth inning, and as fate would have it, the Braves ended up finding a way to win, and the Mets finally lost a game. I believe they had won nine in row before the loss. So in you mentioned thirty minutes, I mean, legitimately, in thirty minutes, that was a two game swing, and this time of year, with three weeks left, those are huge and you need a couple of them to bounce your way if you're.

00:01:13
Speaker 1: Going to make it into the postseason. That is absolutely right, and even beyond the two game swing, just the mental and emotional gymnastics that were happening on Sunday afternoon. One day we will have to release our text messages together, but not today. I would say between you and I Scott, while we're here at the top of the podcast, we should also say we are part of the foul Territory network of podcasts. Check out the entire network, including the flagship show over at foul Territory, and please please please subscribe to this podcast anywhere you find your podcast. Also tell your friends, and we're also on YouTube. We might go to video at some point, but in the meantime we're trying to grow our audience there, trying to hit certain benchmarks that we're asked to hit. So please go ahead and take just two seconds and subscribe to the podcast on YouTube, even if you are already an audio only subscriber. But as we sort of alluded to there, it was a good day for the Braves, a winning week for the Braves four and two. It wasn't dominant and the way that it maybe could have been, but they win both series against Colorado and then Toronto, and with nineteen games to go, clearly the margin for air Escott aluds to is very very slim. We will dive deep, I promise into the game on Sunday, because that was a wild one later on in the show. But they're not tied with the Mets. You said it, the Mets final loss. The Mets have been incredible. They've been the best team in baseball for like a couple of months now. Unfortunately for everybody else involved here, the din MAXs are currently playing as we're recording, so that one's still up in the air. But the pottery is slide a little bit. It seems like the Braves are certainly not a lot to be in the playoffs, but they are continue to be favored in all the projections that I see from Fangrass, Baseball Reference, et cetera. I guess we'll take this moment now, Scott, to take stock of this. How are you feeling about the Braves playoff chances? With exactly three weeks ago.

00:02:48
Speaker 2: So it's pretty clearly shaping up to be four teams for three playoff spots, and kind of I think it is natural for all of us to just kind of look at the scoreboard and look at the Mets score and I mean, I'm guilty of it two. But at the same time, the Diamondbacks have left the door open and the Padres have also cooled significantly in the last couple of days and weeks, So it really does feel like you have four clubs. Who I mean, it might go down to the last day of the season, Brad. It kind of has that feel in terms of the Braves making the postseason. Man, it's for reasons that listeners know. I think it's hard to be bullish on a nightly basis, just because the offense has been so beaten up and bad. But basically every single night other than Saturday, which was a fluky blow up game for the pitching staff, the pitching has given the Braves a chance to win quite literally every night for a full month now, and we know that in September and October, power pitching can really carry a team and win baseball games. And we're just gonna have to hope that, as has been the theme for pretty much all year long, just have to hope the pitching stays and that the lineup can somehow scrape across a couple of runs, because, man, trying to win every ball game two to one is just not going to be sustainable or me who knows? I mean, on our mental health, it is uh. I mean, I think even even a friend of the pod, Brandon Goddon tweeted after the game that he felt like he went ten rounds with Mike Tyson today. That's pretty accurate because every game has been a grueling fight to win.

00:04:25
Speaker 1: It is. And you know, we always talk about the margin for air or lack thereof, and that's that's part of all these low scoring games. It also taxes your bullpen in particular. Jimenez and Glaciers are pitching in like every single day, it seems like right now because they have to and games are close, and even today was to the wires. We'll get into. I'm with you one hundred percent. It feels like there's four teams for three spots all of the division races. They're not over in the National League, but I believe all of three of them are six games or more right now. The Bridgs are seven games back in the Phillies Padres are six six and a half behind the Dodgers. Is we're talking right now, even bigger in the Central behind the Brewers. So it's four games, four teams for three spots. In the way card and then includes the Braves, and really the only time that the Braves will play ahead to head against either of well, I guess any of those three teams is the second to last series of the season. They play the Mets at home for three games that left final week. That's the only time they go head to head against Arizona, San Diego or New York. So that's one to circle for sure, But we'll get into that later on. But yeah, it could big overall. It didn't always feel that way, I have to say. And you know, if they had lost today, I was prepared to fight the urge to be as dramatically negative as it felt like I was probably going to end up being. But hey, that's the nature of the beast in the sports world, Scott. You can lose a game in incredibly painful fashion, and we would have maybe circled that one as one to maybe push the Braves out of the playoffs in a couple of weeks, or you win it and maybe it's a springboard.

00:05:46
Speaker 2: And I mean again, seriously, the difference between the Braves coming back to win today and the Mets losing in the ninth inning cannot be overstated. And the difference between being tied for a playoff spot and believe a game behind the Diamondbacks and a game and a half behind the Padres for the one and two wild card spots. The difference between that and being two full games back of the postseason with nineteen baseball games to go. It really does just feel even if it is only two games, it feels like it's more than that. And I guess credit to the Braves for somehow finding a way to win on Sunday even if the Saturday game was a bit of a bummer.

00:06:26
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00:06:30
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00:06:40
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00:06:52
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00:06:54
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00:07:02
Speaker 1: Nah. I'm good.

00:07:04
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00:07:09
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00:07:29
Speaker 1: Speaking of Saturday and Sunday, let us dive into some of the results from the weekend and if you missed it, our colleagues Sean and Steven talked about the games on Thursday and Friday and for the most part on a show on Friday night. So I recommend listening to that show always. We are a complimentary and we're trying to overlap too too much on the podcast. So that was one to catch up on. But the last two games that we'll talk about. Saturday was more breezy in a bad way. It was lopsided. It was nine to five as a final, it was not actually that close. The Braves tacked on some runs that were kind of meaningless in the ninth inning. The offense did very little in the game. The only thing that was littable about the offense, in my opinion, was the fact that Matt Olsen played his six hundredth consecutive game, And per Sarah Langs, I found this today on Twitter. Sarah Leans is great with this stuff. The first time that a player has appeared in six hundred games or more in a row since two thousand and seven. So that's a long time in the world of baseball. And while I have expressed I think you have as well some renaissance to have the Braves to play their guys every single inning of every single game, it's still impressive fro Matdilson to play literally every game for four years basically, and that's as evidenced by the fact that it's been twenty years or so.

00:08:37
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, a testament to Matt and the physical shape that he keeps himself in, and you know, it's clearly a thing that he strives for. I know, I think it was last year, maybe the year before. The Braves continue to start Matt Olson, even when they have like the clinching hangover lineup, He'll go out there and play like an inning or two and then come out said something that matters to him, and I think we all feel like that when the Braves are fully healthy, and obviously that has been very, very few and far between this year. But when the Braves are fully healthy, I think we are all in favor of giving the guys a breather. But the fact is right now, when you're down a third of your regulars, you really don't have the luxury to do that. And again, credit to Matt for being out there. And hey, he's done a nice job over the last six weeks or so. He cooled down quite a bit over the Midsummer months, but really throughout August and September, Matt has been quite good. I believe his OPS is upwards of nine hundred.

00:09:37
Speaker 1: Yeah, he's been pretty much himself for always close to it for a little while now. Maybe something about first base and the Braves to have the sheriff over there that has to play every day. Freddie was this way too. We used to kind of pick on Freddy because he just would play through stuff when he wasn't healthy and it was very obvious, but he just never wanted to sit. And maybe it's the first base thing. I'm not sure, but Matt Olson Parker Hospitals own is quite durable. Other than that on Saturday, I guess we should maybe close the book on the historic And that's crazy to say a historic run of awesome starts for the Braves. Schwellenbach was not particularly good on Saturday. Ten hits, six runs, only three were earned, so if you want to get technical, I guess they only allowed three earned runs in that game. Still as crazy as that sounds, but no walks, but three strikeouts only he was not missing bads. He didn't look very good. I saw some I'm not sure if you saw this either. We've been talking about it beforehand, but I was some pretty funny maybe panic tweets about about Swallenbach and how he was like the problem guys. He's been awesome for a while. I wouldn't be particularly worried myself, but maybe maybe you are worried, Scott. Are you worried at all about this performance?

00:10:40
Speaker 2: No, I'm not worried about Schwellenbach. I did want to point out that between the Majors and the miners this season, Spencer Swallenbach is up to twenty five starts and one hundred and forty two innings. Now, those aren't crazy numbers by any means, but for a guy who's only been pitching professionally for a couple of years, he is getting up there a little bit. But at the same time, one blow, I mean, really, it's like the first time in three months that Schwellenbach has not been awesome. I do think the Braves will naturally do their homework and diligence and keep an eye on him and make sure that the velocity stays strong, which it was on Saturday night. And if there's an opportunity to maybe give Spencer a breather, then sure you do it. But as we know, with only three weeks left in the season, that's probably easier said than done. But no, not concerned. I mean, I guess if he goes out there in his next start and gets blown up again, then maybe it starts to you know, you start to wonder if he's hitting a wall or something like that. But one bad start it happens. I really just think because the Braves starting rotation has been so good for the past month, it was kind of like jarring to see the Braves down a large number early in the game because that literally had not happened in about twenty five starts.

00:11:58
Speaker 1: Yeah, six to nothing pretty quickly. I'm glad you pointed out the worklow concerns because the Braves did for a while mid season, to some controversy, take it really easy on guys like Schwamma Bach and even Chris Slee and Ronaldo Lopez, and they were trying to do that, and then Snick kind of realized and maybe the organization realized they couldn't really afford to anymore with where they are on the standings. Maybe they skiped Schwama back in the other time at some point, but yeah, it's it's tough to do that right now. Worth noting though, that in his ten previous starts before Saturday, he had a two point six six ERA with more than seven s recouts for every walk and the Poets had a five ninety three ops against him and those ten starts, so he's been really good for a while. Hopefully it's just a one off, but dude, keep an eye on him for I think, because he only threw like seventy innings last year, Like, it's a pretty big jump to be sure, so's it's notable, but still want to start and I'm glad you pointed out the thing at the end there, because it does feel like there was a bigger reaction than there probably should have been, because guys, you can't be perfect every single game. That's uh with the pitching staff, and they were not perfect at all on Saturday. That's okay, it happens.

00:13:01
Speaker 2: Yeah, Well, and when the offense is so bad, yeah, I get it's right. I mean, if if the Braves put up a six spot early and then Schwalenbach got hit around, then it's just one of those famous ten to nine baseball games that you're playing. Yeah, right, it happens. Well, it happens for most teams when as the Braves are currently assembled, there's not a whole lot of ten to nine baseball games being played. But yeah, hopefully it was just one blip on the radar for Schwallenbach. And you know, whenever I believe he's lined up now to face the Dodgers next weekend, which is a huge test, hopefully all goes well on that start and we just kind of move on from the out of character bad start on Saturday night.

00:13:43
Speaker 1: Every time he pitch it. Right now, I feel like I say on the podcast that it's the biggest part of his career Saturday. I didn't say that because it was not a Phillies start or something like that, but I'll just probably say it again next weekend when they face the Dodgers. That's just what happens when it comes to a guy in his rookie season. Sunday's game had a lot more to talk about, for Good and for ill. It ended up being a victory, four to three and eleven innings. For a long time, the only offense was Jared Kelmi getting a home run in a second to give the Brads a one nothing lead. He actually kind of a sneaking good week. He's been pretty bad for a while, I have to say, but he was pretty good this week. He had hitting all five games, He appeared in a couple of home runs. You know, not too much to add there. I think there's this conversation happening that we'll probably save mostly for the off season about Kelnick and like what this season has been. There was some positive, there was some negative feedback. There was a column written this week about like his overarching of Like, I think it's fair to say it's not been particularly good this year for Jered Kelnick, but I was nice, sort of encouraging to see him do a little better. It's only a hand full of play appearances. A couple of home runs this week is nice to see.

00:14:46
Speaker 2: Yeah. I think kelnick season on the whole, it's been both good and bad, and it's almost been like a tease in a way, because he's had moments where he's been awesome and put together really good at bads and he had that great month of June where he was really pulling the ball and driving the baseball, and then he's had other stretches where he's just lost and seemingly striking out half of his plate appearances or something like that. So I think for Kelnick, you just hope that whenever he gets put into the situation to start, which has been maybe a fifty to fifty basis over the last few weeks. The Braves have given Jorge Solaire a couple of days off, they have given Ramon Loriano a couple of days off. They've gotten Kelnick in there, especially against good right handed pitching. He found himself in there on Friday night as well against Kevin Gosman. I think for Kelnick it has been a probably for him a frustrating year overall, because he has had some really great moments for this team. But I also just don't know if he's someone who can just bank on giving you production because he has had long stretches this year. We just hasn't done much of anything.

00:15:54
Speaker 1: Yeah, and he's on pace for like a one war season, which for a guy playing a lot is not particularly good. It's not like a total disaster, but he's been a blow average hitter and defensively he's fine in the corner. Like it's it's not the package is not what they were hoping for for sure, still a talented player, but we'll save a lot of that, Like I said, for later on. Just wanted to note that because it was a lot of what happened for a while on Sunday. Then the aforementioned Joejmanez, who's been pitching like every day for a while. Because if a two out to run home run in the eighth to go from up one nothing to down two to one, it wasn't even a bad pitch. He was actually not a strike. It was below the zone, but he got golfed out over the right field wall. Notable to me anyway that it probably should not eve even happen because Geoe Orchella was actually called a double in real time and then they overturned it. Orceelle should have made the play, made an air at third base, and if that had not happened, you never know exactly how would unfold. It's not like you know perfectly what was going to happen, but that should have been the first out, and what became at anything that they probably needed another out. But you know, Jimenez, I saw some trashing of him. He's been quite good this year. I have a hard time getting my dander up for Johjamennez. It was night in a bad pitch and just happens.

00:17:02
Speaker 2: Oh Joe Jimenez has been like a top fifteen reliever in Major League Baseball this season, and the Braves have that in the eighth inning, which is a real gift knowing how good Rice Iglesias has been in the ninth. So yeah, it was a bummer. I mean, overall, Geo Orchella has played really good defense and it was really just kind of an untimely mistake. I mean that that play happens in like the third inning, we're probably not even talking about it. But again, man when all of your baseball games are seemingly one to nothing in the eighth inning, your margin of air is so small, and you know it was it was unfortunate that the game had to eventually go into extras and cause all the drama that way. But yeah, Joe Jimenez is fantastic. He's been even better this year than he was a year ago. He has gotten a ton of high leverage, and sometimes when things go sideways in high leverage, we remember it more and we talk about it more. But thankfully the offense was able to pick him up and you know, bailed Joe out of that very untimely eighth inning homer.

00:18:09
Speaker 1: So from there he starts to get a little bit weird. The acmenas pitch is just something that happens in baseball. But at the bottom of the eighth the Birds could a run in a third base with one out, which is a spot that they've been not particularly good at this year. They pinch hit with Charles Darnau, which in a vacuum made total sense. It was a high average moment. He was your best pinch hitter available. But they famously right now and we'll talk about as now, I guess for a second, if you want to what Maryfield has broken foot. He fought the ball off his foot on Friday. It's a fracture of some kind. There are varying projections here. One doctor said six weeks. A different one said that he might be able to come back as soon as this weekend, which is a hilarious disparate timeline. But no matter what happens, Maryfield is unavailable for at least a few days if nothing else. And because of at the Braves did not choose to put him on the il okay anyway. Because he's not available and they're already down on everybody else, they don't have a backup infielder on the roster. Luke Williams is now starting, g Orchella is now starting, and technically they don't have a backup infielder. So they pitch at Travis knowing that this is the eighth inning. Even if he gets a sackfly or even the Homers to take the lead, you have to put Eli White. It seemed like it was gonna be the plan all along at second base. What do you think of this whole situation? Because I feel like I'm on crazy island here. I think it's insane that they did not put Maryfield on the IL. I rarely say that, but they're treating what Maryfield like he's rolling at Cunya and I don't particularly know why.

00:19:46
Speaker 2: Yeah, they are certainly playing a game right now with the roster and who they are choosing to have up. I didn't realize that Eli White can play second base. I mean he can't Scott really, he's just the best. It's like they talked about Ramon Loreano taking infield practice, like, what is what is happening? Am I taking crazy pills here? I guess Eli White has played second and it's at some point in his life. But he's an outfielder, like he's he's an outfielder.

00:20:12
Speaker 1: It's what he is.

00:20:13
Speaker 2: I mean, this season has made all of us a little crazy, hasn't it. I mean, if I would have told you this sentence Brad back in March, that the Braves had Ramon Loriano and Eli White and we're really worried about a wit mirrorfield injury. I mean, can you imagine just connecting the dots to this point? How many steps you have to get to to get to that conversation?

00:20:36
Speaker 1: Is right? But I mean Okay, if they were ask you this, if they were confident that made that wit Maryfield could play by the Dodgers series, which is that starts Friday, today's Sunday. If they were confident that we could play on Friday, would you have put him on the io? Uh?

00:20:56
Speaker 2: No, no, because I think.

00:20:58
Speaker 1: I think I would have still, but have been closer.

00:21:01
Speaker 2: So it's ten days for players, correct, I believe it's fifteen for pitchers.

00:21:05
Speaker 1: Ten ten days.

00:21:06
Speaker 2: Yes, So then he broke his foot on Friday nights you're talking, so basically then he would be out throughout the week the Dodgers series next weekend.

00:21:16
Speaker 1: Yeah, it would have cost you about four games probably of him being available again. They don't know he would be back on Friday. And just to say this not loud, because I'm sure people all got their radios, we understand that they don't have any good options. That that is a big part here, and I'm sure that's what the Brays would say, is that they don't have anybody they want to that they want to call up. The only guy on the forty man is not Choe Alvariz, and he's been better in gen last couple weeks. But it seems clear as day to me, Scott that they do not want to call him back up for whatever reason.

00:21:46
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm I mean it's hard not to blame them, you know. Not Choe, by all accounts, good kid, hard worker. He was just not ready.

00:21:55
Speaker 1: It didn't go well. Yeah, no, no.

00:21:57
Speaker 2: But hey, sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures. And I think at this point, man, I mean, you just have to hope that either the broken bone in WIT's foot or the broken bone in Ossie Alby's wrist one of the two progress enough in the next couple of weeks where the Braves can basically not start. Luke Williams at second base is pretty much the bar. And I mean that's you know, hey, Luke Williams is doing his best. He gets thrown into the fire. I don't think there was a person on Earth who saw Luke Williams playing important innings for the Atlanta Braves down the stretch, but you know, and it just kind of goes to show that Braves is injury luck and how unlucky they have been. Witt Mirifield has basically been an iron man for the last decade of his career. I don't believe he's ever been put on the injured list, and during his time in Kansas City in particular, he averaged like one hundred and fifty seven games a year. So, as fate would have it, he joins the Braves. The very first day he has that excruciating broken finger where like the bone was popping out in his finger, and god, I'm thankful that no picture's surfaced to that. And then a month later he breaks a bone in his foot on what looked to be a harmless foul ball. I mean, man, it just when it rains, it pours, and I think you just have to hope that one of the two second basemen are able to play and play at a relatively high level for these last couple weeks of the season.

00:23:27
Speaker 1: To back you up, Maryfield once went four seasons from twenty eighteen to twenty twenty one, missing four total games. He also played three consecutive years without missing a game, so he doesn't miss games. But he is thirty five. No, I mean that maybe that's part of this, but it really is. I don't mean to pick up with Maryfield, who's done a great job for what he's been asked to do. The Braak's got him for nothing, all caveats apply. I just feel like they're treating him like he's a star right now with the way that they're not putting him the il because the thing is I glossed over it earlier, but just to say this one more time out loud, a doctor told him six weeks on Friday, and then another specialist said, oh, maybe he can play in a few days because it's just pain tolerance. That's a pretty I made fun of it on Twitter. That's a pretty wide gap in projection. But I mean, is he gonna be good on Friday, Like, let's just say he's back on Thursday, he's going to be in pain. Is he going to be good? I don't know. I mean, that's not a lock. It's Wood Maryfield. This is not a superstar player. Like I know he's he's been good for the Braves, But I mean, do you want to play six percent away Wood Maryfield? Maybe? I guess, but I feel like there is some drastic downside when you factor in not just today. I mean, today's a good example of it because they I guess it works because he, like White, had a great game today, but he's not a second baseman and Smith's managing every game like it's the World Series right now. I mean, he's he's doing everything's he's pressing every button. It's Freddye Gazale style. He's he's smashing buttons right now every game. You can't really do that if you don't have a single backup infielder and your stars and your stars Luke Wims. It's just it's insane. Like I'm laughing at the whole situation. It's very funny to me, like this shouldn't matter, but I just don't. I think it's a little bit strange. They didn't even think about it. It's like, all right, I would be good, I think, yeah.

00:25:04
Speaker 2: I mean they are tiptoeing a very fine line right now, and it's, man, it is pretty bleak in the middle of.

00:25:12
Speaker 1: Okay, I have a question for you. We'll move on, I promise. I have a question. What happens if Orlando RCA rolls and ankle in the first standing on Monday? I will be starting a shortstop. I mean, I think they would probably put ll it short Luke Williams at third and Eli White at second. But then what happens when something else happens? I mean, I'm not being a doomsday person here, I promise you. But they this is this is the thing where you don't have a bench, Like I don't care about benches generally speaking when it comes to the dh era, but when you don't have anyone who can basically play the infield, it's it's tough. And it might be even in that scenario that lay out earlier that we'll say Thursday, Friday, what's back. That's three or four games between now and then and plus today where they had to play Eli White at second He wasn't really tested there. I don't know if he can really do it. Maybe maybe he can, And maybe that's why they're not worried. They think that Eli White's just like going to be fine a second base. If that's the case, then I'll be wrong. I just it seems a little bit reckless to me.

00:26:14
Speaker 2: But yeah, it is a good reflection of all of the injuries the Braves.

00:26:21
Speaker 1: Have dealt with this year.

00:26:22
Speaker 2: Yes, that we're even having to have this conversation, I mean you.

00:26:26
Speaker 1: Made it out. Read the names off Scott you had in our document here about how like just as a reminder everybody how crazy the injuries have been for the Braves go ahead, nuts. I mean, this is like if you added a bunch of like low level free agents to the player list. I'm about the list off here. It's like an eighty five ninety win baseball team. So the Braves injuries here, just for the housekeeping note, Here we go. Ronald Acuna, junior, reigning nash League MVP, Spencer Strider, top five pitcher on Planet Earth. Austin Riley has been hurt twice? Is he all hurt twice? Michael Harris missed two months, Sean Murphy missed two months, Jorge Solaire pulled a hamstring basically hasn't been the same for three or four weeks. Now, the Rex Yeah, Max Freed elbow issue, Rinaldo Lopez elbow issue, AJ Minter recurring hip issues all year out for the year. And now you have wit Mirifield, who has basically never been hurt and his entire big league career is now hurt for the second time in a month and a half since signing on with the Braves. It is I mean, you couldn't. I tweeted this the other day asking legitimately, is this the worst most injury riddled season in the history of the Atlanta Braves, an organization that's been around for decades, and I mean basically everyone said, yes, there were a couple of years that popped up with the plethora of injuries, but just I mean literally, since day one, this team has not been healthy. And I feel like we say it every Sunday.

00:27:59
Speaker 2: Brad, it is a legitimate miracle that with three weeks to go in the season, the Atlanta Braves are firmly in the playoff picture. I am not sure there is a single team in baseball other than the Dodgers, who have been equally bettered by injuries all year. There's not another team in baseball who would be even close to the postseason picture. With everything the Braves have had to deal with. We agree, but hey, at least this sign Kevin Bigio this weekend. If you are a warm body who might be available, it makes sense and right, I mean, it makes sense to bring them over. And if you have to call on Bigio at some point, I mean, to answer your question a minute ago, if something happened to Orlando, god forbid, or to Geo or Schella, God forbid, you're probably calling up Bigio from the minor leagues because I mean, you just don't really have any other choices unless you want to throw not Soo Alvarez out there again. And I'm just not sure anybody wants to do that.

00:28:56
Speaker 1: Yeah, their own names going that too worth noting, just says out loudt Vgo who they acquired for nothing. It's not a matter of league deal. He is not playoff eligible, which I mean it may not matter. It wouldn't matter anyway, but I don't think. But if his utility is like you just said, if they get two more injuries and you got to plug the hole for the next two and a half weeks, you can call him up. He's not very good, but he's a major league caliber player, and that's why you bring that guy in over the weekend. All right, let's go back to the game. Sorry for that sidetrack, but it was a good time to talk about it because it was it came it became relevant because listen, are our good pal Mark Bobus But on this podcast before, in his column postgame, call today's game the Eli White game, which I find funny but it's also kind of true.

00:29:42
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, they're gonna need Eli White to step up. They're gonna need. Yeah, I mean yeah, good for for Eli. He has a very specific skill set and he did his job on Sunday. And that's what you need to win these ballgames. You need players like Eli White, Ramond and Noria, players who we had no expectation of contributing late in the season. The Braves are going to need these guys if they're gonna weather all the injuries that they have.

00:30:09
Speaker 1: That's right. And the other White had two hits and score the winning run today. He is not a great player, we understand this, but they he's a good guy. He's this year's not exactly the same, but this version, this year's version of Forrest Wall. He's like a great guy to be at the end of your bench. He's really fast, he can run. That came in handy today, et cetera. But anyway, the brist tied the game of the ninth after singles by White in Ozuna and the only time in recent memory the Braves actually executed a sacrifice fly when when they when they had to have. It was Matt Olsen driving a Eli White to tie the game in the nighte inning. Nice to see, yeah, it was.

00:30:44
Speaker 2: It was rare ABC Baseball for the Braves, which I mean again, Man, I don't I feel like we're being negative Nancy sometimes tonight, Yet again, when this team is regularly wasting leadoff doubles because they can't hit two five baseballs, me con you gotta they have to figure out a way to improve the approach at the plate and make the most of the opportunities that they get.

00:31:09
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean the eighth thing. We talked about it briefly earlier with with darn O, but they pitch hit him and he struck out with a guy I'm third and one out, and I love Travis. It was not a great play appearance. It is what it is that it happened. Sometimes like it is not a guarantee. I think some people go too far the other way. I'm guilty of this too. It's not easy quote unquote to get a guy in from third with one out, but you just you have to do it more often than not. It's just the reality. In the tenth, the Braves failed to score after Iglesias will be out of a jam as he is wont to do in the tenth, He's great, the Braves asked Geo Orchella. It's a bunt. I can't. I can't remember while I got the stats. So my apologist whoever said it because I wouldn't look it up, and confirmed it. But Orchella has two career sack bunts and he has not bunted in a sacrifice for seven years. And Scott it looked that way, well, he was what he was bunt to get it again.

00:31:58
Speaker 2: It's maybe it's like the theme of the podcast asked, can you imagine a scenario where even two months ago I said the Braves needed a crucial sacrifice bunt from third baseman Geo or Schella. I mean we also called, well we almost called this podcast no bunts or never bunt. That was one of the lists of one of the lists of podcast names we hate bunts. Uh, I didn't necessarily there are a certain level of hitter where I'm okay with it in extra innings like I don't hate it. Orschelle is that kind of hitter. But apparently he just he can't bunt, which you probably need to know when you call a bunt. He looked, he just looked like he had no idea what was going on. And he and of course he he butted it into a force out and that kind of killed things a little bit. Yeah, I I don't think Geo does a lot of bunting practice, and he takes batting practice before the game every single night, you know, thankfully, even with all of the extra inning shenanigans. The Blue I mean, the Braves won this game today in the bottom of the eleventh by scoring two runs in the baseball did not leave the infield.

00:33:05
Speaker 1: Yeah, they got a big assist from the not playoff bound Blue Jays. Yeah. On the whole, including that ending. I mean, we should at least say out loud that Glaciers got out to give give up a run on the eleventh. Listen, you can't always really ever bake on giving up no runs and extra innings. The math is not on your side. The stat's pretty crazy to me. Iglesias still doesn't allowed to I believe it earned run in like almost three months. It's like an insane run. Opponents have like a ninety bat the average gainst him in like thirty appearances or something crazy. But he allows a run. But you said, I mean it was it was bunt, single error, intentional walk. And then Sean Murphy hits a ground ball to the right spot, basically that's how they won the game. Yeah, I mean, I guess they're due for some good fortune. That's kind of all I have on that. It's like, it's kind of ironic that the Braves won the game that way because they just never do that this year. That's like the yeah, hey, all help is appreciated, you know, for every night where the Braves have outslugged, or you know, had the been on the wrong side of the babbit battle, or had like an expected batting average of four hundred and just kept hitting it right at players and right at the glove. The Braves are due some good fortune, and who knows, maybe the ball will bounce their way over these last three weeks and then propel them into a postseason run. But it just felt good. Even after Ricelle was so close to getting through that eleventh inning without giving up a run. George Springer just happened to bounce a ball up the middle to kind of Nowhereville that got through. But again, good on the Braves.

00:34:49
Speaker 2: A perfectly executed bunt and some I guess good contact in the moment, even if they didn't exactly drive the baseball, they needed to put the ball in play and on everybody for executing and finding a way to win that game.

00:35:03
Speaker 1: E Lie White, E Lie White. Okay, yeah, so a really good win. All joking aside, Like it was not a win that was comfortable. It felt like October in some respects, Like the angst level was quite high, including for me. Again, I alluded to it earlier, but Scott and I texts were pretty funny together in the ninth, tenth, eleventh today. But hey, it was a win as a win as a win, and we didn't even say the name of Chris Sale yet. Chris Sale was once again completely and utterly brilliant. Uh he didn't get the win. I don't care about that, but six innings, two hits, one walk, seven strikeouts. He has not allowed more than two earned runs in a start since June first.

00:35:44
Speaker 2: Yeah, Brad, we are talking about the very likely National League Cy Young winner. I mean, I think we have we have run out of all of the superlatives to talk about Chris Sale. He was phenomenal again on Sunday. I know a lot of folks were probably tuning into football and didn't catch a lot of the game today, And if you didn't, Chris Sale was just vintage Chris Sale, a ton of strikeouts. Toronto really didn't get any kind of a rally going. There was thankfully no adventure and right field with Jorge Sohilaire, which has become like a bizarre thing in Sales starts. But Solair actually had a nice running catch down the right field line to get out of the sixth inning, which was good to see. But yeah, man, I mean again, Chris Sale, phenomenal year, phenomenal trade. I just sincerely hope the Braves can make the postseason and have Sale out there for Game one. It would be a fitting reward to put him on the mound for game one of a playoff series. With how good he has been really all season long.

00:36:49
Speaker 1: Absolutely, and not that he needs another stat to episode how Grady has been for a guy who's leading the National League in ERA fifth War strikeouts, et cetera. He also has a one point three to two ERA in his twelve starts following a Braves loss. So that's like an old school baseball ism of your like stopper, the guy in your lotation that doesn't let you have a losing streak, et cetera. I don't always think about that that way, but I think a couple of the Beat guys had that today. It's a good stat I mean, it's hard to lose when you have a startup that has a one point three two bra It just kind of helps you to not have these long losing streaks. Because Chris Sale has been incredible all year long. That's just one more to add to the pile. And uh yeah, I mean what would it take to have him not wins I young at this point in time? Three blow ups in a row? Yeah, probably, it might take three bas threats in a row and he's not done that all year long.

00:37:35
Speaker 2: So yeah, or something else which I'm not even going to speak and.

00:37:39
Speaker 1: Do exactly correct and not tell what as I said that you shouldn't You couldn't hear me. Yeah, Okay, Well that's a good wrap up of the weekend. I think unleshuld have more to add about what transpire. We can talk, we can look ahead a little bit too. Kind of a weird week of scheduling for the Braves, headlined by a bizarre one off game on Sunday, So sorry, Monday, the Reds come to town for a makeup game from July twenty fourth. The Braves have it easy here, no travel, It's a game at home. The Reds come in from New York and then have to go to Saint Louis the next day. So we're one for them. But you don't often see one game series in September, and here we are.

00:38:16
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, the Reds were a team that came into the season with a lot of hype and a lot of excitement, and you know it's just gone poorly for them. It is an opportunity to see Ellie de la Cruz, who has just tormented the Braves in his young career. But you know, you have to hope that with the Reds basically done for the season, I mean they you know, I don't believe they have even a prayer of making the playoffs. Yeah, they're they're far back. You know, you just have to hope the Braves take care of business on Monday with Charlie Morton on the mound and you just kind of keep it rolling, especially after all the good vibes that you picked up on Sunday with that comeback walk off win Ellie Dela Cruz.

00:39:00
Speaker 1: Case you thought Scott was exaggerating. So in his rookie season twenty twenty three, He had an OPS of twelve seventy five against the Braves this year. Granted it's only nine plate appearances. His OPS is seventeen eleven, so it's like fifteen hundred in his career against the Braves. He has been Aaron Judge plus I guess Atlanta in his.

00:39:24
Speaker 2: Yeah he I mean he is like Ronald Dcunya junior in terms of talent and speed, skill power. I mean, he can do it all. And the Reds have given the Braves in trouble over the past couple of seasons, so you would hope that with the travel obviously not being in advantage for Cincinnati, the Braves can take advantage and win because then they have to go. It's kind of a weird week with the makeup game Monday. Originally it was going to be an off day, which kind of sucks that the Braves won't get it. Then they fly to Washington for a two game series against the Nationals, who play like their greatest baseball of all time against the Braves this year, and then they're off again Thursday, and then a rare Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday four game series against the Dodgers. Just kind of an odd schedule this week, but hey, I guess with three weeks ago you kind of just you take it day by day and see what happens.

00:40:21
Speaker 1: It is odd, and this Reds makeup game is actually they lost the first two games of the Reds only by the Reds once this year, and they are owed too against Cincinnati in that in that series. This is part of the series, I suppose, so they aim to avoid a very extended sweep against the Reds. It's Charlie Morton on the mount on Monday for Atlanta. He blew up, of course, in epic fashion about a month ago against Milwaukee. Since then, he's been quite good, era about three point two, striking out a lot more guys in recent days. That's been good to see. Even if I am always in a tank for Charlie, even take the ticking that away, he has been pretty decent in recent days. And the Braves are currently in the batting market on Monday. We don't also do this for games, but because it's a one off, they're like a sixty percent ish favorite in the betty market right now minus one fifty ish. That sounds about right to me. They're at home. Morton is not their best pitcher by any stretch, but they're the better team. They're playing at home advantage and travel, et cetera, so a nice spot to get away and hopefully.

00:41:16
Speaker 2: Yeah, and Charlie has done a really nice job in recent weeks. You mentioned he had that blow up against Milwaukee, but since then he's been quite good. You know, the Reds are going to start Nick Martinez, who has had a nice season for them, a three point sixty seven era. He's been kind of in a hybrid starter bullpen type of situation this year. But you know, he's he's made seven starts, and he has an ear array in the threes and solid strikeout numbers, doesn't walk a ton, so it's by far it's not a gimme game by any means. No, then, and then you know, you hopefully you win the game on Monday evening, and then you fly to the face the Nationals, and God, let's hope the Braves find a way to play better baseball against Washington because I mean, again, we said it earlier at the top of the show, but the Mets are playing really good baseball right now. It feels like the Diamondbacks and the Padres are going to be in this race as well. Every single game is gonna matter for this team, and you just have to hope that they keep winning. And I mean overall, other than the Philly series, the Braves have done a better job of winning series over the last couple of weeks. I think just because there was that very frustrating weekend in Philadelphia in the middle of it, it maybe doesn't feel that way, But overall, maybe over the last month, I think the Braves have won just about every series they have played.

00:42:37
Speaker 1: Yes, since the Colorado meltdown, they have lost one series, and it's the Philly series. So they're playing well, not playing incredibly well, but they're playing well enough to win games. And I believe they're back at their season high of thirteen or five hundred right now, which has been their ceiling. Hopefully they can get kind of break through that. On Monday, you mentioned this series of Washington. We won't preview the Dodger series. It's a long way from now. That just sound like you said it's a rap around series. But the Braves are four and seven gets Washington this year. They can't score for some reason in those games, or I guess that's just the theme of the season. They did win the last time around, though in August. They had really struggled with Washington before the break. They won the series last time a couple of weeks ago, and it's going to be for now. They're listing Lopez and Freed in that series, so advantage Braves still there. The Nats are not good, even if they have played the Braves well, and road series are not anything to scoff at. And those are weirdly time. I think they're six to forty five the little bit early earlier games. They do have the day off on Thursday, so a weird one. But hopefully they can get always go too in one of the next three games. That's like my always, my safe projection. But it's it's true. That's what you kind of have to bank on. And if you want to get greedy, to get greedy. But two and one would be a pretty good result.

00:43:43
Speaker 2: Yeah, you would take it. And you know, Washington's going to have some pretty solid pitching. Mackenzie Gore is going to start on Tuesday. The Braves have seen a lot of him this year and he's a solid young lefty. And then they're going to see Jake Irvin on Wednesday, who has had a weird year. He's been quite bad lately, but then he threw like seven scoreless against the Braves a couple of weeks ago, and you know, naturally, right, So it is an opportunity for the Braves to now play three games in three days against pretty bad teams. And then the schedule does get a little tougher. You have the Dodgers, The Mets are on the horizon. They do have a series in Cincinnati as well, and in that ballpark, anything can happen. It's like, you know, course Field of the Midwest or whatever. And then the Royals are also on the schedule. Kind of weirdly, the Braves close out the regular season with the Kansas City Royals, who are in the postseason mix and a ton of fun, so very very important three weeks of games ahead, and I mean, bra it's just kind of crazy to think and say that this time, three weeks from right now, the regular season for baseball is over in twenty twenty four. Yeah, nineteen games to go. It's not gonna be comfortable. I'll tell you that right.

00:45:00
Speaker 1: Now, and then we'll hopefully, hopefully, hopefully you and I will do a podcast that night in a few weeks that previews the playoffs and they if we don't, it's going to be run or grim on the pod. But either way, Scott, we will be here because we print ourselves on that. We did not go away in the all season. Some podcasts might go dark when the season ends, not us. We are here twelve months a year, so yeah, stay tuned for all that. Anything to add for we got here Scott, or if not plug everything you have going on in your baseball watching.

00:45:28
Speaker 2: Self, nothing to plug. A big thank you to everybody for checking out the show. As always, we mentioned it off the top, but please do hit that subscribe button on both your podcast of course, but also on YouTube. That's something that management has asked us to do, so please help us grow that YouTube channel if you will. And we'll have plenty of shows this upcoming week. As we have said, every single game is important, so Steven and Sean will be back soon. I think Brad and I are on for two more shows this upcoming week, so we will have all kinds of Brapes coverage here for you coming up.

00:46:00
Speaker 1: Absolutely stay tuned. Please subscribe. Like Scott said, rains and reviews appreciated the biggest thing you could do to support us is to do all those things, plus support our sponsors, and also encouragingly, please share this podcast with your friends. I know, people in my life, people in Scott's life, especially for people that live around Atlanta like I do you know Braves fans and if they don't know our podcast, it would be hugely helpful if you pass it along to them via text or email or social media or whatever. So definitely do that for us as well. Follow us on social media at Hammer Territory, Follow Scott on Twitter at top four fifty five, follow me there at BT Rowland explos To everybody, we very much appreciate it. Hopefully it's going to be a good week for the Braves and we'll see you all next time.