BravesNuWorld || An Atlanta Braves Blog

Much like last year, 2008 has been a season rife with drama, a Doctor Jeckel and Mr. Hyde campaign mixed with a little A Tale of Two Cities: playing in Atlanta and not Atlanta. In 2007, inexplicably, they could not win at home, they scored a ton of runs with 2 outs, and they lost a bunch of one run games. This year, they cannot win on the road, they can’t hit with 2 outs, and they… never mind.

I miss the days when the Atlanta Braves just went out and won 65% of their games, almost blithely, walked into the post season with as much resistance as a turnstyle, and took their division title as if it was their collective birth rite. For 16 years, they were as much an autumnal staple as cranberry sauce. A Mark Wohlers fast ball would lead right into “It’s the Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown!” The outcomes were never ideal, to say the least, but at least we got a lot of free baseball. Aside from the heart pounding operatics of 91 and 92, the Braves made the following decade and a half look effortless (playoffs notwithstanding). On his way out of town, Adam LaRouche was quoted as saying that Braves fans were “spoiled”. Why wouldn’t they be? They were conditioned to expect winning going all the way back to when Adam was in little league and his ‘attention’ was on dandelions instead of the baseball.

I keep waiting for the sports media to discover the next peculiarity, like ‘Braves haven’t gotten a hit all year off of a Sagittarius’. Ask any Braves fan how their team is doing these days and they’ll look at you like you just asked an old buddy how his marriage is going–right before he tells you she had an affair and took all his money. Several years ago, the tomahawk seemed to abruptly stop chopping. The starting pitching has been the scapegoat for the foibles, but the Braves won division titles even before the maturation of John Smoltz and the inclusion of Greg Maddux (we spoiled fans too often forget that the Braves history is sordid with entire decades of forgettable seasons).

These days, it has been a zero sum game: it’s either over by the second inning after an early Braves knockout punch or they go right down to wire, culminating in a one run loss. The only time fans are allowed a moments respite from nail biting in close ones is when Chipper Jones is hitting. The 45 minutes in between his at bats has all the drama of an episode of CSI Miami, and as many possible suspects. Near every player has been diagnosed with some chronic problem that, without fail, seems to flare up on the road.

One consistently pleasant surprise has been Mark Kotsay. Against all odds, he has managed to remain healthy, hit for high average, and, in little over a month, all but erased Andruw Jones‘ legacy with a nifty defensive highlight reel of his own. Do any of us still believe Bobby Cox’s claim that Andruw’s glove and arm saved the Braves several runs a week? Unfortunately, each white cloud in Atlanta is stenciled in black lining; Andruw’s successor in the clean up role has been nearly as unproductive in 2008. Mark Teixeira’s power numbers have diminished and he is striking out more than usual, causing some to wonder if his mind has already left for Baltimore and if perhaps Brian McCann might better serve the clean-up role until Teixeira gets hot again. Like, Texas hot.

That is extremely unlikely, however. Bobby Cox has always been careful with the egos of his “stars”. To his credit–or discredit, depending on who you ask–the Braves’ skipper has remained unflappable, refusing to get frazzled despite some bumps in the road (or on the road, rather). Like a portrait of an old war general, the iconic flinty stare hanging in the dugout hasn’t changed, despite a touch of gray.

In a season so polarized towards black and white, a little gray would be most welcome. The Braves’ imperturbable skipper–the old general–will stay the course and try to figure out why, as guests, the Braves have been as sloppy as Randy Quaid in Vacation, and as hosts as meticulous as Martha Stewart.

Otherwise, come October, we may be watching a Miami drama of another kind lead into the Peanuts.

Ray–[BravesNuWorld]