Coming Around

After a mini-boycott of the Braves in the McDowell/Lowe aftermath, I watched most of Tim Hudson's gem on Wednesday night and bits and pieces of yesterday's 2-1 win over the Brewers. And I like what I saw.

The Brewers aren't the '27 Yankees by any means, but they are basically the same team that took 3 of 4 from Atlanta a month ago except now they have Zack Greinke. The Braves dominated the series. They out-pitched, out-hit, out-fielded and out-classed the Brew Crew.

Add that to the St. Louis series which the Braves controlled until the final three outs of the first two games and you've got the Atlanta Braves playing like the team we all thought they would be.

So what is different?

The strategic shift was moving Nate McLouth down from #2 in the order to #8. In retrospect, that was a move that should have happened coming out of spring training. McLouth did have a good spring, but he was coming off a monumentally bad year and didn't need to be in the heart of the order right away. Since his move to the bottom of the order, Nate is looking Great again. He is 11 for his last 25. His average is up over 30 points in the last two weeks. It almost makes me want to see him at the top of the order again...

Dan Uggla is setting in. He looked like a player who was pressing initially which isn't surprising - the big addition to an offense needing a big right-handed bat. That is sizable pressure for a guy who has always played in a small, no pressure market. But since Uggla's homer in San Fran to tie the game, he has looked more relaxed and comfortable at the plate. I think Uggla is due for a monster May.

David Ross and Eric Hinske have finally provided some bench pop. David Ross is the best back-up catcher in baseball which means Atlanta has the best offensive production from behind-the-plate in the MLB. With Freddie Freeman struggling a bit offensively, Hinske has seen more at-bats and come up big in them (see last night's 0-2 home run to give Atlanta an early lead). Even Brooks Conrad, who has looked miserable so far this year, added a game-winning hit against the Cardinals on Sunday. You knew this bench would come around and they finally are.

A healthy Jair Jurrjens makes all the difference in the rotation. He is a legit #2 starter that Atlanta throws out as a #4. Brandon Beachy looks like a legit #2 himself. In terms of pitching depth, the Braves might have more arms than they did in the hey-day of the 1990s. There is no Maddux/Smoltz/Glavine trifecta, but when you look at 1-5 in the rotation and the back end of the bullpen (though I'm afraid Moylan is about to be shelved for the year) you have a staff that is World Series caliber.

Finally, the team is gelling in a number of tangible ways. The Braves are having better at-bats right now. They are moving runners over. They are making productive outs. They are getting on-base and getting timely hits. The line-up is not a power one, but they can work counts and hit line drives and score 4-5 runs per game. With the pitching staff the Braves have right now, that is going to be enough to keep them in the NL hunt.

The Braves are coming around - just in time for a big series this weekend in Philadelphia.