The Atlanta Braves Leave Jurrjens Hanging Again

As usual, the Atlanta Braves lost the opening game of a series they desperately need to win.  They have shown some resilience by ultimately winning two out of three, but series sweeps is what the doctor ordered if they are to have any hope of making the playoffs.  What made Tuesdays loss to the Padres especially frustrating was that it was at home, against a rookie whose career total number of starts isn’t in double digits, against a team who are behind their division leader by double digits and then some.

Jair Jurrjens pitched a near flawless game, but near flawless isn’t good enough when the Braves offense goes into eclipse: they loaded the bases in the eighth and again in the tenth, but failed to score.  How many agonizing times has that been the case this year?  At a crucial time in the season–when good teams put it into a higher gear for the final stretch–Chipper Jones has all but vanished, going one for his last twenty eight.  Amazingly, the Braves have still managed to win consistently, but the Rockies, Giants, and Phillies have been winning almost exclusively.  If Chipper had been on one of his trademark terrors since the beginning of August, who knows where they’d be in the standings at this point. Instead, as has been the case all year, he and his teammates have relied almost entirely on their pitching staff, who must feel as though they are climbing a cross every night now instead of a mound of dirt.

When you have two pitchers whose ERA’s are around 3, with winning percentages around .500, you know the offense has been abysmal.

Bobby Cox, undoubtedly referring to leaving the bases loaded twice, termed the loss a game of “missed opportunities.”  But at home, against the hapless Padres, they shouldn’t have desperately needed runs in extra innings.  The Braves are a team that pins all its hopes on one arm night after laborious night, and unfortunately for them, Jair Jurrjens missed an “opportunity” to throw a shut out by giving up a run.

At least his winning percentage didn’t go down.