Section 435 An Atlanta Braves blog. From the upper deck at Turner Field.

A Few Disheveled Thoughts

Had to take in the game on the radio tonight as I’ve been sick for the last several days. I did enjoy getting to hear Skip Caray call the game, though. He’s not quite as sharp as he used to be, but he’s still a gem.

Dave O’Brien points out that the Braves have the best home record in the National League. It certainly has nothing to do with the crowds they’ve been pulling. We’re ranked 15th in the league in average attendance. (Obviously not a normalized stat, but still.) I don’t think the earlier starting times this year have been a successful experiment, as much it suits my schedule. I’ve been pretty disappointed in the turnout, especially Smoltz 3k night when only 24,000 showed up.

The thing that really impresses me about Jair Jurrjens is his composure. Today he got beat up a little bit in the first but then pulled himself together. After his bizarre meltdown inning at Shea a couple weekends ago, he came right back out the next inning and settled down for the rest of the game. That’s really great to see in a young pitcher. I think composure is the only thing that’s keeping Jo-Jo Reyes from being more successful. Then again, Smoltzie was a bit of head case early in his career, so it’s not something that a young pitcher can’t overcome.

[...] Talking about composure, Tim Hudson definitely lost his in the second after getting called for a balk. It didn’t look like a balk from 400 feet away, definitely looked like he was throwing to third. The video replay is pretty clear, too. Bad call, Wally Bell. Bobby Cox came in to take the ejection for Hudson and Chipper had to come to the mound to calm him later in the inning. [...]