Jurrjens, Braves Beat Nationals 4-1
Jair Jurrjens pitched five strong innings to get his first win of the season, and even drove in what proved to be the game-winning run, as the Braves beat the Washington Nationals 4-1 tonight in Atlanta.
Jurrjens could turn out to be one of the year’s best mid-season “acquistions”, and showed that tonight in his return to the Braves’ starting rotation, tossing five solid innings of one-run ball at the Nationals to get his first win of the year.
The Braves jumped out to an early 1-0 lead on a first inning rbi-double by Brian McCann, and then scored two fourth inning runs to go up 3-0, with Jurrjens’ rbi-single and Martin Prado’s rbi sacrifice fly accounting for the Atlanta runs.
The teams traded a pair of runs after that, with the Nationals scoring a sixth inning run, and the Braves countering with a seventh inning run that scored when Eric Hinske drew a walk with the bases loaded.
Peter Moylan, Jonny Venters, Takashi Saito, and Billy Wagner combined to pitch four scoreless innings of two-hit ball to close out the game for Atlanta, with each of them tossing a scoreless inning.
Wagner pitched a scoreless ninth inning for the Braves, striking out the side and notching his 16th save of the season.
The Braves improved to 46-33 with the win, while the loss dropped the Nats to 34-45.
Hudson, Braves Outduel Strasburg, Nats
Tim Hudson pitched seven shutout innings to outduel rookie phenom Stephen Strasburg as the Braves beat the Washington Nationals 5-0 on Monday night.
The game featured a great pitchers’ duel between Hudson, the Braves’ best pitcher, and Strasburg, the Nationals’ rookie sensation, and the game lived up to it’s pre-game hype as the two pitchers matched zeros through 6 and 1/2 innings before the Braves erupted for five seventh inning runs, with four of those runs being charged to Strasburg.
Eric Hinske snapped the scoreless tie with a seventh inning rbi sacrifice fly and Yunel Escobar, Gregor Blanco, and Omar Infante all followed with rbi-singles, while Martin Prado capped the five-run uprising with another rbi sacrifice fly.
Hudson (8-3) pitched seven innings of five-hit ball for the Braves to get his eighth win of the year, while Strasburg (2-2) surrendered six hits and four runs in 6 and 1/3 innings and took the loss for the Nationals.
Jonny Venters pitched a pair of hitless and scoreless innings to close out the game for Atlanta, combining with Hudson on a five-hit shutout.
The Braves improved their record to 45-32 with the win, while the loss dropped the Nationals to 33-44 on the year.
Q and A: Ian Koski of NationalsDailyNews
Tomahawk Talk recently had the opportunity to run a series of Braves, Nationals, and MLB related questions by Ian Koski of NationalsDailyNews.com (a GREAT Washington Nationals fansite!), and with the Braves and Nationals all set to play a three-game series in Atlanta, the timing couldn’t be better!
Here’s a look at what Ian had to say in response to our recent questions:
Tomahawk Talk: The Nationals have had a series of tough seasons in recent years, but are clearly a much-improved team this season. How do you think the Nats will wind up doing this year?
Ian Koski: The Nationals played surprisingly well for the first month and a half, but they have been in a free-fall ever since. I think people in the organization are trying to keep upbeat about it and pretend it’s just a slump, but if you split the season to date in half, you’ll find the Nationals played about .520 ball in their first 38 games and have played about .330 ball since.
And it’s not just a slump – the Nationals are starting to find their level. They’re not as bad as they’re currently playing, but their record is starting to balance out a bit.
I remember sitting in the pressbox after a particularly difficult loss and asking one of the beat writers which Nationals team was the more accurate predictor of the season and we agreed the right answer was probably somewhere in the middle and I still believe that.
They’re currently projected to win 70 games, but I suspect the Nats will rally a bit and finish with around 76 wins.
Tomahawk Talk: What do you like best about the 2010 edition of the Nationals?
Ian Koski: It has to be the arrival of Stephen Strasburg and Drew Storen. The Nationals’ top two picks have brought some new life to the ballclub and, for the first time, some truly sought-after talent.
Their arrivals have gotten people in this town excited about this team, and the other players are feeling that.
The bottom line is that the 2010 Nationals have one thing that no other Nats team has had – hope.
Tomahawk Talk: What are your primary concerns about this year’s Nationals team?
Ian Koski: Pitching is giving Nationals fans the most concern. The Nationals’ starters simply aren’t going deep enough into ballgames, so not only are the middle relievers forced to try to stop the bleeding on a near-daily basis, but they’re accumulating innings way too quickly and pitching on less rest.
The Nats have already sent down two of the starters from the rotation with which they started the season – John Lannan and Craig Stammen – and have a third back in Florida rehabbing – Scott Olsen. And Jason Marquis, who was supposed to bring credibility and stability to the rotation, imploded on the field before team doctors discovered “floating bodies” in his pitching elbow.
It’s hard to win ballgames when struggling pitching is paired with thoroughly unreliable hitting. Add into the mix a four-error game like they had against the Orioles on Friday night, and you really start to make fans nervous.
Tomahawk Talk: Do you expect the Nationals to make any major player moves at (or before) the trade deadline? And what (if anything) would you like to see the Nationals do to improve the team?
Ian Koski: GM Mike Rizzo has said that the Nationals should be considered buyers and sellers, and that sounds about right.
My guess is that only Stephen Strasburg, Drew Storen, and Ryan Zimmerman are off the table. Adam Dunn, Josh Willingham, and Tyler Clippard could all make immediate impacts on contending teams.
The Nationals will get pitchers Jordan Zimmermann and Ross Detwiler back from injuries this summer, and Chien-Ming Wang will pitch in DC at some point.
Personally, I’m eager to see Zimmermann pitch again. He’s an enormous talent and will really help strengthen the Nationals’ rotation. He’s a gamer.
Tomahawk Talk: Gotta ask about Stephen Strasburg. He’s been sensational thus far. What kind of numbers do you see him posting this year?
Ian Koski: Strasburg can bring it. Had the Nationals been able to score two runs against the Royals on Wednesday, we’d be talking about a rookie pitcher who is 3-0 rather than 2-1. He’s already struck out 41 batters in just four starts and has a 1.78 ERA.
If he had pitched a full season, he would be on track for about 350 strikeouts, so 175 or more strikeouts isn’t out of the question.
The way the Nationals have been hitting and fielding lately, I won’t even hazard a guess as to what his final won/loss record will be.
Tomahawk Talk: How do you see the NL East race playing out this year? What’s your projected order-of-finish for the NL East?
Ian Koski: Personally, I think the Braves will win the division this year, but not without a fight. The Phillies and Mets will be in it right to the end.
Tomahawk Talk: And what about the rest of MLB? What teams do you see as division champions and wild-card winners this year?
Ian Koski: Having been raised a Mets fan in New York, it pains me to say it, but I think the Yankees will win the AL East. I think the Twins will win the AL Central and the Rangers should hold on to win the AL West. The Wild Card will come out of the AL East – whichever team loses less frequently to the Yankees down the stretch.
In the NL, I think the Braves will win the NL East and the Cardinals will probably take the NL Central. I love what’s going on in the NL West and I’d love to see the Padres win the division, but they don’t have the bats. My money’s on Los Angeles there. The Wild Card will probably come from the NL East, though it’s clearly up for grabs at this point.
Tomahawk Talk: Great stuff, Ian. Thanks for doing the Q and A!
Braves Set To Take On Strasburg, Nats
The Braves are all set to take on the Washington Nationals this week in a three-game series that begins tonight at 7:05 ET in Atlanta.
Atlanta ace Tim Hudson (7-3, 2.54 ERA) will start tonight’s series opener for the Braves, and will be opposed by Nationals’ rookie phenom Stephen Strasburg (2-1, 1.78 ERA) in what should be a GREAT pitching matchup.
Nine-game winner Derek Lowe (9-5, 4.42 ERA) will start for the Braves in the second game of the series on Tuesday night, while the Nationals have not yet announced a starter for that game.
And Jair Jurrjens is tentatively scheduled to make his return to the Braves’ starting rotation in Wednesday night’s series finale, while J.D. Martin (0-3, 3.03 ERA) will start the finale for the Nats.
Those are some great pitching matchups, and this should make for a great series, so be sure to come on out to the Ted this week and watch the Braves and Nationals play!
Kawakami, Braves Edge Tigers 4-3
Kenshin Kawakami pitched seven strong innings to get his first win of the year, and Chipper Jones blasted a three-run homerun, as the Braves rallied from a 1-0 deficit to beat the Detroit Tigers 4-3 this afternoon in Atlanta.
Kawakami pitched seven innings of two-hit, one-run ball to get his first win of the year, while Chipper’s three-run blast in the bottom of the seventh inning turned a 1-0 Tigers lead into a 3-1 Braves advantage.
Atlanta then added what proved to be a crucial insurance run in the eighth inning, going up 4-1 when Troy Glaus singled and then scored on an rbi-double by Eric Hinske.
Detroit scored two runs in the ninth inning to cut Atlanta’s lead to 4-3, but Peter Moylan came on with two out in the ninth and struck out Tigers pinch-hitter Johnny Damon with the bases loaded to end the game and preserve the win for the Braves.
Kawakami got the win, and Moylan notched his first save of the season for the Braves, while Detroit reliever Joel Zumaya gave up the three-run blast to Chipper and took the loss for the Tigers.
The Braves improved to 44-31 with the win, while the loss dropped the Tigers to 39-34.
