The best measure of a great team is how they play against weaker opponents. Great teams beat up on bad teams.Originally Posted by Strike3urout
Oh, and btw, the 2021 Braves had a losing record against winning teams.
The best measure of a great team is how they play against weaker opponents. Great teams beat up on bad teams.
Oh, and btw, the 2021 Braves had a losing record against winning teams.
Maybe I am a little harsh, and the record is really good. But if you look deeper, the underlying performance is reason for concern. The lineup is at full strength, and they had one hit with RISP all series. Couldn‘t even get a sac fly. With Riley and Olson, you can basically smell the strikeouts cooking in those situations. There’s too many guys who feast on weak pitching, but can be exploitrd by good pitchers. And The bullpen is a train wreck, with no reinforcements on the way.
Yes, that sounds harsh. Because we all have big expectations for this season. They‘ll cruise into the playoffs, no question. But as of right now, who do you see them beating there?
Good point about the 2021 team. It can be done. But you will surely agree that they were unusual, and certainly not a blueprint for success.
I am a numbers guy, but I also believe in the eye test. The way the 2022 team played down the stretch against teams like the Phillies, Cardinals and Mariners on the road was an ominous sign, that unfortunately carried on in the postseason. Right now, I am seeing many of the same traits on this team. Of course, it is still early.
Who did you see the Phillies beating last year? Playoff baseball is a total crapshoot.
Well, the best or second-best team ended up winning the title. Just like in 2020. And 2018…
It‘s not a total crapshoot. If you‘re a really great team, your chances are better.
Of the 7 playoff teams that the Braves played last year, the Braves had a winning record against 4 of them. That includes taking 2 of 3 against the eventual world champs, an 11-8 record against the eventual NL champs, and sweeping the Mets in the last series of the season to steal the division.
This is a nonsense narrative.
We are 25% of the way through the season. We will have several hot streaks and cold streaks through the other 75%.
We are really good at drawing conclusions about the rest of the season from each loss though.
Yeah, I think there’s reason for concern but I also think there’s way too much baseball left to play to draw any sort of conclusion. We very easily could have swept this series had a few breaks gone our way (tons of hard-hit outs, even with RISP) and the defensive tightens up a bit. We’ll have a series like this go our way soon. It’s baseball.
May I remind you guys that Fried and Wright starting a couple of these games and we wouldn’t be having these “the sky is falling” discussions…..
And hey - we have the largest lead in all of baseball and we are now in Arlington. We have a very good record playing road games in these United States !
:)
Probably go winless from here on out.
Season over man.
Ivermectin Man
Cant go another 60 games without doing something about the rotation.
I expect soroka tomorrow night
Minter ERA last 11 games ?
13.5
He has this to say : (Bowman) “I just want to be at my best come September,” Minter said. “That’s when it really counts.”
I don’t know if Bowman got that out of context but …from where I sit it may be best for all parties involved for AJ to be in Rome or Augusta until September.
🤬
This statement simply isn't grounded in facts. We swept the Mets at the end of the season. Took 5 of 7 games from the Phillies in late Sept., And we took 2 of 3 from Houston (eventual WS champs) in late August.
Never let facts get in the way of a good narrative…
I was talking specifically about road series, and specifically those played towards the end of the season (Aug/Sep), when the trading deadline was in the rearview mirror, and the contenders were clear. Tough environments, competitive opponents, playoff atmosphere. Is that selection biased? For sure. Does it allow to draw objective conclusions? Absolutely not. But it allowed me to subjectively gauge how the team performs under pressure, in hard-fought games, against an opponent that also wants to win, not just get the season over with. And the results were not good, despite the overall great record during that time:
Lost 2/3 @Philly (late July)
Lost 4/5 @Mets
Lost 2/3 @STL
Lost 2/3 @SEA
Lost 2/3 @Giants
Split 4 @ Philly
Yes, it's a small sample. Yes, it's more of a narrative than analytics. But what I saw in those games are the same issues that led to their eventual demise in the playoffs: over-aggressiveness at the plate, sloppy play in the field, and the inability to get big hits. As Braves fans, we have certainly seen that movie before.
I'm still going to enjoy the heck out of the regular season. Games like last night are a lot of fun! And there will be plenty of those. However, in 4.5 months, I'm bracing myself for disappointment.
You should brace for disappointment simply because baseball is weird and better teams lose to worse teams all the time. Still doesn’t mean anything you’re suggesting is correct or that this very good team somehow isn’t built to win in the playoffs (yet the 2021 team was..?).
"Well, you’ll learn soon enough that this was a massive red wave landslide." - thethe on the 2020 election that trump lost bigly
“I can’t fix my life, but I can fix the world.” - sturg
The Braves lineup is one of the best in baseball and can win in the playoffs. The pen, despite recent struggles and Minter losing it, is good enough to win in the playoffs. And the Braves rotation, with Fried being able to come back healthy, is good enough to win the playoffs.
We are 25% through the season. Braves have the 2nd best record in the NL, best run differential in the NL, and biggest division lead in baseball. Enjoy the ****ing ride my guy.
Mrs. Meta (05-16-2023), UNCBlue012 (05-16-2023)
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