Game 1--Houston Astros 9, Atlanta Braves 3

Jaret Wright gave up 6 runs (and 3 home runs) and didn't get out of the 5th, and the Braves stranded 9 runners in the first 4 innings. Roger Clemens walked 6 men, and none of them scored. A forgettable performance.

But today there's a new game, and Mike Hampton will take the mound against Roy Oswalt in what's pretty much a must-win for the Braves. Hampton was 4-0 with a 1.15 ERA in his last 5 starts for the Braves.

Game notes: Chipper Jones is questionable for Game 2 with a sore hand. If he plays with it causing him to go 0-4, I'd rather him not be in the lineup. The problem is, unless Nick Green can play 3rd base, Wilson Betemit is his backup. Betemit has virtually no experience and hasn't played well yet at the major league level.

Carlos Betran of the Astros also is questionable for Game 2 after getting hit in the ribs with a pitch from Juan Cruz.

If there was any good news from Game 1, it's that Roger Clemens threw 117 pitches and probably won't be able to come back on 3 days rest if there's a Game 4. That means that Pete Munro, who had pretty bad numbers, would start that game. If the Braves win today, they go to Houston to face inexperienced Brandon Backe and Munro. Backe has been pitching well lately though.

Chip Caray is leaving the Cubs and joining the Braves

The Braves offered him more money, and he can go back to his hometown and work with his dad. Options were picked up on Pete Van Wieren, Skip Caray, and Joe Simpson, but not yet on Don Sutton. They say they're negotiating with Sutton. I guess they'll have 5 announcers if he does come back...I guess there would be 3 on TV and 2 on radio.

Hampton to start Game 2

Mike Hampton will be moved up to Game 2, and John Thomson is tentatively scheduled to go in Game 3 with a couple of more days rest. If he still can't pitch then, I expect Russ Ortiz will pitch Game 3, and probably Jaret Wright in Game 4 on 3 days rest.

Braves vs. Astros--NLDS matchup preview

Astros lineup

LF Craig Biggio .281 24 hr 63 RBI
CF Carlos Beltran .268 38 hr 104 RBI
1B Jeff Bagwell .266 27 hr 89 RBI
RF Lance Berkman .316 30 hr 106 RBI
2B Jeff Kent .289 27 hr 107 RBI
3B Morgan Ensberg .275 10 hr 66 RBI
SS Jose Vizcaino .274 3 hr 33 RBI
C Brad Ausmus .248 5 hr 31 RBI

key reserves

3B Mike Lamb .289 14 hr 58 RBI
OF Orlando Palmeiro .241 3 hr 12 RBI
C Raul Chavez .210 0 hr 23 RBI
SS Adam Everett .273 8 hr 31 RBI

starting rotation

RHP Roger Clemens 18-4 2.98
RHP Roy Oswalt 20-10 3.49
RHP Brandon Backe 5-3 4.30

key relievers

RHP Brad Lidge 6-5 1.93 28 sv
RHP Dan Miceli 6-6 3.51 2 sv
RHP Chad Qualls 4-0 3.62


Braves lineup

SS Rafael Furcal .279 14 hr 59 RBI
2B Marcus Giles .311 8 hr 48 RBI
RF JD Drew .305 31 hr 93 RBI
3B Chipper Jones .248 30 hr 96 RBI
C Johnny Estrada .314 9 hr 76 RBI
1B Adam LaRoche .278 13 hr 45 RBI
CF Andruw Jones .261 29 hr 91 RBI
LF Charles Thomas .288 7 hr 31 RBI

key reserves

OF Eli Marrero .313 10 hr 40 RBI
1B Julio Franco .306 6 hr 56 RBI
IF Nick Green .278 3 hr 26 RBI
C Eddie Perez .235 3 hr 13 RBI

starting rotation

RHP Jaret Wright 15-8 3.28
RHP John Thomson 14-8 3.72
LHP Mike Hampton 13-9 4.28
RHP Russ Ortiz 15-9 4.13

key relievers

RHP John Smoltz 0-1 2.76 44 sv
RHP Antonio Alfonseca 6-4 2.57
RHP Chris Reitsma 6-4 4.07 2 sv
LHP Tom Martin 0-2 3.97 1 sv
RHP Kevin Gryboski 3-2 2.84 2 sv


The Astros appear much stronger on paper and come into the playoffs on fire. But, the Braves are also playing well. In order for the Astros to win, Clemens and Oswalt have to be themselves, and lineup needs to continue it's hot hitting against MLB's strongest pitching staff this year. In order for the Braves to win, they need to get into the Astros bullpen where they're vulnerable, their banged-up players need to heal fast and perform well, and they need the hitters to produce. The Braves have a deeper team than the Astros, so if they keep it close late in the game the advantage swings their way.

This ought to be a great series.

Houston Astros 5, Colorado Rockies 3

They clinched the wild card with this win, and they didn't use Roger Clemens after all. Instead, he'll be on full rest for Wednesday for Game 1 which starts at 4 PM (which I can't watch live!). Roy Oswalt will be on full rest for Game 2, and Brandon Backe will be on full rest for Game 3. If Games 4 and 5 are necessary, they'll probably bring back Clemens and Oswalt on 3 days rest.

Chicago Cubs 10, Atlanta Braves 8

Well, the regular season finale didn't actually mean anything, but it was a pretty entertaining game to watch. Greg Maddux didn't pitch that well for the Cubs, but he picked up the win against the Braves-facing them for the first time since 1992. It was his 16th win of the season, but his ERA went above 4. Paul Byrd did not have a good day for the Braves; he allowed 9 runs in 4 innings.

Byrd (8-7) saw his ERA skyrocket to 3.94. He pitched 4 innings, allowing 9 runs on 9 hits, 2 walks, and only one strikeout. Jose Capellan relieved him and allowed 1 run in 2 innings, and Roman Colon pitched 2 scoreless innings.

Byrd allowed 5 runs in the first inning, putting the team in a hole. But Charles Thomas hit a 3 run homer, and the Braves added a single run the next inning to close the gap to 5-4. But, the Cubs scored 4 runs over the next 2 innings, and while the Braves scored some more runs they never really made a game out of it.

Hitting Stars: Charles Thomas was 2 for 4, hitting 2 home runs (his 6th and 7th) and had 5 RBI. Adam LaRoche and DeWayne Wise also homered (LaRoches's 13th, Wise's 6th). Eli Marrero was 3 for 4. Julio Franco was 2 for 3, and the 46 year old finished the season with 99 hits.

Rotation matchups

Ok, forget about what I said totally about rotation matchups, period. If the Braves play the Wild Card, the series will begin on Wednesday. That means Oswalt would be able to come back on 3 days rest for Game 1, along with Clemens for Game 2 on Thursday.

If the Braves end up facing the Dodgers, Odalis Perez would probably pitch Game 1, Jeff Weaver Game 2, and Jose Lima Game 3.

At this point, assuming Thomson's injury is minor enough to keep him from missing his next start, it looks like it will be Jaret Wright for Game 1, John Thomson for Game 2, and Mike Hampton for Game 3.

Braves situation

The Braves have eliminated the Cubs, beating them 5-4 yesterday and 8-6 today. Chipper Jones and John Thomson both had to leave the game early today. Chipper was hit on the hand with a pitch and suffered a contusion, and Thomson left with a stiff back. Both are day-today. Either Paul Byrd or Jose Capellan will start tomorrow against the Cubs in the regular season finale. I suspect nearly all the regulars will be sitting on the bench tomorrow to get some rest before the NLDS.

The Dodgers had a big 9th inning rally to defeat the Giants today to clinch the division on the next to last day. The Astros are winning big right now, so it looks like they'll take a 1 game lead with 1 game to play. In order for the Giants to stay alive, they'll have to win tomorrow and hope for an Astros loss. Then, there would be a one game playoff to see who will advance to the NLDS and go to Atlanta. In order for the Giants to make the playoffs, they'll have to win 2 games in a row and the Astros will have to lose 2 games in a row...but I've seen much stranger things happen.

It looks increasingly likely that the Astros will be playing the Braves on Tuesday. Assuming that Roger Clemens pitches tomorrow, neither he nor Roy Oswalt will be available for Game 1, and Oswalt would probably start Game 2/Wednesday on only 3 days rest. If San Fran can pull off a semi-miracle and make the playoffs, neither Jason Schmidt or Brett Tomko will be available for Game 1, either. Not to mention that if there's a one game playoff, none of the top 3 starters for either team would be available for Game 1. Good news for the Braves.

Jaret Wright is scheduled to start Game 1 for the Braves, but with the mild injury to Thomson and Bobby's reconsidering of the 4 man rotation, there's no certainty beyond that. Heck, there's not even a certainty about Wright starting Game 1 for that matter with his bruised ankle, although he's healing fast and will probably be ready.