SATURDAY, MARCH 4, 2017
Another great day. It was a little cool in the morning, but got up to 72 by game time and topped out at 76. I talked to one of the vendors and he told me that Howard the Hippie vendor would not be coming down this spring. Apparently his wife is not well. I finished my laps around the concourse just about the time the Phillies finished their batting practice. I decided to have my first hot dogs of the season while I watched the Braves. The first thing that I noticed was that neither Brian Snitker, or Kevin Seitzer were on the field. At the same time, there werenât many of the Braves regulars there either. Then it hit me, this was a split squad game for the Braves. They did bring Ender Inciarte to play centerfield.
Hernandez in the first at bat of the game lined one back to the mound that hit the pitcher(I think in the pitching hand) and knocked him out of the game. I think the coach who was manager of the day didnât want to take any chances, or blame. Blair, the pitcher knocked out, was vying for a starting spot. They turned that into a manufactured run. The offense then shut down for 5 innings. It wasnât that they werenât getting on, they werenât getting them home. In the 7th they finally broke out of it with a 6 run rally that a lot of players participated. They put together 6 hits and two walks. That missed call at home on Altherr may have done something to tick off the Phils. Actually, it was a bad call, but a dumb way to come into home when there is a play at the plate. Altherr is looking more and more like a right handed version of Dominic Brown. One thing to keep in mind, these were the kids doing this hitting, not the regular team. They were mostly out of the game. In short, this was the Philliesâ kids beating up on the Braves kids.
Eickhoff started the game and for the most part, had a decent day, but a rocky second inning. He went three innings, but the pitches thrown in the second inning probably cost him a chance to go four. Gomez came in to pitch the fourth inning. Bringing the closer in early is often done in spring training. The theory is the other teamâs better hitters are still in the game and probably wonât be in the 9th. He pitched a perfect inning. Drew Anderson surprised me. He looked good he did give up a homer and a walk, but that was all and he struck out 3 in his three innings. His fastball topped at 93 mph. I doubt that he will come north with the team, but he is someone to keep an eye. He was the winner as Neris and Mariot finished it out.
Odds and Ends: Philadelphiaâs Jesse Biddle pitched a scoreless inning for the Braves. His fastball was holding at 93. He struck out two and walked one. Defensively, Crawford looks a lot more sure of himself this spring than I have seen before. Two guys sitting near me were discussing how to speed up the game. One said that if a hitter fouls off two third strikes, he should be out. The other guy wanted to prohibit the pitcher from throwing to first when there was a runner there. Not all baseball fans are rocket scientists. Thinking about the cut that should come soon, I wonder how many will actually be cut with 10 going to the World Games.