Braves No. 1 pick Kyle Wright. |
If last week’s slate of games is any indication, the Atlanta
Braves seem to be steadily improving as the gap between their pitching and
offense begins to close.
Since Monday of last week, the Braves have gone 4-2 and won
important NL East series against the Washington Nationals and the Miami
Marlins. The Braves beat the Nationals, 11-10, on Monday of last week in
Washington, but dropped Tuesday of last week’s game against the Nats, 10-5.
Atlanta carried the series by beating Washington, 13-2, on Wednesday of last
week.
The series victory at Washington was significant for a
couple of reasons. Not only did it close the gap between Atlanta and Washington
in the division standings, but it was also Atlanta’s first series victory at
Washington since the Braves won two games during a three-game set in Washington
on April 4-6, 2014.
Atlanta enjoyed a day off, their first since June 1, last
Thursday, but were back in action on Friday, Saturday and Sunday against the
Miami Marlins. Miami won the first game of the series, 5-0, on Friday, but
Atlanta won on Saturday and Sunday, 8-7 and 5-4, respectively.
All of this winning helped the Braves edge up in the
division standings. On Monday of last week, the Braves were tied for third
place in the NL East standings, but as of this morning, they were tied with the
Mets for the second-place spot in the standings, 10-1/2 games behind the Nationals.
Atlanta could really separate themselves from the Mets and
gain ground on the Nats this week in a pair of home series against the San
Francisco Giants and the Milwaukee Brewers. San Francisco was coming to Atlanta
for a four-game series against the Braves that was scheduled to start on Monday
and end today (Thursday). The Giants have struggled this year, so hopefully
Atlanta will be able to get a four-game sweep, which is not outside the realm
of possibility.
Milwaukee will present a better challenge for the Braves. As
of Monday, they were in first place in the NL Central standings, with a 2-1/2
lead over the Chicago Cubs. Many fans will remember that Atlanta swept the
Brewers in a three-game series in Milwaukee in late April, so Braves fans are
hoping they will have the same sort of success later this week.
Many fans kept their eye on last week’s MLB Draft, which saw
1,215 players selected in 40 rounds over a three-day period. Atlanta had the
fifth pick overall and selected Vanderbilt right-handed pitcher Kyle Wright. In
fact, seven of Atlanta’s first 10 picks were pitchers.
Wright is an Alabama native who was born in Huntsville on
Oct. 2, 1995. He went to Buckhorn High School in New Market (in Madison County)
and then pitched three seasons at Vanderbilt. Wright’s signing bonus was $7
million, which isn’t bad for a young man who is just 21 years old.
In the end, Braves fans are hoping that Wright and their
other draft selections will develop into strong, dominating players who will
contribute to the team in the years ahead.
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