A Brief Meditation on the Enemy

Ryan Howard is batting .234. This is bad. Like, Andruw in 2007 bad. He is on pace for 218 Ks, which would best the current MLB record, which he holds, by 19. Inconceivably, he is also on pace for 47 home runs, 145 RBIs, and 103 runs.

Larry “Chipper” Jones, on the other hand is batting .375/.472/.618 slugging. His power number predictions: 34 Home Runs, 94 RBI, and 101 runs. Despite his absurd average, the just mentioned numbers, which are what really count, are all below his 162 game average. This could be because NO ONE ELSE ON THE BRAVES CAN HIT FOR SHIT, save for McCann most of the time and Teixiera sometimes, but it is also because Chipper no longer can/wants to hit for power like he used to. Remember when they were one-hit and then two-hit in a three game series against the Dodgers? I do, goddamnit. In fairness to the Braves, the Dodgers do have the league’s lowest team ERA. But still, three hits in two games is fucking pitiful.

If you need any explanation for why the Atlanta Braves are not in first place in the NL East (other than the awful records on the road and in one-run games and the injuries and Jeff Francoeur), this is it. Only in an unfair world with no God would a player with 43 more strike outs than hits be having more of an positive impact on his team than a player who has threatened .400 for nearly three months.