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BRAVES NEWS
Shelby Miller endures 18th consecutive winless start
If it wasn't happening to the Braves' best pitcher in 2015, I'd be fascinated. Instead, it's getting to be a bummer now. Shelby Miller has now gone 18 consecutive starts without a victory to his name, and this time the latest defeat came at the hands of the Colorado Rockies. Miller cruised through the first six innings of this game, but gave up four runs in the seventh inning (including a two-run triple from disgruntled Rockie Jose Reyes), and that was when Colorado took the lead. The Braves gave Miller a three-run cushion, but even that wasn't enough for Miller to break the hex. Instead, it was just another hard-luck night for ol' Shelby.
Olivera won't be called up until September
Last week, there were rumors that Hector Olivera would be called up for this week. As it turned out, the minor league coaches advised the major league squad that Olivera needed more time, and as a result, he won't be called up until September. Considering that the Braves are basically just playing out the string at this point, I've got no qualms with that. Olivera should be given all the time he needs to get ready for the majors, and it appears that the Braves have no problems with giving him that time.
Braves are committed to "short-term pain" for "long-term gain"
It's been a pretty long time since the Braves were this bad this late into the season. Remember when the team was 42-42 at one point, and it looked like the Braves were actually going to be halfway decent? The decline has been relatively swift since then, both in the standings and in attendance as well (though that should see a temporary boost when all of our good friends from New York descend upon the Ted this weekend). However, the Braves are clearly in rebuilding mode, and this is all part of the process. It's a painful process at times, but it's still a proccess.
Yes, it’s been rough for a team not at all accustomed to being irrelevant in the standings long before the calendar even turned to September. But the Braves are committed to this rebuilding – or revamping, or retooling, or whatever they call it – and that means short-term pain for what they hope will be long-term gain.
"We knew when we made those deals (trading away players for prospects in late July), and guys get hurt — you’ve got to fight your way home," Braves president of baseball operations John Hart said. "And it’s going to be tough. We play the Cubs, and we’re going to have the Mets, clubs that are playing for something. It’s going to be good for some of our guys to get the feel of what it is. But at the end of it, we’re going to have to be ‘game on.’ Because I can remember being, for years, being that club that, you kind of come in and circle that club that’s wounded a little bit. But there it is. Here we are."
Longtime Mets tormentor is now pulling for the Mets to win the division
You know exactly who I'm talking about here, don't you. Chipper Jones was the leading cause of nightmares for Mets fans during his illustrious career as an Atlanta Brave, but now it appears that even the legendary Braves third baseman is in the Mets' corner this season. Chipper recently tweeted out well-wishes for David Wright as he returned from injury. So, add Chipper Jones to the long list of Braves fans/former players who are actually pulling for the Mets to take the division. We're living in strange times, folks.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Good to see David Wright back off the DL. Division leading Mets getting stronger. Hope Captain America enjoys the stretch run. U deserve it!</p>— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealCJ10/status/636000032420839424">August 25, 2015</a></blockquote>
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MLB NEWS
Twins are now in control of the AL's second wild card spot
Look who's come out of nowhere to enter the AL playoff race: The Minnesota Twins! Minnesota managed to put five runs past Chris Archer and the Rays, and that ended up being good enough for the Twins to pick up their sixth consecutive win. They're currently the hottest team in the AL, and winning six in a row is good enough to put you in the playoff spot because everybody else in the AL wild card race is currently tripping over themselves.
White Sox are set to wear "leisure suit" throwbacks
I never thought I'd see the Chicago White Sox bring back these particular throwbacks, but they're here: The Sox will indeed be wearing their 1976 throwbacks for one night only: Tonight.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WhiteSox?src=hash">#WhiteSox</a> will wear collared blue and white v-neck '76 jerseys for "Throwback Thursday" on August 27. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SoxTBT?src=hash">#SoxTBT</a> <a href="http://t.co/NEVmCS0qMM">pic.twitter.com/NEVmCS0qMM</a></p>— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) <a href="https://twitter.com/whitesox/status/634449588972355584">August 20, 2015</a></blockquote>
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While most of the baseball world is ready for this ugly spectacle, our friends over at South Side Sox are ready as well, but they actually think that these are awesome. Wow.
OK, I get that some of the players didn't like the stupid shorts. I also get that Reinsdorf and Einhorn wanted to make a statement with new uniforms for the team. But the idea that everyone hated the uniforms?
Like most of you, I get my White Sox clothing collection refreshed in the gift giving times of year. For myself, though, I make sure to refresh my navy blue Sox hat every few years. To me, these uniforms are how I remember the White Sox when growing up. There's are also a lot of good reasons to be proud of these uniforms.