Just consider this Atlanta Braves lineup for a moment:
- 1B - Freddie Freeman
- 2B - Dan Uggla
- 3B - Chipper Jones
- SS - Andrelton Simmons
- RF - Jason Heywood
- CF - Michael Bourn
- LF - Martin Prado
- C - Brian McCann
That's a very impressive lineup from top to bottom. Those guys are solid defensively and potentially powerful offensively. The problem they are having down this
stretch drive is keeping players healthy and getting players hitting on a consistent basis. In fact, very often, the Braves just do not hit. Manager Fredi Gonzalez has shuffled this lineup so many times trying to find the best hitting order, but almost to no avail. One would think this lineup would be "Murderers Row", but that just isn't the case. It just seems that one or two guys at the most are hitting at any given time, or they all are hitting when the game is a blowout. If you see them score more than 5 or 6 runs one night, the next night they will be shutout or will score no more than 2. They can build some winning streaks at times, but they very rarely stay on hitting tears. It also seems that this club has a hard time getting that key two-out hit with men in scoring position. They tend to leave a lot of men on base. All of these hitting woes need to change quickly. The Eastern Division title is all but gone for Atlanta, and their Wild Card advantage is dissipating as well. Another September collapse doesn't bode well for this franchise at all. Wake up guys, you're in a pennant race. A crucial one at that.
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