White Sox 4, Braves 2
The White Sox versus the Atlanta Braves?!? It seemed like such a strange, fortuitous match up that I had to research when the last time these two teams played against one another. The answer: June 13, 2004 (the Sox won 10 – 3). At the release of the 2010 schedule, when I learned that these two ball teams were going to be matched up during Interleague Play, I knew I was going to be at The Cell.
You see, the Braves were my boyhood team. Those were the days when the Braves seemed to be on a continual loop on the tube thanks to Ted Turner and TBS Superstation. It was also the days when my baseball hero Dale Murphy caught flyballs in the outfield while batting mid .200 averages. The Braves weren’t a very good team then. For some reason, it always seemed like they would lose the game in the 9th inning, usually due to poor pitching or a fielding error. During those years, the Braves were lucky if they won 60 games a season. Plain and simple, they stunk. But I didn’t care, I loved them anyway. And then I “grew out” of baseball, and all of a sudden the Braves stopped stinking. Between the years of 1991 (the first season I stopped religiously following the team) – 1999, the Braves made it to 5 World Series, winning one in 1995. I still remember the win because I watched it in a bar with my dad. The first time I had ever been in a bar with my dad. I had a coke.
So before the 2010 baseball season even started, I knew that I was going to an Atlanta Braves game. But this time, I would have to root for them to lose. I had planned to go to a day game using my gift card from Steph and Adam, but got invited to the June 13th night game at the last minute from a buddy of mine. We met up at a the Wabash Tap before the game for a few beers and a burger. While we were hanging out inside the bar, the bottom fell out as a mighty storm raged through the area. On the television over the bar, we watched as the tarp was being put over the field, a the long rain delay started. No worries. We ordered a few more beers and waited it out. As soon as we saw the ground crew take off the tarp, we knew it was safe to head for the ballpark.
After an hour and an half delay, the ballgame was underway. Just like the last time the Sox played the Braves back in `04, Mark Buehrle was pitching. I was excited about this because I hadn’t seen Mark pitch yet this season. At the time of the game, Buehrle had a 5-6 record, and it didn’t seem like he would going to .500 the way the Braves were hitting of him. While the Braves have had some off seasons of late, the team now has one of the best records in the National League. Still, despite the multiple hits, the Braves weren’t scoring.
While the Braves may have had a strong position in the National League standings, they were going against the hottest team in all of Major Leagues. You see, the White Sox had won the last seven games. In the previous 15 games, they had only lost twice. They had swept the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Washington Nationals, and were now looking to do the same to the Atlanta Braves. In the 5th inning, slumping Carlos Quentin jacked a two-run homer over the right field wall, directly into the Braves bullpen. In the 6th, the Braves answered back with a single run. The game was 3 – 2, in the Sox favor. In the 7th, Carlos again hit a homer, this time over the left field wall. It was all the Sox would need, as Bobby Jenks would close out the win for Mark Buehrle. Afterward, we took in the fireworks show, as we all celebrated the Sox 8th straight win.
Two days later, I would witness the 10th straight win against the Cubs during the Crosstown Classic. More on that later…