Atlanta Braves

The Atlanta Braves have gotten off to a rough start in 2011, going 9-12 through their first 21 games.

Despite the losing record, the Braves haven’t played bad baseball.  Their pitching has performed well and their defense has been exceptional.  Their big issue is their hitting.

Things will get turned around and the Braves will still compete for a playoff spot, meaning that they will be buyers come July 31^st.

For those of you that have ESPN Insider, it is likely that you may have seen Eric Karabell's article yesterday going over some early performances among the league's rookies.

He states in the article that while the Atlanta Braves are "very committed" to Freeman, he had some worries about how well he has hit so far this year.

What's wrong with Jason Heyward?  He hasn't reached base in his last four games.  Wednesday night against the Dodgers he struck out three times.  However, the short answer is that nothing's wrong.

We all knew coming into this season that the Braves' pitching was going to be solid. But we also felt like that the offense was going to improve. With this combination, the Braves were thought to be one of the best teams in the NL. Well, at the moment, only one of those beliefs has come true.

One of the biggest questions surrounding the Atlanta Braves was the status of starter Jair Jurrjens.

After an impressive 2011 debut, Atlanta fans can breathe a sigh of relief. Although the young righty was absent for much of the Atlanta playoff run last season, he was seen as a crucial part of the Braves starting staff.

The Braves enter their mid-week series with division rival Florida Marlins 4-6, a record that most in the baseball world would call a mild fiasco for a team that garnered such praise out of March.

Of all the series to start the season, I think Braves' second baseman Dan Uggla and new Manager Fredi Gonzalez probably looked for and circled this one first. Both had spent several years with the Florida Marlins before ending up in Atlanta this offseason.

According to the local television commercial, Braves Country is approximately 110,000 square miles (thanks MapQuest and Mrs. Starr from high school geometry).

So unless you're well within the area, it's possible that you may not be able to attend a home game this year at Turner Field, home of your Atlanta Braves.

Never fear! I've done it for you.

Larry Wayne Jones has been playing for the Atlanta Braves since 1993.  Set to turn 39 on April 24th, the man you all know as "Chipper" is in his 18th season with the same club—that alone is noteworthy.

But on Friday, Jones added to his already impressive legacy by collecting a pair of hits to put his career total at 2,500.

What more do you want from Chipper now? 

He now has the hits, he is a few RBI from 1,500, and he has the home runs. What makes these stats more special is that he is a switch hitter.

If, more like when, he reaches that 1,500 RBI mark, then he will be only the second switch hitter in baseball history to have that amount of RBI, as well as 2,500 hits.

Some people do not think he will get in because he doesn't have 3,000 hits, or he hasn't hit 500 HRs. But what he has done, I think, should easily get him in.