NL East

Watching the Atlanta Braves these days is like pulling teeth...no pun intended.

As I recover from mouth surgery this week and try to figure out just what has happened to the Braves, I can’t help but remain flabbergasted by their sudden and shocking downward spiral.

After experiencing one of the most exhilarating wins in franchise history over the Phillies on April 20, the Braves now find themselves in the midst of a seven-game losing streak, in which their offense has plummeted to new, disturbing lows.

For the fourth time this season, Livan Hernandez put the Nationals on his back and carried them late into the game.

By doing that, he gave them a chance to earn a victory.

With early run support, Washington was able to do just that as they defeated the Cubs 3-1 and nipped a one game losing streak in the bud.

Throughout baseball, the aces of pitching staff's are called stoppers.

They are the pitchers who managers, general managers and fans feel comfortable putting in every fifth day to make sure that no losing streak gets out of control.

David Wright became the youngest ever New York Met to reach 1,000 hits on Tuesday night when he lined an RBI single to right field off the Dodgers Ramon Troncoso in the fifth inning of the second half of a twi-night doubleheader.

Wright, who is 27 years and 127 days old, is the eighth Met with 1,000 career hits. He is also the fastest player to reach the milestone in a Mets jersey, recording the historic feat in his 868th career game.

Earlier in the day, I wrote about how the rainout could cause the Mets to burn through an already taxed bullpen, but I left out some good news.

The rain delay has caused a change to the starting rotation. Oliver Perez and Johan Santana are now pitching on the same day.

According to Mike Puma of the NY Post, Mets Minor League left-handed pitcher Angel Calero has been suspended for 50 games after testing positive for performance enhancing drugs.

Calero, 23, has started the season in Single-A St. Lucie after he pitched there all of last season and part of 2008. So his career could be classified as “stalled” right now. Last year he started 22 games, throwing 107.1 innings with a 3-11 record and a 4.61 ERA.

So far this season the Mets are getting fewer innings from their starters, 105, than all but four teams in the game; only two teams have thrown more innings than their bullpen, 71.

I know, I know. You’ve never heard of Tom Milone. He’s just another no-name pitcher toiling somewhere within the deep recesses of the Washington Nationals’ minor league system.

You’ve seen the various top-20 prospect lists for 2010 and he’s nowhere to be found.

*Yawn.*

“Wake me when we get to the All-Star break," you might be thinking.

OK, you’ve never heard of Tom Milone. I got that. But I’m very sure that, prior to his call up in mid 2007, you had never heard of John Lannan either.

In the 13th game of a stretch where the Nationals play on 15 consecutive days, the last thing Washington needed was a an extra-inning game. Despite a quality start from John Lannan, and timely hitting from the Nats batters, the club couldn't hold on and lost 4-3 in the bottom of the 10th at Wrigley.

Following a disappointing 2009 at the plate, From Flushing breaks down how David Wright's swing has changed through recent years.

The 2010 Atlanta Braves could best be characterized as a crying shame thus far.

Floundering leadoff men, poor batting averages, atrocious RISP numbers, and a lack of fundamentals.

But they can sure take those walks, huh?

It's really been a downer in A-town since late-inning dramatics last Tuesday against the NL East-leading Phillies, and a large part of the time, it's been painful to watch.