Braves closing in on Wild Card/Mets

Remember back to June when it seemed the Braves couldn't win a game going a team worst 6-21? Well that looks like it was forever ago now. Since July started they are 8-3 and will be going for their first sweep since May 26-28 when they swept the Cubs. In the two games since the Allstar game the Braves against the Padres have scored 26 runs on 29 hits. Some of this resurgence is coming from former MVP Chipper Jones who won player-of-the-week honors a week ago.

Since the start of June, Chipper is hitting a ridiculous .527 with 19H on 36 AB's. With those 19 hits he has 8 Doubles, 6 Homeruns and is currently riding a 13 straight game extra base hitting streak. If he gets an extra base hit tomorrow he will tie a MLB record for consecutive games with an extra base hit. He also is riding a 15 game hitting streak. His 14 RBIs and 8 Runs lead the team in July.

Chuck James, the left handed rookie, takes the mound tomorrow in hopes of completing the 3 game sweep. He has only started 3 games this year and has won all 3. He brings in an ERA of 2.87. Sweeping the Padres will be exactly what this team needed if they are to get into the Wild Card chase and make a dent in the Mets division lead.

After tonights win, the Braves now stand 5 1/2 games behind the Reds for the Wild Card spot and are 12 games back of the Mets for the division crown.