I thought after Friday night’s magical game, the Braves would carry that with them at least through the series.  I was wrong and it turns out that my fears were not only warranted but realized.  The Braves let up on a lesser team and seemed to have simply lost focus.  I was however, correct on another aspect- the Cubs did find ways to screw up, but the Braves let them live.  Seriously, Chicago came back from a four run deficit, only to commit four errors.  I felt like I was watching two teenagers in a phone conversation.  Instead of arguing who would hang up first, it was who would take the win.  “No really, we suck anyway, Atlanta.  You need this more than we do.”  “But, Chicago, you really need this serious or your fans may torch the city.  We will be there next week, and don’t want to see that!”  This back and forth is a frustrating scenario from both sides.  The long suffering Cub fans catch a glimpse of what could be, only to get heavy doses of what is.  Atlanta on the other hand, knows what they have and runs for the ledges with losses to teams like the Cubs.

The weekend saw Dan Uggla extend his hitting streak to an impressive 33 games, only to see it end by an incredible catch by Darwin Barney.  Really, a guy named Darwin Barney ends a Superman like streak.  That’s a sign it just was not Atlanta’s day.  On a high note, Michael Bourn was 3-4 with a stolen base, and Jose Constanza stole 2nd and 3rd on during the same at bat.

Two losses to the Cubs makes the next seven games more critical as the Giants, who only trail the Braves by four in the Wild Card, are in town for a series of the same number of games.  They are followed by none other than the West leading Diamondbacks.  In Braves fashion, I have no doubt that they will step up and take care of business.  I guess that’s why it is frustrating to lose to the Cubs!