Atlanta Braves: On Fire

Four days. That's all it took. Just four days.

That's when the Braves fans watched in shock and horror as Rafael Soriano blew a save, by giving up a walk off three-run homer to Andre Ethier after the Braves led the entire game.

I won't lie. I thought that was the death blow. I thought: "Well there goes '09."

The loss was harder to take than the last bottom of the ninth inning  walk off home run that Soriano allowed in Miami just a week-and-a-half ago.

Throw in the fact that Chipper Jones hurt himself in batting practice (again), and would miss the next three games and there was no hope. 

But the Braves didn't lie down. They followed up that loss with their two best "games of the year."

The Friday night fireworks began after the Braves went down 5-2 in the fifth inning.

You know the story; newest hero, Kelly Johnson, brought the Braves to within one in the eight with a two-run home run and Garret Anderson tied it in the ninth. Then the always-clutch Yunel Escobar knocked in the go ahead run in the twelth, followed by Ryan Church's three-run homerun to salt it away.

Saturday night's contest might be the best game I have watched all season long. As soon as I saw that pitching match-up, Kershaw vs. Kawakami, I figured it would not land the Braves in the win column.

But Kawakami pitched the game of his MLB-life. Throwing seven innings of shutout ball and showing scouts why the Braves signed him from Japan. But that wasn't all. Kershaw threw amazing as well.

In the end, the Braves held in there and their newest hero, Kelly Johnson, hit the deciding home run to give the Braves the advantage.

Without Kris Medlen striking out four of the seven batters he faced, the Braves might not have had the chance to win.

Had it not been for the brilliant diving grab by Yunel Escobar to save it in the bottom of the tenth, the game might have very well ended up a loss.

It was the type of game the Braves have lost many times over the past three-plus years.

In Sunday's game, ace Javier Vazquez threw eight innings of spectacular baseball. He only allowed one run and struck out seven. The Braves won it 8-2 on the strength of Martin Prado, Matt Diaz, and Ryan Church.

Now the Braves find themselves three-and-a-half games out in the NL Wild Card and four and a half out in the NL East.

Thanks to the Marlins sweep of the Phillies this weekend, the Braves gained three games in three days.

Now a much-deserved and well-appreciated off day awaits before Atlanta welcomes in the red-hot Nationals (Winners of eight in a row) for a two-game set.

On Friday, the first-place Phillies come to Atlanta where they have not won a game in '09 after winning them all in '08.

This is the first time since April that the Braves have been four games over .500 when they started out 5-1.

Now is the time to keep making some noise.

Now is the time to capitalize and make a move toward first.

It's been a long time since we Braves fans have had something to get excited about in August/September.

Stay hot Atlanta Braves!