All Aboarrrrrrrd!!!

Climb on board the Second Half Train (or bandwagon) everybody. Its already rolling and somebody's gonna get crushed under the wheels. I'd say the whole 'Matic Nation agrees that the Braves 2nd half will be a new kind of excitement for real Braves fans. We've cut the wheat from the chaff- and the chaff is all those clowns from Lilburn and Griffin who were sporting Boston jerseys at the stadium a few weeks ago. Today those last-place Braves sit in 2nd place after beating a division leader on the road Beat them 3 or 4 times in one game it seemed. In your face Trevor Hoffman. Wooooo-wooooooooooo. Here we come.

Your conductor will be Mr. Chipper Jones. He went yard early and often yesterday, securing his 12th straight game with an extra-base hit. The ML record is 14. Rentaria's hit streak is 15 games. Giles- 13 straight. FRANCOEUR (seriously. no joke.) has a 10-game streak. Suddenly we're looking like The Big Blue Machine out there.

Smoltz takes the mound tonight to keep the train rolling. You recall that Maddux got to pick his catchers in days gone by. I wonder if Cox will allow Smoltz to choose his relievers from here on in. If not, I imagine that Smoltz will simply chain himself to the mound after the 7th inning and refuse to move till Villarreal is in street clothes.