Talking Chop

Ah, a series win. It feels good to get one again, doesn't it? It's too bad that we can't fully celebrate it due to Kris Medlen's elbow injury. Yes, the Braves probably could have swept the Mets if they had hit a bit better with runners in scoring position. But taking two out of three from the Mets should always be satisfying, especially when it's done without Martin Prado and despite Heyward having a bad series.

In case you missed the games, here are the links to the Talking Chop recaps and the FanGraphs pages for each:

Game 1: Braves win 4-1 (TC Recap / FanGraphs page)
Game 2: Mets win 3-2 (TC Recap / FanGraphs page)
Game 3: Braves win 8-3 (TC Recap / FanGraphs page)

Awards

Braves' Pitching MVPs
Derek Lowe-- 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 3 K, 12/18 GB (67%), 0.213 WPA
Tim Hudson-- 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 3 K, 10/21 GB (48%), 0.197 WPA (plus 0.022 WPA hitting)
Jonny Venters -- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K, 0.163 WPA

Braves' Hitting MVPs
Brian McCann-- 4/8, BB, 2 2B, HR, R, 3 RBI, K, 0.381 WPA
Melky Cabrera-- 3/6, BB, 3B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, 0.276 WPA
Chipper Jones-- 4/10, 4 BB, 2 HR, 4 R, 3 RBI, K, 0.205 WPA

Braves' Clutchiest Play
Melky Cabrera tripling in the go-ahead run in the 6th inning of game 2 (0.231 WPA)

Mets' Pitching MVPs
Manny Acosta-- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 K, 0.241 WPA
Francisco Rodriguez -- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, 0.180 WPA

Mets' Hitting MVPs
Jeff Francoeur-- 2/10, 2 BB, HR, 2 R, RBI, K, 0.233 WPA (one big hit goes a long way)
Luis Castillo -- 5/8, BB, 2B, R, RBI, K, 0.227 WPA
Chris Carter -- 2/3, R, RBI, CS, 0.143 WPA
(what a strange list...)

Mets' Clutchiest Play
Jeff Francoeur hitting the go-ahead homer in the 9th inning of game 2 (0.352 WPA)

Un-Awards

Braves' Pitching LVPs
Billy Wagner -- 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 HR, 0 BB, 2 K, -0.292 WPA
Kyle Farnsworth -- 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 K, -0.124 WPA

Braves' Hitting LVPs
Eric Hinske -- 0/6, IBB, K, -0.205 WPA
Jason Heyward -- 1/12, 2 BB, 2B, 2 K, GIDP, -0.143 WPA
Omar Infante -- 5/15, 0 BB, 2B, 2 R, 0 K, -0.121 WPA (a classic example of why there's more to baseball than batting average)

Braves' Least Clutchy Play
Troy Glaus grounding into an inning-ending double play in the 7th inning of game 2 (-0.142 WPA)

Mets' Pitching LVP
Mike Pelfrey, of course-- 4.2 IP, 8 H, 5 R (3 ER), 2 HR, 2 BB (1 IBB), 1 K, -0.381 WPA

Mets' Hitting LVPs
David Wright -- 0/12, 0 BB, K, -0.233 WPA
Angel Pagan -- 2/11, BB, RBI, SB, Sac Bunt, Sac Fly, 4 K, -0.223 WPA
Josh Thole -- 2/7, BB, R, SB, GIDP, -0.119 WPA

Mets' Least Clutchy Play
The Mets had no big failures in the clutch, oddly enough.