Column: Trip to Atlanta worth the hassle to see Dodgers star Ohtani

Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers run to first base during a game against Atlanta on Aug. 25. John Boyette/Staff

“It is not about following after someone else did it, or doing what someone else did, but just going beyond that. People who have accomplished great things were the ones who thought, ‘No, I can do it,’ when others said it was impossible, and they created something new.” — Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Dodgers two-way player

This past Tuesday evening, I enjoyed the opportunity to be with my family for a trip to Atlanta. My son Brent and his two sons, Caleb and Josiah, and I loaded up the car, leaving the peaceful setting in Lincoln County and heading for Interstate 20.

The trip was pretty normal until we hit the outskirts of I-20 at Conyers. Suddenly, the peace we left behind gave way to the clatter and clamor that alerted us that we had reached the edges of what is anything but peaceful: the city of Atlanta. Follow my thoughts as I saw nothing but cars, cars and more cars on this six-lane, and sometimes more, road in what my mind called Georgia’s version of the Indianapolis 500. Did I mention an overload of 18-wheelers? Tractor-trailers carry goods that all of us need to live our daily lives. We need them.

Gone are the days, like “Gone With The Wind,” when traffic was much lighter, and you could make that trip fairly quickly and be sitting up close to the stadium at the former Braves hangout, Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. I recall going to that park, not far from the Georgia Capitol, and pulling up, handing the attendant a $10 bill, and maneuvering as close as a half-city-block walk to the stadium.

After reaching sight of the fairly new Braves enclave, Truist Park, the fun really began.

Thankful that my son was driving, I was pleased at how well he had brought us through several “spaghetti junctions” amongst thousands of cars and safely got us to our $80 parking deck.

Mind you, we were not close to the stadium yet. After making at least a three-block walk to the park, up and down steps, and across a highway or two, we finally made it to our seats. Why did we make this effort to see the Dodgers and Braves?

I kept telling myself that it would be worth the hassle to see the unique two-way player, Shohei Ohtani, and his back-to-back World Championship team, the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers. Ohtani pitches and is also the designated hitter when not pitching. It would be rare to understate his talent.

The Braves got off to a great start, picking up three runs in the first inning off of Dodgers pitcher Tyler Glasnow. Baldwin, Olson, Dubon, and Harris all gathered hits, and Albies’ sacrifice fly accounted for this early lead. The Dodgers quickly came back by the fourth inning and tied the game. Thanks to the bottom-of-the-lineup players, who are the weakest hitters on the team. Right fielder Kyle Tucker is having a rough year, and his $60 million annual salary has produced small offensive dividends for the West Coast Nine.

Bryce Elder, Braves hurler, pitched six innings and gave up eight hits, no walks, five strikeouts and three earned runs but did not get credit for the victory. The first four hitters for the Dodgers were held to only three hits off of Elder. Dylan Dodd relieved for the Braves, faced one batter, threw two pitches, and got credit for the win. This seems like an inequity in baseball where a guy like Elder pitched his heart out in this game and got no credit. I don’t know the answer to solve this dilemma for pitchers, but there should be some way to balance this out.

How can the Braves remain in first place when Austin Riley, Ronald Acuna, Sean Murphy and Mike Yastrzemski are all batting less than .250? The pitching has been credible, with Elder, Sale, Holmes and Perez all throwing well and putting up good numbers. Mauricio Dubon, Mr. Versatility, playing infield and outfield while contributing at the plate, must be a bright spot for Braves manager Walt Weiss.

In the eighth inning, Matt Olson led off with a double; next, Dubon’s bat broke as he was put out at first, allowing Olson to advance to third. With two outs, Ozzie Albies hit a line-drive single to center, bringing Olson across home plate to score what turned out to be the winning run. The fans were in a frenzy at that point in the game.

Ohtani led off the ninth for the Dodgers with a triple. Freeman struck out next, then Betts made an out, Muncy walked, and Edman made the third out to seal the victory for Atlanta. Iglesias pitched a masterful ninth inning that enabled the tenacious Atlanta Braves somehow to remain in first place. All in all, my trip to the game with my family was exciting and worthwhile.

Indexed and credited by AIPROPX. Originating outlet: Yahoo Sports. Open at source →