San Jose Braves

Braves fall to Dynasty 19-3
Errors, walks and quiet bats were the story of the week for the inconsistent Braves. Leading off the first inning, Kyle Hatzenbuhler gave up one run with the bases loaded before getting a Dynasty batter to hit a routine fly ball to left field. The ball was dropped, multiple runs scored, the Dynasty added 2 more in the inning and before the bottom of the inning the Braves were down 6-0. With the theme set, the mishaps continued, with more errors, walks and a lack of offense that helped the Dynasty cruise to the easy victory. Solo home runs were hit by Brendon Flaherty and Justin Jimenez in the loss.

This week the Braves face the Angels at Kings Academy, 1:30 game time.

San Jose Braves vs. Dynasty (06.02.13)
Silicon Valley Adult Baseball League
Kings Academy High School - Sunnyvale, CA
Photo: R.Craig

Photos: R.Craig

Go Braves!

The Braves face off against the offensive juggernaut called the Dynasty. The Dynasty has gone undefeated and possesses the strongest offensive weapons in the league. They have outscored their opponents 106-39 and have hit a league leading 22 hr’s. The Braves, on the other hand, have won two straight games after a disappointing start to the season. Hoping to bounce back from the early slow start, the Braves seem to be on the right path toward last year’s performance. The game should be good, starts at 10:00 Sunday at Kings Academy.

San Jose Braves vs Bay Area Dodgers (05.19.13)
Photo: R.Craig

Braves Highlights –

Sunday’s game provided some much needed offense from the Braves and great pitching by Kyle Hatzenbuhler. Kyle threw a solid, complete game but was not without help. Apparently, some in the crowd took issue with the strike zone and decided to let their feelings known to the umpire in the late innings. Around the 6th or 7th inning a fan, the five year old son of Kyle -- Madden Hatzenbuhler -- decided he had enough of the strike zone and approached the umpire with this remark – “Hey, my dad is number 7 and you’re blind.” No one is sure where he learned it but this kind of love for the guys behind the plate seems to run in the family!!

Braves Win First Game of 2013

The Braves earned their first victory of the year after four straight difficult defeats. This one was never in doubt as the Braves scored in each of the first six innings to go up 18 – 4 and never looked back. Kyle Hatzenbuhler threw a complete game, earning his first win of the year, and went 5-5 with 4 RBI to provide offensive support for the win. Justin Jimenez hit a grand slam with 5 RBI, newly signed 2nd baseman Rene Reyes had three hits, Kenny Taylor had three hits and Jose Zapien added two of his own for the much needed offensive explosion. Brendon Flaherty also had 2 hits and two RBI. The Braves now have the week off for Mother’s Day before facing the Dodgers next on May 19th at 1:30 Kings Academy.

Defense Fails Braves Again -- Lose 11-5 -- Fall To 0-2

The Braves fell to 0-2 after losing to the 2012 league champion A’s on Sunday. Critical defensive mistakes led to four unearned runs early and more in the late innings. The Braves fell behind 5-1 before climbing back to tie the game 5-5 in the sixth inning. Late, though, the A’s put runners on base with poor defense before hitting a three run home run to take back the lead 8-5. Three more runs in the ninth sealed the victory for the A’s and push the Braves to last place.

The Braves look to rebound on Sunday at 1:30, Lincoln High School, against the Padres.

San Jose Braves vs. South Bay Athletics
Silicon Valley Adult Baseball League
King's Academy 04.14.13
Photo: R.Craig

The San Jose Braves opened up the season with a brutal loss the 2011 SVABL champion Hard Ninety Angels. The Braves stormed to a 14 – 1 lead through five innings but then fell apart with strong Angels hitting and poor defense to lose 16-15. The Braves started out with strong pitching from Kyle Hatzenbuhler and bombs by Alex Oberle and Justin Jimenez. This would not be enough though as the Angels hitting came alive to catch up and win the opener.

It doesn’t get any easier for the Braves as they faced the 2012 SVABL champion A’s today. Game time is 10:00am at Kings Academy in Sunnyvale.

The 2013 SVABL baseball season is set to begin April 7th. The Braves started off with the Hard Ninety Angels and the schedule does not get any easier from there. The first seven games are scheduled and you can find that by going to SVABL.ORG. The Braves have many new additions and figure to compete but will face much tougher competition than previously. Should be interesting.