Season To Date: Plenty of Hope.

Our rotation was expected to be solid and deep, but several injuries have cast doubt on that. Hudson and Smoltz have turned in every bit the ace-caliber performances that we have come to expect, but durability concerns hover over both of them due to John's troublesome right shoulder and Tim's mysterious decline in velocity. Nevertheless, both aces seem determined to work through their difficulties and anchor our rotation. Glavine - who was brought in for additional stability - recently landed on the DL for the first time in his illustrious career, but he should be back sooner rather than later. When healthy, Tom was a strong #3 starter, as expected. Hampton has yet to start an MLB game since 2005 and we'd be better of assuming he won't be able to contribute. Mike continues to battle through his myriad injuries and I wish him all the best. Jurrjens - acquired this off-season from the Detroit Tigers in the Edgar Renteria trade - earned a starting role in Atlanta with a strong spring and as performed admirably despite heightened pressure due to the multiple injuries throughout our pitching staff early in the season. Jair might not be able to sustain his current workload, but he's done everything we could have hoped for so far. Jeff Bennett has performed above and beyond the call of duty as he's been asked to spot start and routinely pitch out of the bullpen at the same time. Chuck James has flashed both the best and worst he has to offer, so we'll need him to settle down and perform consistently while we wait for our veterans to come off the DL. Considering the unexpected difficulties we've had to suffer so far, the rotation has managed quite well; we can also expect that they will only do better as we get healthier.

The bullpen has actually been hit harder by injuries than the rotation and, after writing the previous paragraph, that's a lot to say. The entire back end of the 'pen under optimal conditions (Rafael Soriano, Mike Gonzalez and Peter Moylan) currently resides on the DL. Still, our other relievers have done what the can to hold down the fort. Youngsters Manny Acosta and Blaine Boyer, now called upon to close out games, have been rock solid since the calender turned to April. Lefty Will Ohman has been a steadying veteran influence and AAA reinforcements Buddy Carlyle and Jorge Campillo have been excellent in Atlanta. The aforementioned Jeff Bennett has been heroic and better than expected considering the circumstances of his use. The jury is out on LOOGY (Lefty One Out GuY) Royce Ring, other than to say that he is clearly best used as a specialist. All in all the bullpen has held its own despite an extremely high workload and depleted roster; moreover, they should get better as some of our relievers come off the DL.

The line-up, despite some unexpected voids in production, has been very strong overall. Chipper Jones continues to be among the best hitter alive, but he's not the only one anchoring the line-up. Rising stars Brian McCann and Yunel Escobar are performing at exceptional levels. Jeff Francouer and Mark Kostay have been fine at the plate, but their real value lies in the field where they continue to play extremely well. Unfortunately Teixeira, Johnson and Diaz have all struggled mightily. Mark is a notoriously slow starter and his MVP potential will keep him in the line-up everyday; he'll turn it around sooner rather than later. Kelly and Matt, however, have been used in platoons before and that should be a consideration moving forward. Ruben Gotay and Martin Prado have played well in limited time, as has Gregor Blanco in the outfield. The bench as a whole has performed extremely well, which is a welcome change from last season. This team has real depth here and those struggling are more likely to improve than those hitting well are likely to regress.

I still believe we'll see another pennant on the facade at Turner Field after this season is over and done with, so let's keep the faith Braves fans!