European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 23, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Wednesday october 23, 1991 the stars and stripes a Page 25991 world series braves to draw j Atlanta a game 4 starter John Smoltz Hasni to lost a decision since August. On pair by Tom Salamino Atlanta a the Atlanta braves still like their chances in the world series. After All they re Hack in the land of natural grass and Tomahawk chops and they have two of baseball s hottest pitchers ready to face the Minnesota twins in games 3 and 4. The twins won the first two games of the Best-of-7 series at the metronome. 52 on saturday and 3-2 on sunday. The braves took a Day off monday after returning to Atlanta while the twins worked out at Atlanta Fulton county stadium. A a it a not a Good situation to be in but we have had our backs up against the Wall All season and have come out on top a said braves  baseman Sid Bream. A it is a pretty Good feeling going Back to Atlanta having Avery and Smoltz going for us in the next two  Steve Avery who won two games and did t give up a run in 1616 innings in the no playoffs against Pittsburgh was to pitch tuesday night when the series was to resume. John Smoltz will Start tonight. The 21-year-old Avery 18-8 during the regular season has not lost since August. Neither has Smoltz who pitched the no West clincher against Houston As Well As game 7 against the pirates. He went 12-2 the second half of the season to finish 14-13. A a it a obvious we re in a Good position Quot said twins Catcher Brian Harper. A but now we have to face Avery and Smoltz. It could easily be tied  Smoltz likes Liat idea. A we just have to prove everybody wrong again and go out and win a he said. A we understand what we have to do and we be Learned How to win big games. And we have some big games coming  the pitching during postseason play has t been the problem for Atlanta aces however. It has been the Laek of hitting. In the seven games against Pittsburgh the braves baited Only .231 and stored i1 runs. So far against the twins the team is hitting .226 with four runs in two games. Terry Pendleton the  leading hitter with a .319 average during the regular season hit Only .167 against the pirates and was 0 for 6 against the twins before getting two hits sunday night Lead off hitter Lonnie Smith is 0 for 6 against Minnesota and Bream is i for s. David Justice is 2 for 6, but has t driven in a run. Ron Gant is hitting .5 h with four hits but failed to produce in the clutch sunday night. With the score tied at 2-2, Rafael Bel Liard at third and Pendleton at firs with one out in the top of the eighth. Gant popped out and Justice flied out to end Atlanta s Hist threat. In the Bottom of the inning Scott Leius got the game Winner for the twins with a Solo Homer off Tom Glavine. Gla Vine gave up Only four hits but one of the others was a first inning two run Homer to Chili Davis. The Laek of offence May be starting to get to the players. A we had some opportunities to store. But did no to gel the Job done a said Glavine. A a those situations Are a Little frus-1  Brian Hunter who had a two run Homer and an rib double in Atlanta s 40 game 7 Victory Over the pirates also has taken notice. A it seems like throughout the whole playoffs we Haven to capitalized. That a the main thing that we re not doing that we did throughout the season a he said. A a it a frustrating because we had been getting those key hits All year. Everybody has gotten used to seeing us get those runs in but its not happening  winning Battle of Little Guys by Murray chass the new York times Atlanta a Chili Davis who with two october of experience is something of a Veteran of Post season play offered a theory. A in the world series and the los games a he said monday a pitchers key so much on the big Guys to get them out. Who ends up being the map pitchers or the Little  Greg Gagne and Scott Leius fit Davis View of a the Little Guys a and they Are primarily responsible for the twins 2-0 Lead in this world series. Its not that the twins a big Guys Haven to produced. Kent Hrbek hit a Home run and a double that preceded j Gagney a Home run in the 5-2 first game land Davis hit a two run Home run in the 3-2 second game. But the Home runs by Gagne and Leius were the blows that proved fatal to the Atlanta braves. The problem the braves had in the two games in Minneapolis was the same one they had in the National league playoff. Neither their big Guys nor their Little Guys have hit. It was Only last week that Pittsburgh pitchers shut out the braves for 26 consecutive innings. Furthermore throw out their 10-run eruption in the third game against the pirates and the braves scored a total of nine runs in six games. Now they have scored Only two runs in each of the two world series games. A a it a been Tough for us to score runs a said Tom Glavine who has suffered 1-0 and 3-2 defeats in being the losing Pitcher in three of the braves five Post season setbacks. A it gets frustrating but As far As in a concerned i have to go out and keep them from  that might be easier in Atlanta where a Minnesota lineup gets diluted of some of its offence. Davis the no. 4 hitter the first two games will not Start at All in the games at Atlanta Fulton county stadium and Brian Harper the fifth hitter will not Start tuesday night. Davis will be missing because he is the designated hitter and the designated hitter has no spot in the lineup when it is handed to the Umpire in National league Park. Harper who hit .311 during the season and was 3 for 6 .500 in the first two series games is the starting Catcher but not when Scott Erickson pitches. Junior Ortiz a .209 hitter during the season is Erickson a personal Catcher. A absolutely not a Tom Kelly the Minnesota manager said when asked it he had considered using Harper instead of Ortiz to help offset the absence of Davis. A it would be very wrong for me not to play Ortiz. We be been doing it that Way All season. To change it now would be wrong. The players would say what the Heck a wrong with him. This is our  Why does Ortiz catch when Erickson pitches a a that a a Good question a the Quick witted Ortiz said then explained a the was a Rookie last year and i was More experienced than. Brian Harper so Tom Kelly wanted me to catch him. Now its him and  although Ortiz drove in Only 11 runs during the season and was 0 for 3 in the american league playoff he would qualify As one of the Little Guys who produce. Big in Post season games. Does he have a Long Ball in him the Catcher was asked. A let me Check to see if i have one a he said rummaging through his locker. Davis who will serve Only As a Pinchi hitter if needed in the games Here said he did no to agree with the idea that the National league team has an advantage when the designated hitter is not used because it did t have the Dhall year. A there s More to this lineup than one player Quot he said. A everybody in this lineup is capable of doing some damage. No one takes it upon himself to do every  Kirby Puckett is considered the twins Best hitter but in the first two games he did not have a hit in eight times at Bat. He struck out three times and also grounded into a double play. A everybody looks to me to do things Quot he said. A a in a not going to be Able it do it All the time. These Guys step up and do it. Its been a team Effort All year. Why should it be any different now Quot the braves have various hitters who can produce runs too but they have suffered a general breakdown Over the past two weeks. In nine Post season games the braves tire hitting .230 and Are not driving in the batters who do reach base. In the eighth inning of the second game for example the braves had runners at first and third with one out but Kevin Tapani retired Ron Gant 4 for 7 tit the time on a foul pop and David Justice 2 for 5, on a Fly to left Field. A a you a like to score there a manager Bobby Cox said a but you can t wish those things to  after scoring one run in each of the lust two games of the playoff the braves said they would be More comfortable at Home and thus score More runs. They did m the first game at Home romping past the pirates 10-3. But they lost the next two games Here 3-2 and 1-0. A repeal of that pattern will not get them Back to Minneapolis for another shot at the metronome. A you can t blame the Ball  Cox said of the second game loss. A we Coull have won the game on our own with a clutch Here or