According to the AP, Chipper Jones aggravated an injury in his quadriceps and expects to miss at least a few games. Chipper first hurt himself on April 9th, and since then he has felt soreness until now when he seriously aggravated it.

After going 0-4 on Thursday, Chipper is no longer batting .400, like he had been for almost the entire season. Including his 0-2 performance yesterday, Chipper is now batting .390. Chipper was (and still is) trying to become the first player since Ted Williams did it in 1941.

Braves 3B Chipper Jones exited  today’s game against the Dodgers after aggravating a quad injury while sliding into 2nd base in the 5th inning. Jones came into the day leading the league in hitting with a .449 average.

Take a few days off, Larry.

In an article for SI.com Jon Heyman discusses the trash talk between Carlos Beltran and Jimmy Rollins. 

He writes:

Beltran gave it a shot. But under the circumstances his words came off as a pale impersonation of the master [Jimmy Rollins].

For more insight on rivalries, at Metsblog Matt Cerrone asks readers, “Who do you consider the Mets biggest rival?”

As of 3:45 today, the Phillies lead voting at 46%, while the Braves trail closely at 42% and the Yankees trail in the dust at 7%.

While recent chatter has certainly made things more interesting, I certainly see the Braves as our biggest rival today.  As I wrote in this week’s Beaton’s Banter, I really just see the Phillies as a 3rd wheel that is trying to provoke the Mets into paying attention to them.  The Mets rivalry has always been bitter and intense, while classy.  The Phillies and Mets have finally become decent at the same time for the past few years, so naturally there has been some tension and aggression.  But nothing is like Chipper Jones naming his kid, “Shea”, or when June 29, 2000 became the unofficial Throw Batteries at John Rocker Day.

Chipper
Jones left Monday's spring training game against the Cardinals with a
sprained left ankle.

Chipper hurt his ankle while trying to run out a grounder in the first inning. He was
removed immediately and is considered day-to-day.

Ouch. Godspeed, Larry.

Omar Minaya was humble in his comments after the Braves had been mathematically eliminated from winning their 15th divisional title.

“What Atlanta has done between (manager) Bobby Cox and (general
manager) John Schuerholz, what can you say?” Minaya said. “If there
were a Nobel Prize for baseball, they would be voted a Nobel Prize for
the work they've done there over the years. I like and respect what
they've done and what they've accomplished. I don't think it's been
done in the history of baseball.”

Minaya, himself fond of player development - even if the current Mets
have only a handful of homegrown players: David Wright, Jose Reyes,
Aaron Heilman, Lastings Milledge and Heath Bell - labeled the Braves
the blueprint for other teams, including the Mets, to follow.

“They do it right,” Minaya said. “They've done it right. And they'll
continue to do it right because they believe in scouting and
development, and they believe in their scouts and their people. There's
not enough good things for me to say about the Atlanta Braves and their
front office and what they've done and what they've accomplished.

“They are the model. They are the model of success in the past 15 years.”

Minaya was so respectful of the Braves that he used qualifiers before
last night's game regarding the official elimination of Atlanta from
division contention, saying things such as “If we clinch …”

There wasn't any gloating, of course.

“You're not going to get that from me,” Minaya said.

Chipper Jones recently paid his respects to the Mets, and wished them well in the playoffs.