Ryan Church News

New York Mets outfielder Jeff Francoeur underwent successful surgery to repair a tear of the collateral ligament in his left thumb Monday in Atlanta.

Ryan Church had been a top prospect in the Montreal Expos' farm system for four years before arriving in Mesa, Ariz., in October 2003 for the next chapter in his professional baseball life.

Expect three of these jerseys to remain filled next season. They finished the season on a six-game losing streak and wound up third in the division, but ESPN.com's Insiders sees the Braves as perhaps the NL East favorite in 2010 .

Assessing 2009: September and October A A A A A A A A A A A A A September wasn't as bad as August in terms of entertainment.

Fri Oct 2, 2009 6:41am EDT -Garret Anderson, with Ryan Church, acknowledges the fans after his 2,500th hit.

Atlanta Braves' Garret Anderson, left, turns to the stands while being acknowledged for his 2500th career hit while heading to the outfield with Ryan Church as they take on the Washington Nationals in a baseball game, Thursday, Oct.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ryan Church is with his wife, Tina, in Viera, Fla., as the couple await the birth of their second child.

Before playing Washington on Thursday night, the Braves knew Colorado already had hammered Milwaukee --- the afternoon game was on most TVs in the clubhouse --- to clinch the wild card and eliminate the Braves from playoff contention.

The Braves are planning for the possibility of a one-game playoff Monday at Turner Field, if they finish the regular season in a tie with the Rockies.

Given their choice, the Braves would obviously like to be the ones who possessed the two-game advantage with six games remaining in the regular season.

Jeff Francoeur's confidence has gone from zero to 100. Francoeur admits his belief at the plate was non-existent before the Mets' acquired him in July.

Jeff Francoeur and David Wright already have scheduled an offseason trip together.

Stop us if you've heard this before: It's late in the season and Daniel Murphy is on a tear.

Jeff Francoeur has been playing hurt, but you'd never know it looking at him. He's got a torn ligament in his hand, that will require off season surgery.

Ike Davis once hit off Goose Gossage before an Old-Timers' Day in the Bronx. Now, the son of former Yankees pitcher Ron Davis is closing in on playing in Flushing.

For the Mets , it goes from bad to worse. The Mets lost their third in a row and eighth in nine games early today when 's fielding error in the ninth allowed pinch-runner David Ross to score from second with the winning run to give the Braves a 6-5 come-from-behind victory in Atlanta.

The season may be essentially over for them, but the Mets still have the ability to collapse like no other team in baseball.

Tommy Hanson hurled seven solid innings and Adam LaRoche was 4-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI, as the Braves downed the Mets, 6-0, to open a three-game series.

Given the bad luck that he's encountered throughout the season, Jair Jurrjens seemed due to benefit from the fortunes that helped him lead the Braves to a 1-0 win over the Cardinals at Busch Stadium on Friday night.

Cincinnati Reds pitcher Bronson Arroyo works in the first inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Friday, Sept.