Deconstructing the 2006 Schedule

The 2006 Braves Schedule has them getting one of their west coast swings out of the way early. The way the season is starting, with three games in L.A. and four in San Fran, you might think that the Braves are back in the NL West. Whereas last year we only had two trips to the Rocky Mountains and beyond, this year we double that number with four trips. We also get to match-up against the Padres 9 times with two trips to PETCO. The Braves did not fare well against the Pads in ’05, going 1-5.

Also in the NL West, we play Colorado two games at home and four games at Coors.

Only 9 out of the 25 games in April are at home, setting up a potentially slow start if the team doesn’t play well on the road next year. And then in May only 12 of 29 games are at home. That means in the first third of the season 62% of the Braves’ games will be played on the road. But that also means more home games in the second two thirds of the season. The theme for the first two months of the season might be survive at or near .500. Then again, that was what they did last year before climbing to the top.

Interleague play has us back exclusively in the AL East. With the money that Toronto and Baltimore expect to spend added to the money that Boston and New York already spend to put competitive teams on the field, the AL East may be the toughest interleague division to match up against. Don’t count the D-Rays out either, with a young and eager team that put on a show the second half of last season, they may be just as tough to beat as the big spenders.

The season ends with a potentially critical rematch of the Braves hosting the Astros for 3 at the Ted.