I was new to the National Hockey League and I was pretty much happy

DENVER -- The Atlanta Braves scored early and often and they needed nearly every one of those runs to beat the Colorado Rockies. Taysom Hill Jersey . Andrelton Simmons hit his first career grand slam as part of a seven-run first inning, and the Braves held on to beat Colorado 13-10 on Tuesday night. Evan Gattis had a home run among his three hits and Freddie Freeman also homered for the Braves, who had season-highs of 16 hits and 13 runs but had to sweat out a win in the late innings. "Nothing surprises me in this ballpark," Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "Ive been in this office in the same situation with a loss hanging over your head." The teams combined for 29 hits and neither starter made it out of the fifth inning. Rockies right-hander Juan Nicasio lasted just 3 2-3 innings and Atlantas Mike Minor left after giving up two hits to start the fifth. David Hale (2-0) pitched 2 1-3 innings of relief for the win. "I wasnt making quality pitches early on and later on I felt like I was making better pitches and couldnt get out of a jam," Minor said. "They were scoring all night." The Rockies trailed 13-9 when reliever Jordan Walden walked the bases loaded with no outs in the eighth. One out later Shae Simmons came on and allowed a sacrifice fly by Justin Morneau but then struck out Josh Rutledge to end the threat. Craig Kimbrel struck out the side in the ninth for his 18th save in 21 chances. "Kimbrel was great," Gonzalez said. "We score seven in the first inning and we needed a shutdown inning." Nicasio had a scary moment when he deflected a line drive by Justin Upton with his glove in the bottom of the first. Nicasio fractured his neck and sustained a concussion when he was hit in the head by a line drive on Aug. 5, 2011. He missed the rest of his rookie season. "That was scary. You definitely look at his past history and know what happened," shortstop Troy Tulowitzki said. "Its something you dont want to see. But Juan is a tough kid. I think hes really over that." The Braves also had a scare when Upton gingerly ran the bases in the first. Gonzalez removed him from the game before Atlanta took the field in the bottom of the inning. Gonzalez and Upton said it wasnt serious and he could play in the next couple of days. "I dont know how its going to feel tomorrow but Im optimistic its not anything too serious," Upton said. Wilin Rosario homered and Rutledge had three hits for Colorado, which has lost 10 of 11 and 15 of 18 to fall six games below .500. The Braves jumped on Nicasio right away. Jayson Heyward doubled then B.J. Upton tripled and scored on a groundout. Four straight singles made it 3-0 and loaded the bases for Simmons, who went deep to centre to make it 7-0. "Its a lot of fun, especially being an offensive player and being able to bat around and score a lot of runs," said Chris Johnson, who had his second straight three-hit game. "Everybodys in a good mood because everyone hit and did well." Atlanta sent 10 batters to the plate in the inning, and Colorado nearly matched it in the bottom of the frame. The Rockies scored three times on Rosarios single, Morneaus sacrifice fly and a bases-loaded walk to DJ LeMahieu Minor walked three batters and hit another and needed 38 pitches to get out of the first with a 7-3 lead. "Me and Gattis, before we walked out we said were going to act like its a 0-0 game," Minor said. "I couldnt throw a curveball for a strike. They eliminated every offspeed pitch and fastballs, I was barely missing the plate." He gave his team an 8-3 lead with an RBI single in the third but then allowed two more runs in the bottom of the inning, including a run-scoring single to Nicasio. It wasnt enough for the right-hander, who left in the fourth after solo homers by Freeman and Gattis, who scored a career-high four runs. Nicasio (5-5) allowed a career-high 10 runs and 11 hits. He has given up at least five runs and nine hits in his last three starts. His ERA has risen from 3.60 to 5.70 in the three outings, all losses. "I didnt worry about that line drive to me. I didnt do my job today," Nicasio said. "I feel bad for my team. They scored 10 runs I need to win this game." Atlanta scored three times off reliever Chad Bettis in the sixth to make it 13-8. NOTES: Gattis extended his hitting streak to 11 games with a single in the first inning. ... Rockies OF Carlos Gonzalez had a small tumour removed from his left index finger. The procedure was performed in Cleveland. ... The Braves activated Walden from the 15-day DL and optioned LHP Alex Wood to Triple-A Gwinnett. ... Atlanta RHP Julio Teheran (6-3, 1.89) will face LHP Tyler Matzek, who will make his major league debut for the Rockies on Wednesday night. Craig Robertson Jersey . -- The Minnesota Twins have granted relief pitcher Matt Guerrier his unconditional release, making the 35-year-old right-hander a free agent. Alex Anzalone Jersey . Starters, when they struggle, have to live with it for five days. For Sergio Santos and Steve Delabar, two of the three men who authored one of the ugliest pitched innings in Blue Jays franchise history on Thursday night, the bounce-back chance came right away. http://www.cheapsaintsjerseyssale.com/?tag=ted-ginn-jr-jersey-sale . The White Sox said Wednesday they acquired left-handed pitching prospect Sean Bierman and infielder Ben Kline, who both played at Class A this season. The White Sox dealt Crain to Tampa Bay on July 29.Notable players: Ron Francis (1981-1991), Kevin Dineen (1984-1997), Ray Ferraro (1984-1991), Pat Verbeek (1989-1995), Geoff Sanderson (1990-1997), Ulf Samuelsson (1984-1991), Dave Babych (1985-1991), Jeff ONeill (1995-1997), Gordie Howe (1979-1980)Best jersey: 1979 home jersey.(Image via Sports Illustrated) Worst jersey: The Whalers didnt wear many different looks, and the ones they did were all solid, so I cant really hate on any of them. Did you know?(Image via WhalersHockeyCards.com) Hockey analyst Pierre McGuire was the coach of the Hartford Whalers in 1993. He was 32 and was the youngest head coach in the NHL. He coached the team to a losing record and was fired in 1994. Players praised his firing. I recommend checking out this article on the whole situation.Did they have a goal song?Not only did they play Brass Bonanza, a song composed by musician Jack Say after they scored, but it was the teams official theme song. General manager Brian Burke actually canceled the use of the song in 1992 because he was embarrassed by it. It was reintroduced after he left the team.Worst trade:Fans were absolutely devastated when the Whalers traded Ron Francis, Ulf Samuelsson and Grant Jennings to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Jeff Parker, Zarley Zalapski and John Cullen. The Penguins would go on to win multiple Stanley Cups with that group while the Whalers would be mediocre for the rest of their existence. Best moustache: That would go to Gary Howatt, who had a beauty moustache. (Image via Faceoff.com)Best fight: While Jim McKenzie doesnt have the penalty minutes record for the Whalers (that belongs to Torrie Robertson at 1368) he sure knew how to drop the gloves. Mascot: Pucky The Whale(Markwilland.com) Which celebrity currently reps their gear? Snoop Dogg recently wore a Whalers sweater during an appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Last game: April 13th, 1997. 2-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning.Last goal: Kevin Dineen assisted by Geoff Sanderson and Andrew Cassels. Captain: Kevin DineenWatch the final game in its entirety.Why the move?Owner Peter Karmanos moved the team after the Whalers were unable to sell enough tickets and he was unable to get a new arena. A new deal was almost reached, but it soon fell apart and the team was moved. Relocated: The team was moved to Carolina and they were renamed as the Hurricanes. What does a former player have to say?Jeff ONeill(Image via Shoebox Legends)What was it like to play in Hartford?For me it was awesome, I was drafted in Hartford by Hartford. Mark Ingram Jersey. In training camp I had the opportunity to live with Gordie Howes son Marty, and he kind of took me in. I was new to the National Hockey League and I was pretty much happy wherever I was. It was disappointing though because after my first-year there was already talk of leaving Hartford. It wasnt that tough for me because I couldnt build that relationship in town where I had connections or friends so it was good while it lasted but Raleigh was pretty fun place too. Was the transition tough?Like I said, a guy like Kevin Dineen who was Mr. Hartford Whaler, and the guys who had been there for a while, the trainers and people who were local, it was awfully difficult for them because they had roots put down and they had kids in school and they were part of a diehard Whalers nation that bled green and blue but everyone kind of picked up and went to Raleigh and made it work. Aside from the draft whats one of your fondest memories of Hartford?Unfortunately it was probably the last game. It was special to see all the fans and the way they supported the team and came out. Unfortunately the building wasnt packed like that enough and thats ultimately why the team left that city. Its a weird market because there is Rangers fans and Boston Bruins fans all around that area and there didnt seem to be enough of those diehard Whaler fans but Ill always remember that last game: Paying respect to Kevin Dineen and some of the longtime trainers, Chuck Kaiton, Skip Cunningham and guys like that whove been there a long time.Was it hard playing in front half-packed arenas?I did it for a lot of my career and it was a difficult thing to do. The common cliché that was tossed around the locker room was that we have to make our own excitement tonight because there is not people banging on the glass and being loud and obnoxious and creating momentum out there. I almost got used to it because when I came out to Carolina there was bare crowds for the first three or four years, so its a difficult thing to do, especially when you go to markets like Montreal or Toronto where the building is packed; its frustrating because you dont really get that sense that youre in the NHL. 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