G-Braves Honor Bobby Cox, Millionth Fan

Richard and Annette Zolecki of Lawrenceville were just coming to the and hoping to see . Little did they know they'd be a part of history, as Richard became the one millionth fan to come through the turnstiles.

Zolecki was with 32 of the General Motors Executive Retirees group and offered to hand out the tickets for his friend John Hennings. But Hennings said he'd do it instead, and when Zolecki went through the turnstile, G-Braves General Manager North Johnson pulled him aside and the confetti went down.

"When I was talking to the guy that I was going to relieve, I said wouldn't it be nice if someone in our group won that thing," Zolecki said. "It's just been a great night. Everybody has been friendly. I thought when he pulled me aside, 'Oh no what did I do!' But then the confetti came down and I knew."

Former Braves manager Bobby Cox also made his appearance, as he is traveling throughout the Braves minor league organizations. He also threw out the first pitch. 

"That's the important thing is being around the game," Cox said. "I've made all the stops in the farm system and enjoyed all of them. Some have been with the Atlanta Braves as I go down early and see the coaches and Fredi Gonzalez and say hello to everybody, and that's sort of my baseball fix."

Cox has been in baseball since he was 18 years old, when he broke in with the Dodgers in 1959.

"I'll never lose my enthusiasm for the game of baseball," Cox said.

Cox attributes the success now for the Braves to the fact that the AAA club is so nearby.

"It's ran very well by North Johnson," Cox said. "When we need players it's easy to get them there with the proximity so close."

He also commended all the fans for their support.

"It's not hard for me to come out here and shake hands and sign autographs and meet some new friends," Cox said.

Oh, and then there was the game itself.

Stefan Gartrell hit two home runs and Julio Teheran knocked in a run and pitched five effective innings to improve to 10-1 with a 5-2 victory over the Louisville Bats, the AAA farm club of the Cincinnati Reds.

"I'm a little embarassed to have this when Bobby Cox was here and it fails in comparison to what he has done but i am proud of this," Brundage said. "We are playing well the last month of the season and playing well as a team."

After falling behind 1-0, the picked up where he left off in the first half of the season as he connected on a 2-2 pitch for a 3-run home run in the bottom of the third to give the Gwinnett Braves a 3-1 lead. Teheran started the inning with a double inside the first base bag down the right field line, Matt Young walked and Gartrell folllowed with a towering home run to left field.

Teheran continued to be hot with the bat as well. Brandon Hicks led off the fourth inning with a walk and after he reached second base with two outs, Teheran singled him home for his first RBI of the season and only his third hit of the year but second in the game to give the Braves a 4-1 lead.

Gartrell added another solo home run int he bottom of the fifth to increase the lead to 5-1. It was Gartrell's 20th of the year and added to his Gwinnett record of 19.

Louisville slugger rightfielder Jeremy Hermida got the Bats a run closer on his 10th home run, a solo shot off Anthony Varvarro in the eighth inning. But that was all they could get.

Jairo Ascensio came on in the ninth to record his 17th save of the year. Gwinnett remains in first place and improved to 54-42 on the year and Brundage claimed his 1,000th win as the G-Braves' manager. Game two of the four game series will be Tuesday night at .