We saw what happened in June when the Braves were matched up against the Red Sox, Tigers, and Twins. They were out-classed. After losing four straight on the road to the Giants and Diamondbacks in the last week it looked like the Braves were beginning to enter the tailspin that would erase them from the chase.

And then Schuerholz made his deal, the kind of deals that are harder to do these days. The three-division format makes more teams contenders, thus there are fewer clubs willing to wave a white flag and cash in veterans at the trade deadline.

What’s more, the veterans available at the end of July are guys on the back end of their deals. They are still owed big money and they could be a two-month rental before they get out on the open market. It’s hard to give up prospects for uncommitted vets.

Schuerholz didn’t just get a first baseman to fill a hole, he got a top drawer left-handed relief pitcher to fill another widening hole in the bullpen. The move to include Ron Mahay in the trade with Texas is significant because in 2006 the Braves were ruined by a lousy bullpen and their bullpen was beginning to come apart this month.

Atlanta did not have a lefty in the bullpen because Mike Gonzalez was injured and lost for the season and the southpaws thrown into the gap did not pitch well.

The Braves did not give up too much in this deal. They did not have a spot for Jarrod Saltalamacchia, 22, because of the six-year deal McCann, 23, has signed to play catcher. Salty has a better arm, but McCann is Atlanta-bred and already established.

Yunel Escobar, who has been terrific since his June call-up, is the Braves’ shortstop of the future, not Elvis Andrus.

The player who will be missed most could be Matt Harrison because pitching has been such a premium.

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Important in all this is that the Braves get a slugger in the middle of their lineup, Teixeira, to replace Andruw Jones, whose agent, Scott Boras, has refused to negotiate and wants Jones’ out on the open market. Jones is all but gone and the Braves have Teixeira for the 2008 season.

As far as the Mets, the Braves may have created a market for other players, perhaps Ken Griffey, Jr., or Adam Dunn. Can the Mets afford to sit back? Their lineup doesn’t looks superior now.

The wild card is Pedro Martinez who is still three weeks away from his planned return from shoulder surgery. He is throwing in Port St. Lucie and vows to be part of the pennant race. If Martinez comes roaring back, the Mets will just shrug at the Braves’ deal for Teixeira.

For now, however, the headlines belong to the Braves. Their deal is a blockbuster and for the first time since early in the 2006 season they look like a contender again.

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