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***Official Atlanta Braves 2009 Thread*** (1 Viewer)

Buckfast 1

Footballguy
I've never seen an official Atlanta Braves thread around here since the Baseball forum was introduced, so I thought it was time to create it. Hopefully, there are a few Braves fans out there willing to contribute. We can at least keep up with the latest Braves news involving Tommy Hanson's call-up, Brian McCann's eyes, and Jordan Schafer's strikeouts.

As of now, the Braves are 13-15 and are 2.5 games out of first place in the NL East.

 
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Shocking that they're only 2.5 games out of first place. They started out so hot, and then just became downright awful when Chipper got his first injury of the season and McCann's eyes started becoming a problem. This team just doesn't generate enough offense. 20th in batting average, 23rd in runs scored. 10th in ERA. Pretty shocking to see a Braves team 3rd in strikeouts right now.

RE: McCann, I'm surprised that they've gone through all this mess with contacts and glasses and stuff. Obviously his first doctor screwed up the Lasik somehow. Get another doctor to go in and re-do the procedure. I think it was only a week for me or so before I was allowed to engage in contact sports. Seems like the recovery time would be quick enough just to re-do the Lasik. Maybe the recovery time would be a little longer for a MLB catcher getting steamrolled by MLB players though.

 
Shocking that they're only 2.5 games out of first place. They started out so hot, and then just became downright awful when Chipper got his first injury of the season and McCann's eyes started becoming a problem. This team just doesn't generate enough offense. 20th in batting average, 23rd in runs scored. 10th in ERA. Pretty shocking to see a Braves team 3rd in strikeouts right now.

RE: McCann, I'm surprised that they've gone through all this mess with contacts and glasses and stuff. Obviously his first doctor screwed up the Lasik somehow. Get another doctor to go in and re-do the procedure. I think it was only a week for me or so before I was allowed to engage in contact sports. Seems like the recovery time would be quick enough just to re-do the Lasik. Maybe the recovery time would be a little longer for a MLB catcher getting steamrolled by MLB players though.
Yeah, I was surprised that the idea of re-doing the Lasik procedure was dropped so quickly. Initially, the reports were that he was planning on having the Lasik procedure re-done, and then the next news out was that he was trying the contacts and glasses. I wonder what the doctors said. It doesn't sound like McCann is all that comfortble wearing the glasses yet. Nonetheless, they are reporting that McCann is likely to be activated from the DL today and McCann says he is ready to start against Philly.http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20...sp&c_id=mlb

 
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We can't make contact right now and i think bringing in G.Anderson was a waste. I would move K.Johnson back out to LF and start Infante at 2nd and bat lead-off because he has provided quite a spark in the offense when he has been in the game. And i hope to see Hansen up mid-may i don't know how many more J-Reyes starts i can handle!

 
What is the buzz in Atlanta about the Tex trade now? I don't follow the NL at all, but jesus you guys got straight worked in that deal. Is it daily sports talk fodder at this point?

 
culdeus said:
What is the buzz in Atlanta about the Tex trade now? I don't follow the NL at all, but jesus you guys got straight worked in that deal. Is it daily sports talk fodder at this point?
How did they get worked? They were going to lose him in the offseason for nothing but some compensatory picks....Anything, even a bag of balls and fresh bats would have been a good trade.Casey Kotchman is at least a major league ballplayer.
 
culdeus said:
What is the buzz in Atlanta about the Tex trade now? I don't follow the NL at all, but jesus you guys got straight worked in that deal. Is it daily sports talk fodder at this point?
How did they get worked? They were going to lose him in the offseason for nothing but some compensatory picks....Anything, even a bag of balls and fresh bats would have been a good trade.Casey Kotchman is at least a major league ballplayer.
Not that trade. The trade where you gave up Salty, Andrus, Feliz, Harrison and Jones to get Tex.As a Ranger fan I thank baby Jesus everyday that the trade happened.
 
culdeus said:
What is the buzz in Atlanta about the Tex trade now? I don't follow the NL at all, but jesus you guys got straight worked in that deal. Is it daily sports talk fodder at this point?
How did they get worked? They were going to lose him in the offseason for nothing but some compensatory picks....Anything, even a bag of balls and fresh bats would have been a good trade.Casey Kotchman is at least a major league ballplayer.
Not that trade. The trade where you gave up Salty, Andrus, Feliz, Harrison and Jones to get Tex.As a Ranger fan I thank baby Jesus everyday that the trade happened.
Oh, oof...Ya Sometimes you sell the farm for a season and it doesnt work.
 
It looks like the Teixeira trade will definitely go down as being one of the worst trades in Braves history.

At the time, the trade was generally viewed as giving up Saltamacchia and Andrus for Teixeira, which I think was palatable to most Braves fans given Brian McCann's emergence at the catcher spot and the fact that we had decent SS talent in the system with Yunel Escobar and Brent Lillibridge. It was clear we were giving up a lot of our young talent, but it sure was nice having Chipper and Teixeira in the middle of that lineup for that year and a half.

However, the worst part of the deal in the end will likely be the pitchers that we gave up. Matt Harrison was regarded as possibly the top Braves pitching prospect at the time, but he had some significant shoulder problems and almost wasn't included in the deal because of the Rangers' concerns about his shoulder. Fast forward a couple years and he has now put together three great starts in a row for Texas at the age of 23 (3-0, 0.78 ERA, 0.70 WHIP, 15 K, 2 CGs). While Matt Harrison was regarded as one of the top pitching prospects in the Braves organization around the time the trade was made, Neftali Feliz wasn't generally regarded as an elite pitching prospect at the time of the deal (He was the 18th highest rated prospect in the Braves system in 2007). Feliz sort of emerged as an elite prospect in the year following the deal and is now regarded as a top 5 pitching prospect overall in baseball. It is going to be very hard watching those come up and succeed with the Rangers.

Unfortunately, the Teixeira rental didn't pay any dividends for the Braves and several of the prospects they let go have emerged and have at least shown signs of exceeding expectations when they were traded. It was definitely a deal that looks a lot worse in retrospect than at the time made.

 
BRAVES TO CALL UP KRIS MEDLEN, NOT TOMMY HANSON

ATLANTA -- Tommy Hanson remains that special prospect, whom the Braves will continue to nurture in the Minors until the opportunity arises for him to assume a lasting spot in the Atlanta rotation.

With that opportunity still a few weeks or months away, Hanson will remain with Triple-A Gwinnett and watch from afar as his good friend Kris Medlen gains the first crack to test his talented right arm in the Majors.

Having spent the past five weeks dominating the International League, Medlen will make his Major League debut against the Rockies at Turner Field on Tuesday night. The 23-year-old right-hander will be starting in place of Jo-Jo Reyes, who will now assume a spot in the Braves' bullpen.

"We're looking at a small window," general manager Frank Wren said. "I think if we were looking at the long haul and there was a situation for a starter to come up and be a starter for the rest of the season, then it would probably be Tommy [Hanson]."

Medlen will likely remain in the Atlanta rotation until Tom Glavine proves that his left shoulder is healthy enough for him to begin pitching in big league games. While Glavine has said that he'd like to make a start before this month is complete, the Braves, who will owe him a $1 million bonus when he's placed on the active roster, may be more comfortable putting him in the Atlanta rotation after June arrives.

With this timetable, Medlen, who leads the International League with a 0.96 ERA, could be provided the opportunity to make at least three Major League starts before having to return to the Minors. The Braves didn't want to put Hanson in a position where they might be forced to send him back to the Minors after providing him his first taste of the Majors.

Hanson, who is widely regarded as one of baseball's top right-handed pitching prospects, will take a 1.99 ERA into his start on Saturday for Gwinnett. In 40 2/3 innings, he has registered 57 strikeouts, issued 13 walks and limited opponents to a .186 batting average.

While those numbers are impressive, they've been bested by Medlen, who has won each of his five decisions and recorded 44 strikeouts while issuing 10 walks in 37 1/3 innings. The youthful-looking hurler has limited opponents to a .152 batting average.

"It was really about who is throwing the best, and in Kris' case, he hasn't had a bad outing," Wren said. "Every time he's gone out there, he keeps getting better."

Medlen will carry a streak of 19 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings into a one- or two-inning appearance following Hanson against Buffalo on Saturday night. The tuneup outing will prevent him from making his Major League debut with seven days of rest.

"He impressed us during Spring Training, and he's been lights-out up there with Gwinnett," Braves manager Bobby Cox said. "We're excited to see him pitch."

Reyes, who is 0-9 with a 6.58 ERA in his past 18 Major League starts, believes that he could benefit from this move to the bullpen. He'll now join Eric O'Flaherty as the club's two left-handed middle relievers.

"I believe there is a role for everybody in this world," Reyes said. "Who knows? This might be a blessing in disguise, and this might have been my calling from Day 1. I don't know. I guess we'll find out."
http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/news/article...sp&c_id=atl
 
I don't think they will call up Hansen until after the trade deadline because why call him up to just send him down 3 weeks later.

 
I don't think they will call up Hansen until after the trade deadline because why call him up to just send him down 3 weeks later.
Is this another one of those Matt Weiters kind of things where they don't want to bring him up and start his MLB clock too early? I understand why teams do it, but it ticks me off when teams don't field their best young players simply to save a few nickels.I've got Medlen, so I'm not tooooooo ticked off.
 
Great win for the Braves tonight coming back from a 5-0 deficit in the 8th to win it in the 12th.

Good to see Francoeur come up with a clutch big hit to tie the game in the bottom of the 9th.

 
Big time win....gotta string together a good streak now.

Have a tough stretch at the end of this month when they go Bos, NYY, Bos, Phi....OUCH

 
What an incredible day for the Braves!

I would have never guessed that the Braves would release Glavine, trade for McLouth, and call-up Hanson in the same day.

I love the way that McLouth will fit into the Braves lineup. I think he is exactly what the Braves needed. He will add a bit of much needed power in the outfield along with some speed to the top of the order, which the Braves previously lacked entirely. I imagine that he should be able to score a lot of runs at the top of the Braves lineup. I think it will be a real game-changing move for the Braves.

I know this is probably just the words of an over-excited Braves fan at the moment, but I think that these two moves really put the Braves in place to contend for NL this year. If Hanson can pitch anywhere close to his potential, the Braves should have a very solid staff in place with an improved run-scoring offense. I think the addition of McLouth really changes that lineup.

 
I'm not sure that trading Francoeur for Penny really upgrades the team that much. Jeff is incredibly streaky and hasn't really met his expectations, but I don't think that pitching is really the chief concern for this team. They have a lot of trouble consistently scoring runs. I don't think that Penny is enough of a pitching upgrade to justify the trade.

 
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4234548

Brad Penny for Jeff Francuer in the works...

Not sure I like it, but Franky is one of my favorite players....so I am biased.
I read that article the other day, and I think it was pretty misleading. They simply speculated that the Braves were interested in Penny at the same time that the Red Sox had been scouting Francoeur. They didn't state that the Braves were considering a Francoeur for Penny deal, although it was implied from the way the article was written.It would make no sense for the Braves to get rid of Francoeur without getting an MLB-ready bat in return given their already weak outfield. Everything I have heard about the Braves is that they are looking to bolster their offense in a trade, not get rid of an outfielder for a pitcher.

I imagine that if the Braves wanted Penny, they could give up less than Francoeur to get him. I highly doubt that the Braves trade Francoeur without having an MLB-ready outfield bat in return. I guess we'll see.

 
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This 3 week stretch will determine if they are in the race or out of the race...

6 vs Philly

7 vs Florida

2 vs Washington

3 vs Mets

3 vs SD

1 vs Arizona

So they have some weak teams in there....But they probably have to win 8-9 of those 14 against the Marlins and Phillies.

I have been scoreboard watching for a week now. I thought it was over when they blew game 1 against the dodgers in heartbreaking fashion...But they took the next 3. Hopefully they continue to win series and they will be just fine.

 
As a matter of fact, they have 9 remaining vs Phillies and 10 vs Florida. 19 of 50 against those two teams.

7 of last 10 vs the Nationals...who stink...but Braves always struggle against them.

Hudson and Smoltz will both be on the roster shortly...in middle relief.

We have to get more production out of corner outfielders.

 
Also of note is that the Braves play 12 of their next 15 games at home (v. Was, Phi, Ari, Fla, SD).

Meanwhile, the Phillies plays 13 of their next 16 games on the road (@ ChC, Atl, NYM, Pit).

This is really their time to make a move in the division. The Braves have to play well home while hoping that the Phillies don't keep up their success on the road. Strangely enough, the Phillies are only playing .500 ball at home, but are 32-19 on the road this season.

 
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Braves MUST win 2 out of 3.

Pitching matchups look decent for Atlanta:

Blanton vs Jurrjens

TBD vs Kawakami

Happ vs Vazquez

Of course, Philly's record on the road is better than at home and they are hot again.

 
Still playing good ball....Have 3 at home vs SD coming up. Should win at least 2 of 3.

Then its @Phi and @Fla....go time.

 
After winning 14 of their last 16 games, the Braves are 2.5 games out of the wild card with 7 games to play, all of which are at home and all of which look like very winnable games.

Here is the Braves' remaining schedule:

Braves v. Marlins (Jair Jurrjens v. Anibal Sanchez)

Braves v. Marlins (Tim Hudson v. Rick VandenHurk)

Braves v. Marlins (Javier Vazquez v. Ricky Nolasco)

Braves v. Nationals (Tommy Hanson v. Garrett Mock)

Braves v. Nationals (Derek Lowe v. Livan Hernandez)

Braves v. Nationals (Jair Jurrjens v. Ross Detwiler)

Braves v. Nationals (Hudson/Vazquez v. J.D. Martin)

The Rockies have 6 games left to play, 3 at home against Brewers and 3 on the road against the Dodgers.

Rockies v. Brewers (Jason Marquis v. Chris Narveson)

Rockies v. Brewers (Jason Hammel v. Jeff Suppan)

Rockies v. Brewers (Aaron Cook v. Manny Parra)

Rockies @ Dodgers (Ubaldo Jimenez v. Randy Wolf)

Rockies @ Dodgers (Jorge De La Rosa v. Clayton Kershaw)

Rockies @ Dodgers (Jason Marquis v. Hiroki Kuroda)

Of course, the Dodgers may have clinched the division title by the time that the Rockies play them, so it will be interesting to see how they handle that last series.

Anyone think the Braves can pull out this amazing run?

 
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I am the eternal optimist. Of course I think they can do it.

I thought they were dead to rights when they lost 2 of 3 from the Marlins and got swept by the Reds.

But this is amazing right now. Been sweating out the Rocky games deep into the night for a month now.

 
I am the eternal optimist. Of course I think they can do it.I thought they were dead to rights when they lost 2 of 3 from the Marlins and got swept by the Reds.But this is amazing right now. Been sweating out the Rocky games deep into the night for a month now.
I thought they were done after that Reds sweep as well. This run has been spectacular. You can't ask for much more than ending the season with a 4-game series at home against the Nationals.
 
Pulling for them even tho I shouldn't. Yesterday I heard Buster Olney say they might be favorites to win the NL if the season was a couple weeks longer.

 
crewmember said:
Pulling for them even tho I shouldn't. Yesterday I heard Buster Olney say they might be favorites to win the NL if the season was a couple weeks longer.
Their Pitching Staff is unbelievable.LoweVazquezHudsonHansonJurjennsHow it took this long to start playing like this is beyond me. They shoulda easily made the playoffs with a staff like that.
 
crewmember said:
Pulling for them even tho I shouldn't. Yesterday I heard Buster Olney say they might be favorites to win the NL if the season was a couple weeks longer.
Their Pitching Staff is unbelievable.LoweVazquezHudsonHansonJurjennsHow it took this long to start playing like this is beyond me. They shoulda easily made the playoffs with a staff like that.
Can you imagine if the Braves had begun the season with Hanson in the rotation? Of course, they wouldn't have been able to delay his Super Two arbitration status, but that could have certainly been the difference in a few wins over the course of the season.
 
Could the schedule maker Gods have blessed the Braves any better. Finish up with the Fish and Wash. I don't see them losing another game for the rest of the regular season.

 
Now the big question: Does ownership let them spend some money to go for it in Bobby's last year? How good would that be?

-- Decide what you are going to do at 3b. Chipper staying or upgrade needed?

-- If upgrade, Chipper to 1b or gone?

-- If not, resign LaRoche.

-- Get Heyward up there fast for one of the LF/RF openings.

-- Sign / trade for a good hitting OF to replace Church.

-- Sign / trade for a good hitting 2b. I hear rumors of Uggla.

-- Trade the 6th starter for a bonafide closer? I would only trade Kawakami, Lowe, or Hudson, though.

-- Get Greg Norton and Manny Acosta as far away from Georgia as possible.

-- Extend O'Flaherty and Moylan to make sure we have them 2-3 more years.

-- Replace Pendleton.

 
I wonder if the Braves can be players for Matt Holliday. He is just the type of bat they need.

They have fantastic pitching, they just need a little more hitting. If they aren't able to spend the money to get Holliday, they could sign some solid players to 1 year deals that could help them.

Hansen is a beast.

 
Now the big question: Does ownership let them spend some money to go for it in Bobby's last year? How good would that be?-- Decide what you are going to do at 3b. Chipper staying or upgrade needed?-- If upgrade, Chipper to 1b or gone?-- If not, resign LaRoche.-- Get Heyward up there fast for one of the LF/RF openings.-- Sign / trade for a good hitting OF to replace Church.-- Sign / trade for a good hitting 2b. I hear rumors of Uggla.-- Trade the 6th starter for a bonafide closer? I would only trade Kawakami, Lowe, or Hudson, though.-- Get Greg Norton and Manny Acosta as far away from Georgia as possible.-- Extend O'Flaherty and Moylan to make sure we have them 2-3 more years.-- Replace Pendleton.
Placido Polanco would be a solid option at second.And I think Soriano is more than fine as a closer.
 
Replace Pendelton.

I heard the Texas Hitting Coach left Texas....is he retiring or what? Isnt he like the best hitting coach in the league?

I sure hope Chipper doesnt go anywhere.

Would agree that we need another hitter. Holiday is gonna be too expensive I think.

 

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