Don't you have a Kane DVD to watch or something.... jerk.... And I'm not a hater, I like the Braves, just not you.
Any chance of you guys pursuing Garret Anderson now that Griffey decided to return to Seattle? I'd rather have GA at this point if I were you guys anyway, but I suppose that's a debatable.
during the Griffey negotiations, i read that Anderson was a fallback option. but thee is an articel on the Braves web page today that leads me to believe they may allow the young guys every opporunity to earn the right to be the guy to split time with Diaz in LF, and if that doesn't seem to be working out, look to make a trade at that point.
From what I've been reading, Jordan Schafer may be making a big push to be the starting centerfielder on opening day. The guy can flat out play ball, and he's a baseball rat. Defensively, he was ready two years ago. Despite his drop in average and increase in strike outs last season, he actually improved as a hitter. I would like to see him cut down on the strike outs, but he hit home runs at a higher rate last season than he did in the previous season where there is a question of HGH use. He also had a higher walk rate and roughly the same OPS. If Jordan starts the season at Gwinnett, I have no trouble with Josh Anderson playing in centerfield until Jordan is ready. It's a small sample size, but Josh did hit .300 last year and showed good skills on the basepaths. I think he's a better option than Gregor Blanco. Josh doesn't have pop, but Gregor is a .250 hitter with no pop. We will see what Brandon Jones has this spring. He fought an injury all last season. I saw him play at Mississippi though, and the guy has one of the sweetest swings you will see on a baseball player, and he has a cannon for an arm in the outfield. EDIT: I forgot that Atlanta's AAA team is now in Gwinnett, not in Richmond.
Plan B has been signed (maybe); a "source" with MLB says the Braves signed Garrett Anderson for one year, $2 mill guaranteed. http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/news/...t_id=3865664&vkey=news_atl&fext=.jsp&c_id=atl
It's done. Good signing at a pretty cheap price. Hopefully he can produce like he has in past years with the Angels.
On GA, or Kotchman? If it's GA I think it's just because we've watched him be productive for so long, and he's such a good guy it's hard to not root for him. His defense will annoy you because his range just isnt what it needs to be, but he still has stretches where he's a very productive hitter. .300/15/75+ isnt a bad fall back option from Griffey. GA isnt great but he's still productive. Angels fans still want to root for him so him going to the Braves is much better for us than the Mariners. Hope he works out for you guys. If not he was cheap and you fall back on one of your young guys, which you would have had to do once Griffey got injured anyway.
Just from having GA on my fantasy team over the course of the last few years, hes a good player but he will drive you mad. He'll be cold for 2 weeks, hot for a week, cold for a week, Left nipple sprain/15 day DL, come back piping hot, go cold, toe jam/15 day dl, come back cold, have a 5/5, get hbp and be day to day etc. He's maddening to have around from my experience.
Yeah, I wouldnt want him on my fantasy team lol. But over the course of a season he's still a productive enough player, especially if he's platooning some w/ Matt Diaz. Maybe it'll help him avoid the left nipple sprains that have been plaguing him
thanks for the info don. Yes I was asking about ga, as I had noticed on most articles angel fans were telling the brave fans they got a good player blah blah, so I was just wondering why the dedication. Thanks again. Heres an article I read, pretty interesting about a young prospect, tommy hanson: link
There was an article about him in the sports page today. Exciting prospect. Chipper was talking him up a lot, saying they should go to a six man rotation if that's what it takes to get him playing time in Atlanta sooner rather than later. They're speculating that we'll see him sometime this season in the big leagues. They say he has a slider like Smoltz.
Hanson's getting a lot of talk around Braves camp amongst the coaches, players, media, and fans. I can't wait to see him in action. He's scheduled to pitch on Thursday against the Tigers for a few innings after Jorge Campillo. That game is on ESPN by the way
Baseball America released their list of top 100 prospects today, he's 4 behind Matt Wieters, David Price and Colby Rasmus. Have OF Heyward at 5 too, btw.
I can't wait to see Heyward. I can honestly say Ive never been this excited about a Braves prospect. Tommy Hanson has legit #1 stuff. I don't see any way he's not in the rotation this year. Too bad Hudson will be out most of the year as that rotation would look pretty damn formidable.
Just read that my man Charlie Morton might be hurt already, hopefully it's nothing serious. I doubt he could make the team as a starter with the depth the Braves have right now in the majors and minors but I'm sure he'd be helpful out of the pen.
Probably. I really don't think his future is in the rotation anyway, I think he'd be more effective coming out of the pen for an inning at a time. Either way I'd rooting hard to him to make it big for obvious reasons.
He strained a muscle in his side. It isn't supposed to be serious and will probably miss a few weeks. Too bad because Cox was saying how well he was throwing in bullpen sessions.
Yeah I saw that, unfortunately him missing a few week will probably hurt his chances making the team. Hopefully he stays rested and doesn't push it and have it bug him throughout the year.
I get criticized on Braves boards for having this view, but I believe Roger McDowell needs to be re-evaluated as the Braves pitching coach. Atlanta has had A LOT more pitcher injuries since Roger has been the pitching coach than they ever had with Leo Mazzone. I think it could be related to the difference in their off day throwing routines. I also don't believe that Roger does a good job of coaching up his pitchers of having them make mechanical adjustments. In other news, Jordan Schafer is off to a good start. He hit a home run, stole a base, and showed his defensive prowess in centerfield today. The guy is a great ball player, and it is going to be tough to keep him out of the line up on opening day. The kid has Grady Sizemore potential, IMO.
I think you nailed it with what I bolded. There's a reason Leo could take average pitchers and make them great. Pitching is about the "long haul". All of these guys have great stuff, it's how you prepare between starts that either make or break you. In Rogers defense, it's no easy task following the greatest pitching coach in the history of Major League Baseball.
so how did it look today, those who watched? i read the recap on the Braves home page. anything stand out, positive or negative?
Tommy Hanson has work to do, but you can see that his stuff is nasty. The hitters came alive late in the game, mostly the backups and young kids. Jeff Francoeur has a different stance, and his swing looks much better this year. Mike Gonzalez was very rusty. That's it as far as anything worth reporting.
Jeff's swing looks much better, and he looks much more limber and fluid at the plate than he did last year. I don't want to rush the kid, but Jason Heyward is going to be a great ball player. That was some great base running by him today. I think this kid is well beyond his years with his baseball IQ.
On one at bat he did He said it's a work in progress. His swing looks much, much smoother now though.
Kawakami was brilliant today. Lots of strikes. Chipper and Norton hit homers, and Francoeur had 2 walks.
Hey little by little, baby steps man. I second that. It must be nice being Rocky, getting to wake up at 1pm to watch spring training games and after they're over put on his lucky hat and pick up chicks.
