Skidding Lowe at Coors (cover eyes?)

DOB, I’d like your thoughts on a guy like Luke Scott of the Orioles.

Nice blog!

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I thought Hanson was pitching tonight… Did I miss something?

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BHC, maybe DOB is a little more sleep deprived than even he realizes?

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Braves.com says Hanson. I’m also confused.

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I bet Lowe doesnt give up a hit tonight!

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Many thought it was a great thing when Pendleton stormed off the field like an immature 13 year old when Marvin Freeman wouldn’t hit a batter. I sort of thought so myself at the time. In hindsight though, I look at that incident as the kind of stubborn immaturity that possibly impedes his ability to effectively communicate and work with the hitters under his tutelage.

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Speaing of the Scowl (cool nickname, btw), you don’t hear too many quotes from him. How is he in the clubhouse? Does he even speak English?

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Please do not be mentioning Lowe and unhittable in the same sentence until Mr Lowe turns it around pleaaaaaaasssssssseeee

Some of us do believe in god and are superstitious !

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Random thought, I think the Cardinals are the team where Halliday is traded. He fits their mold and would thrive there.

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What did I do to offend this thing so that it will not refresh when I tell it to?

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DOB, do try to find a way to get such info out of Cox. I think we’re all befuddled as to why Francoeur continues to play.

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So does that mean we’ll get a Hanson blog tomorrow about tonight’s start??

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Lowe’s recent decline is what scares me to death on trading Vazquez.

I wouldn’t trade Vazquez even if Lowe were doing well, I sure as Hell wouldn’t now.

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Thought I was gonna have a bad night when he wrote Lowe was starting tonight. Need to win the first game and Hanson is perfect for this. Lowe goes tomorrow night, so hopefully that’ll be the only loss of the series.

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no work tonight… i will be blogging away during the game
anyone see the poll results for the who would you trade question lol. 75 percent over 6000 votes for french. its pretty clear. hope he does read the blogs so he can request a trade….

what up mcfann, i would really like to see mac go yard tonight to help my fantasy teams, got him on both… work your magic!!

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Frank from KS, you’re right, but not because of the reason you think. Lowe is going to be incredibly hard to move over the next 3 years with his contract.

That was just a bad contract to give him, and we’re going to be regretting it over the next little while, as Lowe gets older, and these numbers become more the norm.

I would love to see Lowe moved, but it’s never going to happen now.

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Speaking of feel-good stories, I’ve been pretty impressed with Brooks Conrad so far. He does not appear intimidated by big-league pitching, and I love his effort. Hope he stays around awhile.

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flange1:

You are correct that Halliday is a good fit for the Cardinals. The problem is that I heard they tapped out their payroll when they added DeRo a couple weeks ago.

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TnBrian

What? No faith, my man?

I’ll laugh hard if Lowe goes tomorrow and wins…4-2.

altho given that the offense is so spitter/spatter this year,……4 runs would be a stretch.

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DOB:

What is your gut feeling on Norton? Do you think he will be DFA or will the Braves be willing to drop someone else to AAA to make room for him?

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The Bird and Indian Ahh yes everything always goes back to Victorino! haha

Of course! He had 20 homers at the time of the “incident” in 344 AB–1 per 17.2 AB. Since then? 11 homers in 392 AB–1 per 35.64 AB.

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DAP geez…blag? oh well.

Don’t you hate it when that happens? And we can’t go back and edit like DOB…

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DOB New apartment. No more Lawrenceville.

Dangit…what’s wrong with Lawrenceville?

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Victorino was formerly a Juiceorino I’d bet.

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McFann: Wow that’s a pretty serious decline. That dang Flyin’ Hawaiian.

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The Bird and Indian,DOB is not sarcastic,he is just very polite.

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Another random question:

Is the new DBT live a CD and a DVD?

Rene, I know they said that, but when the chance comes for a guy like Halliday, they might find the money!!!

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Adam Dunn,

How does it feel now that the Nats GM has publically said that you are NOT going to be traded? Will you be enjoying the rest of your time in baseball purgatory or what?

Keith Law on 680thefan with John Kincade today in the 3 o’clock hour told it like it is. Braves have a very SLIM chance this season, but if we don’t trade any of our prospects, and instead maybe make a deal to acquire more top notch talent (let’s say we deal a Javy and Gonzo for top tier minor league talent), Braves will have the best minor league system in the NL East.

I’ve been saying we are “rebuilding” more or less until 2011, and Keith Law said the same thing.

Meanwhile, as much as the Phillies want Roy Halladay, Keith Law said that it probably won’t happen, but then you never know. It’s unlikely Roy wants to pitch half his games in a bandbox ballpark. Even if the Phillies do trade for him, they only get a “Mark Texiera” like return. He’ll hit the FA market after the 2010 season and be the highest (at that time) sought after pitcher.

DOB,

The Scowl and the Cobra? It’s a cautionary tale:)

Hanson better be on tonight. Braves don’t fare well against Aaron Cooke.

Paul Lentz,

Give me odds of Jeff in the lineup instead of Matty Diaz. (Waits for it, this should be fun!)

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Up until about a week ago, I was in favor of making a trade to improve our offensive woes. However with the emergence of Martin Prado playing second and Matt Diaz starting to heat up……..I feel that we MAY NOT NEED to make a trade.

1. With Omar Infante coming back after the All-Star Break, inserting him in right field would DRASTICALLY improve the offensive production from the right field position. While Infante will never be a 30 homer a year kind of guy…..he is a .300 hitter who can hit a lot of doubles. He doesnt strike out a lot and Bobby can use him to hit and run.

2. With Infante being inserted in right……..that would allow Bobby to stick with the Garret/Diaz platoon in left.

3. Moving Tim Hudson to the bullpen to pitch in short relief when he comes back (just for the rest of this year) would make the Braves short relief corps EVEN STRONGER. Tim Hudson has the mentality and stuff to pitch in short relief. Hudson could be used to get a 2 inning save on nights that Soriano and Gonzalez need to rest. That would allow the Braves to not worry about overworking Soriano and Gonzalez. Just imagine how POWERFUL the Braves bullpen would be if Soriano and Gonzalez could close out one game…….while Hudson comes in to close the next game? Or if Soriano and Gonzalez are coming off back to back appearances and the Braves need a 2 inning save, then they can turn to Tim Hudson?

There is no question that Tim Hudson is a better starter than Kawakami. However if Kawakami is sent to the bullpen, then he becomes virtually useless. He’ll end up pitching as much as Kris Medlen (because the Braves starters consistently go 6-7 innings every night). Having Hudson pitch in short relief would allow the Braves to get production from Kawakami while improving our short relief corps without having to make a trade.

If the Braves cant make the trade for a slugger to play right and bat clean-up……then why not make MAXIMUM use of the players that we do have? If Francoeur was benched, then that would allow Bobby to insert Infante in right, thus improving the offense. Late in games, Bobby could insert Francoeur in right while Infante moves over to left.

On days that Chipper need a rest, if a right hander is on the mound, Prado can move to 3rd while Conrad plays second. If a left hander is pitching, then Prado can play 3rd, Infante 2nd, and Francoeur can play right field on days that Chipper needs to rest. Diaz/Garret will play depending on the pitching match-up.

The point is that Infante and Prado being able to play multiple positions would give the Braves great flexibility. While this line-up will not hit a lot of homers, it can hit a lot of doubles for a decent average.

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Thanks DOB its good to get razzed on every once in a while. Made my day.

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I’m sure Francouer will start all 4 games in Coors for defensive purposes. Which is not too bad a reason, actually. Personally I’d like to see Diaz start all 4 games and sort of platoon GA and JF by playing one or the other each night and moving Diaz from LF to RF as needed and bringing in JF for defense late if he doesn’t start and we are leading. GA and Diaz together in the wide expanses may be a recipe for disaster on defense though…

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Beekay-

If Kelly comes back in the 2nd half as the starting 2b, the Braves may as well get their offseason plans in order as of August 1st…

Also, DeJesus for Francoeur?! What exactly does that accomplish?! The one and only player I would be talking to the Royals about would be Mark Teahen…thats it!

Finally, does anyone really believe that at this point either the Braves or Marlins would really consider trading with each other, especially if it involves either team making the other better? I certainly do not! That being said, Mike Gonzalez should and would fetch more than just a Cody Ross..

I myself believe that Mike could be our most flexible trade chip in that we could very well lose him, get better by adding a bat for him, and not lose a step…I myself would like to see Medlen moved into that 8th inning role…even though he’s a rookie, I believe he’s got the stuff to get it done and get the ball to Sori.

How about sending Gonzo to Toronto for Alex Rios?

Paul Lentz-

And exactly what you said there is proof on why Bobby needs to go if he needs to DL a guy before he realizes just how bad he sucks!

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Yes, the new DBT is a CD and a DVD. Iit’s their recent performance on Austin City Limits.

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supesI’ve been saying we are “rebuilding” more or less until 2011, and Keith Law said the same thing.

youre both wrong. the actions of our GM this offseason dont communicate rebuilding to me. hoping to win in 2011? yes. rebuilding towards 2011? no.

if that was the case derek lowe does not get signed, kawakami doesnt get signed, chipper probably doesnt get extended, vazquez is not traded for.

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Hanson’s gonna get shelled tonight!

I need to go. Gotta stuff my Frenchy voodoo doll. There a jack-azz pasture right up the road.

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18 Wheels, Is it mostly new stuff? Old stuff? Both? (talking about the Live DBT record). By the way, I do like Patterson’s record.

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Paul Lentz, whatever. Yeah, I’ve turned agaist Lowe some recently because he’s pitching like crap and is costing us games. Heck, his last few outings he didn’t give the team a chance to even think about coming back. I’m glad they got him too, but that doesn’t mean I’m a “bandwagon” type fan, it just means I can speak my dang mind when Mr.$15M man stinks. Call me what you want, but I know what kinda fan I am.

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DOB: If you ask Bobby why he’s starting Jeff (if in fact he is), he is probably not going to give you a straight answer so I’ll try. Jeff is much better defensively than Matt, better range, stronger arm so runners if they get early hits won’t get extra bases. And, midway or later in the game, if a crucial hitting situation arises, he can pinchhit Matt at that time….and he also has Matt on the bench to pinchhit in other situations as well (instead of Francouer). Not to mention, Francouer might get lucky hitting in an early inning of no consequence. It is also more difficult to trade a bench player than a starter. How’s that? I can already hear the bloggers screaming!

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Paul Lentz, I don’t care if he does turn it around. At this point, we’re paying the guy $15MM per year for about a .500 pitcher who hasn’t pitched well away from home, and is getting surpassed as Ace on the staff by a rookie.

It’s going to be a cumbersome contract. I didn’t like it when it was signed, and I really don’t like it now.

He is what he is, and that’s not an Ace, yet he’s getting paid Ace money.

Oh well, I’ll cheer for him as much as the next Braves fan, and I hope he does prove me wrong. I’m just not convinced at this point in his career he’s going to turn out to be much more than what he is. An aging veteran arm that we overpaid for.

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P-Town Brave,

The Blue Jays are selling, not buying, so the Gonzo-for-Rios proposal doesn’t add up. They don’t want a two-month rental IMO, unless Ricciardi is going all Billy Beane on us and plans to stockpile draft picks.

Teahen may be more valuable than DeJesus, but unless Dayton Moore is totally mesmerized by Francoeur, you’ll need to send the Royals something more than Francoeur to get Teahen. On the other hand, you might be able to get DeJesus for Francoeur straight up. And that deal would improve the Braves.

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You could be right about Lowe, garlick.

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PAul Lentz

“Lowe will be fine”

At some point I’m sure he will, in the mean time his outings have overworked our pen and been sure losses because the team gets down by 5-6 before the 4th inning. How long do we keep saying he’ll be alright? The good thing for him is we have a boatload of money tied up in him so I suppose we’ll sink or swim with him. And ever patient BC is his coach instead of Lou Pinella. It’s a shame he isn’t performing well or other teams might be willing to take on his contract for a stretch run.

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Nova Scotia Steve I think the All-Star break is going to be great for Chipper, Gonzo and I think McCann may need it as well…but hey he’s our lone rep…So Go McCann…

I’m with you there.

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P-Town Brave……….I agree with Piedmont Blues (ex-BFIR)’s posting about the Jays not being interested in a 2 month rental. Sure, the Jays would be open to getting rid of Rio’s contract. I also feel that he is a decent power hitter. However, with Jason Heyward on the fast track to the Majors………I just dont see Frank Wren trading for a guy who is scheduled to make $14 in 2014.

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Heyward was named #1 on Baseball America’s Top 25 midseason prospects. Freeman was 11.

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For anyone who is complaining Soriano isnt in St Louis next week, Im thrilled! He has been overworked and he could use the 3 days off for the playoff push.

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For those saying get rid of Javy while his trade value is high. Do you realize what you are saying? Get rid of your best pitcher! Would you be happy if we traded McCann, after all he is our best young player and I’m sure his trade value is really sky high! Yeh, that makes sense.

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monty………….Lowe has had only three starts all year where he got yanked before the 6th inning (and one of those was during a rain delay early in the season against Washington). So I’m not sure what you mean by Lowe “taxing” our bullpen.

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Paul, yes, I agree with you that Lowe will eventually be ok. Kinda ranted on with the same thing you said you weren’t arguing with me on.

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Supes why would you build for 2011 and not 2010 like I have said. We will have the best rotation, and will have over 20 million coming off the books, with Soriano 6 mil, Gonzo 3 mil, Francouer 3+mil, and assuming Hudson(13) or Vazquez(11) wont be here. Dont know which one. We will have McLouth for a full season. Schafer may be better, plus Heyward will probably be called up sometime next season and maybe Freeman.

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Heath (Cleveland),

I’m not so sure. I think Hanson will pitch a solid game and hold the Rockies offense in check and I think the Braves offense will hold itself in check and hand Aaron Cook an easy win.

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Outside of Matt Diaz being horrible on Friday night he had two more HORRIBLE at bats in the rest of the series. 1) Leaving a key run at 3rd when the Braves had bases loaded and 1 out. Matt, per usual, swung at a ball in his eyes. 2) When call upon to bunt on Tuesday in a key spot and popped up. Somebody ought to tell Matt that you cant bunt a ball that is shoulder high.

While Diaz has been more “hot” of late than Francouer I think it should be noted that Diaz is barely a cut above. He is nearly as undisciplined in his strike zone (a better bad ball hitter if you will), strikes out way to often, usually in predictable fashion, and is really nothing more than a “guess” hitter who is on a hot streak.

Good hitters dont have the kind of consistent AB’s Diaz has shown. Diaz is a good 5th OF. Not a starter on a “good team”. I would play Jeff F.—we need to hope he can find whatever is lost….there is more upside there than with Diaz.

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Paul Lentz I thought the same thing about haveing Hudson come back in the bullpen for the rest of the season.

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If Francoeur ain’t in the lineup and Chipper is in the lineup, I’m gonna be furious and I’m gonna…well, I’m gonna call Bobby Cox, “Booby Donk”

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Check this out peoples. Magglio may not get the at bats he needs to get the 18 mil contract for next year. Do we sign him in the offseason as a stopgag for Heyward or full time replacement for Frenchy? What do you guys/gals think?

Rios is one of the worst contracts out there. I hope we dont get him. I also hope we keep Javy and move Hudson to the bullpen. Any possibility he can close for us next year if we lose Gonzo and Scowl?

Luke Scott seems like a reasonable fit this year, if we even do anything based on his salary and the O’s crowded outfield of talent.

DOB, You a fan of MGMT? Been listening to them a lot lately and enjoying their unique style. I haven’t heard many others out there like them.

Here’s to hoping Tommy the Gunn shuts down the Rox.

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Roman Gal – thanks for the Rob neyer article. I agree he is normally a do-do head (?) as well but I love that 1995 Maddux stat shown

Whip = 0.81 and wait for it 23 BB in a season…. Ollie Perez considers 23 BB a 5 start effort

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A Wren being eaten by other birds- McFann,you are cruel!

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Robert (Chipper Is The Best) ,

YOU SIR ARE A POMPOUS A$$

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Well, Jeff’s seein’ the ball real good right now and he’s gettin’ some good swings in. He just needs some breaks that will be comin’ his way real soon and he’ll get on a roll and he’ll get it all figured out. We’ll just keep playin’ him and I know he’ll come around and it will all even out. He’s just been gettin’ some bad breaks but I like the way he keeps tryin’ as hard as he can. So we’ll leave him in there for his great defense, if nothin’ else.

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FIRE DOB!!

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groundfog – yes, Is an OPS > 800 considered greater and better than an OPS = 620 something

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DOB: Welcome to Denver! Any favorite spots you hit when you are in town? Elway’s downtown maybe? Best prime rib I’ve ever had…

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Paul Lentz:

Thats a nice stat you found, You care to show that to Bobby Cox?

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Baseball America Mid-season Top 50 Prospects

1. Jason Heyward, of, Braves
2. Mike Stanton, of, Marlins
3. Jesus Montero, c, Yankees
4. Justin Smoak, 1b, Rangers
5. Madison Bumgarner, lhp, Giants
6. Buster Posey, c, Giants
7. Carlos Santana, c, Indians
8. Chris Tillman, rhp, Orioles
9. Brian Matusz, lhp, Orioles
10. Logan Morrison, 1b, Marlins
11. Freddie Freeman, 1b, Braves
12. Jarrod Parker, rhp, Diamondbacks
13. Neftali Feliz, rhp, Rangers
14. Alcides Escobar, ss, Brewers
15. Yonder Alonso, 1b, Reds
16. Wade Davis, rhp, Rays
17. Dominic Brown, of, Phillies
18. Desmond Jennings, of, Rays
19. Jason Castro, c, Astros
20. Tim Beckham, ss, Rays
21. Brett Wallace, 3b, Cardinals
22. Matt LaPorta, 1b/of, Indians
23. Michael Taylor, of, Phillies
24. Kyle Drabek, rhp, Phillies
25. Michael Saunders, of, Mariners

The Next 25: Tim Alderson, rhp, Giants; Pedro Alvarez, 3b, Pirates; Lars Anderson, 1b, Red Sox; Jake Arrieta, rhp, Orioles; Jhoulys Chacin, rhp, Rockies; Lonnie Chisenhall, 3b, Indians; Christian Friedrich, lhp, Rockies; Jeremy Hellickson, rhp, Rays; Aaron Hicks, of, Twins; Brad Holt, rhp, Mets; Eric Hosmer, 1b, Royals; Austin Jackson, of, Yankees; Casey Kelly, rhp/ss, Red Sox; Jason Knapp, rhp, Phillies; Mat Latos, rhp, Padres; Jordan Lyles, rhp, Astros; Jennry Mejia, rhp, Mets; Matt Moore, lhp, Rays; Mike Moustakas, 3b, Royals; Derek Norris, c, Nationals; Martin Perez, lhp, Rangers; Ben Revere, of, Twins; Esmil Rogers, rhp, Rockies; Josh Vitters, 3b, Cubs; Nick Weglarz, of, Indians.

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Eric from MO………..a number of these MORONS refuse to think about the LOGIC of their trade proposals. You should have heard the number of posters who proposed their “Kelly Johnson, Jeff Francouer, & Jo Jo Reyes to Washington for Adam Dunn” trades the past month. Many of these MORONS feel that another team is going to take our “garbage” for their “filet mignon”.

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Braves have the best record in the NL in the past 10 games at 7-3. Out of the 16 teams in the NL, with our current hot streak, we now have a better record than 5 teams!! Nationals, Mets, Pirates, Padres and Diamondbacks all have worse records than our Bravos!!! We now rank 11th best in the NL Take that haters!

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so DOB – any ideas on how to ask Bobby why Francoeur is starting instead of Matt?

I cannot think of any creative ways. It would be intersting to know who Bobby considers the starter in RF and who the reserve is right now..

I think you made a good point yesterday Dave about Francoeur needing to play to try and salvage some trade value since he cannot do this on the bench.

How about asking Cox if anyone has approached francoeur about another stretch in the minors to work on his swing? He could hang out with his buddy Kelly Johnson (whom I have heard also has a very hot wife)

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Release Francoeur.

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I know much – send me your address. If your hero, Frenchy, hits a ball hard tonight anywhere near an OF wall (I don’t care if it is an out or even a long pop up that is fluffed ) and I will send you a signed jersey and picture of said player !

The best shorts are those at their lowest lows ever, they just go to zero

We thought Frenchy could not be worse than 2008 and he is, can he get his OPS <<< 600, let us all hope so because that then becomes the stopout…. not even a “MORON” could see upside thereafter…………

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Harold Reynolds once said: “Dick Williams is pulling his hair out.”
I changed the sentence to say: “PWHjort is pulling his hair out” after I saw that line-up. Best sentence Harold Reynolds and I have ever co-written.

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Something (like sewage, only worse) must be leaking into the blog…I’m getting an urge to put an all-caps “MORONS” in every post.

Maybe there’s a vaccine.

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“DOB, are you on the record as the beat writer stating that you think Francouer should be benched in favor of Diaz as the everyday RF?

If so, why? And please dont send me stats that cover the past week or month. Please talk in the bigger picture about the Braves and the second half of the season.

Also, please give me your predicted batting average and HR if Diaz plays every day in RF for the rest of the year.

Thanks.

PS: I think its lame that a beat writer, not a columnist, etc., is making a statement like the one you made to me….lacks credibility.” (I know much)

/waits for a hilarious response.

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DOB, just start any uncomfortable line of questioning with “Bobby, my readers really want to know…”

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David O’Brien………..I’ve been saying the same thing that your posting at 5:20pm says about Derek Lowe turning it around. It’s just that a number of these so called “Braves fans” are very fickle when it comes to how they feel about a player. Some of these fickle fans cant look at a player’s whole body of work when determining if someone sucks or can actually play.

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Guys it’s not as easy a decision as some of you think. Frenchy is twice the outfielder Matty is and that outfield is huge. Matty would have to have a huge game at the plate to make it even out. That being said I would have started Matty

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DOB I agree he wont turn it around here. Colorado isnt a place when your pitching good, that you can count on your sinker getting down but he will sometime in the 2nd half. I bet anyone he finishes with a 3.5-3.6 ERA which is pretty good when considering where it is now.

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DOB, just start any uncomfortable line of questioning with “Bobby, my readers really want to know…”

…to which any right-thinking baseball person would respond, “**** ‘em.”

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Conrad is a gritty Pete Orr.

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A .240 batting average and 16 homers in his past 899 at-bats. What more needs to be said about how much Francoeur SUCKS as a hitter.

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hows firing DOB going to make this bunch of wanta-be MLB players do better?
Hes just the leader of this band of type,fart, and response bloggers.

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DOB needs to ask Cox, “Did you order the Code Frenchy?” To which Cox will respond, “You’re goddamnright I did!”

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Jerry……….Didnt you mean that Jeff Francoeur “sucks twice as much” as Matt Diaz?

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What Upton is doing at his age at the major league level is pretty remarkable. (EFRIM)

I’m not really disagreeing, he shows a ton of promise, but his numbers away from home are WAY worse that at that park. Just something to think about. I am not quite as high on him as most are, and at this point I would not trade Heyward for him. JMO

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CB……..Very funny!

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Lance Armstrong is looking good in France….. anyone care ?

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It should be interesting to see what Bobby does when Omar Infante is activated after the All-Star Break. More than likely, he’ll keep Infante on the bench while Francoeur continues to drag down the offense.

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Here’s a proposal for the creative question:

A year ago, Francouer was sent down to the minor leagues for a few days. In the year since he was called back up and handed right field, his numbers have been even worse. His OPS is #164 of 167 National League position players. What would he have to do to get permanently benched? 0 for 50? 0 for 100? Pulling a Henry Aaron jersey out of a display case to wear while eating ribs and wiping his hands on the jersey? Dragging the 1995 World Series trophy around the parking lot of Turner Field behind his vehicle?

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CB: You assume that Bowman would even ponder, let alone ask such a question? Puh-leeez. Bowman is the MLB / Braves shill. If Francoeur were batting cleanup and playing everyday for the rest of the season – at his current pace – Bowman would genuflect to Bobby.

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“Bobby, Frenchy’s mother wants to know why you are humiliating her son by playing him everyday. Any comment?”

“Bobby, Kenshin says that when you write Frenchy’s name in the lineup, you steal half his happiness. Care to comment?”

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I know much, you dont want stats then you ask for BA and homers. WHAT???
BA will probably be around .290, somewhere between .280 and .300 His OBP around .370 As for homers, he wont hit a ton but in 300 at-bats in 2nd half he would probably hit 7 more. In Francouer 300 at-bats this season he has had 5 with a .240 average and .280 OBP. Diaz is better. PERIOD! STOP TALKING ABOUT UPSIDE AND TRADE BAIT! Nobody will trade for him. Why would you trade for him and have to pay him 5 mil next year. He will be released by the Braves and they could pick him up for a mil or less. It dont take a genious to realize this.

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Hanson is pitching tonight? I think I’m starting to hear “Free Byrd” in my head again

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Roman Gal–I liked Neyer’s list too (forgot how impressive Maddux really was in ‘95 and Larkin in ‘96), but one problem:

How do you forget Bob Gibson’s 1968 season?

312 IP, 1.12 ERA, 268 K, 0.85 WHIP, only 11 HR

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spandexed men riding 10 speeds is of no interest to me

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As far as Francoeur starting….

Braves were 0-3 with him “benched” and have won their last 2 with him in the line-up.

Whether he has contributed or not, they have been winning with him playing.

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Chipper is not helping the Braves while setting on the bench. Its time to send him to the American League to DH. Who needs a player of his type in the AL? Maybe the deal is already set and Chipper is getting some rest from now through the All Star break.

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Frenchy is starting tonight? I think I’m starting to hear “Fran-Coeur” in my bowels again.

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Rammmerjammer so I guess Francouer doesnt have any shortcomings? Is that what your saying? Even if Diaz BA drops to .280 and OBP drops to .360(which I doubt it will) he is still 3 times better than Francouer.

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Does anybody live in Francoeur’s neighborhood? I have an interesting proposition to offer you….

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nolie, you…..are…..wrong!!!!

Seriously though, you’re right. I didn’t look at his splits before making that statement. And another thing that jumps out at me(I could be wrong on this), but I think he is only controllable through 2013 because they brought him up so early. I believe he is eligible for arb. after next season. Given that we probably won’t see Heyward until June of 2010, Heyward would be controlled through 2016. All that said, I sure hope Heyward shows the promise of Upton. I’d be thrilled.

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Great Joe!

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Chipper has been out of the lineup when the Braves have won as well. Obviously need to bench Chipper and play Frenchy!

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The last few games Chip was in the line-up he looked like a prime candidate for a power chair from the Scooter Store! He looked extremely hobbled.

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Buffalo Braves – want to bet which period has the higher winning % by the Braves

Gee, that depends–will the Braves be playing with the exact same roster putting up the exact same stats with the exact same pitching matchups that they’ve had this season?

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Ever think Prado, Infante, Blanco, and Diaz look out at Johnson, Schafer, Francoeur and say, “Them gringos got it made. They can stink all day, everyday, and still play. We hope that with each successive Americanized generation of our family, we can take achieve the American Dream of holding down a job no matter how much we stink.” To which Diaz responds, “Yeah, my family Anglicized the pronounciation of our name as much as we could, and I still can’t take that useless gringo’s job.”

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Failcouer out there AGAIN?!

I hope this means he gets just four more games before being released over the break.

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Steve OH – oh you missed the point mate

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Eric from MO,

Go back and carefully read what I wrote. Not gonna waste my time repeating it.

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Willy Wally, I don’t think Matt DIE-ahz even “peeki pani”.

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Just lookin at the wild card standings….if we lose 3/4 here…we’re screwed…like really screwed….split is not going to do much for us…we’ll prolly lose a game or two in the division….

We really really need to WIN this series…

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dogsb–and I think you’re missing mine, though I agree with your assertion that the Braves’ record with or without Francoeur is terrible evidence for playing/benching a player.

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Ms Marsh, great post at 4:15

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Why, here comes my buddy Dave now! Wonder what he’d like to ask me?

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OH Steve: the question is only a doozy if French-pie goes 1-4 with a single or an 0-fer.

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If DOB does ask that question, I hope he wears a catcher’s mask.

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AA sponsor,

Drinking Scotch and playing baseball are completely different. One you can do while sitting down, the other requires some actual athleticism.

Nice try on the rip though….

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Drinking Scotch has nothing to do with mobility or lack thereof.

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Maybe if Chipper treated his body with the same respect as he treats his scotch he wouldnt miss 30% of the games each year. Or do you think a 5 scotch a night drinking habit is something the Braves should condone?

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DOB,

appreciate the blog. informative as usual….

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Depends on what kind of scotch it was.
Laphroig, Ardbeg . . . Mmmnnn.

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Supes they can contend next year.

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Packerman-

Steve from OH-

Who would you replace? I guess Warren Spahn would be the first choice since Eddie Matthews is on there already…

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Anderson STILL playing in the 3rd spot and Jeff in the lineup means I’ll be skipping out on watching this game

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AA sponsor, I was also in the Westin bar in Chicago Monday night and I saw Chipper drinking for several hours with Moylan, Hudson, and several other Braves. In fact, Chipper was the second guy to arrive at the bar after Moylan. Interestingly, Garrett was sitting by himself at the end of the bar instead of at the tables with his teammates. By the way, several Indians were also at the bar (they were in town to play the White Sox) and their pitching coach was hammered. Even Indians manager Eric Wedge was there, and he contributed a crisp C-note to the Indians large bar tab.

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DOB – I moved to Denver from Decatur a few weeks ago, so I’ll be at the game tonight! Any recommendations on a CD store out here to replace Decatur CD?

Gillian: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iA37HhpdK_E

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Dangit, DOB!!

I was just kidding about the lineup, I didn’t really want Chipper to sit and Francoeur to play…
This brings new life to the “Be Careful What You Wish For” phrase.
Sorry, guys!

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Paul Lentz

“Not sure what I mean about Lowe taxing our bullpen”

Well I had said that in his losses the Braves got behind and he didn’t make it into the 4th inning. That was a loose bit of hyperbole. But,still in his last 5 outings Lowe has averaged just 4.1 innings per start.Once he pitched just 2.1 inning, another time he pitched just 3 innings and another time just 5 innings. So booyah! While I was off the mark a bit, the point still stands that he has taxed the bullpen in recent outings. He is supposed to be our “cowbell pitcher” but as of right now he’s 4th out of 5.

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It’s obvious Diaz is better than Frenchy, but why the hell did the Braves sign GA(no other team offered him a contract) Diaz is better than him too. I’m talking now not his 2400 hits. Keith Law even said it.

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Nothing to indicate yet that Schafer will be ready to be a productive outfielder at the big league level next year. Heyward is in double A right now and probably slated for triple AAA next year. You can probably pencil him in for 2011, but he’s not likely to tear it up in his first big league season. Rookies are rarely impact players. If the Braves hope to contend in the next few years they’ve got a acquire an outfield bat to hit cleanup.

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bigmacattack – the joy of being a FAn is to take the pain of our ugly losses… otherwise how can you rejoice in the wins……. a real fan says eff it, I am watching this bollocks no matter what… if I smash an HP notebook or 3, wtf !

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Fred,

I must have come into the bar later than you as the bar was mostly empty save for a few fat business men who were looking for a place to sleep and Chipper, alone at a round table watching Sportscenter and pounding what the bar tender told me was his 5th scotch of the night. Perhaps he was waiting for a wings delivery from Hooters?

PS: Garrett Anderson is the worst #3 hitter in any lineup in all of baseball tonight. FACT.

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Willy Wally, let’s put it to poetry. Surely you or someone can do better than this:

Great Summer Leader,
You steal half my happiness
When you play Francoeur

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DOB, GA just can’t catch a break from people, can he?

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Fred

MAybe Chipper does want to be Micky MAntle.

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Yeh, I don’t really understand why the heck GA is batting 3rd in the order. Just not a very good spot for him.

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Let’s not ask too much of Bobby. After all he finally is playing Prado the best hitter on the team. He took Kelly out of the leadoff spot by early summer and he plays Diaz more than once a week. Who knows we may trade for Andruw and he will hit fourth again.

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AA sponsor, Yes, I was at the bar earlier than you because we headed there straight from Wrigley. Moylan and Chipper were there shortly after the game ended and several other Braves slowly filtered in. I can’t believe Chipper was still there so late. Interestingly, I also made the trip to Chicago last year and after a day game Chipper was at the bar eating and drinking by himself. My buddy and I then went to dinner and to another bar, but came back to the Westin about 4 hours later and Chipper was still drinking with several of his teammates (plus Chip Caray and Mrs. Chip). Chicago is a great city and I highly recommend that road trip to Braves fans.

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AA – MOYLAN

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In all fairness, when was the last time Chipper “juiced” a ball

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Fred,

I agree. Chicago is a great city and has to be the best trip of the year. From your post it sounds like a Braves fan making the road trip can certainly count on two things:

1) A great atmosphere at Wrigley
2) Chipper at the Westin bar, day game or not.

Oh, and probably a 3rd thing: Chipper will miss 1/3 of the season due to poor conditioning….

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OK, I tried this on Mark Bradley’s blog with no takers…

It may be worth our time to put together an aggregate list of posters who have bashed Frenchy. Since there is no “responsibility” for an opinion on a message board, if he does have a resurgence, it would be interesting to have a master list of those who stated that he was finished.

Therefore, if Frenchy improves, we wouldn’t have to listen to them anymore. If, however, he doesn’t ever return to any sort of productive form, their opinion is validated and they may gain a margin of credibility.

Is anyone willing to completely write him off? If so, let’s get the list going.

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In all fairness, when was the last time Chipper “juiced” a ball – Rob from SC

I seriously think he’s been ailing for the last few weeks. Just staying mum about it till the other day.

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If I’m the manager, thank God I’m not, I’d throw out this Chipperless lineup… McLouth/Prado/Mac/Escobar/Garret/Diaz/Kotchman/Conrad.

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The Braves will be fine. No sense in going crazy trying to figure out things, just so you can post em. 2011 the Braves will have already made the playoff by 2011. They will jell in the second half this year. That is all, Go Bravos!!!

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And sure, go ahead and put me down as “writing Frenchy off.” His best full season was only average, and every other year (again, excepting 2005) has been well below average. From a corner OF, that dog just ain’t gonna hunt. I doubt he’ll ever even be average, much less an “average” corner OF.

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Unless Francoeur spends the year in the minors and completely re-works his swing, then he is finished. Add my name to that list.

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Put me in the Writing him off as a Brave category. Can he ressurect his career elsewhere? Maybe.

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In other, much more ironic, news, Barbaro Canizares has been selected to play in the Futures Game in place of injured Angel Villalona.

He’s 29.

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BBL-Phillies-Martinez
INDEX:Sports
Veteran hurler Pedro Martinez says agent negotiating with Phillies

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic – Pedro Martinez says his agent is negotiating with the Philadelphia Phillies, trying to get the pitcher back into the major leagues.

The 37-year-old Martinez says the Phillies watched him throw a simulated game this week in the Dominican Republic.

Martinez went 5-6 with a 5.61 ERA for the New York Mets last year. The free agent pitched in the World Baseball Classic before this season started.

Martinez is a three-time Cy Young Award winner.
(The Associated Press)

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What is the record for the oldest player to play in the future’s game?

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I cant believe nobody has picked up Pedro. Blows my mind with as bad as pitching has been.

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It is clear with that lineup that Wren and Bobby have ZERO desire to win games anymore. There is no other explanation. I really, for the life of me cannot find one good reason to have Francoeur in there over Diaz.

DOB, when asking your question in a creative way, is there any chance of you knocking the old man over the head a couple of times? Perhaps lew can give you drawing of Francoeur in a lead frame to use?

Honest question DOB, if you were a fan of the Atlanta Braves, would you be pizzed off about Diaz getting the shaft and Jeff starting instead?

I’m not stupid enough to realize that Diaz has as much natural ability and athleticism as Jeff does. Nor is Diaz the long-term answer at EITHER corner OF spot. But the guy can flat out hit, and is doing so right now. Jeff couldn’t hit the pavement if he jumped out of a moving bus.

Cox has gone senile on us before our very eyes.

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Oh and Victorino and Inge get the final spots on this year’s All-Star team!

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I wonder what the other Brave players think about Francoeur still starting

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Sure you could fire a cannon from a canoe….just going to get alot of the action-reaction business goin on.. lol

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Still very disturbing to see GA at #3. Cannot stand the way he approaches the game. Braves were desperate and this is what we got. The guy is waaaayyyyy too old to be playing LF.

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Hey BJE, if you’re interested in accountability, what’s the proposition on Frenchy from your side. Define what success for him would look like and then people can choose sides. Then if Frenchy is a bust, you and his other apologists can get lost.

Frankly, anybody who still thinks Frenchy is a major league caliber baseball player at this point knows nothing about baseball. It’s not even debatable, which is why none of the other 29 teams in baseball are willing to offer anything for him. You’d have to look long and hard to find a corner outfielder who kept a starting position for so long with such miserable batting statistics.

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So Bobby finally made Prado the starting 2B. How long will it take Diaz the starting RF? He isn the long term answer, Heward is, but he is defiently better than our current starting RF. I dont even buy that Francouer is starting because of defense because even his defense isnt that great anymore.

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Cox is playing the lineup that has won 2 in a row. Can’t say I blame him…

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Slugger, I started out with Grizzly mint and wintergreen but had to go with a different flavor because it was too rough on my mouth. Seems like the peach is easier on my gums.

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” Are you telling me that a team in desperate need of pitching wouldn’t jump at the chance to get Lowe, even considering his recent struggles?” JP

Yeah. That’s what I’m telling you. About 28 teams showed little to zero interest in Lowe, when all they had to give up was money and a draft pick, and that was coming off the season he had last year.

Now, he’s struggling, and they’d have to give up prospects and STILL take on that contract?

Not a chance in hell of Lowe going anywhere. I wanted Lowe as much (if not more) than the next guy, rather than trading for Peavy, because we wouldn’t have to give up prospects for him. But all along, I’ve agreed that we overpaid (in years) for him. I’ve maintained that the 4th year is going to be “Hampton-like” on our payroll. But conceded that the first two years of the deal he’d be a horse that was worth every penny.

Not so sure anymore. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt, since he does have a track record of having “slumps” like this. But as guys get older those slumps seem to come more often, and last longer.

If this keeps up (Lowe’s poor pitching), that contract is going to make Hampton’s look like a joke. At least insurance paid for a lot of Hampton’s contract.

There is a reason that JS never gave out 4 year contracts to guys not named Glavine and Maddux (in their prime), especially to guys in their 30’s.

But, back to your point. You find somebody willing to take on that contract AND give up some prospects back our way, and you just might get some phone calls to actually be a team’s GM. At this point, I suspect that if Wren could find somebody willing to take on the majority of the contract, he might not even ask for much back in return. Paving the way to sign Vazquez to an extension and keep Hudson next year.

But, it’s NEVER going to happen.

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334th!

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TnBrian he has had enough chances. He has had 3 years.

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Ah, the power of the pen. Ever since Mark Bradley wrote that article saying Jeff had lost Bobby’s confidence in him, he’s been in the lineup. Here’s a thought, Let’s get Mark to write an article saying Matt has lost Bobby’s confidence so we can get the RF who is actually producing right now back in the lineup.

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I came this () close to running Klesko out of our dressing room once, until I finally recognized him. He looks a lot bigger on TV. He had these redneck cammys on with a sour-puss look on his face. I was like, ‘who the eff is this guy?’

Oh it’s him.

That’s all I got right now. Stay tuned for more “star-stories,” I have plenty.

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Depending on how creatively DOB asked BC the question, he is either ‘toast’ (Bobby is famous for torching any media person who dares to ask him a hard question), or is getting a detailed discussion on the defensive advantages that Frenchy offer playing in the vast outfield of Coors Field–he is even quicker to the ball due to the thinner air….

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nolie…

I did not state as my own fact…that was the columnist I quoted.

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dunwoody in Denver, I think Buffalo NY braves fan will agree with my assertion that the best hot dogs on the planet are at Ted’s in Buffalo. Interestingly, Barker’s hot dogs at Windy Hill Rd. in Atlanta are the same dogs as Ted’s (a couple from Buffalo started that business down here – Sahlen’s is the brand name of hot dogs they use, cooked over a charcoal fire).

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Atleast Frency trys, and plays 100 percent. Escobar is a sorry excuse of a ball player. His hitting is good, his defense/baserunning can be counted on to make a error once a game. And most of the time it cost us runs. His ego gets in the way also, bench the bum or trade him. Maybe package him with Frenchy. Put me in the other ship that hasnt written off Frenchy. He can turn around his play, Yunels problems cant be fixed. Its a lack of understanding the game, how to play it, the team concept must be over his head. The guys a bum!! No Doubt! Go Bravos!!!

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Why would you trade McLouth for Soriano? McLouth is just as good, if not better, and a hell alot cheaper. Why would you trade Diaz for Bradley? Diaz is just as good, if not better and alot cheaper and isnt a cancer? Why would you bring up two guys, potentially future all-stars, before they have played AA and ruin their careers? Good thing some of you idiots dont run the team.

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Ok. I’ll put the list out at the end of the night. Feel free to add your names to the list on either side.

For DP – Myopic comments made behind a screen name comprised of just initials were the inspiration behind this idea. It is real easy to say,
“ANYBODY who still thinks Frenchy is a major league caliber player AT THIS POINT knows NOTHING about baseball. IT IS NOT EVEN DEBATABLE… (followed by debate material?!)” That is the height of illogic. Perhaps, as some have suggested, this is the nature of these boards. They are the repository for rants, rumors, and opinions without hub.

Andruw Jones struggled mightily for two years. He is a fine, not great, player now. I don’t know that Francoeur can make this turnaround, but I can’t say otherwise either. The absolutism with which you speak has little foundation. There is a more nuanced argument to be made. That said, I think Diaz is more deserving of the starting role right now.

It is nothing personal DP, I just think a group of Braves fans can do better.

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stretcher just arrived in the braves clubhouse…..body being hauled away was whistling a grateful dead tune…..bobby appeared nonplus after the incident….remaining reporters are currently praising his decision making process…..

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Norris: because it isn’t a good idea. And look where that got Andruw-a perennial .250-.260 hitter for power, but a guy that always thought his natural talent could overcome any barriers. And lo and behold, when mother nature caught up with him, he was atrocious. Only now-12+ years after his debut, is he learning to make adjustments. He could have been one of the greatest players of all time had he ever cared to develop a better approach at the plate. Now it’s an interesting question as to whether he will eke into the HOF.

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which makes [Cameron] superior to, oh, about 67% of our current starting OF.

Damning with faint praise, my man, LOL. Maybe Shaun can recycle some of the 3710 posts he made touting Cameron, some time ago. Those were fun.

And ballplayers drinking after a game? Hoodathunk?

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I was just kidding. Love to watch the poster jump to the keyboard. LOL! Yeah can Frency, and Maybe Bobby can get Yunels attention, and he can see it really is a team game, not a me game. Ok guys hope we get those Rockies tonite. For Gods sake Hanson keep the ball down, and lets get a win!!! Go Bravos!!!

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epinephrine,
he would have developed a whole lot better had he a hitting coach that knew how to teach.
as far as heyward i can see brining him along slowly. but what makes a player great is his ability to play and listen. And hopefully along the way have the influence of others that can teach them a few things. its bad when our players have to go to their high school coaches for help.

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Norris AJ was brought up as a SEP call up. If Heyward hits like AJ when he gets to AA and then AAA maybe he will too, Andruw was batting .370 in AA and AAA, but Andruw is one case. Also Andruw never became a complete hitter. That may of been why. Actually that is probably why.

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TnBrian Diaz shows up every day and plays hard.

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That trade makes about as much sense as some of the others that have been floated around. I bet the Braves would win more games if the trade was actually made.

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The absolutism with which you speak has little foundation. There is a more nuanced argument to be made.

Son, I believe you can dispense with the notion of “nuanced argument” here, LOL. A fine concept, and I hope you will continue to advance that cause, but, I hope you have jet fuel for your scroll-wheel!

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Norris I’m sorry but if you think that the reason Andruw never developed as a hitter was because of his hitting coach, I have no idea what to tell you. Actually I have at least one thing–you grossly overestimate the impact and role of a hitting coach. Andruw’s problem was something even the most amatuer of baseball minds could diagnose–and frequently did. Even Willie Mays weighed in on Andruw’s poor approach at the plate.

Andruw’s problem had nothing to do with the Braves coaching staff. It had to do with the ego between his two ears. And it took a humbling like last year-when he played for the Dodgers (do you hold their hitting coach similarly responsible?)-to finally concede to the obvious.

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dogsbrekky,

I actually looked it up… so far this year when Diaz is in RF and Frenchy sits, the team is 3-4…. and have lost their last 4 in a row with Frenchy sitting out. I guess in terms of W-L record it’s pretty much the same thing.

AA Sponsor,

Who cares what Chipper does after the game, 5 drinks is not enough to get you blasted and “unwilling” to play the next game. The dude can drink whatever he wants, he’s going to be a hall of famer. One of the best hitters ever.

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Eric from MO, love you man! Look, I’m with you dude, Frenchy’s got no business starting on any team in the bigs, but Bobby obviously has his heart with guys that are down and are good people. Jeff is a very good person, I’ve met him and havta say that he went out of his way to shake hands with me and the group around us. That was in ‘06 so I don’t know if he’s changed any, but I’m sure he’s still good as gold. That’s really all I can think of why he’s still playing so much.

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Do you think Bobby plays Frenchy to distract us away from Kotchman – the worst hitting first basemen in baseball?

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Skipper punched me right in the gray area.

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I seriouly don’t think that D-lo Is a warm-weather pitcher -Tomahawkin

I looked up his monthly splits not long ago, thinking the same thing. No dice. His July and August numbers are among his very best.

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Dammmittt TnBrian…

I just saw the phillies forum and it seems like its true…That Sucks!

I was having a good day, watching old 1999 WWF Rasslin on Youtube until I just heard about it…

Now we better take 3 0f 4 this series!

Halliday and King Cole reminds me of Johnson/Schilling with the 2001 D-Backs. Absolutley Sick!

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I’m upset I missed the prospect discussion in the last blog.

Great to see Heyward and Freeman make BA’s Mid-Season Top 25 Prospect List. Freeman sure made a jump, I thought he was pretty underrated last year…especially once I got to see his swing in Spring Training.

I think Braves fans need to be careful about rushing them though- everyone’s clamoring to call them up now. Depending on how they do and where we’re at in the standing, I would give them both looks as September call-ups this year to give them a taste- see what it’s all about and see what they need to approve.

Sending them both to the AFL is a no-brainer- let them spend this summer playing with and against the best prospects in the game.

After this, I’m sure the hype train for both will have picked up even more steam by them, with Braves fans wanting to start both of them out of ST. But I’d keep them in AAA the first few months- give them the Hanson treatment- to get that little extra seasoning and avoid the Super 2 status. It worked out pretty good for Hanson.

I have a feeling both 1B and RF will be open for them once they’re ready, and that extra bit of time should increase their chances of contributing as soon as they’re up.

Obviously, this is pretty aggressive(maybe not as much as some fans who want them up now) but I think this should be the soonest they come up(of course, assuming they keep progressing as they have been).

Someone asked about our #3 prospect…

There’s a pretty significant drop off from Freeman to our 3rd ranked prospect but I think 3-10 would be pretty close with Julio Teheran, Ezekiel Spruill, Randall Delgado, Brett DeVall, Cody Johnson, J.J. Hoover, Cole Rohrbough, and Mike Minor(assuming he signs).

We might have some special guys in our core of teenage arms(Teheran, R. Delgado, D. Delgado, DeVall, Spruill, Oberholtzer, Stovall)

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Let’s pool some money together and sic T.J. Simers on Bobby. It would be interesting to see someone who has no need to get another quote out of Bobby just ambush Bobby like Simers did to Andruw last year

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VJ,I wish Paul would give us that kind of warning,lol.

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Simers: “Mr. Cox, is the Frenchy thing to do with a love affair, or is it just your oldness?”

Bobby: “Well, TJ, I uh… I uh… I quit.”

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Maybe the deal is already set and Chipper is getting some rest from now through the All Star break. (Keeping it real)

so far, that is about the most ironic blog name I’ve ever read

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since we havent heard back from DOB, i guess bobby is still beating around the bush and talking DOB to death to get around frenchy starting tonight

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Poor DOB…

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as we can imagine? lol bobby…bobby…bobby

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Tell it like it is, thanks for blasting me without even reading my post. I said it took an atrocious year to spur him to make adjustments, ie, he HAS made adjustments, ie, he IS succeeding again. But I have to hand it to you; both your ability to spew ad-hominem vitriol and your piercing analytical skills bowl me over.

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Congrats Tell you just showed everyone how big of a moron you are with taking Francouer over Diaz. I win this debate.

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nolie,

Could be….

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when it comes to bobby defending frenchy, i can only imagine bobby’s explanation was today lol

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think DAP sees him as a live OF who can post league-average or better numbers while playing halfway decent defense, which makes him superior to, oh, about 67% of our current starting OF. (STEVE)

nah, gotta be more to it than that. there are other guys out there who fit that bill, but every time signing or trading for an OFer comes up DAP always drops Cameron’s name immediately no matter the circumstances.
I’m not saying there is anything wrong with Cameron (other than too low a BA for my taste) just ribbing DAP a bit.

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Eric from MO,

Who says we are debating. That’s just an opinion.

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Scott Thorman was horrible, and was never seen again. Frenchy has been worse than Thorman over a much longer period of time, and all we see is Frenchy.

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Whatever Tell, you still showed everybody how big of a moron you are.

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Good call Paul…Meanwhile, Mets trying to get scratch back into the game, down 4-1 now in the bot of the 1st.

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Eric from MO,

From one moron to a bigger moron, enjoy watching Frenchie fulfill my opinion tonight in Denver.

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3-0 Reds now.

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Mets down 4-1 as well.

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I think it would be a minor miracle for the Braves to get to the All-Star break with a .500 record. They have been so up and down and mostly down with their offense that achieving a .500 record would have to be quite the victory, both literally and morally.

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C’mon Atlanta….Mets and Phillies losing….Could be another chance to gain a game!!! EEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK

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DOB -

The silence is deafening. Are we really left to imagine? Knowing his actual response might be more intriguiing to a lot of the bloggers here than the actual game…

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Why do we even bother getting all worked up over Frenchy? We know that he is going to start no matter what the numbers say. Let’s just stop the bitching and moaning until that happy day in the far away future when DOB can post a line-up without Frenchy in it. I am betting it will be next April.

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Eric from MO…………..a number of Braves fans “desperately” want to see Francoeur succeed because he is a home town “hero”. They continue to be blind as to how much Francoeur SUCKS as a hitter. They would rather see Bobby continue throwing Francoeur out there and hope that Francoeur can hit the way they want him to hit………….then accept reality that Francoeur SUCKS as a hitter.

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DOB: bobby can you explain francoeur over diaz?

BOBBY: Dave it is complicated.

DOB: complicated? he has a .610 ops.

BOBBY: it is complicated, it came from the top.

DOB: frank wren?

BOBBY: shrugs

BOBBY: in a whisper,
“who in the heck do you think bought us these sweet blue road uniforms.”

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Frenchy has been worse than Thorman over a much longer period of time, (BH)

bit of an exaggeration old chum, dontcha know?

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the only problem with DOB asking the question is that it’s going kick bobby’s stubbornness into high gear and he’ll play francoeur so it doesn’t appear he’s bowing to public opinion

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Oh, I can imagine a response:

“Well, David, had I more time (which I don’t, as I’m preparing for a major league baseball game), and I could find the words to explain the decision process in a way that would produce comprehension even in the dolts and simpletons who ‘really want to know’, why, I’d be happy to do that very thing. But, I don’t and I can’t, therefore…**** ‘em.”

‘Course, Bobby may have distilled that down to just the last couple of words, in the interest of time.

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5-1 Dodgers now….stil 3-0 Reds going to the bottom of the 3rd.

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Course, Bobby may have distilled that down to just the last couple of words, in the interest of time. (SCOOTS)

as I would have.

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semiballcoach

July 9th, 2009
7:48 pm
the only problem with DOB asking the question is that it’s going kick bobby’s stubbornness into high gear and he’ll play francoeur so it doesn’t appear he’s bowing to public opinion

Great point semi
There is a saying in front offices of all sports that goes: “If you listen to the fans it won’t be long before you are sitting with the fans”

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Eric from MO- i was being sarcastic about the big trade scenario. he usually gives us some brief pre game comments and what not when he leaves the clubhouse before he starts to write his story.

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Hey guys, has anyone noticed that Chipper hasn’t played in the last 2 games, and the Braves have WON both of them? I’ll let you draw the conclusions…

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“Maybe Frenchie will go for an all-star break brush up with Rudy J…..”

let me know where they are meeting and Ill kidnap him until after the season

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Well, nolie, you know that I tend to be a little more verbose, so I probably would have added, “…and the horse they rode in on.”

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AlabamaBrave……..some of us can see that this Braves team can make a run to the play-offs, if they can just dump the garbage that is dragging the offense down. Jeff Francoeur’s rally killing bat is not helping the Braves score runs. Seeing Matt Diaz hitting 13 for his last 26, yet still languishing on the bench while Francoeur’s 3 for his last 21 stretch (one of those hits being a gift from the official scorer in the 9th inning of Tuesday’s game against the Cubs) keeps him in the line-up.

It’s stuff like that that makes it frustrating for Braves fans who want to see the team win. Francoeur does not help the Braves win games. When the Braves win, it is “despite” having Jeff Francoeur in the line-up.

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6-1 Dodgers over Mets, 2nd inning.

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PA Braves Fan: thats why we’ll package him with KJ and Medlen.

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Ever since the knee- joints were replaced, Bobby Cox seems to be much more difficult for reporters to pin down.

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DOB: Hey Bobby, would you like to explain your decision about playing Frenchie instead a red-hot Diaz?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zNjQecyjE8&feature=related

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Sorry Chris, didnt pick up on the sarcasm. After reading Tell’s posts you just start thinking all dumb posts are serious.

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Frenchy has been hitting the ball hard but right at people..just some bad luck lately. It is still early in the season.

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Well, it’s over now.

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braves don’t need halladay…they need a power hitter at first base or one of the corner outfield spots

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will there be a DOB tribute concert?

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Here come the phrickin’ phillies. 3-2.

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Mixxo- I thing that particular stat has to do with our record when Frenchy wears his ‘lucky turkey underware’. Bobby Cox is explaining it to DOB now…

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Great news of Vaquez DOB, next thing you’ll tell us is that Frenchy just signed a 5 year contract extension

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do we think with chipper’s nagging injuries he can actually handle another 3 years by playing at least 130 games? i mean it’s almost a pattern at least once a month or every other month.

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If Vazquez cant make his start on Sunday, does that mean that Bobby starts Kris Medlen? Or does Bobby have Frank Wren call up Jo Jo Reyes (who Bobby believes in almost as much as he does Jeff Francoeur)?

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Soph B-Mac Spotlight.

What? Dangit…stupid [name of show on our TV at the moment removed due to No Politics on the Blog policy]…oh well…there’s such things as commercial breaks.

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Vazquez scratched? Oh, that’s nice…

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@bravesfan54

Ch-ch-check yourself before you post your witticisms. One is not won.

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6-4-3 Campillo had season ending surgery

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Haha…that’s funny because everyone imagined your body being pulled out of Bobby’s office. – Roman Gal

I read that as orifice ….first. My bad.

Carry on.

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Hey wait…when is it on? I just checked FSS and SportSouth, and they aren’t showing it…at least not here and now…

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I bet that Jeff Franceour is kicking himself for turning down the Braves contract offer when Brian McCann signed his. There is NO WAY that Francoeur will make anything more than the Major League minimum next year. He will be non-tendered by the Braves in the off season. Then he be invited as a non-roster invite who will have to have a good Spring Training to make some team’s roster. And if he does, he’ll get the Major League minimum.

Nice gamble there Francoeur. You just cost yourself $20 mil by betting that you’ll be a great player.

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RJB in DC

LOL

Gotcha! Thx.

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Eric in MO hit the nail on the head! The Braves may think they are shopping Frenchy, but who is gonna buy? Frenchy is dead as a Brave! Bank on it! So the idiot part of this whole deal is why is Cox playing him when Diaz is a better option? You need to score runs and Diaz is your best option for that.

Why is Frenchy playing? Read the screen name!

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McFann: Braves live is on now on SS

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Eric from MO

I am not saying anyone will take him I am just saying this is the logic they are using. I agree with everyone about JF. But thinking from a club stand point this is what they have to do.

I havent been on this blog long but I have found that clear thinking does not always go on here. I am trying to see both sides. I would rather we go with Diaz and let the chips fall where they may with JF

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McFann, it’s on at 8:40 in Atlanta and 7:40 here in Chi-town. Btw the Braves Cubs series was AWESOME!

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Loaf…can actually talk

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DOB,

All is quiet on the trade front regarding the Braves. In the past, that meant a deal was about to go down. What do you think…something in the works?

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Haaaaa CorkylikesBeer…Mr Ed. I rewinded just to see if that was true.

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So I take it Medlen will start in JV’s place?

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“Oh, man, LOL. The sheer attitude that being one of the winningest managers in the history brings. How dare that sucker not bare his soul to, to…what was your name again?”

You mean the guy with all 14 of those division titles and only 1 WS win? He is a great regular season manager but not so much in the post season. I will take guys like Torre who can manage in the post season.

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DOB, who will replace Javy on Sunday?

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