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© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
2,256 comments Add your comment
ncscoots
April 27th, 2010
2:35 pm
imagine what we would have if we kept those guys for tex.
Lessee…one pitcher with a five-and-half ERA; a .250/.300/.380 catcher; a .260/.330/.370 (!) SS; and everybody’s darling, Feliz, and his 2010 ERA+ of 96.
Yes, we traded away the pennant.
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
2:36 pm
I think we can beat Wandy Rodriguez and Houston on Friday so the streak shouldn’t reach double figures
DAP
April 27th, 2010
2:37 pm
ncscoots Chipper Jones, lying in the cold, cold ground, is probably better than Omar Infante,
i just got a vision of the future…chipper jones is dead, and still playing third base. his tombstone is out there, guarding the line.
james rollins…jimmy’s son…hits a liner down the line….chipper is there, knocks it down (hits off his tombstone)…looong throw from 6 feet under, and he has no play on the speedy rollins.
Justafan
April 27th, 2010
2:39 pm
dap01, Who you mad at Bobby or Melky? I think they’re 3 more starters hitting below 200. Whats your problem?
Stewart Smally
April 27th, 2010
2:39 pm
“ok Heyward so you want a career .264 hitter to take the place of a future hall of famer career .307 hitter. Infantes obp is .310 while chip off the old blocks is .406 I rest my case”
Ted Williams was a hall of famer and his head is frozen somewhere in AZ. His numbers are better than Infantes. So by your logic maybe we should try to buy Ted Williams head and insert it in the lineup batting third! I mean, he is a hall of famer and the last .400 hitter!
Chip
April 27th, 2010
2:40 pm
2010 Braves
Must go on, can’t go on, must go on.
Daslied
April 27th, 2010
2:40 pm
N8
Why has this turned into an argument over Chippers overall ability, rather than his current ability to do what he NORMALLY can do when healthy?
I don’t know.
But I also don’t know why anyone would think a career backup is a better option than the guy higher on the depth chart, when said argument is based on 7 PAs after a mild injury.
Fischerking04
April 27th, 2010
2:41 pm
ncscoot—”I know better than to attempt reasoning with you on one of these things that start buzzing in your bonnet, LOL. Man’s got to pack a lunch and swig a gallon of patience to go that route. I’m gonna pass, if it’s all the same to you. ”
I’m lovin’ the lingo. All proper like.
Ted William's Head
April 27th, 2010
2:41 pm
My name now……MINE!!
faninva
April 27th, 2010
2:41 pm
“Ted Williams was a hall of famer and his head is frozen somewhere in AZ.”
Now that is a chip off the old block!
Fischerking04
April 27th, 2010
2:41 pm
ncscoots*
ncscoots
April 27th, 2010
2:42 pm
DAP, I agree that he might be a little slower coming in on that high bouncer to 3B, but, other than that…
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
2:42 pm
I agree with Dave on not selling the farm for A. Gonzalas. I don’t think we would make playoffs with him. This is a “wait til next year” year.
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
2:43 pm
At least we get to watch Heyward develop.
heyward
April 27th, 2010
2:43 pm
bravofan: we are not interested in career numbers, we are interested in the present
also these faggots need to stop with these gay smiley faces
Wayne in Utah
April 27th, 2010
2:44 pm
Smally
Chipper and Bobby will decide when he should come out of the lineup. That is good enough for me.
They have played and managed a heckuva lot more games than you and me combined.
NO MORE BOBBY
April 27th, 2010
2:45 pm
From the picture of Glaus with Wren / Cox on this blog – Wren looks really proud to be holding that Glaus jersey and Bobby already looks very confused.
Wayne in Utah
April 27th, 2010
2:45 pm
Prado is slipping…..time for Conrad to get a game in!
chris
April 27th, 2010
2:46 pm
i think some (including me) have been waiting for 2011 to arrive for the last couple of years. with heyward, hanson, and freeman up, with schafer (hopefully healthy) and mccann with kimbrel in the back end of the bullpen. teheran projected to be around AAA by then, i believe alot of braves fans have been spotting next year for awhile. the 2006 and 2007 draft was built into next year’s team i believe. braves have a “core” that is coming up, unfortunately, mclouth, glaus, and melky are still here for another year. but i highly doubt they will be here in 2011
Brian from SC
April 27th, 2010
2:46 pm
I know I’ve tended to harp on this, but I have yet to see someone show any sign of encouragement, and I’m gonna keep telling it til someone says it makes them feel better. Cause that’s what I’m here for.
The Braves’ first 7 opponents this year are literally the top seven teams in the NL. They are also the top seven teams in the NL in ERA, with a collective 3.58 ERA. (Actually, the Braves are 7th, but the Phillies are 8th.) Against the Braves, their ERA is actually slightly higher (3.60). The Braves have faced really good pitching! That is a fact. They still need to hit better, but look at what’s coming!
In May, the Braves literally play only the teams with the 9 worst ERAs in the NL…none of the top 7. The collective ERAs of May opponents is 5.22.
In April so far, the Braves have played zero games against teams with a losing record. In May, they’ll have 15 such games, and that doesn’t include the games against the Nationals who are at .500 (for now).
Now can somebody please say that is encouraging to them?
Jesse Stone
April 27th, 2010
2:47 pm
Someone in an earlier blog was asking if we could have the players back that we traded for McLouth. Look them up and then get back to me. On a side note, Marlins slugging prospect Mike Stanton had impressive back-to-back games earlier this week. 2 games 7/8, 5HR, 11 RBI’s. That’s a good month for most.
Jesse Stone
April 27th, 2010
2:48 pm
Oh yeah, Stanton is also the league leader in walks. He was the Marlins second pick in ‘07.
Ted William's Head
April 27th, 2010
2:49 pm
“imagine what we would have if we kept those guys for tex.
Lessee…one pitcher with a five-and-half ERA; a .250/.300/.380 catcher; a .260/.330/.370 (!) SS; and everybody’s darling, Feliz, and his 2010 ERA+ of 96.
Yes, we traded away the pennant.
Didn’t trade away a pennant, but traded away a lot of warm bodies that other teams coveted and quite frankly may have brought a better “overall” return than the Tex rental. IMHO.
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
2:49 pm
Maybe will even get to see Schafer turn into a star. But playoffs, PLAYOFFS
Nova Scotia Steve
April 27th, 2010
2:49 pm
I’m not giving up on this year – I mean it is April.
But I’ll tell you one thing – this skid has exposed the creator that is our current cheaply constructed scrap heaped of an somewhat aging line-up – mainly directed at C. Jones and Glaus on the aging part.
Kind of makes you wonder if we could have spent some more money to get a guy who was a free agent until extremely late in the off-season that currently plays for the Tigers and will remain without a name for obvious reasons.
.319 BA
12 BB
8 RBI’s
.440 OBP
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
2:51 pm
The Braves really struggle against the Nationals. Facing them is no help.
Brian from SC
April 27th, 2010
2:51 pm
Do the people that are talking about Johnny Damon realize he signed for 8 million dollars? The Braves didn’t have 8 million dollars in their budget. Yeah, while we’re at it we should have gotten Matt Holliday and John Lackey, too!
John Adcox
April 27th, 2010
2:52 pm
For those who missed it, here is an absolutely fascinating and fact/data rich overview of TP’s actual impact as a hitting coach. Give it a read. It might surprise you. http://tinyurl.com/287fxvy
Jesse Stone
April 27th, 2010
2:52 pm
We were never going to sign Damon. That was just a show on the part of Frank Wren.
Wren Ten Ten
April 27th, 2010
2:52 pm
“Chipper has earned the right to play hurt”
Weird. I thought we payed him in money.
FEAR
April 27th, 2010
2:52 pm
I wonder if Hank Aaron could give a rousing speech to these guys?
monty
April 27th, 2010
2:53 pm
Have to go with N8 on the Chipper vs. Infante question. CHipper has nothing right now. THat weak grounder to SS last night was the wierdest swing/batted ball I’ve ever seen him hit. Really weak. Infante is similar to Prado in he won’t hit it far but he does hit line drives for singles and doubles. Everytime Chipper takes a big hack at a ball and misses I fully expect him to have a major muscle pull or tear. And I don’t want to see that.
ncscoots
April 27th, 2010
2:53 pm
quite frankly may have brought a better “overall” return than the Tex rental. IMHO.
Now, that, I might could get behind. It’s the “Braves traded soooo many good prospects that could have blah, blah, blah” that usually gets on my last nerve, LOL.
MJ
April 27th, 2010
2:53 pm
It’s April and the bats are cold. That will change – it has to. Chipper, the face of the franchise, is dinged up a little. He’ll come back healthy and have a great 2nd half. All you Chipper bashers get a life. He’s struggling, but he’ll know when to walk away, and it will be on a high note and not when he is being less productive than ever before. If you don’t believe that then you know nothing about competitive people. The pitching is good and the bull pen above average. That’s it for the good news.
The bad news – the Braves have no speed, no power, and their best hitters are well below their normal averages. Heyward is starting to struggle. There is no coaching help to reverse the trend. I don’t want to hear that Pendleton is not at fault. He’s the batting coach, and he owns the problem. His methods are not working. Geez, Tiger changed swing coaches several years ago when he felt Leadbetters methods we not working for him. It’s what professionals do when they get in trouble – they find a coach that will teach them what to do to resolve their issues. Pendleton cannot get it done. KJ is ripping the ball in Arizona, Frenchy is doing well for the Mets, Andruw has been given one more chance by Ozzie and is responding. Get a grip Braves – you cannot score runs because you lack speed and power. Find the speed in your farm system, and coach and correct your hitting issues. Find Adam LaRoche and put his butt back on first base – GIVE Glaus away to anyone who will take him. Whatever you do, don’t trade away four future starters to get a player who will last only 1 1/2 years because the you don’t have the marbles to sign him to a long term contract. This season is playing like a broken record – no speed, no power, no runs, and bad trades. The guys on the team deserve a chance to win, and the fans sure do. Right now, the Braves mgt is sending out signals loud and clear that they are going to do nothing. The poor guy trying to sell advertising time on their ballgames has to be getting ready to shoot himself. No one wants to watch the current product on the field. They have not been bulit to win for sure.
Delbert D.
April 27th, 2010
2:53 pm
How about making Chipper a player/coach? He can no longer hit without injuring part of his anatomy, but I think he would be better than TP as hitting coach. (What? better than toilet paper??!!) Also station him as 3rd base coach so he can keep Escobar awake and functioning. Sell the deal as something unique in this modern era, something that will add to Chipper’s legacy.
Or dump him and eat the cost.
Glen W
April 27th, 2010
2:53 pm
Brian, those nine teams will see their team ERA’s drop by a full run when they play the Braves. The teams that have played the Braves lead the league in ERA because they have played the Braves. If you and I pitched against the Braves underhanded we would at least be league average.
Just kidding dude, of course. I like your optimism… and I think I have been pretty consistently optimistic here. I just wanted to take a stab at what I think others are going to have to say about your posting.
RHR
April 27th, 2010
2:53 pm
Somebody sane answer me please…
How did Yunel look at leadoff? As bad as everyone else? Is the leadoff experiment over? Or will it be someone new today?
How bad (injury wise?) did Chipper look?
Did the 3 runs last night come off one hit or was it a complete bullpen meltdown? Or bad defense?
chris
April 27th, 2010
2:54 pm
morton has been getting killed, and gorkys is hitting .203 in AA, so the braves have still been winning that trade…
Stewart Smally
April 27th, 2010
2:54 pm
Wayne in Utah
April 27th, 2010
2:44 pm
Smally
Chipper and Bobby will decide when he should come out of the lineup. That is good enough for me.
They have played and managed a heckuva lot more games than you and me combined.
Gee Wayne, you’re absolutely right! John Paul Stevens is 90 plus years old and sitting on the Supreme Court right now. If tomorrow he wakes up crazy as a outhouse rat and proclaims he’s the king of the congo and wants to build a house made of vanilla wafers then we should all believe he is capable of serving on the court until he’s in the ground! After all, he’s ruled on more court cases than you and I have, Wayne!
Shaun
April 27th, 2010
2:55 pm
imagine what we would have if we kept those guys for tex.
Yes, let’s imagine. At the trade deadline in 2007 the Braves are within 5 games of the division lead and have as good a run differential as any team in the league except one (the Cubs). They have guys like Julio Franco, Scott Thorman, Craig Wilson and Saltalamacchia playing first the rest of the season because they didn’t want to give up some great, young talent to get an MVP-caliber player in his prime with another year remaining on his contract. Can you imagine the blog? We would still be hearing about that missed opportunity. Oh, wait. You say the Braves made the move for the MVP caliber player with another year on his contract while they had a legit shot at the playoffs? And people are still complaining? I guess you can’t please some fans.
Nova Scotia Steve
April 27th, 2010
2:55 pm
“Braves traded soooo many good prospects that could have blah, blah, blah”
Second or third time I’ve read blah blah blah on the blog today – are we turning to a newer version of yada yada yada’ing Braves baseball.
Jesse Stone
April 27th, 2010
2:56 pm
Gorkys is barely hitting over .200 with approximately 15Ks and 5 walks and has only stolen 4 bases. Charlie Morton is now pitching BP. Jeff Locke has an ERA of under 3, but he’s in A ball.
Nova Scotia Steve
April 27th, 2010
2:56 pm
I think Chipper needs to be DL’d by the looks of things.
FEAR
April 27th, 2010
2:56 pm
Stewart Smally – that was pretty funny
Brian from SC
April 27th, 2010
2:56 pm
Glen W, that’s why I pointed out that the Braves opponents so far actually have a higher ERA against the Braves (3.60) than against the rest of the league (3.58).
monty
April 27th, 2010
2:56 pm
Brian from SC
Man you are going to seem like a genuise in May if the BRaves perform better than they are right now. But then again there’s no place to go but up right?
Ted William's Frozen Head
April 27th, 2010
2:58 pm
Just thought I would expand my horizons a bit
ncscoots
April 27th, 2010
2:58 pm
Second or third time I’ve read blah blah blah on the blog today
Just the cycle of the moon, man. We’ll go back to the yada-yada-yada when it’s full.
faninva
April 27th, 2010
2:58 pm
where IS Scott Thorman now? didn’t do much for the braves, but boy, he sure does kick butt for me in MLB The Show!
N8
April 27th, 2010
2:59 pm
MikeInFL
I’m just going to post this and then going to let it go. Because I agree with you, at the plate Chipper was always a better “hitter” than Murphy was. But I stand by the defense and base running on Murphy’s behalf.
Anyhow, here are the cleanup hitters that Chipper has enjoyed having behind him “protecting” him. And we all know how teams have pitched around him when he hasn’t had said protection.
1995 – Fred McGriff
1996 – Fred McGriff
1997 – Fred McGriff
1998 – Big Cat
1999 – Brian Jordan
2000 – Big Cat
2001 – Brian Jordan
2002 – Gary Sheffield
2003 – Chipper was the cleanup hitter
2004 – Andruw
2005 – Andruw
2006 – Andruw
2007 – Andruw & Tex
2008 – Tex
2009 – McCann
How about Murphy? The first few years of his career, he was the 5th or 6th hole batter in the lineup. He became the cleanup hitter in 1983 following his MVP year of 82… here are his “protectors” from then there on….
1983 – Bob Horner
1984 – Chris Chambliss
1985 – Bob Horner
1986 – Bob Horner
1987 – Ken Griffey Sr.
1988 – multiple guys batted behind murphy with little results
1989 – Ron Gant
1990 – Jim Presley
I wont even mention who was protecting Murphy when he was lower in the order in the late 70’s and before the 1982 MVP season. Because it’s safe to say the sucked.
Sorry, but everybody preaches how Chipper “needed” Tex to protect him and that we haven’t had a good cleanup hitter since Tex left and Andruw was rolling. Maybe so. But Chipper has ALWAYS had a damn good hitter behind him.
Murhphy had 3 years of an old hacker named Bob Horner (who other than his hot streaks of HR, was usually an easy out), and other than that, he had ZERO protection. Murphy WAS the protection for guys like Claudell Washington and Gerald Perry.
Sorry folks. Not even close to the same caliber of lineup that Chipper has been surrounded with. Doesn’t take away from his greatness. But Murphy had no help…. EVER. Yet managed to be one of the games best players while playing for one of the worst teams for 90 percent of his career.
Brian from SC
April 27th, 2010
3:00 pm
Not a genius, monty…but someone who can look at the reality of the numbers and see that the Braves will get their first shot at some bad pitching staffs in May. Doesn’t take a genius to interpret those numbers…it just took a little bit of math work to compile them.
monty
April 27th, 2010
3:00 pm
RHR
Yunel in his first AB hit a rocket to the wall that Ludwig caught as he gently collided with the wall in RCF I believe it was.
monty
April 27th, 2010
3:03 pm
N8 on a roll.
Bat Masterson
April 27th, 2010
3:03 pm
The odds for and against are always relevant, I’m afraid. Believing you can force a favorable outcome that flies in the face of what happens most of the time is what keeps bookies in yachts and managers in the broadcast booth. – ncscoots
I’m copying that here because it amuses the hell outa me. That, and I want easy access when I steal it, and claim it as my own.
chip carey's eyebrows
April 27th, 2010
3:03 pm
3 games out in April and the season is over? I mean this team has frustrated me to no end the past week, but it’s early. A LOT of things need to be fixed, and quickly, but saying wait until 2011 is just depressing and premature in my book.
j
April 27th, 2010
3:03 pm
A gonz would be nice but I really think that we are more than 1 player away from being good. Still too many other holes to give up our farm system for this guy. Sad but true.
RemoW
April 27th, 2010
3:04 pm
Braves traded Gorkys Hernandez, Charlie Morton, and Jeff Locke to the Pirates for McLouth.
Morton is off to a terrible start 0-4 with a 16+ era.
Gorkys Hernandez has never played in the bigs and is hitting .203 in 69 AB for AA Altoona.
Jeff Locke is doing alright in high a ball. 4 starts 2-1 with a 2.89 era.
So I feel confident that the Braves did not trade the farm for McLouth. But, if they traded for Andrew McCutchen(sp?) that would have been a coup. He is a better defender and is currently hitting .286 which is identical to his BA from last season.
RC
April 27th, 2010
3:04 pm
Fun with numbers:
Here are the projected MORP (Baseball Prospectus stat) values for 4 players in 2010 and through 2015, two from the Phillies and two from the Braves. This stat tries to approximate the dollar value that a player is worth over a replacement level player:
Player A – $16.6 million in 2010, $74.2 million through 2015
Player B – $32.5 million in 2010, $152.9 million through 2015
Player C – $19.5 million in 2010, $146.9 million through 2015
Player D – $29.8 million in 2010, $157.5 million through 2015
Now the identities of those 4 players:
Player A = Ryan Howard
Player B = Chase Utley
Player C = Jason Heywar
Player D = Yunel Escobar
Have fun with that new contract Phillies
Daslied
April 27th, 2010
3:04 pm
RHR -
1. Yunel, I believe, was 1-4 with a walk and was robbed of a leadoff XBH by Ludwick.
2. Chipper looked like Chipper. Gimpy but still elite.
3. Hudson gave up a homer. In relief Moylan gave up an RBI double to a pinch-hitter. Pujols did something. Molina somehow stole a base and later hit an RBI ground-rule double.
lee
April 27th, 2010
3:04 pm
am i watching the same games everyone else is watching? seems like i am reading so many comments in these blogs making excuses for “professional ” players that can not seem to comprehend simple fundamentals of the game, because noone in this organization makes them be accountable!! i just do not understand that!! to me, thats the major problem that needs to stop happening–everyone needs to STOP making excuses for these “players” and make them ACCOUNTABLE–i would be pulling everyone we have in the minors in people’s place before i would let these guys dog-it up out there–some of these guys feel like they are ENTITLED (chipper) !! whats the worse can happen we lose–o yea–we are already do that!!!
ijudgenot
April 27th, 2010
3:05 pm
“remember Chipper may retire at years end if he has a bad year. that would give us the money to go get Jason Werth or another impact bat.”
Chipper did say that if he could not do any better than he did last year he would hang it up, but I would not count on it given the extension Wren gave him. I really believe that he was serious when he made that statement though. Chipper like most aging stars knows how to hit and how to play defense and how to play in clutch situations. Its just that his body can not do automatically now what his mind knows what needs to be done like it used to. Maybe the deferred money he gave up to allow team to sign Sheffield and Tex can be paid post retirement. This would allow him to keep his promice.
McFann Ô
April 27th, 2010
3:06 pm
That for the new Blog, Chief! Good read…That speech-clip creepily fits…
Monday’s 4-3 recede-from-ahead (inverse of come-from-behind) Braves loss.
Daslied
April 27th, 2010
3:10 pm
Ran home at lunch and watched a little MLB Network. The Brewers are the most entertaining team in baseball. They’re 9-10 on the season. 5-10 against everyone but the Pirates. They’ve beaten Pitt in all 4 games by a combined score of something like 54-4.
My favorite part, though, was watching Greg Zaun not be able to throw the ball back to the pitcher:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnlgqqiPA1M
I realize all of that may have been discussed last night, but I’d sooner stab myself in the eyes with a coat hanger than read the blog in-game lately.
Larry Jones
April 27th, 2010
3:10 pm
Chipper cannot field or hit the way he used to and he has one of the worst haircuts in the majors (looks like a poor man’s Moe from the 3 Stooges). So First place Philly has Ryan Howard, and last place Atlanta has Moe Howard.
ncscoots
April 27th, 2010
3:10 pm
Bat, public domain, my man, LOL. Thievery allowed, for purposes of future promulgation.
Greg in TN
April 27th, 2010
3:10 pm
Afternoon folks…
The SS Braves does seem to be listing to the port side of late. My take is that the offensive struggles have permeated to defense and baserunning during the series in NY, which is a trifecta no team can stand for very long with postseason aspirations. The lapses are bad folks, very troubling because that’s a sign that the offensive frustrations are taking focus off of other aspects of the game. Not good at all.
Baseball is big on momentum and confidence and both can change at any given time, on any given play and right now, the lads of Stone Mountain don’t have a lot of either on the cupboard. And it’s not exactly a great time in the schedule to be lacking both after finishing series with two division rivals and one game completed in the series with a pennant contender in Saint Louie.
Braves looked better defensively last night than they have since during the Phillies series. Some hits with RISP and cutting down on the errors and baserunning mistakes would do wonders right now.
Adrian Gonzalez is a moot point. The Braves’ future first sacker plays up the road in Gwinnett and not on the road tonight in south Florida against the Marlins. I don’t see bringing up Freeman as a viable option since he struggled initially at both Mississip’ and Gwinnett, and Glaus has looked better at the dish of late in piecing together a modest 3-game hit streak.
Glen W
April 27th, 2010
3:11 pm
The current roster is flawed. And sometimes you don’t know that until you get into the season. But the situation is not termina. We made a small, short-term investment in Glaus. Thus, we can move Freddie the minute the organization feels he ready.
Chipper has become a problem, overall. He’s costly and not reliable, physically. But it could be much worse… muc h much worse. Chipper has given hometown discounts, reworked his contract, etc. So lets not be too hard on him.
The roster is flawed. But overall the organization is in very, very good shape.
I keep saying it: delayed gratification.
Mike
April 27th, 2010
3:13 pm
Let me start by saying that I love Chipper and Bobby. I was excited to get Glav back and reunite him with Smoltz in 2008. I have been desperately trying to cling onto the Braves former glory and hope that it can be returned.
That being said…I think I am ready for change. I am not giving up on this season by any means…its early. But I just have a feeling that we are going to see the same ending as the last few years.
I may be completely wrong, but it seems to me that as Bobby got older, and so did our team, he began to rely more on the veterans to steer the ship as he oversaw it and encouraged them. But as this team brought in a new wave of youngin’s in 2005 (though we did win the division that year), the leadership disappeared as the veterans were replaced. Now with a team with lots of young talent there is very little experienced vocal veteran leadership to take these guys to the next level. Chipper has always seemed to be a quiet leader and has just gone out and played at a high level. But now even that is deteriorating. His defense is suspect, he has lost his power stroke, and he cant be depended on health wise.
Its time for some fire to be brought back to this team. We need these young guys and this city to be energized, and I just don’t see Bobby doing that. Did you see the electricity that was in that stadium on opening day to see Heyward? We can have that again with a whole new feel to this team. We need to give this team and these young guys a Braves team of their own that they can go out with and start a new streak with.
Like I said, I love Bobby and Chipper and cant stand to read some of the asinine stuff that’s posted on here about them. And I may be completely wrong in my opinion, but I don’t think I am.
Bobby deserves to go out on their own terms. And I hope that we can pull some of that remaining old Braves magic to take him out on a high. But I am ready for the change.
GO BRAVES!!!
monty
April 27th, 2010
3:14 pm
I think Chipper was reasonably healthy last year,have heard him say so,and that’s why it was depressing for him the way he performed,(no real injury boo-boos) to blame it on. I can’t see him stepping down this year do to injury issues, underperformance if healthy-yes. But not due to injuries. I do believe CJ wants desperatley to end his career with a .300 BA. Not sure if a bad year this year would jepordize that or not.
Guthro
April 27th, 2010
3:14 pm
Good productivity from Troy Glaus was a big if. Freddy Freeman becoming a productive major league first baseman also was and is a big if. The decision to bet on Glaus and Freeman for 2010-2011, rather than sign LaRoche and trade him a year or two later if Freeman gets good, looks like a HUGE mistake.
Giving up on Kelly Johnson after a wrist injury and a bad year also looks like a big mistake.
Trading for Gonzalez would be yet another mistake.
CB
April 27th, 2010
3:14 pm
I can’t wait to see the lineup and see Melkey Cabrera’s name in it.
CB
April 27th, 2010
3:15 pm
gayle
April 27th, 2010
3:15 pm
Brian SC – did it ever occur to you that the reason the 7 teams the Braves have played so far have the best ERA is BECAUSE they played the Braves! And what nonsense to blame the poor record on playing good teams. What do you think would happen in the Post Season?
Gonzalez is just another band aid in a very long line of band aids like Drew, Sheffield, Tex. It hasn’t worked for 8 years – it’s time to change the mindset of this team and this organization.
RHR
April 27th, 2010
3:15 pm
Daslied – thank you. Gonna try to listen on the radio tonight. Maybe I’ll bring them luck. I probably won’t be able to listen until late innings and with Lowe pitching it may be too late for even my luck to help them.
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
3:16 pm
That Zaun clip was funny. thanks
Lou Vales
April 27th, 2010
3:16 pm
I don’t think “speeches” really help in a sport played more with talent than emotion. If this was football, give the “speech”, but you can’t motivate a person to hit. Sorry, can’t be done.
Glaus, Cabrera(???????????)and a rapidly deteriorating Jones–What could that speech possibly say?
Hell, this franchise was probably jinxed by the Goddess of Stupidity soon after Texeira trade was consummated. Might be awhile before Braves are forgiven.
McFann Ô
April 27th, 2010
3:16 pm
Fischerking04I feel like we are a loss or two away from me buying a Celine Dion album to play while I lay in the fetal position in the corner and have a good cry.
How about The Partridge Family’s “It’s One Of Those Nights (Yes, Love)”:
…It’s one of those things for the pain it brings
You say to yourself ‘Hey couldn’t I live without it?’
Well, I think so, on the other hand, I doubt it
…
…And so it goes it’s a cold in your nose
It’s a pain in the neck, it’ll make you a wreck if it gets ya
It’s so insane ’cause for all the rain
When you ask yourself could you do it all again, you betcha
I hear a voice say you got no chance
And it makes me mad and I shout, ‘Oh yeah, who says so?’
Well, of course not, on the other hand, I guess so…
Brian from SC
April 27th, 2010
3:17 pm
Chipper would have to hit under .200 for a span of about 560 ABs to drop his average to .300. I don’t think it’s gonna happen.
Brian from SC
April 27th, 2010
3:18 pm
gayle, did you not read my post. I specifically said the teams have a worse ERA against the Braves (3.60) than they do against the rest of the league (3.58). So playing the Braves is actually raising their ERA (slightly).
RC
April 27th, 2010
3:18 pm
Gonzalez is just another band aid in a very long line of band aids like Drew, Sheffield, Tex. It hasn’t worked for 8 years – it’s time to change the mindset of this team and this organization.
Drew and Sheffield both had awesome years and got this team to the postseason (Sheffield twice). What exactly didn’t work there?
NoYouDint
April 27th, 2010
3:18 pm
Good to know it’s the fans fault that Troy Glaus stinks. Thanks DOB.
Glen W
April 27th, 2010
3:18 pm
So, let me throw out another possibility re: Chipper. And I actually think it is not too far-fetched.
What if the Braves and Chipper agreed that he needed to be a DH and looked to work with him to find a trade scenario that Chipper would feel good about? My guess is that the Rays would have some interest in him (Chipper is from the area) at the end of this season when they lose Crawford and Burrell’s $8M contract comes off the books.
The good news for Chipper is that he could play every day (he looks so immobile in the field right now, despite a few good plays last night). And playing every day would get him that much closer to those key milestones: 500 HR 3000 hits, etc. Not sure he could reach them, especially if he keeps missing time this year, but he could get a lot closer.
Then, he gets in the HOF. Some people say he is already in. Others say that the bar is raised for everyone who played in PED era. But I have to think that DH-ing for a couple of years could give him a much greater shot.
Thoughts?
Thrillhouse44
April 27th, 2010
3:19 pm
gayle, someone pointed out yesterday that the opponents’ ERAs have risen while playing the Braves. Good try, though. The effort was there…just not the facts.
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
3:19 pm
Baseball is big on momentum and confidence… except when your facing Chris Carpenter
heyward
April 27th, 2010
3:19 pm
Guthro: getting rid of kj a mistake? prado has a better average and is a better defensive player. .392 vs .302
Fischerking04
April 27th, 2010
3:20 pm
Guthro I don’t think anyone “gave up” on KJ. He was horrendous for us last year and has been one of the most inconsistant players we’ve had over the last few years. Nobody knew he would get off to a torrid start. But as Braves fans have seen over the years, as hot as he is now, he is likely to be exactly that cold at any point in the year for LONG stretches.
Thrillhouse44
April 27th, 2010
3:20 pm
someone pointed out yesterday that the opponents’ ERAs have risen while playing the Braves
And that someone was Brian from SC – good job, B.
monty
April 27th, 2010
3:20 pm
Brian
I take your word for that, good to know.
NoYouDint
April 27th, 2010
3:21 pm
The fans started booing Glaus after he stunk, DOB. Not before. No more excuses please he can’t field and a two single performance is not proof he doesn’t stink. He stinks and I don’t like him. Did I mention he stinks?
Fischerking04
April 27th, 2010
3:22 pm
McFann- Yes! Someone else understands!!!!
chris
April 27th, 2010
3:22 pm
guthro- i dont think freeman becoming a productive major leaguer is a big if. the guy will hit for a high average, even when he doesnt hit for power. and he’s real good defensively, including a very strong arm which is a rare for the 1st base position. his wrist seems to have finally gotten strong, and if you see him in batting practice, he hits almost as hard as heyward
heyward
April 27th, 2010
3:22 pm
Fischerking04: exactly kj will cool off soon he is one of the most inconsistent players in the majors
Brian from SC
April 27th, 2010
3:23 pm
Yeah, monty a little bit of algebra. Chipper has 2419 hits in 7876 ABs in his career. I assumed he hit .200 and looked for how many ABs he need to make his average .300. Where x is the required # of ABs:
(2419 + .2x) / (7876 + x) = .3
x = 562
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
3:23 pm
They won’t trade Chipper for a lot of reasons. the Braves would have to pay more than half his salary for TB to take him
Lou Vales
April 27th, 2010
3:23 pm
In 45 years you have had the opportunity to see the “IMPORTANT” trophy hoisted one!!! time. Don’t ever let people accuse you of being impatient.
Of course IF you follow the Hawks, Falcons and/or Flames/Thrashers, you have NEVER seen the Big One HOISTED!!
Daslied
April 27th, 2010
3:24 pm
RHR – NP. LOLZ! PWNED!
JC, I need sleep.
Ted M
April 27th, 2010
3:24 pm
Whose our third baseman of the future anyway? What was the name of that Kid free agent we signed this year.
Glen W
April 27th, 2010
3:24 pm
Thanks for the deep insight, Ted M.
Nova Scotia Steve
April 27th, 2010
3:25 pm
Have a laugh – please on me
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hp_Ju_vbPro&feature=related
Thrillhouse44
April 27th, 2010
3:26 pm
Lou Vales types like Stephen A. Smith speaks.