“how do we afford a contract that could approach or exceed $20 mil annually on a team with a payroll of $90 mil with no sign of it escalating anytime soon?”
You don’t. That is absurd, especially for a guy that really isn’t an Ace.
That’s what I’m trying to say Lew…I have no idea if Greinke would cost “a significant package” or not. I’m not listening in on those phone calls. The cost associated with him should reflect the fact that you’d only be trading for two months. Same with Dempster. Steve from OH
I’ve been trying to find a way to say this for a few days now, but couldn’t put the right words together. The prospect package to Milwaukee should not depend on an extension. Whether or not the Braves {or whoever acquires him} gets to re-sign Grienke is none of the Brewers’ business once he’s dealt. Why should they be ‘rewarded’ with better prospects when they’re still just giving away 2.5 months of ZG?
4/60 is a whole lot less that 5/100 especially for a guy with a muvh higher career ERA than Hanson FCS
With all due respect, noles, I do not think Tommy Hanson is the guy who put those career numbers up any longer. He’s just not there physically right now. The stuff and command isn’t there. Might come back – but I doubt all the way.
TenPaul – Exactly. I’d rather have a different, less expensive pitcher and a better (than usual) LFer. I believe that would make us a better team than a staff headed by Grienke would.
Yeah, we need pitching – no doubt about it. Just don’t want to spend the entire bundle on one player – especially one who will cost a premium at the deadline and who would negate improving in other areas as well.
contract that could approach or exceed $20 mil annually on a team with a payroll of $90 mil
But yet we find ways to give Lowe and Uggla a huge contract with very little production to show for it. I think we have an opportunity now to pay a quality starter given the young age and low priced commitments for the next couple of years. Not saying it will happening but it’s feasible.
please dont have me in the same category as MFin. i beg you.
Hah! I don’t. I know it’s not an obsession with you. However I will say that pointing to his initial 70+ starts doesn’t tell the whole story with Jurrjens. He just isn’t there physically. 3 of his 10 starts in the minors he got blasted for 10, 6 and 6 ER. It’s a possibility with him moreso than other starters, I think.
Lew: If he thinks Zack is the one and we can afford him, guess I’ll have to concede…
if the front office deems whomever they are acquiring as a “long term” piece, the front office is simultaneously defining whomever they trade as “not-long-term.” And likewise, if the front office acquires a player they are deeming said player as more valuable or more useful to the Braves than the player(s) they trade.
In conclusion, if it is true that the Braves are looking at Garza, then it must be true that the Braves believe Garza will help the team enough to even be worth reviewing.
And, I would concur.
–7/17/2012 5:44pm
Hillbily – That might be right, but is still somewhat immaterial – he’s going to cost a bunch just because of the competition in bidding for his services and if true that the Braewers are planning to offer him a deal at $20 mil a year, then maybe he’s just not for us.
We’re running low on viable prospects for trade and we already know the financial situation. Go for the most bang for the buck in as many areas that need filling as you can.
Could just be that fourt $5 mil players or 3 $6-7 mil players help us much more than one at $20 million.
You must have missed (or forgotten) last off-season, when a large fraction of folks here were ready to trade half the ML starters on the club, so that Minor, Delgado, and Teheran could ALL have slots waiting for them at ST.
I believe these are primarily the same folks who now are ready to trade Minor, Delgado, and Teheran for a package of Cy Young’s corpse and Ted Williams’ frozen head. I haven’t done the research, though, so it could be just confirmation bias, on my part.
(cap-tip to Steve-OH for “corpse”. Loved it too much not to steal it.)
Uggla quite simply needs to get going. Hit a buck 60 in June, and hitting .111 this month with .279 OBP. He is notorious for having 2 really poor months each season. These hopefully are the two this year. Have to get some production from this guy.
Ten Paul – Maybe? Really? Is agreement even a vague posibility?
Yeah, I DO trust Wren and think he’s a good GM and I definitely believe he has a much better grasp of all aspects of the trade market and what we have available. If he thinks Grienke is the Man and we can afford him and all else we need, I won’t dump on Zack like Nate (started out as a joke actually to show I wasn;’t only a Blind Homer and snowballed when he lived up to the negativity ) unless he sucks that badly as a Brave.
Was at the game last night on front row of outfield and Braves game up after SF scored the 6. You could see it. Kinda disappointing as a paying customer to see your team just wave the white flag and want the game over.
I believe these are primarily the same folks who now are ready to trade Minor, Delgado, and Teheran
I still see a lot of hold over in the initial “we-have-everything-we-need-in-our-system” crew. I was never one to claim those kids enough to make it to the post season. Or that the team as constructed this past off-season was enough to make it to the post-season. And we see now Wren looking for improvements.
The more this trade deadline get here I am getting nervous….. Plz dont trade the farm away for a rental player….. and I know I am going to get blasted for this but I am not crazy about greinke….. I would rather have shields, garza, or dempster…. thats my thought…. NO MORE RENTAL PLAYERS!!!!
I won’t dump on Zack like Nate (started out as a joke actually to show I wasn;’t only a Blind Homer and snowballed when he lived up to the negativity ) unless he sucks that badly as a Brave.
Hey, I enjoyed it. I know I posted counter stats the entire time, but that was fun all around. You had Nate. I had Bad Routes Cabrera eating his bat…
Ten Paul – That’s yet another reason to go for players who are already singed to good contracts for a few more years like Span or Willingham. THoush Shields wouldcost more than $6-7 mil, he fits in the same category as he’d be around for a couple more years at reasonable rates.
but I am not crazy about greinke….. I would rather have shields, garza, or dempster…. thats my thought…. NO MORE RENTAL PLAYERS!!!! – Braves Fan in Maine
You must have missed (or forgotten) last off-season, when a large fraction of folks here were ready to trade half the ML starters on the club, so that Minor, Delgado, and Teheran could ALL have slots waiting for them at ST
Yes, it was ridiculous. I was one saying Hudson, Hanson, Jurrjens, Beachy, Minor in the bigs. Teheran, Delgado and Vizcaino at Gwinnett. Lowe on another team.
Unfortunately things just haven’t quite worked out because of injuries and poor performance.
I’ve always said we needed more pitching, but was continually shot down because of the amount in quantity of young pitchers we had in the organization. I’ve been told numerous times pitching was the last thing we needed.
I mentioned it the other day and didn’t get much inoput, but what if Hudson’s ankle issues are really bad and he might be considering calling it quits after this year? It would necessitate getting more pitching, but would also free up another $9 mil.
unbelievable…… i know dempster is a rental player that is why I have him ranked third….. he is also 35 yrs old and will want to get his pay day….. personally I would stay away from him as well then
he fits in the same category as he’d be around for a couple more years at reasonable rates.
He’s a Super 2, like Lincecum… his rates have a huge potential to explode over the next couple of years. The team has control only over time, not necessarily cost.
I just think that is unlikely, Lew. I think Hudson will have a surgery to clean that out, and will be more than fine for spring training. I certainly don’t see Hudson retiring, unless it was significant arm injury.
Still think Huddy at $9 is better production than what we can find in the offseason. Id rather have Hudson and Marcum, lets say, for $20 mil combined over Greinke.
I’ll get back to what was discussed earlier this morning. Why did the Brewers feel the need to give Greinke “rest?” As far as I know, Milwaukee isn’t extending the same chance to rest to its other starters. It’s a bit unusual, isn’t it?
It just flashes a “caution” signal to me about Greinke. Think the guy is talented, and I was pushing for Wren to swing a deal for him earlier, but a little concerned about a pitcher who needs to rest mid-season.
what if Hudson’s ankle issues are really bad and he might be considering calling it quits after this year?
I just don’t see Hudson walking away. I guess it could happen, but that seems like a very, extremely, small possibility. I think Tim is coming back for at least one more year.
If Beachy had not gotten hurt and continued with his production, I think we’d still need one more pitcher but I think it wouldn’t have had to be a top of the rotation type, nor one signed past this season. Just my take.
unbelievable – What if he decides to retire because of his ankle? He’s already had a couple of surgeries the past few years and is not exactly all that young at age 37.
You must have missed (or forgotten) last off-season, when a large fraction of folks here were ready to trade half the ML starters on the club, so that Minor, Delgado, and Teheran could ALL have slots waiting for them at ST.
Let the record show that I was ready to pull the trigger on Minor and Delgado for Hunter Pence last July. When that fell through I was open to Delgado for Bourn.
Nearly $### a squiggly worm when Wren pulled of the Bourn heist.
The Braves, or whoever picks up Greinke, would give him a full physical before the deal was finalized… so, the only thing the team would really lose is time that could have been spent pursuing a healthy pitcher should said physical raise red flags.
No thanks. Not the type of pitcher I want in the rotation next year.
Which essentially means acquiring even more starting pitching. I’d like only one “rough around the edges rookie type” in the rotation at a time. Not this Polished + Delgado + Teheran combo.
Lew, big difference between an arm surgery and a surgery to clean out bone spurs in an ankle. Hudson should be back and better than ever in 2013. No reason to retire over a minor surgery like that.
Not saying that Hudson will or would retire – just listing it as a possibiity and wondering what difference having that money might make to FW’s plans.
I’ve always liked Huddy and he still has the capabilities of being dominant. But now with the ankle, he also has the potential to suck pretty badly when it’s hurting.
I attended the Lynchburg Hillcats / Potomac Nationals game last night. It was a typical Braves/Nats game with the good guys getting up 5-0 in the 2nd inning and the pesky Gnats chipping away and winning in extras. There were probably no more than 200 people in attendance. The Gnats pulled out all the stops to beat the Hillcats, throwing Drew Storen for an inning and starting Xavier Nady at DH. I will tell you one thing, I’ve never seen more balls just out of reach on grounders or fly balls than the GNats managed against the Hillcats (except maybe in a Washington Nationals/ABraves game). In the 9th alone, with the Cats of 6-5 and 2 outs, the PNats managed 3 straight seeing-eye singles (I call them Jeters) to tie it up. Frustrating!
Also got to talk to losing pitcher Ian Marshall’s father after the game. Nice guy. I felt bad that he made the trip down from Maryland and his son got the tough-luck loss.
I saw a lot of passion from the Lynchburg players. 1B Chris Garcia (.300/.420/.440) left the game with an injury, hopefully he’s okay.
Huddy’s extremely competitive and very focused on what’s important for him and his family. I see him coming back next season and maybe calling it quits after 2013. He and his wife will probably stay active in community to keep them busy.
Brian – I could be wrong, but it was my udnerstanding that it wasn’t all that minor or that it was always very effective. Let’s not forget that Hudson is 37 and that isn’t all that young anymore for a pitcher. Not to mention his body has been through two more serious surgeries in recent years.
I’ve always liked Huddy and he still has the capabilities of being dominant. But now with the ankle, he also has the potential to suck pretty badly when it’s hurting.
Hudson’s 39 in ‘14. First arm, then back, and now, I gather, his ankle. Time takes a toll on athletes, even those who work hard to condition themselves, like Hudson.
You must have missed (or forgotten) last off-season, when a large fraction of folks here were ready to trade half the ML starters on the club, so that Minor, Delgado, and Teheran could ALL have slots waiting for them at ST.
Those were different days. Bourn hadn’t exactly lit things up since coming to Atlanta, Prado was coming off his worst season to-date, Heyward just finished a miserable campaign, the Braves could barely buy a win in September, and there wasn’t a whole lot to be excited about outside of Kimbrel and Freeman.
People were looking forward to 2013 already and the giant bag of cash that Wren would have at his disposal. I can’t speak for everyone, but personally I wasn’t holding out much hope for 2012 given how 2011 ended… but I thought 2013 was going to be THE year when Wren could really do something, especially if he moved a few overpriced vets and let the rookies earn their stripes over an entire season.
Hudson’s future after 2013 depends a lot on how he performs in 2013, I would think. Too early to speculate. I do think, if he continues to perform, he would not retire even after next year.
I think Hudson retires a Braves. He and his wife love Atlanta and has a huge charity in the area also. He may retire after this year, after 2013, or he may start on one year deals with the braves until he’s ready to retire.
but a little concerned about a pitcher who needs to rest mid-season.
I think it is a novel idea. This is an idea I saw floated in a Verducci article earlier. The Brewers said they had managed to do a similar thing with Gallardo in combination with the All Star Break. Who knows? Maybe a 10 day break at some point in the season is what the body needs to heal and rest a bit mid-season in order to avoid injury. Greinke’s quote in reaction to this was something to the effect, “I want to pitch every day, but I know that isn’t realistic.” Obviously wasn’t his idea.
How are the Cardinals considered a low market/revenue team, but the Braves are not? They have to have higher revenues correct? They get an extra lottery pick.
“Could just be that four $5 mil players or 3 $6-7 mil players help us much more than one at $20 million”
That is what I am going with. I mean if you can get a guy like Jurrjens, Prado, and Infante for $20 million instead of Greinke, it would make more sense to take the 3 guys. Or even two $10 million pitchers.
Heck Bourn and Prado might be able to be had for around $20 million.
I remember early this seaons the speculation that the Angels would move Trumbo for pitching becuase they didnt like his defense at 3B. Smart move putting him in RF.
How are the Cardinals considered a low market/revenue team, but the Braves are not? They have to have higher revenues correct?
I would think so. They have one of the best fanbases in the game. They’ve pulled in over 3M fans a season in 13 of the last 14 years and are well on their way this season.
Let the record show that I was ready to pull the trigger on Minor and Delgado for Hunter Pence last July. When that fell through I was open to Delgado for Bourn.
I remember that. I also remember that I poo-poo-ed the idea. I don’t mind owning that.
Me, I think folks tend to believe the worst of very young pitchers who get to the bigs and don’t immediately contend for the Cy. That is, they stop believing in “ceiling”. The kid will never be any better with experience, he’ll just continue to pitch like a rookie until he’s older than Jamie Moyer’s father. In effect, Randall Delgado as Jo-Jo Reyes.
Now, I suppose such a thing is possible, but nothing I’ve seen of Delgado makes me lean that way. And though I haven’t seen enough of Teheran to know what’s going on with him this year, I’ve seen him plenty enough in the past to know that there is some special talent in that particular kid. He might have misplaced it in 2012, but I highly doubt that it’s fully taken leave.
In short, I think that both pitchers have a future as very good pitchers, and I’d hate to see them go by the wayside.
I can’t imagine a scenario where we could sign both Greinke and Bourn.
We need to patch together this rotation and keep all 3 of these young guys.
As a mid market team with a serious payroll budget we can’t afford a lot of players with salaries over 10 million per year. We’ve got to pick and choose.
I think this is one of the reasons FW was entertaining offers for Prado last winter. In case he could get good, young value for him.
But as for the rotation, we must continually be introducing new arms to our rotation, at a rate of probably 1 per year. That way we can either deal guys or let them walk if they do not fit into our plans (Jurrjens and Hanson?).
MFin may be obsessed with JJ but i’m willing to bet that if we count numbers of posts / poster mentioning JJ’s name on all and any blog this season, he will only come in at 2nd.
And let me add that when one of your young guys shows a lot of promise, maybe you sign them for a 3-4 year contract to keep them on board for as long as possible. (Beachy before the Tommy Johnson surgery).
Jurrjens 6.20ERA 5.22FIP 5.76xFIP 3.8K/9 3.6BB/9 -0.1WAR -$500K Value. No way you pay this guy $7-$8 mil next season. You upgrade your staff by releasing him and save yourself the $7mil.
Can’t really make a call on Jurrjens until later on in the season. If he is up and down between now and October, then you let him walk. If he comes on strong, you give consideration for offering arbitration.
Today, who knows what’s going to happen in the next 3 months.
Based on Wikipedia’s list of most populous metro areas, the 10 smallest MLB markets are:
30. Milwaukee
29. Kansas City
28. Cleveland
27. Cincinnati
26. Pittsburgh
25. Denver
24. Baltimore
23. St. Louis
22. Tampa
21. San Diego
So the three other teams that qualified for the competitive balance lottery for being in the bottom 10 of revenue, but not market, would be Oakland, Miami, and Arizona. That makes sense.
What doesn’t make sense to me is how Detroit was able to get in on the second round because they receive revenue sharing money. With their $130 million payroll.
DS1 – depends on when they show lot of promise. always risky to buy out Arb years of pitchers due to injury risks. what if they go all JJ the year after signing the contract?
Good morning all
Now that was disgusting last night,starting pitcher did not pitch [ he should go back to AAA ball were he belongs] hitters did not hit. Hope the team plays baseball tonight and last night was not the start of the great colapse of 2012. CHIPPER has it right we need one more starting pitcher and hope SHEETS continues to do well.
I’m not opposed to looking for a veteran on a small salary with incentives on top of acquiring a top of the rotation type.
Could a solid showing from Sheets from here on out put him that mold or are you gun-shy on the injury history? I know it’s just one game and it’s too early to tell what he’s going to be,… just trying to get a gauge on you here.
“If he comes on strong, you give consideration for offering arbitration. “
He could pitch like he did in the first half for the next two months, you still dont offer him $7mil. I still dont see him being a part of this rotation come mid-august.
Of Hanson, Beachy and Jurrjens; they all have injury concerns. But if Beachy comes on strong in 2014 (probably won’t have a full season next year), then you look at possibly extending him. The others are still question marks. You wait until you HAVE to do something if there are question marks.
Kinda like McCann. Play him next year and see how he does for the entire year. No need to get in a hurry to sign him up for anything over 3-4 years.
Hillbilly
As most would agree, Sheets is a “wait and see” guy. Keep your fingers crossed that he does well and that he falls in love with Roger and the Braves.
That’s true, George, and it’s happening league-wide. The Braves’ attendance was 15th last year, and 14th so far this year. They are one of 11 teams in baseball whose attendance is up 10% or more from 2011.
To me it’s up in the air whether Jurrjens gets another start with Atlanta, much less be tendered a contract for 2013.
Yup. If we acquire another SP, I’d rather have Polished/Delgado in the rotation than him. Hell, I’d even bring up Teheran and let him sink or swim. He really can’t do any worse.
1,929 comments Add your comment
MFin04
July 18th, 2012
10:54 am
“how do we afford a contract that could approach or exceed $20 mil annually on a team with a payroll of $90 mil with no sign of it escalating anytime soon?”
You don’t. That is absurd, especially for a guy that really isn’t an Ace.
Hillbilly
July 18th, 2012
10:55 am
That’s what I’m trying to say Lew…I have no idea if Greinke would cost “a significant package” or not. I’m not listening in on those phone calls. The cost associated with him should reflect the fact that you’d only be trading for two months. Same with Dempster. Steve from OH
I’ve been trying to find a way to say this for a few days now, but couldn’t put the right words together. The prospect package to Milwaukee should not depend on an extension. Whether or not the Braves {or whoever acquires him} gets to re-sign Grienke is none of the Brewers’ business once he’s dealt. Why should they be ‘rewarded’ with better prospects when they’re still just giving away 2.5 months of ZG?
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
10:55 am
4/60 is a whole lot less that 5/100 especially for a guy with a muvh higher career ERA than Hanson FCS
With all due respect, noles, I do not think Tommy Hanson is the guy who put those career numbers up any longer. He’s just not there physically right now. The stuff and command isn’t there. Might come back – but I doubt all the way.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
10:56 am
TenPaul – Exactly. I’d rather have a different, less expensive pitcher and a better (than usual) LFer. I believe that would make us a better team than a staff headed by Grienke would.
Yeah, we need pitching – no doubt about it. Just don’t want to spend the entire bundle on one player – especially one who will cost a premium at the deadline and who would negate improving in other areas as well.
Arkansas Transplant
July 18th, 2012
10:56 am
contract that could approach or exceed $20 mil annually on a team with a payroll of $90 mil
But yet we find ways to give Lowe and Uggla a huge contract with very little production to show for it. I think we have an opportunity now to pay a quality starter given the young age and low priced commitments for the next couple of years. Not saying it will happening but it’s feasible.
Hillbilly
July 18th, 2012
10:57 am
Steve from OH
Meant Brian from SC.
ncbravesfan90
July 18th, 2012
10:58 am
“But yet we find ways to give Lowe and Uggla a huge contract with very little production to show for it”
A career high in homeruns for Uggla last year is classified as little production?
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
10:58 am
please dont have me in the same category as MFin. i beg you.
Hah! I don’t. I know it’s not an obsession with you. However I will say that pointing to his initial 70+ starts doesn’t tell the whole story with Jurrjens. He just isn’t there physically. 3 of his 10 starts in the minors he got blasted for 10, 6 and 6 ER. It’s a possibility with him moreso than other starters, I think.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:00 am
Lew: If he thinks Zack is the one and we can afford him, guess I’ll have to concede…
if the front office deems whomever they are acquiring as a “long term” piece, the front office is simultaneously defining whomever they trade as “not-long-term.” And likewise, if the front office acquires a player they are deeming said player as more valuable or more useful to the Braves than the player(s) they trade.
In conclusion, if it is true that the Braves are looking at Garza, then it must be true that the Braves believe Garza will help the team enough to even be worth reviewing.
And, I would concur.
–7/17/2012 5:44pm
So we agree. Cool.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:01 am
Hillbily – That might be right, but is still somewhat immaterial – he’s going to cost a bunch just because of the competition in bidding for his services and if true that the Braewers are planning to offer him a deal at $20 mil a year, then maybe he’s just not for us.
We’re running low on viable prospects for trade and we already know the financial situation. Go for the most bang for the buck in as many areas that need filling as you can.
Could just be that fourt $5 mil players or 3 $6-7 mil players help us much more than one at $20 million.
Arkansas Transplant
July 18th, 2012
11:01 am
ncbravesfan90, I’d like more than just a month in a half out of a player. Sorry but yes, I do classify that as little production.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:02 am
It’s a possibility with him moreso than other starters, I think.
I think Polished is more a possibility for a pounding over the long run.
ncscoots
July 18th, 2012
11:02 am
Are folks ready for that?
You must have missed (or forgotten) last off-season, when a large fraction of folks here were ready to trade half the ML starters on the club, so that Minor, Delgado, and Teheran could ALL have slots waiting for them at ST.
I believe these are primarily the same folks who now are ready to trade Minor, Delgado, and Teheran for a package of Cy Young’s corpse and Ted Williams’ frozen head. I haven’t done the research, though, so it could be just confirmation bias, on my part.
(cap-tip to Steve-OH for “corpse”. Loved it too much not to steal it.)
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:04 am
Could just be that four $5 mil players or 3 $6-7 mil players help us much more than one at $20 million
It’s getting more doubtful, as player salaries increase every year. The $5M guys are not as good these days as they were back in the mid-90’s.
Frankie
July 18th, 2012
11:04 am
Uggla quite simply needs to get going. Hit a buck 60 in June, and hitting .111 this month with .279 OBP. He is notorious for having 2 really poor months each season. These hopefully are the two this year. Have to get some production from this guy.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:06 am
Ten Paul – Maybe? Really? Is agreement even a vague posibility?
Yeah, I DO trust Wren and think he’s a good GM and I definitely believe he has a much better grasp of all aspects of the trade market and what we have available. If he thinks Grienke is the Man and we can afford him and all else we need, I won’t dump on Zack like Nate (started out as a joke actually to show I wasn;’t only a Blind Homer and snowballed when he lived up to the negativity ) unless he sucks that badly as a Brave.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:07 am
A much better grasp than I do.
NO MORE FREDI
July 18th, 2012
11:07 am
The DOB headline jinx continues.
Was at the game last night on front row of outfield and Braves game up after SF scored the 6. You could see it. Kinda disappointing as a paying customer to see your team just wave the white flag and want the game over.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:07 am
I believe these are primarily the same folks who now are ready to trade Minor, Delgado, and Teheran
I still see a lot of hold over in the initial “we-have-everything-we-need-in-our-system” crew. I was never one to claim those kids enough to make it to the post season. Or that the team as constructed this past off-season was enough to make it to the post-season. And we see now Wren looking for improvements.
Braves Fan in Maine
July 18th, 2012
11:08 am
The more this trade deadline get here I am getting nervous….. Plz dont trade the farm away for a rental player….. and I know I am going to get blasted for this but I am not crazy about greinke….. I would rather have shields, garza, or dempster…. thats my thought…. NO MORE RENTAL PLAYERS!!!!
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:09 am
I won’t dump on Zack like Nate (started out as a joke actually to show I wasn;’t only a Blind Homer and snowballed when he lived up to the negativity ) unless he sucks that badly as a Brave.
Hey, I enjoyed it. I know I posted counter stats the entire time, but that was fun all around. You had Nate. I had Bad Routes Cabrera eating his bat…
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:10 am
Ten Paul – That’s yet another reason to go for players who are already singed to good contracts for a few more years like Span or Willingham. THoush Shields wouldcost more than $6-7 mil, he fits in the same category as he’d be around for a couple more years at reasonable rates.
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
11:10 am
I think Polished is more a possibility for a pounding over the long run.
Very true, which is why we need another starter.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:11 am
Yeah, I nevcer really gave Melky much grief – almost wish now that I had.
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:11 am
but I am not crazy about greinke….. I would rather have shields, garza, or dempster…. thats my thought…. NO MORE RENTAL PLAYERS!!!! – Braves Fan in Maine
Dempster is a rental player.
Steve from OH
July 18th, 2012
11:11 am
I think Polished is more a possibility for a pounding over the long run.
Really? I dunno, I’d take Polished over JJ for the remainder of the season. JJ’s got nothing left.
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
11:12 am
You must have missed (or forgotten) last off-season, when a large fraction of folks here were ready to trade half the ML starters on the club, so that Minor, Delgado, and Teheran could ALL have slots waiting for them at ST
Yes, it was ridiculous. I was one saying Hudson, Hanson, Jurrjens, Beachy, Minor in the bigs. Teheran, Delgado and Vizcaino at Gwinnett. Lowe on another team.
Unfortunately things just haven’t quite worked out because of injuries and poor performance.
Arkansas Transplant
July 18th, 2012
11:12 am
I’ve always said we needed more pitching, but was continually shot down because of the amount in quantity of young pitchers we had in the organization. I’ve been told numerous times pitching was the last thing we needed.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:12 am
I mentioned it the other day and didn’t get much inoput, but what if Hudson’s ankle issues are really bad and he might be considering calling it quits after this year? It would necessitate getting more pitching, but would also free up another $9 mil.
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:12 am
We need another starter because of Hudsons ankle, Hansons shoulder, Sheets history, Jurrjens knees, and Minors HR’s allowed.
Braves Fan in Maine
July 18th, 2012
11:13 am
unbelievable…… i know dempster is a rental player that is why I have him ranked third….. he is also 35 yrs old and will want to get his pay day….. personally I would stay away from him as well then
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:13 am
he fits in the same category as he’d be around for a couple more years at reasonable rates.
He’s a Super 2, like Lincecum… his rates have a huge potential to explode over the next couple of years. The team has control only over time, not necessarily cost.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:13 am
And Huddy retiring would definitely affect Grienke’s affordability.
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:13 am
JJ’s got nothing left.
Agree
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
11:14 am
I’ve been told numerous times pitching was the last thing we needed.
If Brandon Beachy never got hurt, we probably would be waiting until the winter to add a starter. That’s my take, at least.
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:14 am
I just think that is unlikely, Lew. I think Hudson will have a surgery to clean that out, and will be more than fine for spring training. I certainly don’t see Hudson retiring, unless it was significant arm injury.
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
11:15 am
We need another starter because of Hudsons ankle, Hansons shoulder, Sheets history, Jurrjens knees, and Minors HR’s allowed.
Exactly. And it’s not to say they will all blow up at once. Just need another guy to protect ourselves.
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:15 am
Still think Huddy at $9 is better production than what we can find in the offseason. Id rather have Hudson and Marcum, lets say, for $20 mil combined over Greinke.
Jeff R
July 18th, 2012
11:15 am
I’ll get back to what was discussed earlier this morning. Why did the Brewers feel the need to give Greinke “rest?” As far as I know, Milwaukee isn’t extending the same chance to rest to its other starters. It’s a bit unusual, isn’t it?
It just flashes a “caution” signal to me about Greinke. Think the guy is talented, and I was pushing for Wren to swing a deal for him earlier, but a little concerned about a pitcher who needs to rest mid-season.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:16 am
According to BaseballReference, Shields has a team option in 2013 for $9 mil and a team option for 2014 at $13 mil. $1.5 mil buyout both years.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:16 am
what if Hudson’s ankle issues are really bad and he might be considering calling it quits after this year?
I just don’t see Hudson walking away. I guess it could happen, but that seems like a very, extremely, small possibility. I think Tim is coming back for at least one more year.
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
11:16 am
Hudson isn’t retiring and I don’t want him too. 9 million for Huddy is a bargan, imo.
However I’d hold off on the extension parade for Tim. He’ll turn 38 in 2013 and 39 in 2014.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:17 am
According to BaseballReference, Shields …
I was looking at Price. My bad.
Jeff R
July 18th, 2012
11:17 am
JJ’s got nothing left.
I tend to agree that Jurrjens’ trajectory isn’t good. But let’s see what he does in his next start.
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
11:17 am
It just flashes a “caution” signal to me about Greinke.
A fair point.
Braves Fan in Maine
July 18th, 2012
11:18 am
Thanks lew and if thats true then I would be more likely to pull a deal for shields with 13 million in 2013
Arkansas Transplant
July 18th, 2012
11:19 am
If Beachy had not gotten hurt and continued with his production, I think we’d still need one more pitcher but I think it wouldn’t have had to be a top of the rotation type, nor one signed past this season. Just my take.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:19 am
unbelievable – What if he decides to retire because of his ankle? He’s already had a couple of surgeries the past few years and is not exactly all that young at age 37.
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
11:19 am
JJ’s got nothing left.
I’d just rather not tender him a 7 million dollar contract for 2013. No thanks. Not the type of pitcher I want in the rotation next year.
Hillbilly
July 18th, 2012
11:19 am
You must have missed (or forgotten) last off-season, when a large fraction of folks here were ready to trade half the ML starters on the club, so that Minor, Delgado, and Teheran could ALL have slots waiting for them at ST.
Let the record show that I was ready to pull the trigger on Minor and Delgado for Hunter Pence last July. When that fell through I was open to Delgado for Bourn.
Nearly $### a squiggly worm when Wren pulled of the Bourn heist.
Murph
July 18th, 2012
11:19 am
The Braves, or whoever picks up Greinke, would give him a full physical before the deal was finalized… so, the only thing the team would really lose is time that could have been spent pursuing a healthy pitcher should said physical raise red flags.
Jeff R
July 18th, 2012
11:19 am
I think Hudson is a Brave in ‘13 and gone thereafter. Younger pitchers need to be accommodated, and then there’s budget concerns, too.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:21 am
No thanks. Not the type of pitcher I want in the rotation next year.
Which essentially means acquiring even more starting pitching. I’d like only one “rough around the edges rookie type” in the rotation at a time. Not this Polished + Delgado + Teheran combo.
DAP
July 18th, 2012
11:21 am
Murph There aren’t many “top of the rotation” guys that are available
depends on your definition. anybody know what dictionary Wren is using?
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:21 am
Lew, big difference between an arm surgery and a surgery to clean out bone spurs in an ankle. Hudson should be back and better than ever in 2013. No reason to retire over a minor surgery like that.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:22 am
Not saying that Hudson will or would retire – just listing it as a possibiity and wondering what difference having that money might make to FW’s plans.
I’ve always liked Huddy and he still has the capabilities of being dominant. But now with the ankle, he also has the potential to suck pretty badly when it’s hurting.
Jeff R
July 18th, 2012
11:22 am
I can’t believe Wren has any intentions of retaining Jurrjens’ services after this season. Certainly not for $7 million.
Braves Fan in Maine
July 18th, 2012
11:23 am
Does Hudson retire as a brave or play for someone else??
SteveinFXBG
July 18th, 2012
11:23 am
I attended the Lynchburg Hillcats / Potomac Nationals game last night. It was a typical Braves/Nats game with the good guys getting up 5-0 in the 2nd inning and the pesky Gnats chipping away and winning in extras. There were probably no more than 200 people in attendance. The Gnats pulled out all the stops to beat the Hillcats, throwing Drew Storen for an inning and starting Xavier Nady at DH. I will tell you one thing, I’ve never seen more balls just out of reach on grounders or fly balls than the GNats managed against the Hillcats (except maybe in a Washington Nationals/ABraves game). In the 9th alone, with the Cats of 6-5 and 2 outs, the PNats managed 3 straight seeing-eye singles (I call them Jeters) to tie it up. Frustrating!
Also got to talk to losing pitcher Ian Marshall’s father after the game. Nice guy. I felt bad that he made the trip down from Maryland and his son got the tough-luck loss.
I saw a lot of passion from the Lynchburg players. 1B Chris Garcia (.300/.420/.440) left the game with an injury, hopefully he’s okay.
All in all a fun game, just the wrong team won.
Frankie
July 18th, 2012
11:24 am
Huddy’s extremely competitive and very focused on what’s important for him and his family. I see him coming back next season and maybe calling it quits after 2013. He and his wife will probably stay active in community to keep them busy.
Lew
July 18th, 2012
11:24 am
Brian – I could be wrong, but it was my udnerstanding that it wasn’t all that minor or that it was always very effective. Let’s not forget that Hudson is 37 and that isn’t all that young anymore for a pitcher. Not to mention his body has been through two more serious surgeries in recent years.
Again – not saying he will retire.
Jeff R
July 18th, 2012
11:25 am
I’ve always liked Huddy and he still has the capabilities of being dominant. But now with the ankle, he also has the potential to suck pretty badly when it’s hurting.
Hudson’s 39 in ‘14. First arm, then back, and now, I gather, his ankle. Time takes a toll on athletes, even those who work hard to condition themselves, like Hudson.
Murph
July 18th, 2012
11:25 am
You must have missed (or forgotten) last off-season, when a large fraction of folks here were ready to trade half the ML starters on the club, so that Minor, Delgado, and Teheran could ALL have slots waiting for them at ST.
Those were different days. Bourn hadn’t exactly lit things up since coming to Atlanta, Prado was coming off his worst season to-date, Heyward just finished a miserable campaign, the Braves could barely buy a win in September, and there wasn’t a whole lot to be excited about outside of Kimbrel and Freeman.
People were looking forward to 2013 already and the giant bag of cash that Wren would have at his disposal. I can’t speak for everyone, but personally I wasn’t holding out much hope for 2012 given how 2011 ended… but I thought 2013 was going to be THE year when Wren could really do something, especially if he moved a few overpriced vets and let the rookies earn their stripes over an entire season.
Baseball is a funny sport.
Jeff R
July 18th, 2012
11:25 am
Hudson signs elsewhere after ‘13, I believe.
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:27 am
Hudson’s future after 2013 depends a lot on how he performs in 2013, I would think. Too early to speculate. I do think, if he continues to perform, he would not retire even after next year.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:27 am
Since May 9th, over a 60 game span, Albert Pujols has hit .325/.400/.588/.988 with 15 HR and 15 2B.
His month-by-month production:
_____AVG__OBP__SLG___OPS
Apr .217 .265 .304 0.570
May .263 .309 .491 0.800
Jun .326 .409 .568 0.977
Jul .333 .429 .625 1.054
At this rate he’ll be batting 1.000 with nothing but HRs by September.
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:29 am
I think Hudson retires a Braves. He and his wife love Atlanta and has a huge charity in the area also. He may retire after this year, after 2013, or he may start on one year deals with the braves until he’s ready to retire.
DAP
July 18th, 2012
11:29 am
brian from SC Hudson should be back and better than ever in 2013. No reason to retire over a minor surgery like that
its only “minor surgery” if you aint on the table.
Danga
July 18th, 2012
11:32 am
but a little concerned about a pitcher who needs to rest mid-season.
I think it is a novel idea. This is an idea I saw floated in a Verducci article earlier. The Brewers said they had managed to do a similar thing with Gallardo in combination with the All Star Break. Who knows? Maybe a 10 day break at some point in the season is what the body needs to heal and rest a bit mid-season in order to avoid injury. Greinke’s quote in reaction to this was something to the effect, “I want to pitch every day, but I know that isn’t realistic.” Obviously wasn’t his idea.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:32 am
Since May 9th:
_______HR_2B__AVG__OBP__SLG___OPS
Trumbo 22 11 .316 .366 .671 1.037
Trout. 12 16 .369 .423 .602 1.025
Pujols 15 15 .325 .400 .588 0.988
Would love to have three guys on the Braves that stinking hot for that long…
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:36 am
How are the Cardinals considered a low market/revenue team, but the Braves are not? They have to have higher revenues correct? They get an extra lottery pick.
MFin04
July 18th, 2012
11:37 am
“Could just be that four $5 mil players or 3 $6-7 mil players help us much more than one at $20 million”
That is what I am going with. I mean if you can get a guy like Jurrjens, Prado, and Infante for $20 million instead of Greinke, it would make more sense to take the 3 guys. Or even two $10 million pitchers.
Heck Bourn and Prado might be able to be had for around $20 million.
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:38 am
I remember early this seaons the speculation that the Angels would move Trumbo for pitching becuase they didnt like his defense at 3B. Smart move putting him in RF.
Arkansas Transplant
July 18th, 2012
11:38 am
Danga, I tried to point that out. This wasn’t something Greinke asked for or said he needed.
TennesseePaul
July 18th, 2012
11:38 am
How are the Cardinals considered a low market/revenue team, but the Braves are not? They have to have higher revenues correct?
I would think so. They have one of the best fanbases in the game. They’ve pulled in over 3M fans a season in 13 of the last 14 years and are well on their way this season.
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:39 am
St. Louis is the 58th-largest city in the US by population. Atlanta is 40th. Looks like the Cardinals are in one of the 10 smallest markets in MLB.
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:40 am
In population of metro area, Atlanta is 9th, while St. Louis is 19th.
ncscoots
July 18th, 2012
11:40 am
Let the record show that I was ready to pull the trigger on Minor and Delgado for Hunter Pence last July. When that fell through I was open to Delgado for Bourn.
I remember that. I also remember that I poo-poo-ed the idea.
I don’t mind owning that.
Me, I think folks tend to believe the worst of very young pitchers who get to the bigs and don’t immediately contend for the Cy. That is, they stop believing in “ceiling”. The kid will never be any better with experience, he’ll just continue to pitch like a rookie until he’s older than Jamie Moyer’s father. In effect, Randall Delgado as Jo-Jo Reyes.
Now, I suppose such a thing is possible, but nothing I’ve seen of Delgado makes me lean that way. And though I haven’t seen enough of Teheran to know what’s going on with him this year, I’ve seen him plenty enough in the past to know that there is some special talent in that particular kid. He might have misplaced it in 2012, but I highly doubt that it’s fully taken leave.
In short, I think that both pitchers have a future as very good pitchers, and I’d hate to see them go by the wayside.
Efrim
July 18th, 2012
11:41 am
Which essentially means acquiring even more starting pitching.
I’m not opposed to looking for a veteran on a small salary with incentives on top of acquiring a top of the rotation type.
Danga
July 18th, 2012
11:41 am
At this point, JJ non-tender or no?
DS1
July 18th, 2012
11:43 am
I can’t imagine a scenario where we could sign both Greinke and Bourn.
We need to patch together this rotation and keep all 3 of these young guys.
As a mid market team with a serious payroll budget we can’t afford a lot of players with salaries over 10 million per year. We’ve got to pick and choose.
I think this is one of the reasons FW was entertaining offers for Prado last winter. In case he could get good, young value for him.
But as for the rotation, we must continually be introducing new arms to our rotation, at a rate of probably 1 per year. That way we can either deal guys or let them walk if they do not fit into our plans (Jurrjens and Hanson?).
The facts of being on a salary budget.
cricket
July 18th, 2012
11:43 am
MFin may be obsessed with JJ but i’m willing to bet that if we count numbers of posts / poster mentioning JJ’s name on all and any blog this season, he will only come in at 2nd.
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:44 am
JJ non-tender or no?
Yes, no question.
DS1
July 18th, 2012
11:46 am
And let me add that when one of your young guys shows a lot of promise, maybe you sign them for a 3-4 year contract to keep them on board for as long as possible. (Beachy before the Tommy Johnson surgery).
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:48 am
Jurrjens 6.20ERA 5.22FIP 5.76xFIP 3.8K/9 3.6BB/9 -0.1WAR -$500K Value. No way you pay this guy $7-$8 mil next season. You upgrade your staff by releasing him and save yourself the $7mil.
Steve from OH
July 18th, 2012
11:48 am
Without question he’s a non-tender.
DS1
July 18th, 2012
11:48 am
Can’t really make a call on Jurrjens until later on in the season. If he is up and down between now and October, then you let him walk. If he comes on strong, you give consideration for offering arbitration.
Today, who knows what’s going to happen in the next 3 months.
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:49 am
Based on Wikipedia’s list of most populous metro areas, the 10 smallest MLB markets are:
30. Milwaukee
29. Kansas City
28. Cleveland
27. Cincinnati
26. Pittsburgh
25. Denver
24. Baltimore
23. St. Louis
22. Tampa
21. San Diego
So the three other teams that qualified for the competitive balance lottery for being in the bottom 10 of revenue, but not market, would be Oakland, Miami, and Arizona. That makes sense.
What doesn’t make sense to me is how Detroit was able to get in on the second round because they receive revenue sharing money. With their $130 million payroll.
cricket
July 18th, 2012
11:50 am
DS1 – depends on when they show lot of promise. always risky to buy out Arb years of pitchers due to injury risks. what if they go all JJ the year after signing the contract?
George
July 18th, 2012
11:50 am
Good morning all
Now that was disgusting last night,starting pitcher did not pitch [ he should go back to AAA ball were he belongs] hitters did not hit. Hope the team plays baseball tonight and last night was not the start of the great colapse of 2012. CHIPPER has it right we need one more starting pitcher and hope SHEETS continues to do well.
Hillbilly
July 18th, 2012
11:50 am
I’m not opposed to looking for a veteran on a small salary with incentives on top of acquiring a top of the rotation type.
Could a solid showing from Sheets from here on out put him that mold or are you gun-shy on the injury history? I know it’s just one game and it’s too early to tell what he’s going to be,… just trying to get a gauge on you here.
unbelievable
July 18th, 2012
11:51 am
“If he comes on strong, you give consideration for offering arbitration. “
He could pitch like he did in the first half for the next two months, you still dont offer him $7mil. I still dont see him being a part of this rotation come mid-august.
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:53 am
To me it’s up in the air whether Jurrjens gets another start with Atlanta, much less be tendered a contract for 2013.
George
July 18th, 2012
11:53 am
I just checked attendence on baseballreference the BRAVES are up 10.2% over last year.
DS1
July 18th, 2012
11:55 am
cricket
Of Hanson, Beachy and Jurrjens; they all have injury concerns. But if Beachy comes on strong in 2014 (probably won’t have a full season next year), then you look at possibly extending him. The others are still question marks. You wait until you HAVE to do something if there are question marks.
Kinda like McCann. Play him next year and see how he does for the entire year. No need to get in a hurry to sign him up for anything over 3-4 years.
Hillbilly
As most would agree, Sheets is a “wait and see” guy. Keep your fingers crossed that he does well and that he falls in love with Roger and the Braves.
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:55 am
That’s true, George, and it’s happening league-wide. The Braves’ attendance was 15th last year, and 14th so far this year. They are one of 11 teams in baseball whose attendance is up 10% or more from 2011.
DS1
July 18th, 2012
11:56 am
Jurrjens will get at least 1 more start.
Steve from OH
July 18th, 2012
11:57 am
To me it’s up in the air whether Jurrjens gets another start with Atlanta, much less be tendered a contract for 2013.
Yup. If we acquire another SP, I’d rather have Polished/Delgado in the rotation than him. Hell, I’d even bring up Teheran and let him sink or swim. He really can’t do any worse.
DS1
July 18th, 2012
11:57 am
Gotta get out of here. Later folks.
Bo Graves.
Brian from SC
July 18th, 2012
11:58 am
What if the Braves trade for a starter this week? Would Minor be booted in favor of Jurrjens?