Braves re-sign Johnson, leave WM without LF

You know I would love to see the Braves attempt to acquire, but it is a long shot at best and would require creativity. If the Nats resign LaRoche (strong possibility), I would love for Braves to swing some kind of deal that would bring back Morse and have him play LF.

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John 11:35

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Could i be first??

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@Banned Poster there is no way that the nationals would trade morse to the braves. Inter division trades never happen

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@Chris….and while I agree with your sentiment that the Nats would never trade him to the Braves, inter division trades DO happen. Don’t believe me? Dan Uggla says hi.

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The phils gave up their forth starter and # 2 prospect for a guy that had a 675 ops last year. No thanks.

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Great. Why doesn’t the Braves just stay home ;;;during ;;GM meetings and save Liberty Mutual a bunch of ;money. I’m sure the rooms, meal and etc. is quite costly when they come away empty hanaded. Yes, they teased the fans with Upton then did what they always do….nothing.

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Very few of us think it is ideal for us to start the season with Constanza or Francisco starting, but seeing Philly vastly overpay, guys like Victorino get 13 mil a yr, and teams like the Rockies asking for Minor and Teheran/Delgado for Fowler makes me glad we have been patient. A good deal still could come but, it might have been ideal to up Bj’s 15 mil to 20-22.5mil to land Hamilton if we were going to just pocket the extra money and start a minor leaguer. I get the concerns, but ATL would be an ideal team for him and when healthy, hes a true game changer.

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Would like Kelly Johnson playing against Right handers and Adruw Jones against left handers could get both on the cheap.

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@ Chris Then how did we get infante and uggla?

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I say we sign Mark Reynolds to play 3b….can you imagine the K total between Uggla, Upton, and Reynolds? All those sultry August games…we sure could use the breeze.

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Braves still looking at Dexter Fowler from Rockies its not a splash but at least we would not have to give up the farm to get him and he a from here makes since .

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DOB:

Why weren’t Eric Chavez or Keppinger in the Braves’ sights for a 3B?

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“We didn’t come here with a sense of urgency,” Wren said after 3-1/2 days at the Winter Meetings.

Some folks around these parts have been known to complain about a lack of sense of urgency…

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@A.P. it would have been nice to have Hamilton instead of BJ but then you will have too many LH hitters in the middle of the lineup, which is never good. They did OKAY by signing BJ.
In another note, the Phillies did over paid to get Revere. For the Braves to get Revere they would have probably have to give up Minor and Teheran or Delgado… Way too much when you have someone like Constanza, who is very similar to Revere in many ways, playing in AAA.

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I am upset that the Braves didn’t get an outfielder.But i would be more upset if Wren had overpaid to get an outfielder.like the Phillies did.

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The signing of Reed Johnson should be priority #1 right now. We can platoon him and Constanza in LF – both are speedy slap/gap OFs that can run/steal if allowed. Their success will be predicated with Atlanta’s true desire to play small ball. I’m not yet convinced that they are or that they buy into the whole OBP concept.

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A loser for a GM again.

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We’ve got to watch the disappearing $$$$. First we had $15mm left to spend. Traded Hanson and picked up $4mm. Now we only have $10mm?? My guess is that we are through spending and are going to battle with what we have. We can kick $300k to Constanza and put the rest under the mattress.

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I’ve said all along that Constanza is the answer if given the chance. The problem is this is the same franchise that 12 months ago said “internally” that Medlen’s stuff is not so good and middle relief would be his only way to help them. The AAA manager – who disagreed – is not longer here. Can;t fight the establishment and make idiots look stupid.

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@El Oso – I like Polanco idea. In fact I’d bat him lead off as the Braves have no intention of playing an agressive brand of small ball like the last 2 WS defending champions – SF and STL. Keep Prado in 2 hole. He’s the best pure 2 hitter in baseball.

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Surprised to see so much Wren-bashing following the close of winter meetings. It’s not a trade/signing deadline, and would you all be happier if he had decided to overpay for an aging Victorino or deplete the farm system for a one year rental in Ellsbury (re: Justin Upton, it was a pipe dream and the team is better off keeping Simmons, I hope that can be put to bed now).

I see nothing wrong with leaving Nashville still with cash in your pocket, and more time to think about best to spend it. For the first time in awhile, the Braves have a surplus of $…would it be a terrible idea to use some of it to sign Prado long term? Or maybe buy out some arb/FA years of one of their many young stars (Heyward, Kimbrel, Freeman, Beachy, Medlen)?

Sure it would have been nice to land a big name this week, but this team has plenty of time to fill needs at LF and bench bats. I’m sure there are plenty of GM’s who would love to have that problem right now.

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Braves To Sign Reed Johnson

By Tim Dierkes [December 6 at 1:27pm CST]

The Braves agreed to a one-year deal with outfielder Reed Johnson, tweets MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat. Johnson is represented by Wasserman Media Group.

Johnson, 36 on Saturday, hit .290/.337/.398 in 288 plate appearances for the Cubs and Braves this year.

Read more at http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/#SusIjXDRzZEkYCPO.99

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@BravesFan – I agree. I think Wren’s gonna sit back and wait it out. I think I’d do the same. I think the issue is that his resume is a bit bruised from recent signings – re-upping injured McCann, Uggla deal, Lowe deal, Kawakami deal…Hard to build trust in a fan base when the major moves you have made have all fizzled.

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Just signed Reed Johnson. For a bench player, it was one of the most important ones to sign.

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@low OBPers You could also do that, my point was that if you have Polanco and Prado in the one-two spots you’ll provide Heyward, BJ and Freeman with a decent amount of base runners. You don’t neccesary need speed at the top of the lineup you just need people that get on base, and is not like we don’t have speed in the lineup we have Heyward, BJ Upton and Simmons.

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I am pleased we didn’t do anything crazy there wasn’t a deadline and we can easily open up conversations again w/ out the pressure of getting it done in time so Harold Reynolds and Matt Vasgersion can announce it. Way to go Frank, you keep proving you know what you are doing.

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I have no problem leaving WM with just Reed Johnson (and BJ signing). Everybody talks about hitting the yearly budget but rarely do you guys see that next year we’ll be shelling out for the guys whose salaries are about to bump up. Heyward, Freeman, Prado, Kimbrel, Venters, O’Flagherty, Medlen, and Martinez all get raises or hit FA. And Walden, Minor, Beachy, Francisco, Janish all get raises/hit FA soon also. Considering how fiscally tight we have to be, it makes alot of sense to keep an eye to the future to make sure we can afford these guys down the road.

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The Phillies just traded Vance Worley and their #2 prospect for Ben Revere – not quite the Marlins…yet.

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Wren has his eyes on something higher and is waiting on J Upton, Flower , Gordon and Blue jays to make up their mine before making lesser deal. Per MLB-Radio..

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TalkingChop.com has reported that the Braves have signed Reed to a contract with a club option for the second year.

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jbill

I have a feeling that Upton might happen now that the Rangers have left WM. Don’t know why, just do.

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He’ll pull the trigger when he’s good and ready. The team sets up quite well as is. We could use a great leftfielder but if Upton, Uggla and Mac have even decent / normal years, the Braves will once again be in WS discussion.

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Making no move is better than making a move just because you can (see Texiera)
Three years ago it was Heyward, two years ago it was Freeman, Last year it was Simmons. This year it could be Fransisco.
I like home grown. Maybe Fransisco can only hit right handers effectively. If so he is still valuable because of his power. Playing full time I believe he will improve his ave and OBP against lefties. If not play him against righties and Johnson against lefties.
Prado has proven that he can switch from position to position without an adverse effect on his play.
That combination of Fransisco / Johnson will out perform the vast majority of players that the Braves were looking at to fill the remaining outfield position.
Other than left handed batter for the bench the Braves are a complete club capable of playing with any other team in our division and the league.

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When was the last time the Braves had a big bat in LF? Chipper Jones? I wouldn’t expect to see a big bat there in 2013. If they were able to get Fowler from the Rockies, that would be great. I wouldn’t mind Bonafacio either. Dude’s a ball player. Toronto will certainly have some trade pieces once they figure out what they actually have. They STILL need pitching.

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Infante has horrible numbers- he’s a back up at best- Uggla’s rbis & runs scored are vastly superior than most 2bs – it is backwards that Prado who is really a 2b, too is a lf or 3b while Uggs is a 2b

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Start Reed in Left against LHPs and start Juan at 3rd against RHPs. Let Martin bounce back and forth. Might be a little cruel to Martin, but I’m sure a gamer like him would be up for anything as long as it helps the team. Phils gave up a LOT for Revere!

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Let me assure you that Frank Wren is no loser. In fact, he is brilliant as well as good looking. You Braves fans are very lucky to have such a high quality baseball strategist as your GM. Among his peers; well, he has no peers.

Mr. Wren (to you) is also a perfect gentleman and an All American guy.

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Here is a thought. What if the light came on for Jordan Schafer. What if in spring training he won the left field job, (if we don’t make another trade for a left fielder). What if he stayed healthy. What if he hit lead-off. What if he hit .275 with an obp of 340? What if he gets 600 at bats and scores 90-100 runs, steals 40 or more bases and plays a solid left field? Remember the guy is only 26 or so.. I don’t hear anyone even giving the man a chance, but stranger things have happened. Yes, there are many “what ifs” but I would love to see it happen.

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Angel Eyes
Still he was wrong…you have a right to express your opinion. But I believe Wren will still come up with something big..it take two to make a deal. If he don’t …I really like Todd Cunningham in LF leading off.

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Sign Hamilton to a 4/100 Sign Scott Rolen to platoon with Juan. Just give Uggla away to whomever thinks he’s worth a flyer. Start Prado at 2b. Keep all the pitchers. We are filthy rich in pitching.

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Some time back, Schafer was using performance enhancing drugs, his offensive stats were very good and then he got caught/suspended. Seems like players are never very good again after they detox.

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Andrew Jones is available!

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Yeah man. Dump Uggla. Even if you have to pay a team to take him.

Fans can dream can’t they?

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If Jordan Schafer is the answer, I don’t want to hear the question. I know he’s still young. I know there’s a chance he might actually reach his potential. He got to play everyday for the Astros last year, in a less than stressful atmosphere, and he didn’t produce. He’s going to be a minor league “insurance policy” to cover possible injury.

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More than likely though, this is the team we open with.

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Schafer as only had 2 good months in his career..been busted twice and should be playing in Reedsville. What a clubhouse example.

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Can’t believe the Phils and Nats got the guys we should have been gunning for. As much promise as BJ has, those two have consistently been really good top of the line up speed guys for their entire careers.

At least we got Reed back.

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To everyone upset we didn’t pull the trigger on a deal like the one the Phils did: you realize they traded a big league pitcher and their top pitching prospect right? Would you have traded Minor and either Teheran or Delgado for Ben Revere? I sure as heck wouldn’t have.

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Wendell Miller… I like the way you’re thinking here Jordan Schafer could be a cool option. Glad to have Reed Johnson back

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The Braves have an excellent bullpen and a very good starting pitching. The only additional money I would spend would be if FW could improve the starting pitching staff.
Greinke has never liked the spotlight and LA and Texas have big spotlights and huge expectations of him, especially if he signs for astronomical dollars.
I have always wondered if in the back of his mind he wouldn’t rather play for the Braves for very good money than the bigger venues and excellent money. Money isn’t everything (except to Boras)

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Need to sign Durbin now and our bullpen will be complete, stand pat on LF until we see what happens in ST, we still have $10million to fill a hole later if need be, we still have all our prospects to make a trade if necessary. Look for a big impact player at the trade deadline. I am satisfied with this team now.

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Ralph, they said earlier today they are comfortable with the bullpen now. Sounds like they are no longer pursuing Durbin.

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Ben Revere has never played more than 124 games in a season and has a career .319 OBP…

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@bvillebaron Didn’t say I couldn’t take it. All i am saying is WREN IS A LOSER.

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Real talk, I’m not sure but I think it might be possible to trade Uggla in a salary dump for a mid-level prospect because he makes less than what a lot of free agents get. Teams have been known to take a chance that a guy can get back to what he used to do following a bad year. You could say two bad years, but actually the power numbers weren’t so bad year before last once he had his rather amazing hitting streak. He might fit somewhere else better than he fits with us. The team we have, we need better defense at 2nd.

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Bourn would take a 1yr/$10mil offer and test FA the next year before he took a 5yr/$50mil – sort of like what Boras did with Edwin Jackson last year. I would be all for getting Bourn for 1 more year like that.

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that would work for me too Bravothusiast

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Dan Uggla was in the middle of the pack fielding and dont you think maybe we need to see if he responds like you think others might to do a deal with us, with his salary it will be the Braves that get to see that happen. I know you might not like the guy but there are not that many better 2nd baseman and honestly really no takers on the trade market, so I am just asking for everyone to give it a rest and hope that he has a good year at the plate for all 6 months instead of two that he has had the past two years!!

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George Costanza!

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Frank Wren is envied by a lot of GM’s because he has the BEST stockpile of young arms in baseball. Pitching always has and always will be the most prized possession in the game.

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First all this talk about Fowler is ridiculous. Do so research and look at his splits…absolutely atrocious away from Coors…watching him play half his games at Turner would be nightmare…plus giving up Minor AND Teheran/Delgado. Not thanks….I’ll agree that some of Wrens moves have not panned out but the whole farm was spent on Texiera (Andrus,Perez,Harrison,Saltalamacchia etc) and that set us back 5 years…he has a limited budget (and already overpaid for BJ (Phils offer was $20mill less!)) he’s being patient…he can’t have many more 3-5 year deals soaking up a limited payroll knowing that Heyward, Freeman, Prado, Medlen, Minor, Kimbrel + Simmons, venters, o’Flar etc will be near or outside their arbitration years before Uptons contract comes off the books….collectively we are paying this guys nothing compared to what they’ll eventually get on the open market….I understand being upset about leaving the meetings “empty handed” but we don’t have unlimited resources…I wouldn’t mind filling LF with an inflated SHORT-term contract since we have the pitching to win now..but I’d be just as pleased if we extending one or more of our studs now to save a little later

Secondly. To whomever said not having Chipper will lead to less attendance. I love Larry. Favorite brave of all-time. But as we say this year he had to practically beg fans to come to games..we have to remember Freddie and Heyward collectively will replace Chipper as the fan favorites. These guys are both early 20s and still learning how to carry a franchise..we’ll be just fine

Thirdly. To whomever said we shouldn’t have picked up McCanns option is crazy…it’s nice to see a little loyalty in a franchise.(if we wouldn’t have picked it up the same peanut gallery would have called for Wrens head if he returned to true form on another team)..B-Mac was hurt the entire season and played through it to give us the best chance to win…if he’s back to 100% next year, a few months in to the season we are going to have a scary good line-up even if a 50yo Otis Nixon returns from the 90s to play left field

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Bravos ain’t had many durable,productive right-hand hitters since I left!! WASSUP??

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Get native Fowler and be done.He’s a switch-hitter.Rockies got Eric Young,Jr.,so their asking price might be reasonable.Keep Uggla.He brings a presence,he’ll see more inside strikes because he’ll have protection in the lineup,and he’s due.

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ppaddy123, Excellent point on Greg White. He hit a light hitting .244AVG with a .333OBP with solid defense and the Giants won the WS. Constanza/Reed could absolutely give the Braves as much if not more value. The playoffs are a crapshoot, all you need to do is get there. I think the team as constructed today could absolutely get to the playoffs.

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Geechy Dan I agree about Uggla, but stay away from Colorado hitters, that thin air there is not here and they will not produce anywhere like they can there, we have Todd Cunningham who I really believe will be our opening day left fielder and leadoff hitter, this kid has a lot of ups and produced at double a last year, and the Braves have a hstory of keeping their best prospects away from triple a as long as possible.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,remember Francoeur and McCann, no one ever heard of them till they made it to the majors and the same could be said of Simmons even though he did make a splash in spring traiing last year and he did not play at Gwinnett he was in double a

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Oh, and I almost busted out laughing when I heard the Rockies were wanting Minor + either Teheran or Delgado for Fowler. That is just laughable.

RULES OF being a good GM
1) Do not overpay for saves on the FA market.
2) Do not sign 30+ year old players to deals that take them past 34 unless they are one year contracts or very team friendly multi-year.
3) NEVER give up prospects for Rockies hitters. NEVER.

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You keep saying Wren is a loser…Why? Is it becaue he didn’t make a trade at winter meetings? He still has 16 weeks to get a LF’er…….He was been a winner so far with Braves we just need to step up in play-offs.

@Bravesfanin nashville you really think Schafer is cool..Wow!

@BvilleBaron..my bad on the 15 year old girl..long story on names Angel or Amber sorry. Peace–we all Braves Fans. I do look in mirror and sometimes I don’t like what I see.

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Rotowold.com says we signed Blake DeWitt to a minor league contract, but the braves official site shows him on the 40-man roster. Please tell me we did not use a roster spot on a guy that hit .138 last year…

I know, we have extra spots on the 40-man, and we can always drop him from the 40-man if someone better is signed and we need roster space.

But this is the bottom of teh bottom of the barrel.

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Constanza looks like a AAAA player.We need proven veteran presence atop that lineup.Give’ em a package of Tehran/or Delgado,marginal players off the farm,and draft picks to land Fowler,and let’s win.Gnats are vulnerable with 2 lefties atop their lineup with Span and Harper.Minor stays.We need 2 veteran lefties to throw at them and the rest of the league.Minor showed up when we needed him down the stretch last year.Don’t trade ‘em.Worth Repeating:Don’t trade Minor!! I think the braves will assess their talent after spring training (seeing where the injury bug will strike) before making a move based on theirs and other teams’ needs.

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Phils are old and sinking fast. Trading away Worley and their #2 prospect for Ben Revere shows how desperate this potential last place team has become. Revere is very fast, has no power, and no arm. Twins fleeced the Phils. BTW, how’s the “greatest” starting staff in baseball doing these days? Let’s see, the once great Roy Halladay has become a batting practice pitcher, Cliff Lee will struggle to win 10 games, Roy Oswalt is gone, and Cole Hamels is being paid megabucks to win 12-15 games. Some dynasty!

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@ humbug. i completely agree with you. he has the potential to be a great lead off hitter but they do not give him the chance. he has the same speed and more power than bourn. defensively he will learn once hes out there long enough. ive been saying this for the last season and a half to put him in the LF. no cost, settles worry, leaves more money to collect awesome bench help rather than terrible bench help. if wren was smart hed pull the trigger on that idea.

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In my opinion the braves should make a move before the season starts….and the move will need to be a BIG deal. What Frank Wren needs to realize is that attendance will drop due to the loss of Chipper Jones unless significant pieces are acquired to keep more fans around. Pulling the trigger on the Justin Upton deal would have produced a lot of chatter from fans and would’ve brought Atlanta back into the spotlight. Even if Justin Upton isn’t the best piece out there, fans would be more willing to buy into the new Braves team (without Chipper Jones). The fans of the Braves will continue to disappear if Frank Wren/Fredi Gonzalez keep producing mediocre seasons with minimal playoff duration. One thing is certain, if the Braves do not land a LF or 3B, we will not be competing in a world series especially with teams like Washington who have made the deals necessary to make their team better.

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if you are looking for a player to impact the fans for attendance the player to pick up is ICHIRO he will fill the stadium, not many have seen him play, but everyone has heard of him and want to see the mystique he brings, and he can still play decent baseball for a 39 year old give him a one year contract with a option for performance

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Why not work a 3 way with the Dbacks and Indians. Trade Delgado to the Indians received Cabrera back and then send Cabrera and Constanza to the Dbacks for Upton.

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Enter your comments here

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The best deals are sometimes the ones not done. Kudos to Wren for still having Simmons and Mike Minor as Braves.

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give up on the idea of trading for Justin Upton, Wren will not go for it and I hope he doesn’t we do not need 2 attitudes on one team, sign Ichiro and go for the gold

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We heard this same line of crap from Frank Wren and FG last year after the Winter Meetings were over and this same line of crap at the beginning of Spring Training and then again at the beginning of the regular season – I have gotten to the point of believing that neither one of the is smart enough to be worried about anything……they continue to put the same poor product (No Pennant, No World Series) and expect the dumb public to buy their stupidity……well I am done with it and them! If they don’t do something to put together a REAL CONTENDING TEAM – they can stick my $$’s where the sun don’t shine because I won’t be wasting my hard earned money to make the trip to Atlanta to see a bunch of lazy no talent losers at the TED.

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nope, I do not want 2 attitudes ruining the clubhouse

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Revere’s 40 steals are good but not great.He got more AB’s in the DH league.Lacks power as well. I like our outfielders ability to take away those gaps..at this stage in both careers’ my money’s on a proven NL talent in Bourn,who might be willing to sign for less to stick with a contender.The wheels of progress continue to grind.

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my guess is that Wren has put together a deal already, and waiting to make an announcement once all the parties concerned are in on it

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Bring back Chipper! Looks like he’s only put on 30 pounds since the season ended: http://deadspin.com/5966391/fat-chipper-jones-has-divorced-his-wife-and-now-has-a-playboy-model-girlfriend

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Read somewhere Braves have $12mill left so i think Braves will get someone agree with Blauser .

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I would love seeing Ichiro in a Braves uniform, after all he will be the first Japanese player to be inducted into the hall of fame 3000 hits coming up

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I feel that Wren has made a deal with Ichiro, but is waiting on Ichiro to find out what Yanks want to do, he feels a dedication to Yankees, but if the Yanks say no you will see that he signs with
Braves right away

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Look like Francisco knows what’s at stake and gonna give the Braves’ a run for the money (in a manner of speaking) If he continue to put up similiar numbers in spring training,he’s either the next Adrian Beltre-type 3B with 36+ homers yearly or at the very least attractive trade bait.Either way,win-win for the Braves.

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I hope I am right about Ichiro, at least he will fill the stadium, he can hit, he is the ideal leadoff man,he pays a great outfield, he can run and he does not age

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Rodney D you on point with the NYY AARP reference…… Yankee management is suddenly showing sentiment for their aging veterans,which will guarantee them last place in the competitive AL east:)

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Yankees need a half-year fix @ 3rd, so Francisco and Schafer to NY for Granderson (with Yankees eating say $7M of Granderson’s $15M salary)? Would the Yankees bite?

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Heck, I aint’ skeert. Two possible scenarios ring out… 1} FW has a deal or two already pending just awaiting the right time; or 2} some of the free spending teams go back to their homes and realize they overspent a bit (much like we do with our Christmas shopping, and decide to return some items) some teams will decide they’d better part with some talent to keep their budget in the ballpark, as well as their jobs.This is where the genius of FW comes in to play.

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Wren was smart enough the let our rivals vastly overlay for their centerfielders. Addition by weakening your enemy. Phillies were absolutely foolish in that trade.

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even though he is a talented player my guess is that Morrison is a basket case he too much into twittering no focus on game

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I’ll take a guy who’s biggest problem is that he tweets too much. The guy gets on base, is cheap, under team control for awhile, can backup first if Freddie gets injured, and won’t cost much to get. What’s not to like? Oh yea, the guy likes twitter

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Oh shucks! Baltimore has resigned McOut! Dog gone it!

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Bench so far:

SS Paul Janish
C Gerald Laird
OF Reed Johnson
UT Blake DeWitt
3B Juan Francisco

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Bench so far:

SS Paul Janish
C Gerald Laird
OF Reed Johnson
UT Blake DeWitt
3B Juan Francisco

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Bench so far:

SS Paul Janish
C Gerald Laird
OF Reed Johnson
UT Blake DeWitt
3B Juan Francisco

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This free agent stuff is so out of control. None of these guys is worth that much cash. It have gone past absurd. I’ll have no issue with the Braves if they just stay away from FAs in the future.

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forget DeWitt, he ill be in Gwinnett, you forgot Preacher, he will be extra third base and outfield reserve

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Astute assessments by DOB ,Blauser, Joe Nux,coy mason and Frank for Prez…..closing in on my bedtime.Thanks to all for this engaging and interesting blog.

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@Greechy Dan,
The Braves are rumored to have somewhere between 10 and 15 million left in salary which could afford Justin Upton for the next 3 years according to his deal with Arizona. I’m not necessarily saying they should’ve landed Justin Upton, but someone who could hit the headlines and put the Braves back on center stage and would’ve made them seem more competitive with other teams in our division. They should’ve beaten the Phillies to Denard Span when they knew they were going to dump Bourn for BJ instead of letting him slide to a division rival who in recent years controlled the division. The point I’m trying to make is that Braves always seem content as if mediocrity and making it to the playoffs is going to be good enough forever. I’m not saying they should sell the farm, but they should try to make a good deal that will get fans excited about the upcoming season. Of course, all of this could be for not if Wren has a deal in his back pocket which I wouldn’t past him since he likes to keep his dealings close to the chest.

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Phils fleeced twins today getting CF REVERE, HERES HOPING MICHAEL YOUNG WAIVES HIS NO TRADE CLAUSE AND COMES TO PHILS, BEXT UP RAJ SIGNES RF SWISHER, PHILLIES ARE WINNING WS THIS YEARM BOOK IT

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Trade for Emilio Bonafiacio, Or go all in on justin Upton!

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HOW BOUT TRADING VENTERS FOR DOM BROWN

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A Fan Named Ryan,
Why are you posting under other user’s names? I don’t care if you do it, but I just don’t see the purpose in it on an AJC forum.

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Bonafiacio!

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Chipper never played with a sense of urgency. Just like Wren he didn’t come here to do that. Great seed planter though.

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I see they must have the rolling computer lab up and running again at the “Nut House” in Milledgeville again tonight. Some real great baseball minds going at it with some of these ideas.

The smart ones please don’t be offended.

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I am glad we did not rush into everything. Fans are putting down Wren and FG, but to be honest, Wrn and FG got us 94 wins with a team that had injuries, was offensively inconsistent all year, etc. It is very easy for us fans to comment and say negative things or bully other posters, but I for one think it is time a “adult-up” here.

We as fans wanted Span, Revere, J Upton, etc. Heck – I want the entire NL East to belly up and the Braves come out on top and win 100 plus games!!!! But wait!!!! some of the fans here and on other Braves postings will still say Wren is bad, FG is bad… C’Mon boys and girls… I challenge you to do a better job… MOST GM’S AND MANAGERS can-not do better.

OK… They are doing the best they can – and no – I would NEVER want to give up too much for any player. Unless his name is “Chipper Jones” and he is 23 years old and plays like Chipper Jones then absolutely not.

Wren – keep your patience, I know that GMs have different considerations than us fans – we want a winning team on the field – and you gave us that for the past couple of years. Did we win the playoffs? Did we even get into the WS? No…. and guess what everyone – almost none of the teams did. We had winning seasons.

To make blanket statements like you have season tickets, rooms, etc. Sorry, but I find that hard to believe, at TRUE-FAN who has season tickets, follows the team, spends money on merchandise, does not threaten to leave that and say “if 1000 fans thought like me…” Go support the Phillies, or the Marlins – you are a fair-weather fan and you should be supporting a fair-weather team like the Marlins.

OK, my only put-down here, sorry but those kinds of comments I see on blogs for the Braves and on other teams in other sports that I follow and they are pathetic. A true fan follows there team regardless of whether they got a winning record or not, whether they picked their favorite player or not. They follow their team – that is the meaning of being a fan, not someone who GIVES-UP.

As far as Freddi and Wren – I say Kudos to both of you – THANK YOU for a great couple of seasons, and thank you for bringing BJ into the fold – will he be perfect? We won’t know till the season ends. But thank you both for trying to make our WINNING SEASON TEAM be a better team for 2013. And don’t worry about the fair-weather fans, you know as well as I do that they do not, nor ever have had season tickets, have followed the Braves around, etc. They are just attempting to “blindly” pump themselves up like they know everything. Heck, if they did they would be in either one of your positions while people put them under a Microscope.

I am excited for next season, no matter who we get or don’t get. I am excited about flying from South Florida to as many games as I can get to between my insane work schedule. I am excited about getting the Extra Innings package on ComCast so that I can watch my Braves. Win, Lose, it doesn’t matter – they are my team and I am a fan…. PERIOD.

I hear the Marlins needs some fans, so for those of you who do not agree with Wren and Freddi, please, please, please become a Marlins Fan – they will welcome you….

Have a great evening everyone….

I hope that this message did not offend anyone, but then again, some of you out there seem to want to be offended so if that is the case then maybe I did a good thing here?????

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Philly offered 20 million less

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I think we have a good team. But, I do not think BJ Upton replaces Chipper and Bourn. If we begin the year with our current roster, we are weaker than we were last year.

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what are you talking about BravesFanInNashville, someone asked who the Braves were bidding against for Upton and what the difference in bid was, I never said they paid 20 million too much, quite the contrary, if you look back at other posts of mine you will see that I had said that compared to what teams are paying for players that the Braves got a bargain

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as a matter of fact look at the post above the one you are talking about and you will see that i was merely answering a question as to whom the braves were bidding against his id is ATLcracker

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I agree Lakedawg. I see Freeman, Heyward and Simmons all taking a step forward. Mccan and Uggla both rebound closer to career averages and BJ brings a nice speed/power balance. I personally like our pitching and think we could be the wild card team as constructed. Another addition (possibly at the deadline or during the season) or a surprise season from Constanza, Francisco, or Gattis could have us in a dog fight with the Nats

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Bring back Blauser……. Got it ………sorry about that I had you confused with another poster I saw earlier where they were ripping Wren for paying $20 Million to much and calling Wren a poor negotiator. Wren got his man and I happen to disagree with some announcers that value Bourn more than BJ. We’ve witnessed 2 really tired poor performances to close a season from Bourn and his biggest asset is obviously speed. He strikes out as much as Upton and doesn’t seem to steal bases when you need them most. Lots of games late and close and I couldn’t believe Bourn never made a move. Many of those situations ended up with a force out or DP. Bourn has value but for me at $75million over 5 years I’d bet BJ is the better value.

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Dear FW,
Bonifacio or Keppinger can be your Prado like super sub plus you should be able to get10+ SBs from every position minus 1st and catcher.

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Bob the Blogger: I have no problem trying Constanza/Reed and Francisco for a while. If they don’t work out, then we can look at Gattis or Cunningham, or even Pastornicky in left. At some point, you have to give your young players a chance.

Bob is too realistic and reasonable. He needs to move to another board.

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After the acquisiiton of Uggla for big bucks and a long term contract and then Uption this year at 15 million per year for 5 years with his below .250 Batting Average, and below .300 On Base Average, and approaching 200 Strike Outs – and even worse hitting .168 with no (Zero) Home Runs against 1/3 of the Pitchers (the better Pitchers); I sure that the Braves must be at the very top of everyones SUCKER LIST as for as the asking price being elevated very high relating to both trades and free agents.

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I’m really at a loss here. All these blog regulars and folks who claim they know baseball who are happy with how this off-season has gone simply astound me. I can’t accurately put into words how saddened and disappointed I am in our GM and the direction he is sending my once beloved team. Yes I said it, ONCE beloved. Not anymore. I see VERY little in our current roster to pull for ladies and gentlemen, and the element in our roster for which I had faith has dwindled more and more with each passing year under Wren.
Many of you say you are fine with where we stand if we go into opening day with what we have now……crickets chirping………WTF?!!!!!!!!!!
Can you say KKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK?!

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we’re suckers with money and have been for about 15 yrs now, don’t kid yourself…

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I still would love to have Pence..he’s a winner!
Agree Wren is no sucker…just needs a kick in the pants sometimes to get him to move…lol

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The Braves have more money to spend and have a team inferior to last year’s team. Someone please explain. The excuse has always been money. Now that some money has been freed up, what is the new excuse?

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Its like trading cars, you always think your old car is worth more than they are willing to give you on trade. You either pay more are keep the old clunker. Wren thinks our prospects are worth more than other GM’s do.

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Frank Wren is a dumb-ass. Plain and simple. He’s looks at baseball from a corporate perspective and not one which will bring a cohesive, “scrappy” club together. He has no clue how to put together an effective offense (if anyone has an example from some point in his career that proves me wrong I’d be glad if you shared it) and seems to think that at any given moment, Maddux, Glavine, and Smotz are gonna emerge from our farm system…

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Yes, Span deal should have happen..waiting around cost Wren.

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How do you know Wren “waited around”? You have no idea what the Braves offered, and what the Twins asked for.

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Really? You’d have given up Minor and Delgado for Revere? That’s about the equivalent of what the Phillies gave up. Be thankful our GM did not make any rash decisions.

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twins didn’t get a top prospect for Span.. they got a 2nd or 3rd prospect. Surprised they done the deal.
What if?…thats a hell of a question.

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He has said that about all deals so far.. and u don’t know what happen either.

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Johnson is a good 4th outfielder, but not a good option to start in LF due age and health concerns. I still say Constanza deserves a shot as our left fielder and lead-off hitter.

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Francisco looks good in winter ball and is out of options. If he looks good in Spring training platoon him with Reed Johnson with Francisco getting majority of playing time since he would start against righties. If Francisco doesn’t look good in spring unload him and let Prado play 3rd and you still have options in LF between Constanza and Schafer. Will have much improved bench with Reed Johnson, Pastor, Schafer (speed instead of lard arses).
Then you go to spring with options and still have cash in pocket. If one of the above works well you take that cash and get going on extending players like PRADO.
This team has alot going for it, you wouldn’t know that with all the negativity on the AJC blogs.

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Delgado can’t play LF and Braves have 7 other starting pitchers to pick 5 from.

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ridiculous*

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alot going for it ….Schafer? Constanza? Juan, Johnson..sounds like a lot of if’s to me.
Schafer the two time busted kid?

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Busted..
t://myfox8.com/2012/02/03 photoes-faces-of-meth-before-and-after/

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Enter your comments here

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[...] Braves re-sign Johnson, leave WM without LF [...]

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I seem to recall the 2 players who looked like they REALLY wanted to win that ridiculous play-in game (Ross and Constanza) are now either gone or apparent non-factors…

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BravesFanSince80s, look at the bright side the player that cost us that game retired and is now hammering a Playboy model! I guess you wanted Wren to bring back Tommy Hanson?
This team will be better then it was last year and still has payroll flex to make additional moves.
Didn’t over pay like the Red Sox, or give away great young players like the Phils.
I like David Ross, but he is going to find out that the Sox suck.

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as it stands, unless we get Cy Young potential performances from about 3 of our starting 5, there is NO WAY this team is better now than last year. NO WAY, NO HOW, UH UH…

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To anyone who doesn’t understand trading from the farm league,
The trade Delgado for Denard Span should have been a no brainer. Keep in mind we have other young pitchers in the farm that could replace Delgado withing the next year or two (aka Gilmartin). I agree that we should not have traded for Revere at the steep price that the Phillies paid. However Delgado a mostly unproven prospect with potential for a solid lead off hitter that we needed should’ve been an easy decision. Wren always puts together a competitive team, his only problem is that sometimes he seems to be too hesitant to pull the trigger on trades. Denard going to the Nationals is even worse than not trading at all. I’ll say again that the Braves are too satisfied with being mediocre and possibly being the wild card team as if that is the ultimate goal….which it shouldn’t be. Hopefully, FW has a deal in his back pocket for a 3B or LF, otherwise, the Bravees just sat around and watched other teams in the division get better. Actually, I guess we did pick BJ Upton in hopes that we can realize his potential. If he doesn’t, his average stat line could seriously hurt the braves. We have enough players that strike out at an incredible rate (ie. Struggla).

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AP, you do not build a WINNER by signing players who hit below .250 and with an On Base Average below .300 – and certainly not with STRIKE OUTS at almost the 200 level – and absolutely not hitters who do not produce in meaningful situations – for example hitting .168 with NO Home Runs agaisnt the top 1/3 of the Pitchers.

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BravesFanSince80’s, Well said in your post of 9:21 AM.

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Tommy, 1 of those 3 MIGHT surprise me (most likey candidate McCann) but I seriously doubt there will be any such wagon in existence for me to even consider jumping in (not that I would anyway)…

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I get what you are saying, I for one am worried that we are to reliant on BJ’s potential. But say his average does not improve, You’re still getting right near 30/30. I for one still think we should have gambled on Hamilton (Left Handed or Not), he still can be a true difference maker. We take BJ’s 15 add 5-10 sign Hamilton, then go with internal options like we are anyways. But we didn’t cause of the risk.
I do think its unfair to bash Wren for his signings. Go look at Uggla’s stats the year before we traded for him. He hit .287 33 bombs 105 RBI’s. Why he regressed at the rate he did, I can’t tell you, but those numbers were exactly what we needed and Wren, and most fans and analyst thought we were getting. I still stand by the Bourn trade as our best move in the last 5 years, and Upton was a value on this market.

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ichiro…let the old man stay with NYY..

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I don’t care if you are playing in front of 3 fans or 30,000 hitting .287 OBP of .370 33 bombs and 105 RBI’s vs. professional pitching is huge. His contract is larger than I like, especially with regression, but he still gets on base at a great rate (.348 last year), and hits 30 bombs every year, which is why I think last year was somewhat of a fluke.

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Good bench guy.

That said they must get a slugging LF and to go all in now. Mac won’t be back in 2013 and Hudson may be gone as well.

Forget the leadoff baloney. With the low BA/high SO on this team you need another RBI guy.

For as long as ATL has put a human bookmark or platoon in LF they have been MIA in October, one and done at best.

Wren does the same thing every time. He makes one significant move when he needs two. He gets over protective of prospects/ML staff and chickens out on a trade to get the last key piece.

Yes the winter meetings went nuts on the price for trades front. That is bc middling teams with one or two great players or prospects are holding playoff bound teams hostage. They will flinch soon or by the middle of ST. Especially once the big FA are off the board.

Bottom line: Trades which allow you to a win a WS will be quite painful. Wren wants to avoid that pain. You cannot have both. Trades like Uggla that don’t hurt one bit win you nothing but a decoy and a dead end salary burden.

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Klaus, why are McCann and Hudson not going to be with us in 2013?

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I have to agree on Uggla and his stats prior to ATL. He was one of the few reliable thumpers on a crappy team playing for nothing in front of no one. You want to win a WS you get proven winners not one dimensional players.

In ATL he knew they brought in him to carry a portion of the offense and to get them to the post season. He folded like a deck chair in that role in year one and again in year two albeit with walks.

He was not brought in to walk and a walk is not as good as a hit from what is suppose to be your prime RBI guy.

Solo shots have been his trade mark and swinging for 800 ft HRs is his new approach.

It was an under researched trade and a knee jerk reaction to having one of the lowest HR totals in the league (solved for the wrong X). They needed a situational hitter with great hitting stats not a one trick pony.

The extension without watching how he would handle higher expectations was a mistake as well.

The latter even more painful bc under researched (decided over a BBQ) mgr hire “Fredi” assured Wren that Uggla could handle anything etc… Fredi loves Uggla and cannot see past the fact he was a product of a zero pressure environment.

The trade for one year of Uggla would have been better than trading Infante and then extending this mess for 4 years.

Uggla’s 12mm in Wren’s hip pocket today (leaving him ~21mm after BJ Upton) and Prado at 2B would have made this past week a bit different in terms of its outcome/options. Heck Infante in ATL over Uggla these past two seasons could have very well meant a division title at the least.

Uggla thus far is a worse move than Lowe. If he face plants again out of the gate, which he should w/o Chipper here to calm him and the rest of the line up down he will be released in a year just like Jason Bay.

In fact he is ATL Jason Bay move. Not well thought out. over paid and a financial write off in the end.

I hope not but Uggla is looking more like Bay as investment all the time.

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He hits 36 bombs his first year in Atlanta. Isn’t that what we brought him in to do?

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FanSince80s –
that’s really cool that you could tell with such certainty that Uggla was going to have a couple of bad seasons. You are so much smarter, obviously, than the Braves’ decision-makers.
With all that prescient knowledge, can you tell which of the remaining available players they should pursue, and how they’ll do the next couple of seasons? And which of our players is going to fade, so we know which ones to trade.
On behalf of FW and the whole crew, thanks for sharing your knowledge.

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Uggla’s last year was bad all around except for the OBP. But in the first year he hit a career high 36 HRs and a solid 82 RBIs. I’m sure they expected more RBIs but that’s still not bad at all.

About 60% of his HRs have been solo shots, and league average last year was 57%.

The Jason Bay comparison is not very fair. Bay has had 26 HRs and 124 RBIs in 3 years with the Mets. Uggla had 10 more HRs just in the first year with the Braves, and 36 more RBIs in 2 years.

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Um, I don’t think you mean “dearth”

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BravesFanSince80s, you say HRs don’t win World Series rings, but how many rings has Beane won?

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Surfeit, perhaps

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I like Schafer and Reed Johnson and hope Francisco continues to show good promise. The real problem is Uggla at 2B. Solve that with a package including McCann and/or Hudson and the future could be both good and affordable. Uggla is an anchor and a major distraction for the fans. McCann’s future lies in the AL, why not deal with it?

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oh good grief, I just meant smart financial decisions with the Beane comment. Bean’s payroll means ANY WS victory will be a huge cinderalla story if it ever happens. We have a bigger payroll and can afford bigger salaries but that doesn’t justify stupid moves just because we have it.
IF we were going to have to overpay for anyone period this off-season per the status of the FA market, Hamilton should have been the only real consideration here, with Bourn being an only slight consideration as option 2 (and that only if he came at a still seme-reasonable price tag). Anyone else on the market was not worth the risk and/or money. ESPECIALLY BJ Upton.
I would rather a couple basic trades be made (Span…..crickets chirping……) and some internal promotions be made than yet another over-paid, under-achieving singing be made.
Luman, here you go, woulda coulda shoulda dumped McCann, he won’t rebound to a high level, his shoulder is too shot to hell unless he DH’s the majority of the time…

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In year one he was an automatic out apart from 35-38 games in the middle of the summer. The bulk of his offensive production (saving his HR trend stats in particular) occurred during that stretch. He faded after that as well and assisted with the Sept collapse.

This past year walks were the only reason he was not benched for more than a few weeks late in the season. He stunk all year as an RBI guy and FG protected him until there was no where to hide and he had to bench him.

Uggla is flat out terrible as a situational hitter and mediocre as a RBI guy.

He is the same mold as Bay to ATL in terms of what they needed from him versus what he has given them. The ROI is upside down.

Unfortunately HRs don’t mean winning. That is how Uggla came here in the first place – people getting jazzed over the HRs. But 82 RBIs is pedestrian (rookies can give you that for a lot less – see FF).

HRs with no one on base or in lost cause games – you see this when you watch him every day (even when he was a Marlin) are his trademark.

Teams that win or go to the WS (caveat: “usually”) have their sluggers hitting 120+ RBIs OR have amazing situation hitting skills (Uggla does neither).

Uggla has only approached 100 once in his career. Now in his 30s don’t expect a great renaissance to his style or approach. Bulky shorter guys (esp short arms) who over compensate for lack of size with mass don’t last long once they hit 30. Uggla has likely see his best days with the Marlins.

He is terrible situational hitter, cannot make adjustments and keeps swing violently until he hits something.

Again lets hope he was one dead cat bounce year left in him so they can trade him in a year – making it easier to extend Prado and move him back to 2B.

That is all I ask. Play well enough to get out of town.

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Abundance of pitching depth lol hence no Hudson at 38yo in 2014

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I’d agree that Uggla hasn’t brought the ROI they thought they were getting. But he’s still performed better than Bay, and his contract is significantly less.

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Rick C, I’ve already pointed out the success rate for professionaly baseball players returning from major shoulder surgery (across the board, not skewed by pitchers) so why does it matter what his Dr, thinks? They all will give glowing reports of their surgery and give high expectations for a successful recovery-that’s what they do. What I care more about is that something like 19% of all MLB players who undergo that surgery return to form and the majority of those are outfielders…

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And the reason we missed out on Span is because you think whatever the Braves offered for him, they should have offered more – even though you have no idea what they offered for him.
Do I have that right>

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If we could free up some cash by trading maholm or eof how sweet would it be to get Bourn on a one year deal if it comes to that for him. 1 year at 15 then go back out on the market next year.
Bourn
prado
heyward
uggla
freeman
upton
mac
simmons
One of if not best lineup in the nl if mac and uggla come back close to their old selves.

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Absolutely not. I was not in the give a lot to get Span group. I would have given Delgado, which I assume we offered, but Min liked the Nationals prospect better.

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I have a hard time thinking the Twins would have turned down Delgado, but who knows – maybe they see more upside the prospect they did get.
I think if the Braves sit tight for a while, they can get solid one-year rental without giving up any of our top prospects … then try again next year for a longer-term solution.

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I have no idea what KC is asking for, but Alex Gordon seems like the best fit out of all the players the Braves have been linked to. The Royals have been our trade buddies in the past, so hopefully they can figure something out that doesn’t involve Simmons. The Royals could certainly use some pitching help.

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I could go for Gordon or Myers. KC is usually a fair trading partner.

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DOB- Gut feeling, if we do go internal, who gets the spot?

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Just wanted to point out it isn’t mathematically possible to have 18 pinch hits in one season and also have .413 pinch hitting average.

BUT – Glad to have Reed back. Clutch hitter and he seemed fit in very well with the club house. Let’s get us one more good right handed stick and lay the smack down on the NL.

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upton and schafer aren’t the answer to the braves anemic offense. offensively, the braves have gone backwards. once again it is apparent that wren is in over his head. he should have already dumped uggla, who is the single biggest drag on the offense.

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BravesFanSince80s, my point was that you have nothing to support your claim that his shoulder is “shot to hell.”

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Also, KC is pretty set at Shortstop, so it would seem less likely Simmons would be involved in a trade for Gordon. — Brown

Particularly since Simmons isn’t being traded, period. Not for Justin Upton, not for Alex Gordon, not traded period.

That is why Wren better pray Simmons is the next Jeter or Arod in his prime. Shortstops outside of them and or say an Ozzie Smith don’t carry teams and win rings for said teams.

OFers and corner INFers put teams on their backs and win the whole enchilada. SS and 2B are defensive positives where you hope to get serviceable offense.

Simmons showing some hitting skills in AAA and a whopping 39 games in the ML is what Wren is basing this position on re: trades.

We know what Justin Upton can do (2010, 2011) we hope Simmons is at least if not a whole lot more that what we saw in a few number of ABs.

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defensive positions. damn spell check…

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Since nothing is happening right now I am going to propose a trade or two just for fun. And yes, I know they are inane and ridiculous ahead of time, but oh well.

Delgado, Teheran, and Uggla to KC for Myer and Moustakas. Rumor is that the Royals want to win now and they are just not sure about Myer. They know they need pitching. This would allow the Braves to put Myer in LF, Mouse at 3B and move Pradot to 2nd. We could even pay some of Uggla’s salary and still save a ton. That saving plus other money we have could possibly go to a FA pitcher.

We would not go after Greinke, but we could possibly make a run at a one or two year deal for Dempster or maybe even go for multi-year on Lohse, Sanchez or Jackson.

I know most people think I am crazy to think about moving Teheran and Delgado both, but I have seen enough of Teheran to think he is a Jurrgens clone with possibly less ability. Delgado has looked very good so far. Both of these guys move right into the KC rotation. We would have to give them up to have any chance of moving Uggla’s contract and still getting excellent value in return. This also gives us more finanacial flexibility since Mouse and Myer will still be cheap for a few years.

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Klaus, why do you think Arizona is so adamant about Simmons being a part of any trade for Upton?

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“I like Francisco, but I would rather we have a true leadoff type hitter in the game and Schafer fits that bill.”

Speed alone does not make a player a true lead off hitter. Schafer has a career 301 OBP.

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Steve what in hell has Schafer ever done in baseball..we know what he does other wise. He’s had two good months ..period.

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You don’t think you could point to any GM in the big leagues and not find four deals that didn’t work out?

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ok Rick C, how ’bout the medical report stating that the tear in McCann’s labrum wound up worse than even the tests inidicated once they went in and medical report after medical report after medical report stating that if there is much of a tear in the labrum at all chance for successful recovery to a “normal range of function” is slim to none….hmmmm? He plays catcher Rick C, not DH in the AL, he plays catcher. McCann will forever be one hard bump at the plate away from the DL from this point on, and that’s even IF he rehabs his shoulder well enough to throw well enough to play everyday or something like that in the first place…

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You a doctor Bravesfan? I would assume the Braves FO would do just a little bit of research before they picked up a 13 mil option. I know you are of the Braves FO and Wren are morons group, but I assure you they have more concrete facts regarding the situation than some report you read on the internet

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Again, BravesFan you’re just speculating. You aren’t his doctor and haven’t seen his medical reports. You don’t know all the facts, so stop acting like you do.

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Schafer is a career .221 hitter who K’s every third at bat and this is some of the fans answer to leadoff hitter….interesting!!!!…and Bravesfan on Mccann he will have a huge bounce back season and you will be on his bandwagon about July so it doesnt matter what you think

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and again, Rick C, just because the surgeon didn’t come and say, “it was a hack-job, I turned the guy’s shoulder into hamburger,” is no reason to be optimistic about a surgery that has been overwhelmingly unsuccessful…

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I’ll grant you it wasn’t smart to resign him, but it was a lose lose scenario for Wren. McCann was kind of our face of the franchise. Plus, with the current options not being all that great, or kind of old FA’s, McCann does still have a lot of upside IF he comes back healthy. Uggla is another hole in the lineup, but we’re stuck with him too financially as there was no way we could have moved him without eating a big loss in cash. I like Gattis to replace Mac though, so I think we’ll be ok. The biggest focus should be on LF right now and trying to get one of (Hart, Upton, Fowler, Ludwick Von Beethoven, Willingham, or the Boner Afficionado). Catcher is a done deal we have to move on.

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Ichiro to 1 year deal until Gattis is ready…..problem solved.

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If you knew mcann’s medical status brfan..someone is in trouble with hippa

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Delgado ain’t all that!!!! He is at best a journeyman pitcher who has never cracked the major league team to stay there…..up down, up down, up down…..real talent comes up and shines and stays…..in my book he is till bush league.

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Real Talk…you’re making that up, loser.

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we will see and thanks for the compliment:}

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By the way Bonafacio is not very good and cant answer what we need !!

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It’s not Delgado’s fault he has been jerked around, you dumbass. And what are you talking about real talent shines and stays? Ever heard of John Smoltz? Maddux? Roy Halladay?

Go find a new hobby. You clearly don’t know anything about baseball.

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hippa?

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@Dumb so you saying Delgado is a HOF’er because to compare his situation to those three is like comparing apples and oranges, but with that said Delgado can be a very solid #2 or #3 guy as he continues to grow in experience!!

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I won’t even humor you with a reply. You are a moron, clearly.

If I’ve learned one thing from this site, it’s there are A LOT of stupid people you have to weed through to find the few fans who actually have a clue. Go play in the dirt, Real Talk. And consider a less pathetic name while you’re at it.
Penthouse. Ha.

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completely made up. It is not reported anywhere

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Wren never tells who he is offering….

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Im Telling all of you now. This is what the Braves need. A big bat.

Stanton.. Stanton… STANTON…..

I could see an attrative EOF and others for Stanton from the marlins.

Lineup:

Simmons
Prado
Heyward
Stanton
Freeman
BJ Upton
McCann
Uggla
Picther

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Not thrilled or upset that we have Upton. I would have been less thrilled if we overpaid for Bourn. Upton still has upside and has proven he can 1) hit .300; 2) can consistently score 80 -90 runs; 3) can steal 30-40 bases; 4) can drive in 80+ runs; 5) can play very good defense; 6) has a cannon for an arm; and 7) can be a dominant force in the post season. Sure, he strikes out a lot, but so does Bourn, who has a lot less power and has not proven he can produce in the clutch. GO BRAVES!

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•Braves GM Frank Wren said he has interest in certain outfielders as one-year stopgaps, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports (on Twitter). The Braves need another outfielder, even after signing B.J. Upton.

Read more at http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/#3cY0zcEIckqv1iZc.99

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The Braves should try to get Justin Upton also. He is cheap for 3 years. But then again could brothers play on the same team.

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Big surprise here that the braves left the winter meetings without addressing their needs. Let’s see…….we went almost seven years without a center fielder and leadoff man. We finally get one player who is capable of filling both those roles and we decide instead to throw $75 million at another strikeout artist who can’t hit for average and who is really a fairly average defensive center fielder. I know everyone thinks he is a real stud out in the field, but we’ll see when the season starts. Meanwhile we have two young players who look like the real deal who need to be locked up for a few years at reasonable (if any salary in MLB could be called reasonable) salaries. I’m sure Wren is working with “suspenders” Schuerholz to come up with a strategy on that front. They’ll get to it when they find that next big bat everyone is clamoring for.

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Maybe it’s DOB’S FAULT we’re not landing these players….

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/127035-ajc-got-it-wrong-hudson-has-words

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@9:16..Thats old news..DOB explained all that crap. DOB’s the best in the business..get a life.

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I would like to see them go with Fowler 1st and if that doesnt happen, shoot for Ellsbury!

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Towers needs a good SS bc he has no depth at that position. He has depth in the OF.

Simmons is a good player could be a great player but SS is not typically the place you look for RBIs and this team is in need of another RBI with pop.

If BJ plays like 2011 and Simmons turns out to be all arm & glove Wren will be in deep yogurt. He rode the untouchable duo of JJ and Hanson into the ground and over paid for Uggla.

I am not sure I really trust his gut or his eye on talent evaluation.

Seems like a lot of hope in there and everyone is a special player.

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Woke up a bit early. Two words Braves’ fans! Emilio Bonafacio. Fans and Wren need to glom onto to this cat. Can play 3rd base and/or left field. As a 3rd baseman, this guy stole twenty straight bases without being thrown out one time! Stole something like 30 in 64 games. That’s off the charts for anybody — much less a 3rd baseman. Would come cheap and welcome a change of scenery to a contender. I know nothing about his character, but the stats can’t be denied.

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Lots of comments about how the Phillies gave up too much for Revere here. I guess it remains to be seen. If Worley is winning 15 games a year for the next few years, that assessment will be proven correct. But he could also be J. A. Happ reborn. He went 6-9 last year and broke down at the end of the season. The big question is can he recover from his elbow surgery. The minor leaguer was 10-13 and 4.50 or so in AA last year. We’re mostly OK with the deal up here, but it’s true that the Phil’s were desperate for a CF.

I think the talk about Bourne was mostly a smoke screen. And we are still laughing at the money the the Sox gave Shane Victorino. We love both of those guys but not for that money.

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Lots of comments about how the Phillies gave up too much for Revere here. I guess it remains to be seen. If Worley is winning 15 games a year for the next few years, that assessment will be proven correct. But he could also be J. A. Happ reborn. He went 6-9 last year and broke down at the end of the season. The big question is can he recover from his elbow surgery. The minor leaguer was 10-13 and 4.50 or so in AA last year. We’re mostly OK with the deal up here, but it’s true that the Phil’s were desperate for a CF.

I think the talk about Bourne was mostly a smoke screen. And we are still laughing at the money the the Sox gave Shane Victorino. We love both of those guys but not for that money.

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Lots of comments about how the Phillies gave up too much for Revere here. I guess it remains to be seen. If Worley is winning 15 games a year for the next few years, that assessment will be proven correct. But he could also be J. A. Happ reborn. He went 6-9 last year and broke down at the end of the season. The big question is can he recover from his elbow surgery. The minor leaguer was 10-13 and 4.50 or so in AA last year. We’re mostly OK with the deal up here, but it’s true that the Phil’s were desperate for a CF.

I think the talk about Bourne was mostly a smoke screen. And we are still laughing at the money the the Sox gave Shane Victorino. We love both of those guys but not for that money.

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Steve from Philly..just click one time ..u sure got your finger on the problem.

fladawg..afer looking at what some others got (ex. SV) Upton’s was not that bad.

Boras has yet to have a player signed…

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Until a Braves FA move or trade results in a different outcome come the middle of October they all will be suspect and should be.

The Phillies have won a ring in 2008 and have been in the playoff mix more than ATL over the past 10 years. Their moves seem to work though 2012 could be the beginning of the decline.

I still hope Towers warms up to Ahmed bc if that happens the deal will pop. He is young, incredibly quick, can hit and has the size to move to 3B as he matures.

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A Jones will play in Japan and Ludwick will resign with Reds.

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It is so fun being kinda good every year. We should all celebrate that 1 game playoff this last year. It might have to last us a while.

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I’m not sure why so many of you were in love with Ben Revere. I actually watch the Twins play and Revere struggles to get the ball out of the infield (and can’t get it to the warning track). The fact that he can fly on the bases hardly makes up for the fact that he’ll never drive in any runs, and he’ll frustrate you to no end with RISP.

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3 names even w/ all 3 could cover OF & INF. A couple of them can spell others in different positions. Hairston, Blue collar through & through, along w/ Reed Johnson, Prado discipline at the plate, Gotta Love it!

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Trade for Hart from the Brewers so they can get Hamilton.

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