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© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
6,304 comments Add your comment
Wes Jorga
December 22nd, 2012
1:20 pm
Hope AZ would not demand Ahmed
old man
December 22nd, 2012
1:21 pm
Post at 1:16 should have clarified Parra’s 2012 split in lead off spot.
VaBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
1:22 pm
I still think Parra is better than Gattis with the bat. Atleast with Parra he’s actually played in the bigs and you have a idea of what your gonna get from a high and low standpoint. Gattis is a complete wild card. For all w know he could be like Juan Francisco or Mark Reynolds with the bat or worse.
VaBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
1:22 pm
old man
Really depends if they are going with Eaton in CF or not. Signing Ross mean’s he has a starting spot locked down in my opinion. Ross can play any spot, so that makes OF they want to trade really up in the air. Upton, Parra, and Kubel will all interest other teams and they will likely pick the best deal. To me they have to make a trade and start Eaton in CF.
Alot of scenario’s still have Parra as there 4th OFer even after a trade is made. Weird situation. Unless they plan on Eaton starting in AAA and making a trade later.
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
1:26 pm
Parra is a great defensive 4th outfielder and in any trade should be viewed in that matter. Though Towers will tout him as a starting CF/leadoff hitter.
But he’d be a darned good pickup. Personally, I see Towers trying to trade Upton or Kubel and go with Ross on the corner and Eaton as the CF with Parra being your backup.
VaBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
1:29 pm
Parra is good enough to start I think. Gold Glove Caliber defense with a cannon in LF everyday who can hit enough to be a leadoff option. I like him more than Peter Bourjos, and I believe in Bourjos more than most.
Wes Jorga
December 22nd, 2012
1:30 pm
Gattis is without question a better hitter than Parra in the winter league. How that translates to the major leagues is still not known. His OBP and low K rate for power hitter makes him different than Francisco or Reynolds. I will give you that the Braves want a player with Parra’s skills to fit into their lineup; Defense and top of the order.
brian
December 22nd, 2012
1:33 pm
Parra>Fowler>Bonafacio in my opinion
VaBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
1:34 pm
Parra is a better hitter vs MLB pitching. If I could only choose 1 of them to start the season in LF, I go with Parra. Because atleast I know what I’m getting, Gattis is a complete unknown.
brian
December 22nd, 2012
1:35 pm
Parra and Reed Johnson would complement each other well. Both can bat lead off, play LF, and back up CF and RF as well
Patrick
December 22nd, 2012
1:37 pm
Goodbye Cody Ross and soon Nick Swisher.
Hello missing the playoffs next year
Heath
December 22nd, 2012
1:39 pm
The grocery store was a mad house….
…will be making a fresh fruit salad of fresh pineapple, banana, green apple, orange, green grapes, and shaved coconut.
Mmm.
kenhotlanta
December 22nd, 2012
1:40 pm
Lew @ 9:30: Captain Beyond was an outstanding band and their first 2 albums are well worth looking for.
kenhotlanta
December 22nd, 2012
1:44 pm
Heath, that salad sounds great, can you send me a plate? My mother always made ambrosia at Christmas and I rarely see or have had that in a long time.
Heath
December 22nd, 2012
1:51 pm
kenhotlanta:
I love good, fresh fruit. Better than chocoalte any day. Course… I love fruit in cobblers and pies too. Gosh. I think I could live on that stuff.
Wes Jorga
December 22nd, 2012
1:52 pm
I think for now Parra would be better option than Gattis for 2013, no proof Parra is better hitter but he is, as you said, known for what you are going to get. I like his defense and ability to be at the top of the line up which Gattis will never provide. However, to say Parra is a better hitter seems to me to be more of an opinion than an evaluation base on comparing stats facing the same pitching. Granted MLB pitching is a level Parra has succeeded at and Gattis still has to prove himself able to make the adjustments.
Heath
December 22nd, 2012
2:05 pm
Win or lose… Temple has played really well in this game and makes me wonder how they lost to Canisius. Looking ahead to this game?
George_George
December 22nd, 2012
2:06 pm
ONE UPTON IS MORE THAN ENOUGH. How FW could have looked at BJs anemic batting aveages over past four years and still wanted him I just don’t know. I will say JUSTIN’s are a bit better, but two brothers on same team will spell TROUBLE. PLEASE FRANK DON’T DO IT.
74bravesjersey
December 22nd, 2012
2:17 pm
Heath; send some of that fresh fruit salad & pies my way, man that would put me in Hog Heaven.
TheOnlyBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
2:19 pm
Too bad Kubel is a lefty bat…
jmart1951
December 22nd, 2012
2:19 pm
I like Parra but what would the Braves have to give up?
Parra for Tehran?
Parra for OFlaherty?
Parra for Teheran and Gilmartin?
Parra for Delgado and Ahmed?
74bravesjersey
December 22nd, 2012
2:20 pm
Boy, I tried to make my favorite pear dish w/ a half a pair on top of lettuce, w/ sour cream scoop & shredded cheese on top, but couldn’t compete the way my momma made it, oh man she was topps!
ChattTownBrian
December 22nd, 2012
2:20 pm
George, sure whatever. When Justin Upton is putting up a .300, 25, 90, .365 line come September with our Braves, you’ll be singing a different tune. JUpton would be huge for the team, any team. Brothers on the same team are trouble???
Not happening though. Betcha!
I like Parra. Nice fit for our team and actually realistic.
TheOnlyBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
2:20 pm
Don’t understand this move by Towers though… move Kubel, a valuable guy and bring in a slightly better than platoon player and give him 3 years
74bravesjersey
December 22nd, 2012
2:24 pm
@DOB; On jmart1951’s deal for Parra, what would it take? I’m kinda interested to know as well, would he be a good fit?
Lew
December 22nd, 2012
2:31 pm
About all I remember of Parra are the two throws he made in a game against us a couple years back that burned a couple of our runners. If he hits close to .300 with an OBP of close to .,340, it works for me.
Lew
December 22nd, 2012
2:34 pm
ken – they also had a third back in the later 70’s with a different singer – not bad, but lacking the dge of the first two – which were fairly different from each other.
unbelievable
December 22nd, 2012
2:36 pm
Trade for Upton. Put Gattis behind the plate in AAA until next season when BMac leaves
unbelievable
December 22nd, 2012
2:36 pm
Trade for Upton. Put Gattis behind the plate in AAA until next season when BMac leaves
Norris Chuck
December 22nd, 2012
2:37 pm
D’Backs Working To Trade Outfielder
By Zach Links [December 22 at 1:13pm CST]
The Diamondbacks are looking to trade an outfielder in the wake of the Cody Ross signing, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Jason Kubel is regarded as the outfielder most likely to be moved.
Arizona is still overloaded with outfielders following the Chris Young trade as Ross joins Kubel, Justin Upton, and Gerardo Parra. The club also has prospects Adam Eaton and A.J. Pollock waiting in the wings, giving them a rich surplus that can be parlayed into other areas of need.
Read more at http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/#hv0UZsSFy1waRyDr.99
ChattTownBrian
December 22nd, 2012
2:39 pm
Lee, that throw of Parra’s got Uggla at 3rd base, and not sure the other guy, maybe Chipper. I remember this because we were in Savannah on out honeymoon.
He also hit the gap fly ball that sent JHey and McLouth colliding. Might’ve been the same series, not sure. I don’t think it was though.
kenhotlanta
December 22nd, 2012
2:39 pm
Lew: Have you heard the new Black Stone Cherry? I have heard some good things about it and I loved that one you sent.
JC Brave
December 22nd, 2012
2:41 pm
Last night I was impressed by a movie.
I hadn’t watched Moneyball because I don’t like Brad Pitt as an actor for some reason. My thesis advisor recommended the movie to me so I decided to give it a try.
Love it!!
Is not a perfect film, but it does quite a good job in showing some of the things a baseball organization goes throught to put a good team on the field with a small budget.
To those of you who haven’t seen it [I imagine most of you have], I recommend it.
I give it a 7 / 10.
ChattTownBrian
December 22nd, 2012
2:44 pm
UGH!!!! If it’s Kubel to be traded then never mind. Strike out again on the search for an outfielder. Pretty soon there really be nothing left and Wren will give the “we like our team as it is and always have” speech.
Lew
December 22nd, 2012
2:47 pm
ken – Yep, I have it. Much more metal and a lot less of the Southern Rock influence – very, very heavy album.
Lew
December 22nd, 2012
2:49 pm
I’ve also been listening a lot to an expanded version of the last Wolfmother album, too and some Taking Dawn.
kenhotlanta
December 22nd, 2012
2:59 pm
I’m still on a 60s’-70s’ kick: Savoy Brown, James Gang, Bloodrock, Cactus, Quicksilver Messinger Service, Jefferson Airplane, etc.
Lew
December 22nd, 2012
3:02 pm
Cactus is still together – heard they put out a new album earlier in the year, but haven’t seen it yet. I saw Bloodrock twice – at Lake Spivey and at the Municipal Auditorium. Is MA still there? Saw some incredible shows there in the early to mid 70’s.
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
3:11 pm
When I asked about him during Winter Meetings, was told the price tag was high.
I’m curious, DOB, do opposing front office execs say this about every single player?
.280/.332/.400, 93 OPS+ for his career and outside of the hitters heaven of Zona – .263/.315/.357. Parra really isn’t that good. Seems like a good defensive 4th outfielder and platoon bat. Why in the world should the Braves pay a “high” price for him?
And a Day of Rain
December 22nd, 2012
3:12 pm
Here are the current stats in the Venezuelan League:
G AB R H AVE 2B 3B HR RBI TB BB SO SB CS OBP SLG OPS
Parra 33 122 12 32 .262 4 0 4 11 48 9 28 2 4 .316 .393 .709
Gattis 51 185 28 52 .281 8 0 14 37 102 16 29 1 1 .349 .607 .995
All against VL pitching.
kenhotlanta
December 22nd, 2012
3:14 pm
Lew: The Atlanta Municipal Auditorium was a great place for concerts, but it’s long gone. I saw many shows there in the early to mid-70’s that still bring back wonderful memories. Plus, I was lucky because a couple of the ushers worked at my record store, so they always got me seats down front.
One the most memorable shows was a very young, unbilled Aerosmith (their first ATL appearance), The New York Dolls, and Mott the Hoople.
Heath
December 22nd, 2012
3:16 pm
Done with the fruit salad… about 5 lbs of it!!!
fresh bananas
fresh pineapple
fresh apples
fresh oranges
fresh seedless grapes (cut up to eay easier)
shaved coconut
the oranges are always the hardest to peel and cut up nice… but daaaaang is it good.
and a splash of lemon juice
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
3:17 pm
Don’t think Zona will trade Eaton or Pollack. It’s going to be either Upton or Kubel. One of them really has to go. I think they probably value Parra as a 4th outfielder and he’s not going to get them much in return anyway. They are very RH heavy for their lineup though.
Upton, Ross, Goldschmidt, Hill, Eaton, Gregorius, Johnson are RHH’s. Montero, Kubel, and Chavez are LHH’s and Chavez is expected to platoon with Johnson at 3rd base.
Makes the most sense to deal Upton, imo.
JC Brave
December 22nd, 2012
3:17 pm
So, if Arizona HAS to trade an outfielder, doesn’t that mean the price tag would no come down a little bit?
JC Brave
December 22nd, 2012
3:18 pm
So, if Arizona HAS to trade an outfielder, doesn’t that mean the price tag would NOW come down a little bit?
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
3:20 pm
And Montero is a switch hitter and a catcher meaning they will have very little LH sock when he’s out of the lineup if they trade Kubel. Would make a ton of sense for them to trade Upton to the Rangers for prospects. At this point, they really don’t even need a SS, so why not just take a huge prospect package from them. They clearly are positioning to get Upton off of the team.
TheOnlyBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
3:22 pm
Upton for Teheran, Gilmartin, and Spruill/EOF
Let’s go.
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
3:23 pm
D-Backs have a massive overflow of position players:
OF’s Upton, Kubel, Ross, Parra, Eaton and Pollack.
INF’s Goldschmidt, Hill, Gregorius, Chavez, Johnson, Bloomquist, Pennington, McDonald, and Hinske.
C’s Montero and Nieves
That’s 17 position players for what is usually 13 spots. Pollack can probably be sent down to Triple-A and so could a couple of others, but the majority of them are major league players or close to being that. Strange amount of depth for Zona. Trade has to be on it’s way soon.
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
3:25 pm
I’d bet now, the D-Backs would just take the absolute best prospect package possible for Justin Upton. Why not? They have major league spots taken up throughout the roster. May as well cash the Upton chip and get a huge return of prospects.
TheOnlyBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
3:26 pm
Texas probably still is favored to get him, can’t see Philly or the Mets getting involved… Robbie Ross or Perez may be a center piece, the DBacks don’t need position prospects, especially not as SS now. Towers got his man, Didi.
CB
December 22nd, 2012
3:28 pm
I could really see Arizona trading Upton and Kubel. Seems to be a great opportunity to get a better 3B and stock up on position prospects.
Lew
December 22nd, 2012
3:29 pm
ken – Never saw those three shows, but saw Mountain, Ten Years After, Rod Stewart and the Faces, The Allman Brothers (the show they debuted the song Hotlanta),Ike and Tina Turner, ELP, Humble Pie, Foghat, King Crimson – even saw Grin – Nils Lofgrin of E Street fames’ band
Lew
December 22nd, 2012
3:31 pm
Oh Yeah – and saw Jefferson Airplane, Fleetwood Mac (pre Buckingham NIcks), Queen and Kansas at the Municipal Auditorium, too. But then they built the Omni.
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
3:35 pm
CF Eaton
2B Hill
RF Upton
1B Goldschmidt
C Montero
LF Ross
3B Chavez/Johnson
SS Gregorius
Bench: Bloomquist, McDonald, Nieves, Hinske, Parra, Chavez or Johnson
And that’s without Kubel. And still very RHH’s with Eaton, Chavez and Montero as the LHH’s. Makes more sense to trade Upton but we’ll see.
JasonInFL
December 22nd, 2012
3:42 pm
Someone text Franknand let him know AZ is looking to trade an OF.
Mountain Braves Fan
December 22nd, 2012
3:42 pm
If Nick Swisher’s best offer is 4 years, $52 million from Cleveland, not sure why the Braves wouldn’t at least try to match that. Not crazy about the fourth year, but Swisher is a legitimate power bat, switch hitter, and would fit nicely in the lineup between Heyward and Freeman:
3B Prado
CF Upton
RF Heyward
LF Swisher
1B Freeman
2B Uggla
C Laird (McCann)
SS Simmons
And Swisher’s actress wife would have lots more opportunities in Atlanta than Cleveland. Given the asking prices for power hitters via trade, $13 million a year for Swisher seems cheap.
Heath
December 22nd, 2012
3:42 pm
That ESPN commercial about the red soccer team fan and blue soccer team fan… It’s English, but I can barely understand them.
kenhotlanta
December 22nd, 2012
3:42 pm
Lew, we were certainly at several of those shows together: Mountain, Ten Years After, The Allman Brothers, Humble Pie, Foghat, King Crimson, Grin, Jefferson Airplane, Fleetwood Mac (pre Buckingham NIcks), and Queen. Procol Harum and Genesis were memorable shows, too.
jmart1951
December 22nd, 2012
3:46 pm
After looking at all of the stats I believe that Parra might be a good platoon partner with Johnson. If that is the case I do not think that he is worth a minor league pitcher that is ready for the majors. I think that you give them a couple of good double A prospects.
Because of looking at Parra’s stats I believe that the Dbacks trade a different OF that will bring back major league ready players.
My first observations about what a trade might look like with Parra was too high.
Comparing Parra to Fransisco (just as a hitter) I believe that Fransisco is better. Now Parra is a better defender and can lead off so maybe that makes him a better overall player in terms of trade value but not to the extent of a Tehren or O’Flaherty
JasonInFL
December 22nd, 2012
3:48 pm
I don’t think the Braves have the prospects to get Upton. Texas or even Seattle most likely.
nolie
December 22nd, 2012
3:50 pm
if the Braves come even close to 500 ball this season Fredi is not going anywhere, and they will almost assuredly do better than 500
VaBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
3:53 pm
Wren should call Swisher up and offer 3 years 40 million
nolie
December 22nd, 2012
3:55 pm
there is a new draft crew with the Braves the last few years with so far a different approach, so the fact that the Braves were historically good systems for all those years is not completely relevant to today
JasonInFL
December 22nd, 2012
3:58 pm
The fact they aren’t interested in Swisher is a clear indication to me they don’t have as much money as they say and that payroll certainly isn’t ging up.
Heath
December 22nd, 2012
3:59 pm
If Swisher got a matching offer from the Braves I would think he would lean more towards the Braves. The 4th year doesn’t scare me at all…it’s not like the Braves have a can’t lose prospect he’d be clocking. The other great thing about Swisher… he can backup Freeman at 1B it there is a real tough lefty.
Robert ( chi-town)
December 22nd, 2012
4:01 pm
Braves have the surplus in pitching. Go get Upton!
richbrave
December 22nd, 2012
4:02 pm
Finally
nolie
December 22nd, 2012
4:09 pm
I wonder if Upton is the guy who goes
Russell Bell
December 22nd, 2012
4:11 pm
After reading Efrim’s comments, it seems like Upton should be the guy traded.
I don’t get the Ross signing. Seems like a waste of money that would’ve been better spent retaining Upton for another year.
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
4:12 pm
VABravefan
If Swisher had a 4/52 offer on the table, no way he’d take a 3/40. 1 more year and 12 million clams?
You’d have to match or come close. Of course, maybe a 4/48 or 4/50 would get it done if he really wanted to play for your club. But probably would have to match.
Russell Bell
December 22nd, 2012
4:12 pm
Retaining Upton for another year of his current contract – just to clarify.
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
4:13 pm
Russell
Seems that Kevin Towers has it in for Upton for whatever reason.
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
4:14 pm
nolie
I’m betting Upton goes. Towers has not shown any interest in retaining the guy from the way he has been handled.
richbrave
December 22nd, 2012
4:15 pm
Cyber babble
Joey G
December 22nd, 2012
4:17 pm
I’ve been wanting Parra since before Michael Bourne. would be good in the leadoff spot. What an OF we would have !!! Whats does Towers want? I would trade Delgado/Teheran and ??? Then sign Kyle Lohse. Lohse would be a great veteran influence on this staff. I see him in the mold of Tim Hudson.
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
4:17 pm
We should have went after Lannan, considering how well he pitches against us.
And let’s hope Raul Ibanez stays in the AL.
The Blogger Formerly Known as Billy
December 22nd, 2012
4:19 pm
I bet Mac has a solid year and most fans here are going to scream at Wren for not resigning him Fair weather fans are annoyinng
JasonInFL
December 22nd, 2012
4:20 pm
What r u talking about, Richbrave?
VaBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
4:23 pm
Well Swisher could sign a 4 year deal with Indians and be a loser for 4 years or sign with Atlanta for 3 and actually have a chance to win. He’d be making the same salary per year.
TheOnlyBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
4:23 pm
3/38 for Swisher… ATL is much better than Cleveland. I’d try to keep the 4th year as a team option if possible… he’d be 36 that year. But if we had to give it to him guaranteed… it wouldnt be all that bad I guess.
Im thinking Justin gets moveed, they just added a RH in Ross. They’re moving a righty bat
nolie
December 22nd, 2012
4:24 pm
yeah I think Towers wants Upton gone and I think is the deal that allows it to happen.
you hafta wonder just what it is about Upton, a good if not quite great player, that has them so seemingly eager to get rid of him. He has a rep as kinda stubborn and excitable once in a while like BJ does, but it seems it would take more than that.
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
4:26 pm
I hear what you folks are saying about playing for a winner, but why in the world would ANYBODY ever turn down an extra 12 million bucks? He’d be a total idiot to do that. Your talking about 12 million more guaranteed, as opposed to a possible ??? million for that 4th year after he is 35 years old?
Ain’t happening folks.
nolie
December 22nd, 2012
4:26 pm
3/38 for Swisher
you really think a player is gonna give up that much?
nolie
December 22nd, 2012
4:27 pm
damn right it ain’t happening DS1
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
4:30 pm
Most of us sit at our keyboards thinking that if we had ONE million we’d be set for life. But how can you blame a major league player from taking the payday if these owners are willing to offer them?
I don’t blame them one bit. 12 million bucks can buy an incredible amount of security for a LOT of people or could make 1 player an incredibly charitable person.
12 milliion!
12 million!!
say it again.
It’s OK to give up and extra 12 million dollars…………..
Nick N' Richmond
December 22nd, 2012
4:32 pm
I know it’s always tough to pry away prospects, but Adam Eaton would be good fit for Atl. It’s probably more realistic for Towers to trade Kubel or Upton, but Eaton is a good OF and lead-off type. He’s a lefty, but that doesn’t matter much at leadoff.
TheOnlyBravesFan
December 22nd, 2012
4:32 pm
what does Towers want for Justin now? Their needs were a #2-3 SP, SS, and a LHRP. They’ve already added McCarthy and Didi to fill the first two. Would Teheran and EOF even be close?
If Swisher would rather have that fouth year guaranteed and lose 85+ the next 4 season, more power to him. But he’s said to be a winner, so he should be more willing to give up that guarranteed year to have a chance to win.
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
4:32 pm
Parra would be nice. Upton would be phenomenal. A Gattis/Francisco combo might just hit more than both those other alternatives.
It’ll sure be interesting.
Later folks
DS1
December 22nd, 2012
4:34 pm
TOBF
Your kidding right? Swisher might earn more money at 34-35-36. But he might also be washed up by then. A penny in the hand buddy………….
Plus, there are no guarantees the Braves will get him to the WS.
unbelievable
December 22nd, 2012
4:38 pm
Ive probably said this before but this team needs an impact much more than a slap hitter at the top of the order. Prado or Simmons are full capable of producing in that role.
nolie
December 22nd, 2012
4:40 pm
slap hitting lead off guy would likely be cheaper hence the interest
unbelievable
December 22nd, 2012
4:44 pm
Gattis/Fransisco will not hit more than Justin Upton.. i cant believe some here are being sold that Fransisco is a capable option. Hes not.
unbelievable
December 22nd, 2012
4:46 pm
Being cheap doesnt get you into the playoffs.
JasonInFL
December 22nd, 2012
4:48 pm
Agreed, unbelievable
JasonInFL
December 22nd, 2012
4:51 pm
Think FW has at least talked to Towers?
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
4:51 pm
Seems like a salary dump for Pittsburgh if all they are getting is Jerry Sands and Stolmy Pimental.
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
4:52 pm
Totally agree on a Francisco/Johnson platoon for LF/3B. With a low 80’s payroll, that’s sort of unacceptable, imo.
Efrim
December 22nd, 2012
4:54 pm
So, the Red Sox have really cornered the market this offseason on relievers and old, stop gap position players, eh?
But they kept their draft picks so I guess it’s okay…………
JasonInFL
December 22nd, 2012
4:54 pm
Not sort of, Efrim. It would be plain ridiculous.
UNCBrave
December 22nd, 2012
4:55 pm
No way the Braves get Upton although I’d love it. The Braves are WAY to cheap….Can we afford Upton’s contract? What is Upton’s contract”?