Braves’ spring training: What do you think is No. 1 issue?
Nate McLouth and the situation in center field is one of the Braves' questions this spring.
Spring training officially opened this week, and that always means two things: 1) Hope; 2) Questions.
I’ll be heading down to Orlando in less than two weeks to examine a few issues but I figured this blog would be more appropriate today. Some national media outlets, like FoxSports.com, are locking onto the loss of closer Billy Wagner as the No. 1 issue facing the Braves. It’s a worthy topic. But I figured I would let fans weigh in.
Loading ...Here are a few areas I believe most folks are looking at, along with my view. Let me know what you think and vote in the accompanying poll. That way we can come to some highly scientific conclusion, which I’ll pass along to general manager Frank Wren, who’ll quickly move to resolve the matter. (Slight sarcasm.)
What is the biggest issue in your view?
– 1. Billy Wagner’s retirement: It takes a special mindset to be a closer but I believe Craig Kimbrel and/or Jonny Venters can get it done. Being able to work with Wagner for a season should have helped.
– 2. Chipper Jones’ comeback: I’m not as confident here. Jones was starting to hit the ball well when he was injured last season, and there’s zero reason to question his determination. But asking a player to come back from a torn ACL at the age of 39 (come April 24) is an iffy proposition.
– 3. Black hole in center field: Nate McLouth is back, but it’s not because the Braves are oozing with confidence in him. It’s because they’re obligated to pay him $6.5 million. (McLouth also will receive a $1.25 million buyout after the season, assuming the Braves don’t exercise a $10.65 million team option.) Jordan Schafer still has potential but he’s regarded less of a prospect now than he was two years ago, given injuries and confidence issues. Help is needed.
– 4. Defense: The signing of second baseman Dan Uggla should significantly improve the lineup. But Uggla has his deficiencies in the field — his 18 errors placed second among major league second basemen — and the Braves were tied for third in the majors with 126 errors. Some of the team’s problems, however, can be attributed to injuries and backups (like Brooks Conrad) playing too many innings.
– 5. Freddie Freeman: First base has long been a Braves’ problem area. But Freeman is just keeping the spot warm for Albert Pujols. (Hey, a guy can dream, right?) Seriously, Freeman could be the real deal after crushing Triple-A, but it’s dangerous to just assume he’ll be a smashing success. Jason Heyward seemed a safer bet, in that regard.
OK, now it’s your turn.
By Jeff Schultz
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Earlier:
– Jadeveon Clowney picks South Carolina: Is the SEC East theirs?
– Georgia wins but looks like far from an NCAA tournament team
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231 comments Add your comment
coach phil
February 14th, 2011
5:11 pm
also we need speed on the bases. we haven’t had a 30 steal season sinse the 90’s. a shame.
BraveMan
February 14th, 2011
5:14 pm
The biggest issue is McLouth. If Chipper can’t go, Prado takes over at third and the Braves can get by with Hinske taking most of the starts in left. CF is a big hole if McLouth flounders again. The best hope is for the resurrection of Schafer. The bullpen doesn’t worry me at all.
Robert
February 14th, 2011
5:15 pm
“Easily the Chipper Jones one… he will either make or break us this season”
Maybe
Losing his offense wouldnt break us.
But if he couldnt handle a lesser role, that might break us.
Last year, Chipper remained a reasonably good team guy even after the injury. He was all rah-rah about trying to win something for Donk that his attitude stayed good
This year, that’s not a given. Now that his favorite grandfather isnt around, I fear that if he slumps badly and becomes secondary news, he might not take it well. The boy is too used to being prima donna.
I hope it doesnt happen
I hope he bounces back and has a good year. If that fails, I hope he handles becoming a role player well.
But that’s hope. Chipper is still my biggest concern for this season
Skeezix
February 14th, 2011
5:20 pm
My only concern with the offense is CF. I think even with a weak CF bat we will be better offensively than last year. My next concern is closing out games, but we have two really talented/proven guys ready to fill that void. Third, I would say the defense – Uggla at 2B and the arms in the OF— CF has a weak arm and I wonder if Prado’s arm is strong enough for LF.
Skeezix
February 14th, 2011
5:22 pm
And we don’t need to break the bank signing someone like Pujols………..
Mr Boot
February 14th, 2011
5:26 pm
Defense is the biggest concern, for 2 reasons:
1)Last year the Braves were horrendous defensively. Never was this more evident than in the playoffs, when it mattered most.
2)There is no reason to think we will be any better in ‘11.
Defense is going to cost us some games.
dawg2
February 14th, 2011
5:28 pm
I have no respect for Schafer…keep him in AAA at least a year. He’s had 8 good weeks in 2 and half years..why expect more.Oh, I know the injury crap! Give Young and Canizarez a chance.
dawg2
February 14th, 2011
5:29 pm
Where is the speed? Slow as a worm…damn!
JeanE
February 14th, 2011
5:35 pm
I miss Bobby, Omar, Wags and most of all MattE D. Uggla will NEVER be a true Braves in my book. All of those issues listed are problems, it’s never entirely 1 thing. Part of what made last year’s team so special was the unique chemistry they had. You can’t put a price on that. Oh and Nate’s problem is that it’s now in his head. I don’t see how that is fixed unless he’s been spending time with Dr. Llewellyn or somebody like that.
Jborodawg
February 14th, 2011
5:53 pm
Maybe it’s D. What if the Braves committed the fewest errors in the majors this year? What would their record be?
Robert
February 14th, 2011
5:57 pm
“Last year the Braves were horrendous defensively. Never was this more evident than in the playoffs, when it mattered most.”
When you have a flaw and an idiot manager who wont correct the flaw or wont even acvoid exposing us to harm from the flaw, that spells disaster
Rob
February 14th, 2011
5:58 pm
The biggest issue is 1st base. We will have to hope Freddie can hold down the job in somewhat of a respectable way. This is a classic, important position that requires a bit of power & batting average to boot! Anytime a team is relying on a rookie it is tenuous at best. As for the other issues….we know Chipper will be in & out of the lineup (particularly after a serious injury). Nate McLouth is arguably the WORST position player in MLB so Jordan Schafer probably won’t have a hard time beating McLousy out (God help us if McLousy is our CF!). Craig Kimbrel has a great arm & hopefully can “nail down” the closer role (he has got to be able to throw strikes consistently…..this is going to be the problem if he falters). Ah, and defense….well, we won’t lead the league in fielding but let’s hope it is better than expected. All in all, I like the moves the Braves have made. I like the youth movement & although it might not payoff in 2011 I believe the Braves are on the right track. Puhleese just keep McLousy off the field!!!!!! Bobby Cox was sooooooooooooo remiss in putting this BUM on the field. The guy is completely absent of talent. He barely hit his weight (and he’s a RUNT) & he looked awful while doing that!! If Jordan Schafer is not in CF there is something HORRIBLY wrong with Braves management. It is your own fault for paying a completely useless player millions of dollars (how does that happen? Simply amazing!!). I, for one, am very glad Bobby Cox retired……he was incredibly hard-headed on many occasaions with people like McLousy, Kelly Johnson & many others through the years. The fact that McLousy was allowed to hit .190 & play MOST of the season was TOTALLY ASTONISHING!!!!!!!!!!!!! Come on Jordan Schafer…..the job is yours!
T'VILLE DAWG
February 14th, 2011
6:02 pm
McLost is the very weak link here. For a MLB player he apparently doesn’t recognize the need to throw the ball in on certain situations to keep the runner from moving up, I mean standing in center with no one else on base and the runner sprinting to third with a chance for the oposition to drive him in with less than two outs. Standing there holding the ball while watching the runner move up without any effort I’ll never forget.
JCH
February 14th, 2011
6:02 pm
Ready Fredi – I hope for your sake, “poet” isn’t your profession and, for our sake, you stop practicing it here!
Coach (2011 and Fredi G. a GO!)
February 14th, 2011
6:13 pm
All of the above, not to mention the overall improves pitching in the National league. And O yea, those Phillies.
Simply put, our Braves have pitching and power. Followed by an enormous amount of questions and not nearly enough answers. So at the moment the playoffs are a pipe dream.
Mike
February 14th, 2011
6:13 pm
They need to be able to generate some runs i.e. able to play small ball
Rob
February 14th, 2011
6:17 pm
T’VILLE DAWG…..I feel your pain. McLousy is PATHETIC anyway you want to slice it! Watching him hold the ball is bad enough, but did you happen to see this “waste of a uniform” virtually EVERY AT BAT OF THE ENTIRE SEASON? He is USELESS. To Braves management….eat this guy’s salary & chalk it up to a bad mistake!! He is not even useful off the bench. Holy crap, I was amazed when Cox used him as a pinch-hitter late last year at the end of a game……I was wondering if Cox had gone COMPLETELY insane or suddenly suffered from an acute case of alzheimers!!!!
wizard on the west side
February 14th, 2011
6:19 pm
I love me some Chipper… but he is the biggest concern we have going into Spring Training. His health makes third an issue….. and left field when he goes down. And changing your All-Star second baseman to third then to left all in hope$$$$ that our future hall of famer will stay healthy add on to the doubt. Go Braves! See y’all at The Ted.
John Galt
February 14th, 2011
6:21 pm
Remember John Galt told you- Schafer starts in CF by April 30.
Rob
February 14th, 2011
6:23 pm
John Galt….it better be on April 1st not 30th.
heartofdarkness
February 14th, 2011
6:37 pm
I was reading how the Last Boy (Mickey Mantle) would take Bobby Cox out for a milk shake as the Yankees made their tour of American League cities. Someone with Mantle’s extensive knowledge of soda fountains may want to take Fredi out for a few. As for our hitters, we might want them to try some of the Mick’s other beverages.
Jane Leavy’s book is a great read, in any case.
clam slapper
February 14th, 2011
6:43 pm
The most important step took place last season. Putting Bobby Cox out to pasture.SEEEYA!
JSS
February 14th, 2011
7:01 pm
First base wouldn’t an issue until his semi-annual visit to the DL if Lord Larry showed some team first flexibility that he’s not shown since Castilla left town… I was right last year, there’s holes in this team still… Good luck anyway, still hard to pull for a team that lets Bill Shanks bandwagon off of them!
Rob
February 14th, 2011
7:03 pm
clam slapper…I’m right with you on that one. Bobby Cox being gone will be the most refreshing thing in 20 years! He was a highly average Mgr. who had the good fortune of managing very good teams his entire career. He was adept at managing a team through a 162 game marathon, however when those very good teams entered the playoffs Cox was sub-average as a game tactitian (I’m being nice here….he was actually God-awful). We are ALL keenly aware of his hard-headed tendency to stick with someone until they completely swirled down the toilet never to be seen again. Thank God his time is OVER! I know the players loved him & that’s great. I’m sure McLousy loved him……he would have had to because no other Manager on planet Earth would have had him in the lineup all year! McLousy NEVER showed ANY sign of life (starting from going 1 -30 or something like that in the Grapefruit league versus Pitchers who were not even going to be on Major League rosters).
BALCO Investigator
February 14th, 2011
7:29 pm
Here is my proof that Bonds never used steroids:
1. Bonds has ALWAYS tested CLEAN.
2. EIGHT years of a FEDERAL investigation has more than confirmed that NO evidence concerning Bonds and steroids exists.
3. Bonds had his best offensive seasons in 2002-2004 WHILE testing clean, WHILE he and BALCO were the most scrutinized people on earth.
Whats the case against him?
Well, lets see, its not the the major news sources all haven’t lied that Bonds ADMITTED taking steroids. They release the entire grand jury transcript right in their face.
Its not like the judges have already called out the Feds for making up evidence three times, once trying to pass B.B. for three Bonds (the Feds response was “we didn’t know B.B. could stand for something other than Barry Bonds”), and testing ANONYMOUS samples for substances banned AFTER the Grand Jury Testimonies.
Its not like judges have not accepted ONE piece of evidence from the Feds yet, and have even gone as far as calling their “evidence” (and I quote) “inadmissable heresay”.
Its not like almost every other major player in the MLB has been caught taking steroids EXCEPT Bonds. They even complained that Bonds was taking “undetectable steroids” LMAO. When the Feds investigation ONLY Bonds.
Its not like they spent 5 years and millions of tax dollars to investigate the Clear and the Cream, only to find out TWO WEEKS before the trial that it wasn’t even classified as a steroid during the Grand Jury testimonies.
Its not like they very publically accused Bonds of cheating in 2001, THEN made the rule that steroids was considered cheating in the MLB in 2002 AFTER calling Bonds a cheater. And just four years before when McGwire AND Sosa shattered a then 40 year old HR record, with McGwire OPENLY on PEDs, they called the “the “SAVIOR of baseball”.
They claimed that they were concerned about Bonds and steroids after Bonds broke the record because they wanted to preserve “the sanctity of the game”. And just a couple of years before, they juiced the balls and lowered the mounds for the very reason of “seeing more balls fly out of the park”.
And its not like the MLB continues to treat ARod like a hero when he was been CAUGHT taking steroids this year, after the ALWAYS lied about NOT taking steroids before.
And now they celebrate the Yankees full of PROVEN steroid users winning the championship.
BAM EDUCATED
Thoughts?
BALCO Investigator
February 14th, 2011
7:29 pm
Bonds 2002-2004 seasons are the most validated clean seasons ever, with a FEDERAL investigation going on and 5 reporters following him wherever he went, with the show “Bonds on Bonds” going on detailing his daily life. They also just happened to be the best three offensive seasons in the history of the MLB. And now we know it was against steroided competition where almost every big name was CAUGHT using steroids.
BALCO Investigator
February 14th, 2011
7:29 pm
Wasn’t it proven that everybody BUT Bonds took steroids?
The highest single-season performances were:
Barry Bonds, 268 (2002)
Barry Bonds, 263 (2004)
Barry Bonds, 259 (2001)
Fred Dunlap, 258 (1884)*
Babe Ruth, 256 (1920)
Babe Ruth, 239 (1921)
Babe Ruth, 239 (1923)
Ted Williams, 235 (1941)
Ted Williams, 233 (1957)
Ross Barnes, 231 (1876)**
Barry Bonds, 231 (2003)
BALCO Investigator
February 14th, 2011
7:30 pm
The hater’s argument:
You can’t prove he didn’t take steroids.
His head’s TOO big.
Greg Anderson is in jail, it MUST be because he is protecting Bonds. Never mind that if that was the case all he says is NO Bonds did NOT take steroids, and your thorough lack of evidence proves it.
Bonds MUST be referring to The Clear and The Cream when he said he took flaxseed oil for sores, a clear liquid, and an arthritic cream, and therefore he ADMITTED to using steroids. Never mind that The Clear and The Cream wasn’t even classified as steroids at the time of the Grand Jury Testimonies.
BALCO Investigator
February 14th, 2011
7:31 pm
And the haters are INSTANTLY cornered to no counterargument namecalling responses. As always.
Rob
February 14th, 2011
7:39 pm
Dear Mr BALCO Investigator: Are you stark-raving MAD? To completely blow you “out of the water”….Bonds himself admitted to supposedly “unknowingly” taken steroids…..it was the “clear”! He wanted us to believe that he thought he was taking vitamin B. I suppose you think Clemens never took steroids also! WTF are you Bonds’ lawyer! And I never breathed oxygen!!!
BALCO Investigator
February 14th, 2011
7:46 pm
Another side argument I see, Bonds 2002-2004 seasons are the most validated seasons ever. Its people like you Rob that don’t recognise Jeff Garcia as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.
BAM EDUCATED!
Rob
February 14th, 2011
7:52 pm
Dude, just one recommendation…………back away from the crack pipe!
K Conway
February 14th, 2011
7:52 pm
Chipper’s health will do in the Braves! he’s a dead weight around the team’s neck! Cut him loose!!
Bobby Cox
February 14th, 2011
7:54 pm
I can out run Chipper!
BALCO Investigator
February 14th, 2011
7:55 pm
The only think that was cracked was Hank Aaron’s tainted home run record.
Henry will always have an asterik next to his name.
JSS
February 14th, 2011
8:06 pm
Rob
February 14th, 2011
7:52 pm
“Dude, just one recommendation…………back away from the crack pipe!”
Who still smokes “crack” besides ‘GregNCrackensaw’ and that fool from the Ukraine who went on that rampage on the NYTA over the weekend?
Now there are plenty of Crystal Meth addicts, especially on Ledbetter blog… January 15th was the apex!
Did they check to see what the drug arrest records were like in Gwinnett, Hall, East Cobb, and Forsyth when Conrad was having that error fest last Fall?
Rob
February 14th, 2011
8:15 pm
JSS – you must excuse me. I am not up to date on the “drug scene”! Somehow I consider this a good thing. For the most part, I did not understand more than 5 words in your post!
Atl Chris
February 14th, 2011
8:16 pm
Justin 1,
I am in agreement with you on your lineup suggestion. The 1st five hitters look dangerous to any team.
Prado
Chipper
McCann
Uggla
Heyward
From here we need to put in Nate, Alex Gonzalez, and Freddy Freeman. These 3 can be mixed and matched in any order. What i will say, is that any other top 5 combination just doesn’t look as potent. I am still pulling for Shafer. To bad he was too ignorant to admit his injury sooner. Lets not forget about Kris Medlen coming back from surgury. He will be like a a mid-season trade.
JSS
February 14th, 2011
8:22 pm
Rob
February 14th, 2011
8:15 pm
“JSS – you must excuse me. I am not up to date on the “drug scene”! Somehow I consider this a good thing. For the most part, I did not understand more than 5 words in your post!”
Then don’t pretend to be a “snarky genius” when you don’t agree with someone like like “BALCO” and make a smart a** reference to something as serious drug addiction…
Rob
February 14th, 2011
8:27 pm
JSS – wait a second….are you Bonds’ lawyer?
Jeff Schultz
February 14th, 2011
8:28 pm
My Mom’s… Had to delete you comments. Please change your screen name.
JSS
February 14th, 2011
8:52 pm
Rob
February 14th, 2011
8:27 pm
“JSS – wait a second….are you Bonds’ lawyer?”
I can care less about Barry Bonds… Let his ex-wife and paramour worry about his appointment in the Federal District Court of Northern California.
You went off the reservation (the Crack comment) and be man enough to take it in the right direction…
Ed
February 14th, 2011
8:53 pm
Just dont hit Nate in the leadoff or 2nd spot and ruin what could be an amazing 1-5 lineup. Park his ass in the 8 or 9 hole until he proves he can hit.
cattle dawg
February 14th, 2011
9:12 pm
Who will provide the spark for this team like Glaus did last year? I hope the Braves got rid of that jerk bartender in the Golden Moon level.
JSS
February 14th, 2011
9:16 pm
McCann and Chipper means you better be hitting a lot of three run homers. That slow duo can’t even beat ancient Shaq in a foot race…
llf
February 14th, 2011
9:24 pm
Run production.
Sam The Swami
February 14th, 2011
10:25 pm
POWER: Only Uggla is a lock to hit over 20 HRs.
NC Brave
February 14th, 2011
10:39 pm
Chipper is the main concern. I have hope but seriously doubt his comeback will last a full year. If he goes down then it throws everything out of whack. Prado back to 3rd, batting order jumbled, who then plays LF???? Too many questions from the hot corner this year for my comfort.
puff
February 14th, 2011
10:51 pm
A resurgence by McClouth would have a huge impact. Assuming Gonzalez will want to run more than Bobby did, McClouth getting on base consistently will allow the Braves to create more pressure than they’ve done in quite a while. If the first two guys can set the table, the middle of the lineup should generate enough runs.
Katherine
February 14th, 2011
11:15 pm
I’m not worried at all…just happy to have baseball almost back! I’ve missed it……