The Braves in 2009: Is a wild card such a wild notion?

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I think you’ve got them pegged pretty well. Hanson looks like at the very least a good insurance policy for the rotation and hopefully much more. I like to think Francouer will be closer to 2005-6 form than 2007. The bullpen may be pretty strong, especially if they can stay on the bench until the seventh inning. There’s reason behind what you foresee and I share your conclusion.

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Dear Mr. MB–forget last year, Mr. MB. Nobody’s perfect. This year you’re right on the money banking on all them there guys. Your pal, Leland.

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Outside of Santana, I don’t think that the Mets have that great of a starting rotation. I think if Utley isn’t healthy the Phillies will have issues. The Braves have some question marks as well. My point is the division is wide open. The West is shadey and I don’t know what the Central will be like this year outside of the Cubs. I think a wild card is definitely a reachable goal.

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Francoeur is the most important story to watch this season… the rookie contributions will be gravy.

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I agree with most of what you said and you really do have to look at this Braves season with some optimism. It is really easy to pick out the negative stuff. But hey, lets face it, you have to look at your teams optimistically starting the season or you would drive yourself crazy way to early.

I agree with McCann being MVP eligible. He should have a great season. Tom Glavine is just keeping Hanson’s seat warm. Time for a new Tommy in the rotation. Hanson will be up before the All Star break. Chipper will have a solid season batting above .300 but he won’t win another batting title this season. KJ will have a great year…his second half last season was no fluke. Frenchy should bounce back nicely…not saying he is going to be an all star this season but I think he will surprise people. Those Gwinnett county boys are resilient.

Prediction – Braves win a Wild Card spot and lose in the NLCS.

GO BRAVES!!!

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Mark,

If my fact checking is correct – McCann would be the first Catcher to win the National League MVP since Johnny Bench.

From your pen to god’s ears Mr. Bradley.

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When your AAA team has a rotation that could compete with the Royals or Mariners’ starting five, you’re in good shape. When your manager and GM agree you’re well-enough to trade off your incoming starting CF to make room for the kid from AA to play, something tells me the guy they’ll play there is pretty special (he is). The addition of Garrett Anderson, coupled with the rejuvination of Matt Diaz, the expectation that Casey Kotchman is now comfortable with the Braves and not distracted by family matters (as he was shortly after he arrived with Atlanta last year) – things look well for this squad. Jeff Francoeur – by ALL accounts – has re-tooled his swing and listened to guys like Chipper, TP and McCann (three names that seem to be synonymous with quality ABs); that can only mean he’s going to rebound.

Yeah, there are “ifs” with this team, but many of those “ifs” have good contingency plans. Find me (m)any other teams that can tout that. I think this team is built for the long haul, and see a “challenge” for the division, and a near-certain lock for the wild card, if nothing else.

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The Gwinnett Braves will be more exciting than the Atlanta edition if and when Heyward, Hanson and Freeman are playing there. Despite the Braves success in spring trainning, they do not have the overall talent,speed and power to sustain themselves against the Mets,Phillies,Cards,Cubs,Brewers,Diamondbacks,Dodgers(Marlins???) over 162 games and the dog days of summer. I do like the spunk and fire in Schafer. Anderson was to laid back. Assuming that they make no stupid trades, the Braves will be contenders next year when the youngsters mature.

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Mark, Geithner has nothing on you when it comes to banking and betting on the come but I can see your predictions coming to the fore if the individuals and teams plays up to its potential in the areas you outlined.

Staying injury free, or being kept at a minimum will, of course, be another key factor if the Braves are to prevail in 2009. I like the fact that you, Mark, put it out there for all to see and comment on. Good job.

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…wildcard,playoffs,forget about it. They better find a new pitching coach,are by the all-star break they will be way back.

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Luck is always a factor in a good season, the Braves have had their share of bad luck lately, so they are due some good luck. If they are lucky and everyone stays healthy (healthy for Chipper is a very relative term these days, it does not mean 162 games for him) I too agree that they have a good shot at making the play offs this year. Some of the young guys really need to have good seasons offensively as well.
Antoher thing, sure the Mets look good, but you know they always choke during the stretch to the playoffs, haven’t they been put out of the playoffs the last day of the regular season the past two seasons?

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I like to be optimistic, but a dose of reality is due. Start with Brian McCann. Catchers don’t win a MVP playing in four of five games. They can’t get the power numbers they need. Add mediocre defense, and McCann has no shot. He’s a good player, not a great one.

Thinking the Braves bullpen will be good requires as much faith as thinking last year’s starting rotation would be good. That’s blind faith. Gonzalez isn’t ready to be consistent, Soriano never has been, and Moylan is an early return from surgery. At least one of the three won’t be able to go to the post regularly and be effective. If two of the three can’t, all bets are off. Who would be shocked if all three struggle?

Move past that and there are question marks at almost every position:

1. Can Kotchman produce the number of runs this team has to have from 1B?

2. After two good months hitting in two years, can Kelly Johnson hit well enough for a season to offset his defensive liabilities? .280, 20, 90 seems about break even.

3. Can Chipper play four days in five?

4. Can Diaz and Anderson in left produce the number of runs this team has to have from LF?

5. Will Schafer contribute or will be have a typical rookie season, with stretches of inconsistency in the field and at bat?

6. Does Francouer have the mental toughness to match his physical gifts?

7. How often can Lowe, Vazquez, Kawakami, Jurrjens, and Glavine leave the game after six having allowed three runs or less? How often will the Braves have a lead unless it’s two runs or less?

8. How long will it take for Hanson’s herky-jerky motion to explode his elbow? Great movement comes at a cost.

The Braves are solid at shortstop and catcher. They have a good blue-collar starting staff, that will keep them competitive, but watch for lots more one run losses.

The Braves haven’t rebuilt this team, they’ve put on band aids and crossed their fingers. The team isn’t built for long-term dominance, it’s built to challenge .500. That will keep butts in seats and eyes on screens most of the year. This will be four in a row. That’s a trend.

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Mark, I hope you are right but the bullpen is still a problem (two stoppers still hurting?). Gwinnett Braves will pack’um in…thats great. Keep up the great job Mark.

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Is this the same Mark Bradley that gave us reason after reason to why UGA will win the National Championship and after Bradley “threw Georgia under the bus” because they did not win it all? PLEASE DO NOT PICK THE BRAVES! Don’t jinx us AGAIN!!!

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Mark

You are looking at the glass and see that its half full—-but it is half empty.
The weakest part of the Braves is Bobby Cox. Unless he has changed his way of thinking (3 run homer) this year will be a repeat of last year.
I predict that by July, everyone will be screaming for Bobby’s scalp.

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I think the Braves for sure can win the West!… I mean the North!… I mean the East!
Wild Card??!!??
95 wins and they squeak by the Mets for the division. Sad thing is we are hoping a player like Francoeur can some how get his average up around the late, great Rufino Linaras. Then again, I think Rafino, in limited games, hit about .300 one season which might be more than anyone can ask from the Parkview Prince.

I too think Calipari is a nice fit at UK. They go together like cold cash in a paper bag.

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B-Mac = MVP
Chipper = Batting Champ
Shafer = ROY
Frenchy = Comeback Player of the Year
Lowe = CY Young
Bobby = Mgr of the Year
Frank = Exec of the Year

No joking, every one of the above mentioned items has a STRONG possibility of happening…it is Atlanta’s year. Falcons, Hawks, and Braves (do we still have a hockey team??). GO BRAVOS!!

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Jack G.- Put down the razor blades and get out of the tub…

People should be excited about this team.

Although its hard to tell how a baseball team will come together with this many new parts, on paper I think we have a shot. We have alot of young guys entering their prime i.e. KJ, jj, Yunel, McCann, Kotchman, even Frenchy. If our bullpen will stay healthy, we can make this interesting.

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I think you are right on Mark! 89 wins sounds attainable and I hope it is enough to get into the postseason.

I am going to say “McCann for MVP” every year because he is my favorite player in baseball. Aside from the bias though, he really does have a shot, especially if he bats cleanup and is as clutch as he has been. He seems like a true leader at a young age and I think if it’s not this year he will have one by the time he retires. Let’s say .315 25HR 105RBI. On a winning team with timely hitting that may do it. Can’t wait to wear my jersey Sunday night!

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Just curious Mark..Why do you see a plunge for the phils? They have an outstanding lineup, play in a sandbox and have one of the best young pitchers in baseball who is clearly healthy after the MRI. You could put me at 3B and they would still have the best infield in all of baseball with Howard, Utley and Jimmy.

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ProfFish- let me try an answer some of these for you.

1. No. He will have to have a career year by astronomical proportions to do that. So far his career highs for power are 12/68 (not in same year). He’s young though and doesn’t strike out a lot, hardly ever.

2. You get .280/20/90 out of KJ then he’s given you a solid year.

3. Realisically no, to make it to the post season he’ll have to. Might need to schedule him off days to get ready for the big series.

4. Most likely. You need 30/100 minimum from LF. Asking each of them to give you 15/50 should not be too much to ask.

5. In the field he should be ok. At the plate I would look for a hotter first half than second. Think 04 when Jeff came up. When they start learning how to pitch him …then again he might ball out like Longoria.

6. We’ll have to wait and see. If he doesn’t don’t expect to see him in a Braves uniform next year. If he does then look for him to sign a 5 year deal.

7. Workhorses on the mound are good but I need studs up there too. If Derrick Lowe is your ace, your staff isn’t that good. He’s a good pitcher but he’s no ace. Other aces to consider: Brandon Webb, Roy Oswalt, Tim Lincecum, Johan Santana, Cole Hamels, CC, Beckett. He needs to have a year like 02 to be considered an ace (21-8, 2.72 ERA) not a year like he’s had in the last 5. Vasquez is a career .500 pitcher, nuff said.

8. Not always true.

The Braves are solid behind the plate and at SS. Yunel has to give you .290/20-25/90-100. Another question to think about. Chipper in the 3 McCann in the 4. Brian protects Chipper, who protects Brian. Who bats 5th and protects him? The Braves are most likely trying to keep afloat till Heyward and Freeman are ready. To have Schaeffer, hopefully Francouer, McCann, Heyward, Freeman, hopefully a producing Yunel and KJ…now you’re talking about nice mix of righties, lefties, veterans and young studs. Look for them to keep drafting pitching and power.

All for now.

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The problem is they don’t have anyone after Hamels, Ryan. Their offense is very impressive, but they don’t have the rotation, on paper at least, to be all that great. Who knows, though. I’ll take the Braves rotation over just about anyone else’s in the NL, with the exception of the Cubs and the Diamondbacks.

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Here we go baseball fans, bottom of the 9th, the “too many yrs to remember” vet., Mark “baseball” Bradley steps to the plate. Heres the wind and the pitch, he swings and misses, strike one. Next pitch, he swings….. and misses. Wow this baseball version of Hugh Heffner, still around after many years in the bizz, has one more pitch to prove he can predict a winner. Many people remember his predictions of the past… most recently UGA winning the National Championship…not coming to pass. But better yet passing away, now watch with little hope of him even making contact, yet he has one more pitch/prediction… and here goes, the wind up and the pitch, here it comes…swung on.. he hit it, and not just a “chopper to chipper”, a high drive, deep center field, way back, this ball is….
Well Braves fans we’ll have to wait til the end of the season to see what happens with MB prediction for the Bravos. But rest asured, we have a better team than last year, we will be in it for the long haul, and we should provide this city with something to cheer about. And after last year thats all we can ask for.
On a final note on my post today I just want to say how much I will miss Skip Carey this year. I still have that sick feeling in the pit of my stomach, when thinking of Braves baseball without Skip. We all miss you Skip, and your family is still in my prayers.
Now lets get ready to play ball!

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Unless they have suddenly learned to play the game “the right way”, I believe the Braves will be finish closer to the bottom of the division than the top.

Looking back at last year, aside from the flukish rash of injuries suffered by the pitching staff and Frenchy’s fall from grace, the most disappointing thing about the Braves was their inability (or unwillingness) to do “the little things” that it takes to win baseball games.

I’m talking about consistently making routine plays plays in the field, being smart on the basepaths, and moving runners up at the plate.

To be blunt, in terms of baseball fundamentals, the Braves of 2008 were shockingly unsound. As far as I’m concerned, these shortcomings reflected upon Bobby Cox and his coaching staff as much as any strategic blunders that may have been made during the course of the season.

When you can longer “out-talent” the opposition, you must do “the little things” on a daily/nightly basis to give yourself a chance. Whether or not these olds dogs are capable of learning any new tricks remains to be seen.

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Let’s not forget – Tim Hudson will probably be joining the team by the end of the summer, just in time for a whiz-bang pennant race. To know that we have that caliber of pitching waiting in the wings has to improve our chances of picking up a wild card berth in the playoffs.

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Offense reality — Braves have no power or speed. Rookies at leadoff do not historically fare very well. Wren says the team will hit a lot of doubles — good luck with that. I’d trade offensive lineups with a dozen other teams without hesitation, and that’s not a good sign.

Pitching reality — the key to the game. Three teams IN THE DIVISION have better starting/bullpen pitching. Lowe is solid, but he has not been an ACE for years (what is Freshmaker smoking?). Nobody but Hanson could put fear in the minds of opposing hitters. We had one dominant pitcher, who could have made the 5-8 game difference that might have squeaked us into wildcard contention (even without the first month or two), but he’s in Boston now.

Independent perspective — a situational lefthanded reliever just turned down two years and millions more guaranteed dollars in a crumbling economy to play for the Dodgers because he is so sure that the Braves will be bottom feeder for years. Hanson, Shaeffer and Heyward might change that in a few years, but for now you need to drive north to have any real hope of watching winning baseball.

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Bradley, that is a lot of banking and not much cash. Third or fourth, best case.

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Well, I’ll be happy with anything above 85 wins this year. Whilst that isn’t playoff bound, I think this year will be good rebound with next year being our best in a long time (Hudson back and Tommy Hanson ready to breakout in his first full season). It’s the offense that worries me, can they consistently score enough runs, or will they be streaky.

Go Braves!

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You are a blind homer. I am a huge Braves fan and I dont see them making it past the Phillies and Mets in the East. We don’t have a dominant #1 starter and I dont feel that good about trusting an old Lowe to carry the torch. Our bullpen arms have bad injury history and we won’t be surprised if one of Gonzo, Soriano or Moylan gets hurt. We dont have any power in our lineup…our top hr hitter might break 25 homers. We won’t make the playoffs unless we add a power bat or a power pitcher. Hanson can be that power pitcher, but what about the bat? Until then, I predict 82-80, third place.

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MB, When you take a “leap of faith” don’t pull up short. My faith is strong enough to predict that the Braves will win 92 and the Division. This year’s team is a plethora of young players ready to have “break out” years to establish themselves as true professional ball players. It might not be “91″ but it will have some of the same feel.

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Brian McCann MVP? Believe me, I’m a big fan of his work but he is still far from that calliber. The very few other catchers that have won MVP have had really strong offensive numbers. Brian’s stats are good and compared to other catchers I’d say we have one the best in the game but please don’t put that kind of hope on our second best player.

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It seems to me that there is one factor that everyone is overlooking. (Jair Jurgens) He had an unbelievable rookie year, and I don’t see any sophmore woes in his future. This is going to be the key to an absolute dominate year. The question marks will remain on the rest of the rotation, but so will everyone’s focus. I think Jair is a 16 game winner at least, and will anchor the starting rotation. If Hanson comes in mid season and we can get a little extra help from one of the other young pitchers like Logan, then I foresee a Young Guns 2 doming into play. Not to mention that Hudson will be back just in time to lead the team through the playoffs. So early predictions here is a 95 win season, and the Braves shock the world by winning the series over the Yanks in 7 insane games. Also, I know Chipper is getting old, but after last years batting title I think he will lead the team as the MVP.

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However deserving Mac is, he’ll likely never win the MVP. He will miss too many games to put up numbers to compete with Albert. Also, if the Braves make the playoffs, Chipper will surely get some votes too, maybe more than Mac. I expect both to have fine years again though. I’ll settle for makes the playoffs and both on the all-star team again.

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I’m still concerned about the near-constant injuries to our pitchers. I know the strength and conditioning coach was replaced late last season, but isn’t this a pitching coach issue? We had very few injuries under Mazzone but have been much less fortunate since he left. I think the wild card is in reach if our staff doesn’t break down (never mind suffer serious injuries like we’ve had) but the sheer volume of problems seems too high to be a coincidence and that makes me nervous.

Any unless I’m mistaken, Piazza was the most recent MVP catcher.

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“And unless…” Not “Any” You know what I mean.

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MB, this is really scary for me to say, but i actually agree with you…and yes, that is a first! i’m telling ya, there’s nothing like flying under the radar in sports, it gives one a silent sense of determination and that does go along way…i still say our biggest question is with Frenchy. now i know one player doesn’t usually make ya or break ya, but in this case…..

i just hope bobby doesn’t give him too long to see if he can produce. i’m thinking bobby is too old to wait on players and he knows this, so look for him to make a move by the end of may if he is not “GETTIN ER DONE”.

my prediction..4 of the Bravos starters will win 14+ games this year..and we’ll not have to make a trade come july with huddy coming back

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I actually agree Mark… I think this team will challenge for a wild card (unfortunately the freespending Yankee Jrs. have too much not to take this division). Some nice moves by Wren despite some missteps with Burnett and Furcal.

But there is still something Wren did that I just can’t get over, and don’t think I can move forward and enjoy the season until someone can explain to me… WHY did he offer Mike Hampton a contract at all? And the part that makes it worse… WHY did he offer Hampton MORE than he offered Smoltz?

I just cannot get my head around either move… it’s keeping me up at night, PLEASE, somebody explain so I can move on.

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I know it’s a Braves column, but Oliver Purnell and Frank Haith? Really? Haith would be okay, since he’s kind of just getting started in his career, and has done reasonably well at a football school, but Purnell is 56 and hasn’t done too much with Clemson. I mean, Tubby is 58… at least give him a call. I don’t get this search. i really do not. Grant would have been better than all of them.

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ProfFish and Scout

I think that what the Braves are hoping for regarding the rotation is that even though Derek Lowe isn’t a true ace, the rotation is much deeper than most others, especially the Mets and Phillies. If Francoeur can prove that last year was a fluke then that will take a lot of pressure off of everyone else in the line up. He is very capable of playing 160 games hitting about .280 with 20 HRs and 110 RBIs. The Braves are going to have to rely on stringing hits together and more aggressive base running in order to score runs though because they lack a true power hitter. The bullpen is a huge question mark though. Hopefully Medlin will be a sleeper and maybe be a Paplebon type rookie for us. If nothing else they should be able to compete with any team any night.

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Jesus Christ Mark – can’t you just keep anything to yourself and for once in your life not jinx a team that has a chance to go far into their respective seasons? What a buffoon you are. How is it that people who are actually good at their jobs are losing them every day while we have complete idiots like you still working.

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I think people are missing the point with the offense and the bullpen. Oh course the success of the bullpen is dictated by the health and/or the effectiveness of Moylan, Soriano and Gonzalez. All teams count on a few key guess at the back end to be healthy and effective. Obviously, history give us more reason to worry, but even with 2 of the 3 healthy and others such as Boyer, Bennett, and Campillo pitching in, they can do a good enough job.
As for the offense. People are concerned about power, but the more pointed complaint is about the lack of doing the “little things.” Not moving runners over or having good situational AB’s throughout the lineup really hampered our run production the last few seasons. In that respect, that is where a pickup like Garret Anderson really comes in handy. He is the consummate pro when it comes to having those type of AB’s. Hopefully he continues that, and guys like Kelly Johnson and Francoeur learn from Anderson and their experience about how to handle the bat in those situations. I think that if we do a better job of manufacturing runs we will be fine offensively, not because we will score an astronomical amount of runs, but simply because we will be better at getting important runs (late game, one-run game scenarios) and better at getting runs off of difficult pitching match ups (like scratching 2 or 3 against a Santana or Hamels). I am hopeful that we will improve in this manner and will be able to be serious contenders in the NL East and hopefully into the playoffs.
GO BRAVES!

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I love what Wren has done this offseason. The Wild Card is a definite possibility. We lack power and the bullpen injuries scare the heck out of me but starting pitching is where it’s at and with Hanson coming up (sooner than later) we are going to be STACKED.

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Not to beat a dead horse– again– but as much as I enjoyed watching Smoltz pitch over the years for the Braves, the Braves are looking pretty smart for not relying on a pitcher who is going to be rehabbing until June this year, right? I was in the “say it ain’t so” crowd when I heard that Smoltz was heading to Boston, but with Lowe and Vasquez, to a lesser extent Kawakami, and Tommy Hanson… not to mention Jurjens, why pin the season’s hopes on a guy coming back from a bad injury (again)? Despite all the egg on the face in the winter with Furcal and Burnett, Wren is looking pretty good right now.

But then, not a single game that matters has been played this year yet, so, who knows?

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Dan: I agree with your sentiments. But go back and read what you wrote and think about Glavine.

The Braves did keep an aging guy that is coming back from injury/surgery. Of course with the acquisitions you mentioned we don’t need to “pin the season’s hopes on” Glavine. But if they avoided nostalgia altogether then Glavine would be retired and Campillo would be keepiing Hanson’s seast warm for a month or so.

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Will Schafer keep #64 or will he have a different number starting regular season?

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Dan,

Don’t worry about beating the smoltz horse. I do it any chance I get, and will continue too

Honestly Mark, I’m more concerned with Purnell than Haith. I mean, at 43, you can, in my admittedly amateur opinion, still grow as a coach. Purnell I think is kind of what he is, and, at 56… I don’t know, I just don’t think it is the right direction. Damon Evans has really over-valued the prestige of the UGA job. We need the next Billy Donovan type, someone that can take a previously okay job, and turn it into something more, while falling in love with the school in the process.

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I haven’t kept up with the entire blog today, but I do have a couple of points to make on the topics I have seen.

First of all, this team absolutely has a shot to make the playoffs. The Braves have 4 solid starters who can definitely hold up over the season, and for the fifth spot you have the “problem” with using either a hall of famer or a promising young pitcher. As its been said I am sure, what a problem to have! Some teams would be forced to use Hanson as their 2nd or 3rd starter right now.

As for the line-up. It has incredible potential, and not the type of potential that has trouble coming to fruition. Great veteran presence and one of the best benches I have seen the Braves have. I think it is great to have players like Chipper and Garret Anderson play even 100 games, and expect them to easily get to 120 games barring a disaster. The team may not have a lot of bopper, but I think everybody on the team can hit 10 homeruns a season. How many teams can say that? The younger guys are getting better and better, especially McCann.

Now as for MVP talks…..McCann is great! One of my favorite players. He may get to that place during his career, but I do not see that happening as long as consistent threats like Puhols and Manny are in the league…not to mention such a diverse player like Hanley Ramirez.

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I know spring training doesn’t count for anything especially for a championship type team but I can’t help remembering the last time the braves had a spring like this they started the season 13-0.

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The thing about Smoltz, is he will endanger his arm if he returns to pitching. If he last a whole season in Boston it will be short of a miracle and he could end up like Jeff Bagwell. As far as the Braves go, if they stay healthy, they have a chance at the pennant. The Braves were mostly free of injuries, when they had their long success.

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Just noticed that Moyer’s ERA is almost 9 this ST and Pelfrey’s ERA is 7.77

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without a true number 1 starter and a big bat in the middle of the lineup the braves are at best 3rd in this division we need new ownership who will spend the money to get the players we need not save the money!

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I thinks there better ODDS to Chipper winning the batting title again than Braves getting wild card or Brian McCann winning MVP however all three could happen but bull pen is shaky and poer hitting is missing and Braves under Cox are not good at ABC baseball…GO BRAVES in 09

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Poor ole Gandaddy use’ta say, “if the wind ain’t blowin, you kaint fly a kite.” Last year we operated within the Hammy/Frenchy/Tex vacuum; everything we tried put a damper on the wind. Hammy and Tex (Hex) are creating vacuums elsewhere now (THANK THE LAWD).

The pitching staff (Hanson included, by June) is MUCH improved. In my mind, the loss of Smoltz is moot; his arm’s had all it can take. If he throws more than 400-pitches this year, I’ll be astonished. Our bullpen is DEEP; the one troubling tidbit being the departure of Ohman. Our bench is NUMERO UNO among the pine-riding set, with Norton leading the charge. Now to our everyday lineup…

Frenchy (swear to Gawd I believe this) has finally recognized brain matter as a legitimate baseball tool, he’ll be ok. BMac will definitely be an MVP candidate. Kotchman, with transition to Braves complete, will find a comfort zone we didn’t see last year, and a VERY productive one. KJ will have a breakout party this year, no doubt in my mind. His numbers will outshine anything we’ve pondered. Chipper will be Chipper, hopefully for 140-games or more. Anderson will be serviceable in left, and will be a solid everyday force in the batter’s box. Schafer and Yunel, with their youth and exuberance, will set the tone. The excitement-borne wind will begin to blow with those two. Add Hanson’s arrival in mid-June and we gotta howling gale on our hands!

Bring the kites boys/gals, we’re gonna ride em to the World Series!!

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There’s something the Braves know, that we don’t, regarding Ohman. Gotta be…

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Smoltz doubters,

The only surprise will be if Smoltz DOESN’T come back and succeed. He’s done it every single time he’s come back from injury. He’ll do it again.

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This 2009 team should win more games than they lose. But the playoffs are a stretch.

Why you ask?

With the forced trade of Josh Anderson the Braves are the same plodding 58 stolen base team they were last season. We CANNOT compete with the Mets (138 SB’s) and Phillies (136 SB’s) in this regard.

Our Braves do not have an answer for the three power combo of Ryan Howard (48 HR-146 RBI) Chase Utley (33 HR-104 RBI, Raul Ibanez (23 HR-110 RBI) or Carlos Delgado (38 HR-115 RBI) David Wright (33 HR-124 RBI) Carlos Beltran (27 HR-112 RBI.

Atlanta didn’t have one single player who topped 90 RBI last year.

Not to mention two of the top five lead off hitters in the game in Jose Reyes and Jimmy Rollins.

The injury history of both Chipper Jones and Garret Anderson over the last five years is what it is. The pair are likely to miss significant playing time.

Look at all the left handed bats. Our Braves are not well balanced, they wanted and needed a big right handed bat in the middle of the order and didn’t find one in the off season.

Historically, there have been nine catchers who have won the MVP: Mickey Cochrane in 1934, Gabby Hartnett in 1935, Ernie Lombardi in 1938, Roy Campanella in 1951-53-55, Yogi Berra in 1951-54-55, Elston Howard in 1963, Johnny Bench in 1970-72, Thurman Munson in 1976, and Ivan”Pudge” Rodriguez in 1999.

That’s 14 MVP’s awarded to nine catcher’s out of 156 in both leagues over 76 years. The odds are not McCann’s favor. Not to mention the reality that the Cubs Geovany Soto is a much better overall player.

The back of the Braves bullpen is iffy at best and an unknown commodity headed into the season.

The starting pitching is deep and talented, it should hold up. Ditto for the defense and these are the two main reasons why this team should win around 85 games. As for Bobby Cox, well….he is headed for Cooperstown but the man gets a vote of no confidence from this fan.

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Maybe 89 wins and a shot at the wild card if the Braves stay healthy and everyone performs close to expectations.

But this seems more like a team that will win in the mid 80s. Surely, a big improvement over ‘08. With the kids coming up through the system, I think the Braves start hitting their stride in ‘10 and ‘11.

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I wonder what Vegas odds would be for next season’s Braves, Falcons, Hawks AND Thrashers ALL all making the playoffs. More interesting, all 4 making it past the 1st playoff series.

(If that happens, I’m giving my possessions to the poor and climbing on my roof and singing ‘Do Lord’ till I see a man on a pale white horse in the skies.)

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Hey Mark, how long do u think it will be before Hanson makes his first start and how long till glavin is hurt.

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The Braves need to hop on Gary Sheffied and move Garret to center and let sheff play left,But there just sitting around when th Phillies are making a move for him Frank needs to get on it before hes gone.

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Smoke em if you got em Mark Bradley

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SHEF doesnt deserve a job on any team all he does is talk right now atlanta has a good club house dont ruin it

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If you are that kind of banker, you will be needing a bail out before the all star break.

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Mark, if we use a very reliable source, however I might misapply here, it seems you have set up next year as THE year. You said hope last year and faith this year, yet, the greatest is love, that would be next year. 1 Corinthians 13: 13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (NIV)

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Mark, do you see McCann eclipsing Bench at some point if he stays on this path? I honestly think that he’ll end up being in the top three whenever it comes down to it. Also, besides Bench, who do you put in the top 3 for catchers? For me, it’s Bench, Piazza (only because he changed the way that catchers hit), and Berra.

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I really think the Bravos’ can make the wild card put it rides on a few factors. The first is how much power they put up. Yea I know Cox ball doesn’t ride on to much power but if McCann can hit in the 30 hr range and Francouer, Chip, and Johnson can hit in the 20’s They should be ok. I really like the rotation, especially Lowe and his sinker. If the rotation can eat innings and keep the bullpen healthy they should be pretty solid, except for left handed relievers which could be a factor considering all the left handed power in the division. If Huddy can make a late season start then it would be pretty solid if they make the playoffs. The final and most important is for overall hitting, if there is one thing I learned over the years about the Bravo’s its that they hit in streaks, if they make the playoffs its because their streaks came toward the end of the season with a late season surge.

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GO BRAVES! Sick ‘o Vick

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Mark, I would love if you are right.

As for the Phillies and the Mets: Many times, after a team wins a World Series, especially in the way the Phillies did last year, there is bound to be some “hangover effect”. I think that will happen to the Phillies this year.

I also agree with you that the Mets are going to be very good if everyone’s healthy. Chances are, if that team has a lead in the 7th inning, it’s lights out, because Putz and Frod are two of the best in the game.

As for the Braves: We made some very nice upgrades, with Lowe. Javy Vazsquez, and Mr K (Can never spell his name). Plus that, Jair will be good, and I think Tommy Glavine will have one more decent season in the sun, before riding off to the HOF.

Our lineup is solid, but the always question for us is.. how many times will Mr Larry Wayne (I love him, and I am not making fun of him, just saying) get hurt?

89 and the wild card sounds very realistic to me.

The fun starts Sunday night in Philly (Thank God it’s not today, because I live not far from Philly, and its pouring here!)

Go Braves! See you in October, hopefully!

Mitch

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This is a 80-85 win team. If that wins a wildcard, which I doubt, then great. All the offense rests on Chipper’s shoulders, and he will break down as he always does. He can’t do it alone. McCann will help, but he gets lots of off days, being a catcher. McCann will also get dinged up.

That leaves the offense depending on a restyled Jeff Francoeur. I’m not buying it.

Pitching will be strong, but they will wear down soon from the punchless lineup delivering 1 or 2 runs per game.

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I like what I’ve seen so far. As much as I love the old pitchers, it’s nice to have some fresh faces in rotation. And the bats should be fine. Once again I think it’s going to hinge on the bullpen.

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Sorry People, the next MVP will be in Philly. Either Howard or Utley. Can’t really see the Braves being in the Playoffs. Same Lineup that bagged it late n the season. Only question Mark for the Phil’s right now is our #1 pitcher Hamels. Really didn’t have a spring training.

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matt diaz, shaffer, and francour-the worst outfield in the history of baseball and u think the braves will make the playoffs. Tha AJC gets worse by the minute. Mcann is an absolute beast out there, he should be gettin mr glass’s extension.

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[...] for the first time, I’m in the distinct minority. I believe the undefeated Braves will win 88 more games and the wild card. Almost nobody else [...]

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[...] starting, again, to think this is going to happen. I thought the Braves were a playoff team when they left Lake Buena Vista, and then I watched the first 80 games and thought, “Wrong [...]

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