Can Kenshin be the linchpin of this reconfigured rotation?
Putting aside the malpractice perpetrated by the firm of O’Flaherty, Moylan, Boyer and Campillo, the Braves got almost everything they wanted from the first series of 2009. They won two of three against the world champs. Lots of guys got significant hits. Best of all, their starting pitchers took their turns with flair.
Eight great innings from Derek Lowe. Five-plus fine innings from Jair Jurrjens. Six passable innings from Javier Vazquez. And now Lowe gets to go again Friday night against the Nationals, and then comes the first test of the Braves’ great experiment. Kenshin Kawakami works Saturday night, and he’s the key to the rotation, which is the key to any team.
We know what to expect from Lowe and Vazquez, who’ve made careers of eating innings. We see that Jurrjens, who was really good a year ago, looks even better now. But Kawakami has never worked a real inning on U.S. soil, and we can’t yet know what he can (or can’t) do.
Sorry, there are no polls available at the moment.He’s a precision pitcher. He has a 90-mph fastball and a nice curve. He was good in the earlier exhibitions, bad in his final preseason start at Turner Field last weekend. He walked nearly as many men (seven) as he retired (eight). Afterward he described his performance to the Japanese media — again, the helpful Daichi Takasue translated both questions and answers — as “pathetic.”
Most every club has two capable starting pitchers. The solid teams have three. The best have four. We saw that every night for more than a decade, when the Braves were throwing the likes of Leibrandt and Avery and Neagle and Millwood and overmatching the opponent’s No. 4. Kawakami can be the difference between this being an above-average rotation and a terrific one.
Yes, the Braves do have some cover in case Kawakami fizzles. They can summon Tommy Hanson from Gwinnett, or they can bump Tom Glavine up a spot — providing his arm is OK, which it isn’t quite yet — and press Jorge Campillo back into starting service. But the Braves have sunk $22 million into Kawakami, and they’d led to see a return on their outlay.
“There is some pressure,” Kawakami said, again via Takasue. “I’m going to have to go out there and pitch well.” Then this: “I’m not trying to enjoy baseball. I’m trying to pitch well.”
He’s 33. He has pitched big games before. Never has he pitched against the kind of hitters he’s about to confront. (OK, so maybe the Nats aren’t the best example.) The Braves liked what they saw in spring training — Bobby Cox: “He’s got the pitches, and he’s got real good control” — but we’re about to see if Kawakami is capable of winning at the highest level.
If he is, his new team will be just fine. If not … well, Albie Lopez is considered the recent standard for Braves’ pitching duds, and he only cost $4 million.
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146 comments Add your comment
fieldofdreams
April 9th, 2009
7:51 am
He may end doing middle-relief.
Max Sizemore
April 9th, 2009
7:59 am
Japanese pitchers have generally fared quite OK in the U.S. The Braves’ bullpen will flounder, however. Not re-signing Ohman was a hideous error. The Braves have never spent money on relief pitching, which is such a vital part of the game. And it will cost them dearly this year. Again.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
8:09 am
$22 million is a lot to pay for a middle reliever.
Mac
April 9th, 2009
8:13 am
Actually, I think Campillo got hosed by the ump. O’Flaherty, Moylan, Boyer stunk it up for the ages, though. Hope it’s not a sign of things to come.
Kawamaki was the second and less accomplished of two Japanese pitchers the Braves offered contracts to last winter, right? I hope he works out.
Hey, remember that collection of castoff relievers the Braves had a few years ago that kicked butt all year long. Then, all of them left the next season for rich deals? The front office remembers and keeps trying to duplicate it. Don’t think it’s working. They were stupid not to sign Ohman.
Leland
April 9th, 2009
8:15 am
Dear Mr. MB–I am putting aside the Wednesday night malpractice you referred to because I have not forgotten that for the past ten years when the Braves are leading in the seventh inning by at least twelve runs they win sixty-one per cent of the time. But I still don’t think the pitching breakup was any worse than Johnson, with the bases loaded, taking a called third strike that looked on television to be well within the strike zone. How in the world could an experienced major league baseball player manage such ineptness? Your pal, Leland
Leland
April 9th, 2009
8:23 am
Mr. MB–I forgot to mention an even more impressive fact–for the last thirty-seven years, when the Braves are winning by at least fifteen runs in the eighth inning, they win a stunning eighty-two percent of the time. Eighty-two percent! Your pal, Leland
dap01
April 9th, 2009
8:28 am
After yesterday, $22,000,000 is ok if he can pitch in relief. O’Flanery is terrible (look at his record). The bullpen must be addressed.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
8:30 am
Good numbers, Leland.
And Mac, I think you’re recalling Chris Hammond and Mike Remlinger in 2002 as set-uppers for John Smoltz. That was the one year they had an iron-clad bullpen, and lo and behold the starting pitching collapsed in the first round against the Giants.
SimpleDawg
April 9th, 2009
8:38 am
3 games into the schedule and there are several strong indicators already established…..Garrett Anderson will be of little use to the Braves this year, or any year. He’s a huge defensive liability and will not play enough to make any difference on offense – Diaz needs to play LF….Jordan Schafer is off to a great start at the plate, but he’s no Andruw Jones in center field – doesn’t have the range nor the glove of AJ due to a lesser ability to track the ball and feel the wall, no instincts…..and the bull pen is bull$#!+ – what an incredibly inept display on Wednesday. Where is it written that a set up guy or closer can’t be used in a critical situation in the 7th inning when you’re trying to protect a lead?
There goes 162-0.
stamper
April 9th, 2009
8:39 am
isn’t it spelled Jurrjens?
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
8:42 am
Yes, it is, Stamper. And thanks to you, it now is spelled that way above.
Bill
April 9th, 2009
8:44 am
When will someone in the Braves organization realize that Blaine Boyer is a AAA pitcher at best?
Maniac is accurate
April 9th, 2009
8:45 am
I am recalling those folks. But, there was also a guy who had played with a Pioneer League team and a couple others who were solid, too. The three you named were not castoffs, but there was a bigger effective cast in supporting roles, too, if I remember correctly. I’ll go look it up.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
8:46 am
Gosh, SimpleDawg, imagine if the Braves were, like, 0-3 as opposed to 2-1.
And Blaine Boyer was pretty good until he collapsed under the strain of overuse last season. Don’t think that explanation holds in April of this year, though.
TommyP
April 9th, 2009
8:49 am
You sure it’s spelled correctly, Mark?
Mac
April 9th, 2009
8:50 am
That Maniac guy is onto something. Ligtenberg, Moss, Hodges (?), Gryboski
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
8:50 am
Kevin Gryboski, perhaps? Darren Holmes? Tim Spooneybarger?
Here are the numbers.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
8:54 am
Here are the 2002 numbers.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
8:57 am
Sorry for the double post, but something new just happened: I got flagged for spam on my own little blog. How revoltin’!
fieldofdreams
April 9th, 2009
9:10 am
If you think last night was a joke, just wait until (Benedict Arnold) Glavine makes a start.
dawg
April 9th, 2009
9:45 am
I see we did little to improve our middle releif. What an incredible meltdown by the bullpen. Moyan should be shipped back to AA ball he is nothing short of awful. We walked in 4 runs, do we have anybody in that bullpen capable of getting anyone out? How about just throwing strikes?
With no middle releif, this team will be lucky to finish 3rd in their division. I hope to see the front office address this issue quickly and not wait until the middle of the season, by then it will be too late.
bravesfan
April 9th, 2009
9:48 am
They offered Ohman a contract in november and the greedy ****turned it down because he though he could get more.. and then ended up getting a minor league deal from the dodgers for less when the braves had no money left. The bullpen will come around, it was there first outing against a pumped up phillies crowd and gave up 5 walks and a HBP. They will settle down and get there stuff back- alot of pressure in a difficult environment. Its a long season lets not give up on them yet! Boyer and Moylan have both proved they can get guys out.
Mike Jay
April 9th, 2009
9:50 am
Let’s relax about the bullpen. Not to make excuses as yeterday was inexcusable but most of those guys were making their first apperance this year, the umpire wasn’t helping. Moylan is coming off an injury as well so a little rust is understandable. I think the bullpen will be in fine shape as the season progresses and with the way the starters are going this year will not be as important as last year. Once Moylan gets going we have a rather nasty 1-2-3 at the tail end of it and not many teams can say that.
TROTTINGHOMETUDD
April 9th, 2009
9:51 am
after yesterdays melt down by the bullpen, Kawakami can win 15 games and we still don’t make the playoffs.
TrueBlueBrave
April 9th, 2009
9:58 am
It’s way too early to be throwing fits about anything good or bad. Even if we’d swept the Phillies, we could turn around and be swept by the Nats. It’s the nature of the game. Why don’t we give it a month and let the guys settle in a bit before anyone’s burned at the stake or handed an MVP trophy.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
10:00 am
Ah, come on, TrueBlue. You’re being far too level-headed.
Mac
April 9th, 2009
10:02 am
Thanks Mark for the info. I thought there were some other bullpen guys who also did pretty well that year. What I didn’t remember is that Kerry Ligtenberg had 30 saves for the Braves in 1998.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
10:05 am
You’re welcome, Mac. I remember 2002 very well because I thought the Braves had at last found the formula for postseason success. Then they were eliminated in Round 1 and the bullpen had little to do with the whole series.
TrueBlueBrave
April 9th, 2009
10:10 am
Someone’s gotta do it MB. I imagine there were plenty of Phillie “excitables” reacting similarly on their blogs after the first two games. You just can’t demand perfection everyday, nor can you define a season due to a single or even a few performances. Bobby Cox led the Braves into the post season for all those years because he was willing to give his players the latitude to get it worked out through the rough spots. There’s no reason to be upset or elated at this stage of the season. Like everyone else, I loved the first two games and I hated the outcome of the 3rd, but I force myself to keep the big picture in focus.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
10:13 am
Still 159 games to go, as I understand it. I believe it was Earl Weaver who told Tom Boswell: “This isn’t like football. We do this every day.”
mike satx
April 9th, 2009
10:20 am
I was completely unhappy with the way things fell apart in that last game. I don’t expect that type of pitching performance to be the norm. I’m excited to see that so many of the Braves are hitting well. Who’d have thought that we’d have home runs from so many different players coming out of this first series? The rest of the league will definitely be watching out for the Braves now.
Eric from MO
April 9th, 2009
10:21 am
Yesterday was just a fluke. Now I didnt pick the Braves to win the division or make the playoffs but that isnt going to happen every game. I figure the Braves will win 87-88 games.
What ever happened to Tim Spooneybarger? He was good with the Braves and wasnt that bad with the Marlins. If I remember correctly he didnt get along with Cox or Leo. Was he just a hot head who got ran out of baseball?
Eric from MO
April 9th, 2009
10:26 am
Just wikipediaed it. Saw he had two Tommy John surgeries. That will do it. Well least he can tell his grandkids about pitching in 3 seasons in MLB. More than most people can say.
Submariner
April 9th, 2009
10:30 am
They should have passed on Kawakami, let Hanson play and signed Will Ohman! With only 2 lefty’s in the pen and only one of them half way proven, we got exposed yesterday in a big way! And why oh why do they continue to carry Lame Boyer?!!!
oldschool
April 9th, 2009
10:30 am
Personally,I thought the bullpen looked like they were scared to lose and Boyer always looks like he scared to pitch.Campillo was the only one that didn’t and he throws 82 mph fastballs.I don’t think Boyer can cut it in the majors.I like Acostas mental make up better.After Ohman pitched as many innings as he did last year I think he would be a bad sign.
pills91
April 9th, 2009
10:33 am
Like was stated above, the Braves DID try to re-sign Ohman. He never signed the offer.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
10:36 am
You beat me to it, Eric. If you’re still interested, here are Spooneybarger’s stats.
Ginger
April 9th, 2009
10:39 am
Fire the bullpen!! It’s deja vu for how many times now?? It’s a shame the starting pitchers go out there and do their best and the Braves offense scores 11 runs and then the stinkin bullpen plays like inexperienced Little Leaguers. There are many talented pitchers in the minor leagues that need their chance. Put all the fat, cud chewing Braves bullpen pitchers out to pasture. Let them get a real job. They sure aren’t professional baseball players and are a disgrace to the Braves and the city of Atlanta.
Submariner
April 9th, 2009
10:40 am
The problem was that by the time they’d gone and gotten Lowe, Vazquez and Kawakami, there wasn’t enough cash to get Ohman at what he is worth. By not brining in Kawakami, they could have signed Ohman and filled the starting spot with Hanson. Had Wren done that, they would have been better built AND been under what they are in payroll right now.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
10:41 am
In the Braves’ defense, you spend your money first on the rotation and then on your eighth- and ninth-inning guys. Middle relief just kind of gets filled in. Because most of the time middle relievers are working when you’re already behind. (I know, I know. Yesterday was different.)
Bottom line: There’s only so much cash to spend on a staff. Middle relievers are always the lowest-paid guys.
JeffinCT
April 9th, 2009
10:45 am
Our bullpen will be fine. Those guys hadn’t pitched in a few days and were obviously rusty. Once we get through this having an off day every other day they’ll be fine. I’m not too concerned, we dominated the Phillies 26 of the 27 innings in that little league field they call a ballpark.
Chief Nocahoma
April 9th, 2009
10:45 am
Yep, the bullpen was worse than awful. Hope this doesn’t mean Cox is going to pull a Dusty Baker(the Chicago years) and start riding the starters too hard.
Ginger
April 9th, 2009
10:48 am
JeffinCT – you can’t be rusty and be a professional baseball player. That’s why they throw bullpens most every day.
uga_b
April 9th, 2009
10:48 am
What I think gets lost in the shuffle is that we get Hudson back next year, so we could be even better in 2010. Basically swap Huddy for Glavine.
BravesFan79
April 9th, 2009
10:50 am
I believe that Wren didnt bring back Ohman… not because of lack of $, but because of personal reasons. He was probably offended that Ohman didnt accept the initial offer, and instead of offering him a 1 year deal worth 1 mill or so, he said “we can do this without you”
Even tho we ALL knew the 2 lefties in the pen in spring training were crap.
Frank Wrens pride just cost us in many ways. We just gave the Phillies life to start the season instead of opening up a 3 game lead and keeping them feeling down.
Our bullpen now makes the fairweather fans un-believers again… meaning attendance will not be as strong throught the season.
And finally the players…. loosing leads in the 7th,8th inning does nothing but demoralize a ball club, and being to stubborn to bring back one of the top lefties in the NL last year has to have some players (once again) wondering if we are REALLY serious about winning!?
Way to go Wren…. your pride will cost us wins, millions in revenue at the gates, and possibly the playoffs. But i hope you can sleep at night knowing u saved that 1 million huh Frank Wren!
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
10:55 am
In Wren’s defense, he did sign Derek Lowe. Who beat the Phillies on Opening Night.
oldschool
April 9th, 2009
10:57 am
With the Mets and the Phillies having 30 or 40 million more to spend,I think that Wren did about as good as possible.
oldschool
April 9th, 2009
10:59 am
I would much rather have spent the money on Ohman than on that gimp legged Garret Anderson.I don’t think he’s a fit on our team
stamper
April 9th, 2009
11:00 am
Mr. Bradley,
Thanks for correcting the spelling of Jurrjens… the first time. You still have it spelled ‘Jurrgens’, however, in the next paragraph.
Sorry, I’m really not this much of a stickler… but the guy did lead our team in wins/innings pitched last year – the least we could do is spell him name right.
I mean no disrespect
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
11:01 am
Mets’ payroll is $135 million. Philly’s is $113 million. Braves’ is $96 million.
stamper
April 9th, 2009
11:03 am
spell *his* name right… – i meant
well, so much for my grammatically correct sentence structure.. FML.
David
April 9th, 2009
11:05 am
Braves picked up right where they left off. One run losses will mount up again this year because these guys have no heart, no fight, and no bullpen. Goodnight 2009.
mike satx
April 9th, 2009
11:06 am
There’s nothing like getting punched in the mouth at the beginning of the season. That’s what happened last night. The bullpen took one….POW…right to the kisser. Now, are they gonna fizzle out or not. We’ll see what kind of moxy these relievers really have, and whether they can fight back or just roll over and play dead. I’m sure they’ll get their next chance on Friday night. I don’t see KK going more than 6 solid innings.
oldschool
April 9th, 2009
11:09 am
In the national League the difference in the money matters more
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
11:12 am
No disrespect taken, Stamper. Thanks for acting as my copy editor. I’ve fixed both mentions above. (Finally!)
I’m usually pretty good with names, but Jurrgens — whoops, Jurrjens — always trips me. I tell myself, “Two J’s, no G,” and I still whiff half the time.
John Thomson — or was it Thomsen? — used to do that, too.
Rule 1 of Journalism: Spell names correctly. I’ll endeavor to do better in the future.
PMC
April 9th, 2009
11:15 am
It really doesn’t matter how good Kawakami is unless he completes every game. Boyer will be there waiting…. to blow it in the 7th. He is not mentally strong enough to handle his role.
cvbraves
April 9th, 2009
11:15 am
Thanks for the article. You and folks on this blog seem to have a better perspective than most, realizing that the season is only 3 games old. Believe Kawakami is going to be fine.
Braves73
April 9th, 2009
11:23 am
Ok, I am extremely happy with winning 2 out of 3 against the defending world champs and a team that mopped the floor with us last year. I am not happy with the same old Bobby Cox “leave ‘em in there until he implodes” strategy. O’flaherty was pulled after facing two batter which was an ok decision, but why in the world do you hang Moylan out to dry when he CLEARLY didn’t have it? Bobby is a great “players” manager, but he is a HORRIBLE tactical manager. The game was obviously slipping out of reach at 10-5 with the bases loaded. Why in the HE!! didn’t he go to Soriano to finish the 7th & 8th, then to your closer? It’s very in the season, but this could/should have been avoided. No reason to give any more of a psychological lift to the Phillies.
Look, I realize it’s early, but Bobby always does this.
Submariner
April 9th, 2009
11:27 am
I’m not saying that Kawakami can’t get it done. I’m saying that you could have gotten the same production out of Hanson at a fraction of the cost, which would have allowed them to go and bring back Ohman or at least a couple of lefties to help out. Wren had to know that in order to be competitive in this division, you had to have nore than 2 lefties in the pen. I mean the starters only have 1………40 year old, soft tosser, Tom Glavine.
PMC
April 9th, 2009
11:28 am
Frank Wren did an outstanding job bringing these guys in to start, Lowe, Vasquez, Kawikami to add to Hudson when he is back and Jurrigens and the guys in the minors… they will be in games becuase of the starters. The bullpen was an afterthought because the guys in place SHOULD be better than they have been. Yeah I was disapointed about Ohman but he’s not worth more than they offered. He just looked better because Boyer makes EVERYONE look better. Gonzo and Soriano should be able to close out games and hopefully cancel out thier injury issues.
I’m sorry I’ve never felt good about Blaine Boyer coming in a game ever and I’m not sure I ever will. I have no idea why the braves management feels so good about him that he would pitch 72 innings last year…. maybe he’s really good in practice.
Submariner
April 9th, 2009
11:31 am
Thank You Braves73!!!! I thought I was the only one feeling that way!
renegade
April 9th, 2009
11:32 am
Dear Atlanta Braves relievers. No more chernobyls please my heart can’t take it and it really screws up my anger management classes yall ought to have been there when I said something about Braves relievers dang near started a riot. The swat team was called everybody was hosed down with pepper spray and classes were canceled due to a lack of harmonious cohesion. I’m going to just laugh this one off yall can too but let get it right the next time. Hey its just a game PLAY IT. GO BRAVES
BravesFan79
April 9th, 2009
11:33 am
Author Blank needs to forget about investing in soccer, or indoor football, or anything else that would distract him away from what would REALLY make Atlanta proud…. buying the Atlanta Braves! Makes me sick we might cost ourselves the playoffs (our terrible lefties in the pen could seriously cost us 10 games this year) all because of 1 million bucks.
Whats bad is not signing Ohman will lead us to trading a prospect to fix the problem later in the year (after it costs us a bunch of games)
In the end….Wren not signing Ohman will cost us ALOT more than the initial million it would of cost to get him. Just think about all the lost revenue from missing the playoffs.
Im sure the Phillies and Mets are very thankfull to Frank Wren for his pride.
And to think, we could of had one of the best bullpens in baseball. If were serious about making the playoffs, i think bringing Hanson up to be that 6th/7th inning guy might be the best idea. At least until theres room on the staff for him to start.
I still like our chances to make the playoffs, but clearly were a weaker team trying to replace Ohman with complete crap that no one else wanted. l mean seriously….. if the Mariners didnt want a pitcher…is that really someone you can depend on?
Submariner
April 9th, 2009
11:34 am
Lame Boyer sux. He must be married to Cox’s daughter…………or son.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
11:34 am
The Braves consider Moylan a key piece to the ‘pen. And I understand the question about Soriano, but it wasn’t as if Cox sat on his hands. He used four pitchers in the inning.
Chris
April 9th, 2009
11:37 am
wow there are a lot of bi**ches posting on this thread
The Braves took 2 out of 3 from the World CHamps on the road to start the year. They should have won the 3rd but didnt
It is baseball….quit the crying already, good god. Moylan is coming off of reconstructive elbow surgery as well, give the guy some time. He has been phenomenal for us in the past
Anyone who thinks he should be ’shipped’ off on the basis of this outing isn’t fit to make a roster move on my 4 year old’s T-ball team…
Braves73
April 9th, 2009
11:40 am
Mark, I agree that Bobby did use four pitchers in the inning but why put your players in a bad spot. It’s a managers job to put his players in the best situation to have success. You and I could clearly see the game slipping and the relievers failing (four walks and one hit batesman in the 7th). My questions is this, when you see this in a game (that you should clearly win), why take the chance? Would you have done the same thing that Bobby did?
Submariner
April 9th, 2009
11:44 am
Hey Chris, any way you cut it, they should have swept. It’s those kinds of implosions that send your season into a downward spiral. Weather it’s 3 games in or half way through. The guy that really got hosed was Vazquez and we owe it to him to rail on the guys getting paid alot of money to get him his deserved win.
22oz
April 9th, 2009
11:45 am
How dare you bring up Albie Lopez. I had blocked that painful memory.
BravesFan79
April 9th, 2009
11:45 am
PMC: its not that Ohman was worth more than what we first offered, its that according to DOB… we had NO offer on the table at all when clearly we could of had him for 1.5 mill or less during spring training. Just look at how cheaply the Dodgers got him.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
11:45 am
I probably would have gone to Soriano earlier. (That’s assuming Soriano was fit to pitch.) But it’s the great unknowable of baseball: You put a guy in because you think he’ll get guys out. When he doesn’t, you look like a fool. Remember Joe Torre getting ripped for mishandling his LA bullpen in the playoffs last October? The same Joe Torre won four world titles mostly because of his use of a bullpen.
Braves73
April 9th, 2009
11:48 am
Agreed…thank you for restoring my sanity. Look, I realize it’s a VERY long season, I just wish Bobby would use a little more commons sense from time to time. The bullpen had a bad day and let’s hope this was only a blip on the radar screen.
Big Grant
April 9th, 2009
11:48 am
When will the Braves ever get rid of Roger McDowell…different pitchers with the same problems = bad pitching coach.
Braves73
April 9th, 2009
11:51 am
Submariner-truly hilarious about lame boyer & bobby.
BravesFan79
April 9th, 2009
11:51 am
Chris: The issue here isnt Moylan… all true fans know what he brings, and believe in his stuff in the long run. The REAL issue here is trying to replace Ohman with COMPLETE CRAP!!
In wich Logan and Oflanaggie (sp) clearly are!
You’d think the Braves would of learned their lesson about trying to replace 1 good player with 2 crappy ones back in 2007 when we had Orr and Woodward on the club over a .350 spring training hitting Escobar for half the year! How did that turn out?
Ron
April 9th, 2009
11:55 am
Where was Buddy Carlyle while the walk parade was going on? Buddy was the most consistent pitcher we had during the spring, yet he wasn’t even warming up in the pen during the 7th inning. I guess Cox is still in love with Bennett and Boyer. Makes no sense to me.
Puma
April 9th, 2009
11:57 am
Just reading those spoonbarger stats…what the heck happened to that guy. Just got released and nobody wanted him. Seems crazy cause he was still young and didn’t do that badly with the marlins. Although I seem to remember some problems with his attitude
johnny bravo
April 9th, 2009
11:58 am
mark, don’t try to put a positive spin on everything, the starters look real good, and the bats also, but this bunch of relievers won’t bring nothing but disaster, moylan should be in AAA getting work till he’s ready, boyer just flat out can’t get it done, gonzo is decent, but not a closer. wren and co. better grow some and address this, last year the excuse was they were overworked, now this year it’s something else. does hansen have better stuff than these relievers? yes, so why not go with the org. best, even jojo in the pen would fit better than blaine. it just get’s old to hear bobby and co. make excuses, and it’s obvious g.anderson is pouting over his non-big contract, looks pissed off since he got here.
oldschool
April 9th, 2009
11:58 am
Leo would have went out there and chewed somebodies ass
oldschool
April 9th, 2009
12:00 pm
Yates,Paronto no way let’s keep Boyer!
DOB
April 9th, 2009
12:09 pm
MB and all u stupid braves that think u know everything just need to SHUT UP
david
April 9th, 2009
12:10 pm
Moylan did all he could considering he was put in to get some work in to test his arm. Bobby Cox let him stay in way too long. Then he replaced him with others who haven’t had work in a while. One mistake snowballed on Cox.
Mark Bradley
April 9th, 2009
12:18 pm
I wouldn’t read too much into Garret Anderson’s demeanor. He has always been something of a stoic.
Adam
April 9th, 2009
12:24 pm
I am happy with taking 2 out of 3 from the phillies but the sweep would have been awesome. I can understand 1 or maybe 2 guys coming out of the bullpen and not having their stuff that day but not four guys. It shouldn’t take four pitchers to get 3 outs and being up 10-3 don’t get fancy. Just throw strikes!
Mike Jay
April 9th, 2009
12:27 pm
Hanson as a six or seventh inning guy? you people are crazy. The pen will be fine, Boyer will rarely be pitching the 7th that’s what Moylan is for. Beside Boyer was haven a solid year before he got over pitched last season thanks to inept starting pitching which we certainly do not have this year.
Stacie
April 9th, 2009
12:37 pm
Give them a break. It was terrible but it does happen. They were having the first day jitters. Gonzo had them remember? One thing to remember is that we have a very talented AAA club right up the street and we can pull from that at any time. If Boyer cant pitch (and I dont believe that) then go to AAA and get a pitcher. O’Flanery on the other hand I dont think belongs in the majors at all. I never liked the fact that the Braves got him. That was a bad move on the braves part, they should have kept Ohman.
Casey Stinkle
April 9th, 2009
12:38 pm
OK. I’ll give Moylan a bit of a break. He hasn’t pitched in a while, and it may take a few outings to get back in the groove. But it seems like everytime the Braves blow a big lead in the sixth or seventh inning, Blaine Boyer is right in the middle of it. He needs to travel about 20 miles north into Gwinnett County until he can learn how to throw a strike. &^%#@!*&^%%
Marc
April 9th, 2009
12:42 pm
3 games in to the season there’s really no point in stressing over statistics really, but could your give us the ERA/BAA/ K:BB for the combined starting rotation and combined bullpen Mr. Bradley? I’m just curious.
This year is going to be good. I don’t care about the meltdown last night. I care about our offense; it cost us a lot of games in the first half last year before the pen’ starting cracking. We’re off to a better start in that respect.
AARON
April 9th, 2009
12:42 pm
Not only is Blaine Boyer the rudest Brave I have ever encountered, he is also one of the worst!! GET RID OF BOYER!!!! PLEASE!!!
74dawg
April 9th, 2009
12:43 pm
Mark,I thought the first rule of journalism was “find the free food first”.
Darren
April 9th, 2009
12:44 pm
As I remember, Spooneybarger had conflicts with Bobby Cox’s clean-cut style. I think he disliked the tattoo policy or something like it.
BOISESTATEBRONCO
April 9th, 2009
12:44 pm
I could see that collapse in the 7th all the way from Idaho. I agree that Boyer stinks
mike satx
April 9th, 2009
12:47 pm
Los Angeles Angels rookie pitcher Nick Adenhart (22) died Thursday in a hit-and-run car crash after a game. He had just pitched in his first MLB game that night.
Sad, very sad. Prayers out to his family and his Angels teammates.
Section 435 – Here We Go
April 9th, 2009
12:47 pm
[...] it just the AJC blogs, or are Braves’ fans obnoxiously pessimistic in general? I mean, seriously, it was a [...]
BRAVEFANINPA
April 9th, 2009
12:48 pm
I would like to say that it is one game and I can’t stand the Phillies so any gift the Braves give them is exactly that-The starting rotation held this team in check which I don’t how many teams are going to do that-One on the Phillies best middle guys is suspended for 50 games and if memory serves me correctly the Red Sox cut him loose because he couldn’t throw strikes yet for the Phillies he as been almost lights out- Houston gave up on Brad Linge and we know what he did last year. So you can’t say because one team gives up on someone they are done-it just was not a right fit for the club-What hurst for any baseball person is not the lost but how we lost- Throw Strikes- I would rather see them hit homeruns than the walk-a-thon that took place-As fans we will always point to the magager- Philly fans here wanted to run Charlie out of town now he is Good ole Uncle Charlie the best thing since Yeugling Lager. Go figure- The Braves will compete this year and I’ll take 2 out of 3 every series and see everyone at the World Series! Go Braves- 159 games left folks.
Chuck Uga
April 9th, 2009
12:53 pm
All of this talk is meaningless because the Braves can’t seem to realize they need to trade or waive Boyer, Moylan and some of the other waste. After all his years as a manager, Cox still doesn’t understand how to take advantage of a good situation. When the Braves miss the playoffs by a couple of games, we should look back on games like yesterday that should have been in the win column. Cox doesn’t get it.
SoWeGa Fanatic
April 9th, 2009
12:54 pm
You guys are nuts. Cox should have done . . . what? He tried 4 guys to find one who would throw strikes? Moylan was in waayyy too long? What? 2 batters?
I can’t stand Monday morning quarterbacks who know nothing.
Dixie Dawg
April 9th, 2009
12:55 pm
Agreed about Arthur Blank needing to buy this team. The tight wads of Liberty Media do not care one iota about the baseball operations. No one on this blog can convince me that Liberty Media is good for the Braves.
SoWeGa Fanatic
April 9th, 2009
12:56 pm
Spooneybarger had TJ surgery twice in two years. Free agent at the moment.
BOISESTATEBRONCO
April 9th, 2009
1:01 pm
We want Buddy!