Comments on: One big man + one fat pitch = one huge Braves loss

By: zorba

zorba — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 17:10:16 +0000

Mark, as least Schultz is commenting some on Cox’s managerial decisions. When will you weigh in. Pretend you are a New York sportswriter, instead of an Atlanta “homey”.

By: Live from the Branch: But first, a tale of keys and Krystal | Mark Bradley

Live from the Branch: But first, a tale of keys and Krystal | Mark Bradley — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:48:20 +0000

[...] some might recall a discussion of food, and the lack thereof. Well, by the time I posted my last post and left the ballpark — around 1:40 a.m. — I was starved. So I got in the car and [...]

By: Coach (2010 or Bust)

Coach (2010 or Bust) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 04:30:23 +0000

With 62 wins and 72 quality starts from the rotation……..the damage has already been done. That said, our Braves are playing .620 baseball since July 1st and on pace to win 88-89 games.

They are gonna miss the playoffs by the thinnest of margins and break our hearts.

By: Glenn

Glenn — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 01:45:11 +0000

The reason that McCann is having trouble with lefthand pitchers is that wearing glasses he does not have the same field of vision. Will also cause him to widen his strike zone. Would not effect him as much with righthanders. He is having to strain to see the ball leave the pitcher’s hand. If he will open his stance when he is facing lefthanded pitchers then he will be better able to see the ball leave the pitcher’s hand.

By: FlaReptile

FlaReptile — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 00:43:44 +0000

Face it this team needs to finally add some speed to the lineup. The Phils have power but they also have speed and that makes a big difference. The batters in the braves line up are too similar, not a lot of power and cannot take an extra base on a single or double.

By: Ozzie

Ozzie — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 23:35:21 +0000

P.S. While McLouth is a nice addition he is not a difference maker with the bat – at the level this team needs.

Nor is it practical to believe Heyward will waltz in here next spring, hit 4th and drive in 35-40 hrs.

Chipper looks done as a HR hitter.

McCann is too spent by the summer to be a 4 hole guy.

GA is leaving and he should.

Church is a 4th OF.

Diaz is a 4th OF.

Schafer is a light hitting defensive CF who will spend most of next summer in AAA or get traded.

With the signing of McLouth there is no room on this team for Schafer given the dearth of power.

I know folks drool over an OF of Schafer, McLouth and Heyward but that would be a yawn fest for most quality pitchers.

Heyward will eventually scare many pitchers but not day one. Let’s be realistic. McLouth will be pesky but he is not a 30HR threat.

The Braves MUST sign Holiday or Bay for LF, keep McLouth in CF and hope Heyward is ready no later than June 2010.

If not then 2010 will be a repeat of 2009 perhaps worse since Chipper, KK and Lowe will be yet another year removed from their primes.

We may also see Vaz traded away to make payroll room for Hudson.

By: Ozzie

Ozzie — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 23:16:36 +0000

It came down to KK or Dunn and he chose KK. Bad bet on Wren’s part which he made even worse by not trading KJ during the off-season (after his hot Sept 08) and not releasing Jeff.

By: Ashley

Ashley — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:26:30 +0000

Eww,

If we did that, it’d be the year of a slumping Ryan.

By: eww

eww — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 21:59:14 +0000

whenever big Ryan’s next contract comes up we should pay him $50 million a year to have him on our team. This guy just kills us.
Why do we ever throw him anything near a strike?

By: dcp

dcp — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 20:55:17 +0000

Dave you are so far off on your evaluation. Wins and Losses are what counts – that is the game. A hit there, a pitch there – c’mon – anyone can say that about any game. How about remembering how the Braves scored their runs – Friday – an error leads to the first run. Saturday – 3 errors lead to 2 late runs. Yes, they could have swept or could have been swept, in the end the Phillies took 2 of 3. The Phillies are 4 1/2 ahead of FL and 6 in front of ATL. That is all that matters. We can all sit here and act like we know who is “looking better” or “hitting consistently”. The Braves have made great strides – enjoy the progress. They need a power bat. I would not worry about 5th starters as an argument for how they will overtake the division from the Phillies. Lee is a good pitcher, Hamels has not pitched like in the playoffs but not many people have ever gone 4 and 0 – he is still young. Happ’s walks last night were an aberration – he does not walk too many guys. If you want to talk stats did you not listen to how he is #1 in not letting runners in scoring position score – #1. He has 47 wlak in 130 innings. Blanton throws strikes – he pitches to contact, which is the reason Moyer was pushed aside – trying to paint corners does not get it done. Martinez does not have to do much as a #5 other than show up and give you 6 innings like Kawakami. The Braves are not overtaking the Phillies. There is zero chance of the Phillies losing 15 of 18 down the stretch. Zero. I have no douby the Braves could beat them in their 2 series, but to think the Phillies will collapse is very far fetched.