» Atlanta Braves News

First off, sorry for not posting yesterday. I intended to so after I got home but when I did I was so tired I couldn’t think straight. So I’ll do yesterday’s and today’s right now.

The game last night will be pretty hard to forget. It was the second home-opener I’ve ever been too, and the rain delay for about two hours was pretty fun at times and miserable at others. I think the highlight of the whole delay was when they showed “Prime Nine” that show on MLB Network, one of my favorite shows. Okay, game time now.

Before the delay, Derek Lowe gave up one run in the top of the third (I’m not to entirely sure what happened as my nephew and I were running the bases in Sky Field). So the Nats got an early lead, not for long though, in the bottom of that inning, Yunel Escobar hit his first home-run of the year, a three run. So going into the delay called at the top of the fourth, the score was 3-1 with Atlanta on top!

After the delay, Buddy Carlyle came in with two outs and a full count for Lowe. Carlyle struck the batter out to end the inning. Buddy did pretty well last night, a good portion of the pitches he threw were strikes. The bottom of the fourth, the Braves added to their lead by one. After Carlyle, Pete Moylan made his home debut in a year. He gave up a hit, but I swear he made my night just being out there (because I’m sure by now I’ve made it clear that he is my favorite and last year was unbearable without him). After Moylan gave up that hit, Bobby brought in Eric O’Flaherty, who suffered a blown save, but the inning ended. After the Irish came Jeff Bennett in the top of the seventh. Bennett got into a jam but managed to get out of the via a double play. The bottom of that inning, the Braves broke that tie. Then in the eighth the Braves sent former closer Rafeal Soriano. Soriano went through quickly, leading into the bottom where the Bravos remained silent for one of the few times that night. Finally, came the ninth. Mike Gonzalez came in… and blew the save. So the ’pen continues in struggles, but that might just be short term. In the bottom of the ninth, despite Chipper Jones getting to second after a single and a sac-fly by Brian McCann, Atlanta couldn’t get the point.  So onto the tenth. The Nats didn’t make it, so we go to the bottom of the tenth. Jordan Schafer managed to get on base, then to second. Then came the best part of the night: Kelly Johnson hit a basehit to score Schafer. THE BRAVES WIN. Jorge Campillo got the win while Joe Beimel suffered the loss! I don’t think there was anyone there who wasn’t happy that long game was over! I like to compare to that 17-inning game last year against Houston, it was early enough into Saturday, that no one really cared who won at that point.

So onto tonight. Kenshin Kawakami will make his Braves debut against John Lanan. We could probably expect to see Chipper in the line-up tonight, and it wouldn’t suprise me if Garrett Anderson will be starting tonight too. We’ll find out more about that later on in the day!

(And finally, I’ve noticed I forgot to mention that I’m Crista. I live in the Merto-Atlanta area and the Bravos are probably the best part of the summer.)

     After the game last night, some twenty-four hours off may be a good thing for the Bravos. Even if it was just the third day of the season, yesterday’s game will be hard to walk away from, especially since this happened twice last year. Right now, that’s all in the past. Let’s look at tommorrow- or at least try too.

    Tomorrow is the home-opener against the Washington Nationals. Honestly, I have no idea how that’s going to go. The Braves seemed to beat the Nats just about as much as the Nats beat the Braves last year. Last year’s July 20th game (for my birthday), for instance, was just Braves massacre (I don’t remember the score, I’m pretty sure I tried hard to forget it as soon as possible. All I remember is the Nationals were in the ‘teens while the Braves were in the single numbers. It was the last time I saw Mark Teixeira in a Braves uniform in person. Sad, sad day). The Braves will send the Derek Lowe to the mound and the Nats will send Shairon Martis, who was 3-1 last season. It appears Martis will be making his first appearance of the 2009 season while Lowe will have his second start, after going eight innings and giving up no runs and two hits Sunday in Philly.

    There are two questions about Friday that we’ll have to wait to be answered. Number one: Will Chipper Jones and Garrett Anderson be back in the starting lineup?  There have been several reports that Chipper will be back tomorrow from his bruised thumb that sat him out yesterday. Although Garrett pinch-hit yesterday, there is no way to tell whether he’ll be back from his calf-strain. It kept him benched through a good portion of the spring, so we’ll just have to play that one by ear. Number two: Will the bullpen crack again? Honestly, I have no idea. Most of the relievers yesterday were making their debuts for the year (and for Moylan, his first game in a year) so they might have been over-throwing. Also the pressure might have caused them to crack, but I’m sure that was just a one time deal.

So now, all that need to be said is LET’S GO GET ‘EM BRAVES!

(And one final side-note: I wish to send my sincere condolences to the family of Nick Adenhart, may he rest in peace. I’ll be paying him tribute at the game tomorrow)

NL East Preview/Projection

*The NL East is the only division that can attempt to match the AL East with a lineup of…

Jose Reyes (ss-NYM)-With the epitome of range at SS and speed & OBP now at the top of the lineup

(120-17-68-60-295)

Chase Utley (2b-PHL)-The patience to be the perfect #2 hitter but the greatness to bat anywhere

(115-30-110-13-296)

Hanley Ramirez (lf-FLA)-Talent to bat leadoff or third & now he has Bonaficio and Maybin to drive in

(116-33-106-29-303)

Ryan Howard (1b-PHL)-HR & RBI leader of the MLB last year and again this year with a better AVG

(96-45-135-1-275)

David Wright (3b-NYM)-Has Reyes & Murphy in front and Beltran & Delgado behind; Got to love his line

(112-31-122-20-305)

Carlos Beltran (cf-NYM)-Batting 5^th will hurt his runs but gold glove CF with power & speed combo

(92-26-115-22-279)

Brian McCann (c-ATL)-Great line at Catcher; Another year under his belt and less weight above his belt

(68-24-94-3-298)

Jimmy Rollins (dh-PHL)-Rather Reyes at SS & Hanley in LF, but I’ll take Rollins at DH against the AL East

(119-19-75-39-278)

Jeff Francoeur (rf-ATL)-Gun for an arm and a rebound year for our last OF spot

(77-22-90-3-269)

….and a rotation of:

Johan Santana (NYM)-18 straight starts without a loss and A NEW BULLPEN – 20+ wins?

(20-2.85-1.15-209)

Cole Hamels (PHL)-Same fastball/changeup repertoire that BAFFLES hitters; Health issues?

(16-3.19-1.09-194)

Derek Lowe (ATL)-Durable. That’s all I have to say, but with all his groundouts, he would probably be effective even with Colorado, or Texas.

(14-3.75-1.25-140)

Ricky Nolasco (FLA)-Still underrated? Doubt it, but he’ll be almost as good this year.

(14-3.84-1.21-171)

Josh Johnson (FLA)-Better k-rate than Nolasco with Worse WHIP, but stud if healthy.

(14-3.65-1.33-175)

…and a solid bullpen of Brad Lidge(38sv), Francisco Rodriguez(42sv), JJ Putz(6sv), Mike Gonzalez(30sv), Matt Lindstrom(23sv), Joel Hanrahan(25sv) and let us not forget about ambidextrous Billy Wagner pitching with determination and for another contract later in the year.

*Breaking down the NL East by position and using a sample rank system, I came up with the following (as objectively as possible):

c: McCann(atl-5) – Really no other C in the NL East can compare

1b: Ryan Howard(phl-5pts); Carlos Delgado(nym-4pts); Jorge Cantu(fla-3pts); Adam Dunn(was-3pts); Casey Kotchman(atl-2pts) - Howard is the clear favorite; A somewhat offensive bounce-back from Kotchman is in place; Delgado, Cantu, and Dunn should all be solid again; Cantu is definitely still underrated with Bonifacio, Maybin sometimes, and Hanley Ramirez in front of him.

2b: Chase Utley(phl-5pts);Dan Uggla(fla-3pts);Kelly Johnson(atl-2pts); Luis Castillo(nym-1pt) – Castillo can be an effective 2b still at the 8-spot in the Mets lineup; Kelly Johnson can go 85-17-75-9-287 with maturity and confidence. Obviously, the Nationals have a 2^nd baseman in Anderson Hernandez/Ronnie Belliard – I just don’t think they’re worth writing about.

3b: David Wright(nym-5pts); Chipper Jones(atl-4pts); Ryan Zimmerman(was-3pts) Emilio Bonifacio (fla-3pts) – Chipper does deserve 5 points along with Wright if he could just stay healthy enough; If Bonifacio sticks to leadoff he can be a runs and sb stud; and Zimmerman should have a 85-20-85-5-285 line. His defense is fantastic and he has potential for 85-25-95-5-290. Pedro Feliz isn’t worth ranking albeit solid defense.

ss: Hanley Ramirez(fla-5pts); Jose Reyes(nym-4pts); Jimmy Rollins (phl-4pts); Yunel Escobar(atl-2pts) – I wanted to give 5 points to both Rollins and Reyes as well, but It’s true that Hanley is in an offensive class all by himself since he’ll have lots of rbi opportunities this year; I personally think Reyes can belt 19 home runs this year, but 16hr + 60sb is beautiful with a stellar .293-.297 avg.

lf: Raul Ibanez(tilde over the n)(phl-5pts); Daniel Murphy(nym-4pts); Matt Diaz(atl-3pts); Josh Willingham (was-2pts) – I love Daniel Murphy batting 2^nd in the Mets lineup. I think a very healthy 90-17-75-7-286 is very possible; Ibanez will be stellar there in the Phillies Lineup; Matt Diaz with playing time can be very good. Along with Brian McCann, he slimmed down a bit.

cf: Carlos Beltran(nym-5pts); Shane Victorino(phl-4pts); Cameron Maybin(fla-3pts); Lastings Milledge(was-2 pts); Jordan Schaeffer (atl-2pts) – Jordan Schaeffer is young and good. He’s already got 2 hr this year. He could switch with Kelly Johnson/Yunel Escobar for the top of the lineup if slow starts occur for either of the 2 or when Chipper sits (which will be enough) and Omar Infante is in the lineup. I think he can be good for 17hr-15sb. Maybin should bat 2^nd but may find himself at the bottom of the lineup enough to hurt. His lineup spot should have the following breakdown: 50% batting 8^th, 35% batting 2^nd; and 15% batting lead-off. A line of 85-15-65-25-269 seems great for where he went in drafts; Like I said prior, Beltran will lose out on runs and protection batting 5^th, but he should bat 4^th enough against lefties when Delgado bats 5^th.

rf: Jeff Francoeur(atl-5pts); Jayson Werth(phl-4pts); Jeremy Hermida(fla-2pts); Elijah Dukes-Austin Kearns(was-2pts); Church-Sheffield(nym-2pts) – Hermida was regarded very highly just a few years ago, and the rbi opportunities are there. He could get time batting 2^nd as well. I actually like him for a line of 75-18-75-6-260; Werth should be very good when healthy since right field is his. I see 24hr-15sb due to injury concern; Platoons and split-time between the Mets and Nationals right field situations should yield above average numbers. The difference between them and Francoeur however is obviously not nearly as great between say Chase Utley at 2b and Ronnie Belliard at 2b so I think they deserve 2 pts to Francoeur’s 5 pts.

sp1: Johan Santana(nym-5pts); Cole Hamels(phl-5pts); Derek Lowe(atl-4pts); Ricky Nolasco(fla-4pts)

sp2: Josh Johnson(fla-5pts); Javier Vazquez(atl-3pts); Brett Myers(phl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez (nym-3pts) – To me, Josh Johnson is clearly the best #2 starter here with the other 3 teams having fairly similar numbers at the #2 rotation spot. The thing with the Mets is I’m not sure who the #2 will be by year’s end – same for their number 3 and 4 starters, and I’m a Mets Fan; Brett Myers Could be good at times and a mess at others. I think he’s better than Moyer this year (even though Moyer may be ageless the way he pitches) so I’ll put him here and Moyer in the 3-whole.

sp3: Jair Jurjjens(atl-4pts); Jamie Moyer(phl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez(nym-3pts); Volstad(fla-3pts)

sp4: Joe Blanton(phl-4pts); Kenshin Kawakami(atl-3pts); Maine/Pelfrey/Perez(nym-3pts) – I think Kawakami can be as effective as the teams’ other #4’s since no one has seen him.

sp5/Minor League P call-ups: Tommy Hanson(atl-4pts); Jordan Zimmerman(was-3pts); Carlos Carrasco(phl-3pts); Jon Niese(nym-1pts) – the Phillies, Nat’s, and especially the Braves have a future Ace or #2 in the whole, while the Mets, to me have a future #4. I think the Phillies will need Carrasco quicker than the Mets need Niese or Braves need Hanson, but Hanson is the best among the new wave of NL East Starters. Jordan Zimmerman could and should put up better than league average numbers in his first season.

P.S. Livan Hernandez will be horrendous for the Mets. Hopefully they sign Pedro Martinez or Jon Niese and Tim Redding can be effective enough. However, I do see a deadline SP deal for the Mets, which comes later in the post.

closer: Brad Lidge(phl-5pts); Krod(nym-5pts); Mike Gonzalez(atl-3pts); Matt Lindstrom(fla-2pts); Joel Hanrahan(was-2pts)-Krod and Lidge will be great again. Gonzalez is underrated and can save 35 games without Rafael Soriano getting a chance. Tommy Hanson could get some opportunities if both Gonzalez and Soriano are unhealthy, but I think they’ll keep him as a SP as he sores to the Majors. Lindstrom can be very good with his 100mph fast ball and slider so long as he stays healthy. Per pitch, he was the hardest thrower in the majors last year, and let’s not forget about Jon Broxton/LAD or Joel Zumaya/DET.

setup: JJ Putz(nym-5pts); Rafael Soriano(atl-2pts) – If Krod goes down, the Mets should still be OK because of JJ Putz - just OK. JC Romero of PHL could have been here if he didn’t get suspended for substance abuse, but hey thanks for helping the Phillies win the World Series and thanks for playing in the World Baseball Classic. Horrendousness.

Figure 1.0: Results

Point-Breakdown:

*Obviously, this is a very basic statistical way (almost a weight system) of ranking the NL East, but still feasible. Those not ranked, still received 1 pt for the contingent positions. The above system ranks each team as follows: Phillies (53pts) Mets (51pts) Braves (48pts) Marlins (38pts) and of course lastly, the Nationals (25pts). So here, the Phillies rank 1^st. However, there are definitely contingencies this year, such as how the Braves play against the Phillies. They were 4-14 against the Phillies last year. The Braves rotation with Lowe, Vazquez, Kawakami, and Hanson later on in the season, will be much much better, and their offense should pick up quite a bit as well. Most Importantly – The Mets. They had the 3^rd most blown saves last season with 29 (Both the Cardinals and Mariners had 31). The additions by subtractions and additions by great additions/call-ups (Krod, Putz, Sean Green, Brian Stokes, Bobby Parnell) should subtract at least 15 of those 29 blown saves – and probably many more!!! All three referenced NL East teams need to watch out for the Marlins, but I don’t think they have the bullpen and rotation depth to compete for 162 games in the 2^nd best division in the Major Leagues for 2009.

Mets Trade Rumors:

*Lastly, there will always be trade rumors throughout the season, and at the deadline. It may be more intense this year than last due to the economy, and some non-competing teams may be very willing to rid of their expensive talent. I think the Mets will be big players in a sundry of discussions – mainly with the Blue Jays, Mariners, and potentially the Padres. I think Erik Bedard (sp) along with Jose Lopez (2b), Roy Halladay (sp), as well as Jake Peavy(sp) would be fantastic additions after Johan Santana in the Mets Rotation. Another interesting difference this year, can be the Mets POTENTIAL willingness to trade Fernando Martinez, the Mets top OF prospect since they found a stud in Daniel Murphy. I think an offer like Fernando Martinez(of), Jon Niese(sp), and either a Reese Haven(ss) or Brad Holt(p) + Nick Evans (of) could potentially help us land a Roy Halladay or Erik Bedard. If we can land Jose Lopez for 2b along with Erik Bedard, I don’t see how the Mets wouldn’t easily win the NL East.

Mets Roster Additions:

*I think Sheffield was actually a good right-handed bat of the bench for the New York Mets, and

can be a great platoon with Ryan Church (left-handed). Livan Hernandez/sp just won’t be effective anymore, and the Mets should attempt to woo Pedro Martinez for 1 year at 2.5 million.

*2009 NL East Projections: (Honestly I think the Phillies and Braves are Interchangeable)

1- New York Mets (91-71)

2- Philadelphia Phillies (88-74) – WC

3- Atlanta Braves (87-75)

4- Florida Marlins (85-77)

5- Washington Nationals (63-99)

*Very Early 2009 MLB Playoffs Projections:

Mets vs. Dodgers

Phillies vs. Cubs

NL Championship: Mets vs. Cubs

WS Championship: Mets vs. Red Sox

WS Champions: Red Sox

AL Championship: Boston vs. Yankees

Red Sox vs. Angels

Yankees (WC) vs. Twins

Did You Know:

Did you know in college, Mike Lieberthal had a Homerun Cycle – He hit a grand slam, a 3-run homerun, a 2-run homerun, and a solo shot.  I read this on the back on his 1991 Topps Rookie Card! Amazing!!!

Did you know – The founder of this Site, Jeff Gross’, Favorite player was [LAD/TEX/ANA/TOT/CHC/SEA/SAN/FLA Pitcher] Ismael Valdez. Fantastic.

Also Fantasy-eers – Don’t forget Brandon Inge/c-3b on the Tigers is eligible at CATCHER! But make sure you have Pujol’s avg on the team, b/c Inge will hurt that badly!

RIP Nick Adenhart. Best wishes to the Angels (no corny joke), his friends, and most importantly, his family.

     First off, who else thought that Javier Vazquez’s Braves Debut was awesome? I have to admit, when the Braves traded Brent Lillibridge for him, I was pretty upset. Looking back on today, I don’t know where I stand now, Lillibridge was one of my favorites but it seems to me that Javy can be pretty valuable to the starting rotation! Today, for example, he gave up three runs in six innings against the 2008 World Champs, the Phillies.

      The bullpen is something I couldn’t say the same about. When Vazquez left the gam after the sixth inning, the score was 10-3 Atlanta. In the seventh, the Phillies scored eight runs, gaining the league. The only real highlight about it was Peter Moylan’s first appearance coming back from Tommy John Surgery. He gave up four runs, but you can guess he was over-excited.  He told Mark Bowman that he was, and that his mechanics were off. Which explains the two walk in runs. He’s a nice guy, I really have to give him credit. When I saw him at Autograph Fest in January, he was sweet to both me and my nephew and he’s one of my favorites. Blaine Boyer, he’s not someone I really trust in any game. I suppose that’s not fair, but that’s just my opinion. He also walked in four runs and until Jorge Campillo ended the inning  after giving up a run, the nightmare seemed endless.

     Even with the poor bullpen support, the Braves still had a decent day with the bat. Both Chipper Jones and Garrett Anderson were scratched from the starting line-up, but even that couldn’t silence Brian McCann, Jeff Francoeur, Jordan Schafer, Matt Diaz and the rest of the line-up. McCann, Diaz, and the rookie Schafer each had homered. Diaz was making his first appearance of the season in Anderson’s place. Oddly enought, after Diaz’s two-out ninth inning homer gave the Bravos some hope, Anderson struck out to end the game. So the Braves walked away with the series, not the sweep.

     Now, Atlanta will come home and open up for their hometown fans against the Nationals on Friday after they have Thursday off. I’ll be at Friday’s game and will definatley share picutes and any stories.