Current Roster Thoughts

I figured it would be a good time to go over some of the players. A little change from the usual game rants and such.

Bullpen Pitchers

The bullpen has been alright so far being more reliable than last season. The Braves had a significant loss with Mike Gonzalez being out for the rest of the season. I hope he recovers well and can return for the next season sometime.

Blaine Boyer- I really don't know that much about Boyer, he was pretty decent pitching for the Braves during the 2005 season. Here are his stats. Certainly he can be an improvement over Chad Paronto.

Macay McBride- Macay is a lot better than his stats currently indicate. He is currently our only left handed reliever and can be pretty sharp at times. Still needs some work.

Chad Paronto- Chad started out the season in good shape. He was a reliable guy and I didn't feel worried with him out on the mound. Since then, things have changed. He has a 7.02 era right now. I am baffled that he is still in the bullpen when there are guys waiting in the wings (Devine) that the team could use.

Oscar Villarreal- One of the better relievers the Braves have. Oscar can even start a game if needed. He sometimes has a few bad outings, but as of now he is valuable the way the pitching is.

Bob Wickman- Wickman has been pretty solid lately. He has converted all of his save opportunies since his return from the DL.

Rafael Soriano-Soriano was pretty much unhittable giving up 1 hit in a span of 14.2 innings. He has been the best relief pitcher by far and has only given up an earned run or more in only 3 games out of 26 appearances.

Starting Pitchers

Our starting rotation is pretty weak at the moment. We have nobody that is officially the 5th starter.

John Smoltz-John won his 200th game on May 24th against the NY Mets. He also continues to be a solid ace that the Braves desperately need. I have him currently as the 9th best pitcher in the Majors so far this season. We also have this guy for another couple seasons from a recent contract extension.

Tim Hudson-Tim Hudson has looked like the Tim Hudson of the Oakland A's. Although recently he has struggled in a few games. I am sure it is nothing to worry about. Hudson is currently listed as the 8th best pitcher this season ahead of Smoltz. Let's hope he can continue his good season.

Chuck James-When this guy has his stuff going, he is really on. He has a very good fastball change up combination. Chuckie has been steadily progressing as the season continues and is becoming a decent # 3 starter. The only concern I have is his inability to go beyond the 6th inning. He has only pitched 7 innings in one of his 13 starts.

Kyle Davies-Take a moment and look at this guys game log. Inconsistency is all I have to say.

Starting Lineup

The Braves have the 10th most runs scored in the Majors. Hey it is ahead of the "mighty" Mets offense! Two other division foes (Florida Marlins and Philadelphia Phillies) have scored more runs.

Kelly Johnson-Kelly has exceeded my expectations so far. This guy is a prime example of what a leadoff man should do; get on base (.389 OBP). He doesn't steal many bases (it's overrated anyways). Instead he has some pop to make up for it. Johnson is currently the 3rd best 2nd baseman in the NL.

Edgar Renteria-If I am not mistaken, Edgar is on pace to have his best season ever offensively. I have him ranked as the 3rd best SS in the Majors currently, and 18th overall best hitter. Call me crazy, but he is truly having that good of a season. His defense however is different. Edgar has the worst zone rating out of all SS in the Majors except for Derek Jeter. (Jeter winning a gold glove=complete joke)

Andruw Jones-Andruw has been a real big disappointment. What was expected to be a very good season due to "contract year," it has been the complete opposite. There is still plenty of reason to believe that Andruw will somehow turn it around and help the team in some way or another. It is still unknown whether the Braves will be able to resign him or not.

Jeff Francoeur-Francoeur leads the team in rbi with 43. However RBI is a pretty bad stat. One significant thing is his OBP. It currently is at .345 which is ok. The best thing is that it is over .050 points higher than last season. That is a HUGE improvement.

Jarrod Saltalamacchia-The future star of the Braves? That only depends on whether the Braves decide to keep this guy or not. Trading him would be an unwise decision. Salty is quickly becoming a fan favorite, and has huge potential. I would personally like to see Salty eventually take over as the 1st baseman of the Braves. His size and athletic ability would enable him to be a good defender at the position and allow his bat to be in the lineup almost everyday.

Players that need to stay

Yunel Escobar
Jarrod Saltalamacchia

Players that need to go

Chad Paronto
Pete Orr
Chris Woodward
Scott Thorman (or improve)

Players that need to improve

Brian McCann
Kyle Davies
Andruw Jones