Interesting Article

I was doing the usual site surfing when I stumbled upon this pretty interesting article on ajc.com. David O'Brien (writer) talks about Salty at 1st base. However the best part is about a dispute between Scott Boras and Jayson Stark.

Apparently agent Scott Boras (who represents Andruw Jones) disagreed with Stark about Jones being overrated and decided to give him his share of garbage. Stark defends his thoughts and wrote back with a good explanation.

It is rather long so you can go here. I strongly suggest you take some time and read it.

Twins sweep Braves

Wow, I just finished watching the Braves blow a 2-0 lead in the 9th to lose their final game of the series. Could this team fall apart any worse?

What is funny is that the TBS announcers said the the Twins were something like 0-27 when trailing after the 8th inning this season. Sure enough the Braves were the team to solve that problem.

When is Bobby Cox going to realize that Andruw Jones SHOULD NOT BE BATTING CLEANUP.

I really don't feel like saying anything else on this game.

Braves vs Twins- Game 2

The Braves lost to the Minnesota Twins for the 2nd time in the series tonight. The Braves were shutout by Carlos Silva who is an average pitcher at best. The only good thing about the game was the return of Chipper Jones who went 3-4.

-Edgar Renteria and Willie Harris both went 0-4.

-Chuck James had a bad outing, giving up 6 runs in 4.1 innings.

It just looks like the Braves had a bad game overall. I am happy to see Chipper back in the lineup and hope to see him stay healthy for the remainder of the season.

Tomorrow Tim Hudson will be on the mound against Johan Santana. I feel the Braves will get swept this series. There is no way the Braves will beat the best left handed pitcher in baseball.

Braves Draft

I am going to simply ignore the Braves past couple of games (loses) and go right into some good news.

The Braves had an OK draft from what I have read so far. Even though it's not as big of a deal as the NFL's draft, it is still pretty important. Guys like Chipper Jones were aquired in the 1st round. The only pick I really like is the 1st pick, Jason Heyward.

Round 1, 14th pick overall

Jason Heyward 6'4" 220 lbs HighSchool

Outfield/1st Base

Focus Area	Comments
Hitting Ability:	Heyward is a strong, left-handed hitter with the chance to hit for average and power.
Power:	His best tool. He's got tremendous power and power potential from the left side.
Running Speed:	Close to average. He's not a speedster, but he won't clog up the bases, either.
Arm Strength:	Near average, but should develop average arm strength with a good long-tossing program.
Fielding:	Heyward plays center for his high school team, but will likely be a left fielder or first baseman at the next level. He's average defensively overall.
Range:	He's got average range. He's not a stiff, but won't win any gold gloves.
Baseball Instinct:	He's got very good baseball instincts.
Physical Description:	Heyward is a big strong, power-hitting lefty at age 17.
Medical Update:	Healthy.
Strengths:	Power potential from the left side, approach at the plate.
Weaknesses:	Some think he can be too patient at times, but that could be the result of not seeing any good pitches. He also may be limited to left field or first base.
Summary:	Heyward is one of the most intriguing high school bats in the draft class. He's got legitimate power potential from the left side, always a hot commodity, but isn't an all-or-nothing hitter. He's got a good approach at the plate and has the chance to hit for average and power. If the cards fall right, he could be a future cleanup hitter.

Round Comp A, 33rd pick overall

Jonathan Gilmore 6'3" 190 lbs HighSchool

3rd Base

Focus Area	Comments
Hitting Ability:	Gilmore showed a better approach at the plate during this showcase than he had in the past. He adjusted well to offspeed stuff and showed good extension through the zone.
Power:	Gilmore has projectable raw power.
Running Speed:	He's a below-average runner.
Arm Strength:	Gilmore's arm seemed tired or labored during the showcase.
Fielding:	Gilmore was a little slow defensively with an almost casual approach.
Range:	The lack of quickness showed and his range was limited.
Physical Description:	Gilmore has an Aaron Boone-body type and has changed physically in the past year, looking stronger now.
Medical Update:	Healthy.
Strengths:	Offensive potential, with power and overall hitting ability projection.
Weaknesses:	His defensive game is behind his bat and was lackluster with the glove at this showcase.
Summary:	Gilmore improved at the plate tremendously in his senior season. The infielder has good raw power and showed a better overall approach in his offensive game. His defense isn't as sharp, but he will be drafted because of his bat potential.

Round 2, 69th pick overall

Joshua Fields 6'00" 183 lbs College

RHP

Focus Area	Comments
Fastball:	Fields throws a plus fastball that sat consistently in the 93-96 mph range.
FB Movement:	Coming from a direct overhand slot, Fields' fastball is very straight.
Slider:	Usually, Fields has a good hard slider in the 78-79 mph range. He didn't throw it much in his Friday outing.
Control:	Usually Fields has decent control, but he was overthrowing up and out of the strike zone on Friday. He came out of his delivery and was constantly behind in the count, which kept him from getting to his above-average slider.
Poise:	It was below average on Friday. He was given a lead and was perhaps too amped up to close out a win against Oregon State on opening night.
Aggressiveness:	Being aggressive for a closer is a good thing, but he was overly-aggressive in a save situation on Friday. He can be too aggressive, wanting to come in and throw hard. He needs to learn to channel that.
Physical Description:	He's a six-foot righty with a power arm who'll likely always have to answer questions about his size.
Medical Update:	Healthy.
Strengths:	Fields has a legitimate power arm with the classic fastball-slider mix.
Weaknesses:	Normally, command is not a problem for Fields, but it was on Friday. He has shown the ability to keep his fastball down in the zone and will need to get back to that in the future.
Summary:	Fields will be one of the most-watched college closers this season. His outing on Friday may be just one hiccup chalked up to Opening Night jitters. His size will always be an issue because of his plane to the plate and leverage, though others (Billy Wagner from the left side) have shown size doesn't always matter.

Round 2, 78th overall

Frederick Freeman 6'5" HighSchool

1st Base


Round 3, 108th overall

Brandon Hicks 6'2" 200 lbs College

ShortStop

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