R.I.P. 2 the Greg Norton Era: Atlanta Braves 2010

No Frenchy! No Norton! No Anderson! More Hanson! More Heyward! A dicey left-field platoon! Oft-injured corner infielders! Lets do this!

stoked for the madne... the mad... the madnzzzzzzzz....

I want to be excited for these guys but the thought of Chip Caray on the play-by-play kinda ruins the mood.

and MEKLY!

http://profile.ak.fbcdn.net/v22941/882/108/n1783630904_7550.jpg

wmc otm

i'm excited about heyward, but at the same time the hype being generated around the kid is disconcerting - cox is already comparing him to mantle & aaron

also lol derek lowe opening day starter

RIDE MY SEE-SAW, BITCHES.

http://blogs.ajc.com/mark-bradley-blog/files/2009/08/jason-heyward.jpg

MLBN crew was drooling yesterday over Heyward not swinging at an off-speed pitch.

after Frenchy I drool whenever Heyward lays off any pitch

Heyward officially the major-league RF

Excited, fairly confident he's not Frenchy v.2.

Tommy John surgery for Tommy Hanson

ok, good one, you bastard

yea thats kinda cruel

http://www.talkingchop.com/2010/4/1/1400102/braves-heyward-to-start-in-the

only april fools joke i fell for today

For the 45 games on Peachtree TV, the booth will be Ernie Johnson Jr, Joe Simpson and John Smoltz.

A+++

hahahahahaHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA Heyward

holy shit yall

he fucked that pitch UP

I wouldn't want to be a gatorade cooler in the Cubs dugout right now.

destroyed that ball, good god

heyward just made zambrano his bitch royale

the leather ripped clear off, grandstand lights showering sparks

love that nickname, the J-Hey Kid

me 2

holy shit

n e 1 have video on this?

found it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nS2TPOISrhg

<3 his dad

he looks like he's been playing pro ball for 20 seasons

i'm so pleased it went into the bullpen

Leyland compared him to Pujols the other day and I was like "easy now, easy"

slaughtertown

heyward looks lebron-esque imo

szmardjia is one of the worst major league pitchers i've ever seen

so all the prospect-spotters who were let down by Wieters' lack of immediate dominance are gonna get on this dudes bandwagon now eh

you can bet on it (I confess, I got him on both my fantasy teams)

Let us not forget the achievements of Yunel Escobar.

heyward looks lebron-esque imo

8 feet tall, check, 0.9% body fat, check

it's interesting, plate discipline is not usually what rookie phenoms are known for iirc

but if you dont have it, you'll never make it in the show. look at andy marte, joel guzman, etc etc etc

cant find his spring training #s now but iirc he had a good number of walks

obp:.423 avg: .305 10 walks in 59 abs

he looks like he's been playing pro ball for 20 seasons

Yep, he looked about as nervous as playing softball, beer in hand

to make his poise and professionalism even more striking, i spent the early part of the day watching cameron maybin hit against johan santana

so glad for that video upthread. heyward is a MAN.

no braves OF prospect before has ever been underwhelming after hitting a home run on opening day in their first mlb at-bat, no sirree

Heyward's nothing like Schafer, though. Heyward's minor league OPS is over a hundred points higher and he doesn't strike out nearly as often.

also re: rookies without plate discipline: Jeff Francoeur sez hey.

it's entirely possible Heyward struggles from here on out but unlike Schafer and Francoeur there's nothing in his minor league stats to make it seem likely.

Kind of refreshing to see the postgame interview and see that he's just as inarticulate as any other 20 y.o. pro athlete. If he'd been real voluble and broken down the pitches and situations he saw I would have been wondering what planet he's from.

I bought a ticket to see Jason Heyward play baseball, so if he gets rested on Sunday I am gonna flip out.

Unless his shin splints act up, you should be safe from the flipping.

obp:.423 avg: .305 10 walks in 59 abs

Meant to post this yesterday -- 51 BB in 422 PA last year.

the braves got good again?

it took me years into their NL dynasty to shake the image of them as "lovable losers" i had when i was growing up. then it took me years into their mediocrity to shake the image of them as an "NL dynasty." now they're good again?

they might be good this year, and they're definitely looking like a top NL team going forward from there

Short answer: maybe/probably. All the pieces seem to be there for this year except maybe Chipper's durability.

Whole bunch of those geniuses at BP have them winning the division or wild card.

right; same at ESPN iirc.

i must say, i spotted a miami herald article a day or so ago, which implies the marlins might be v. good this year, too. kept their young core, unlike some other years.

Who is in their rotation other than Hudson, Lowe and Hanson?

Hudson could be solid but is an injury risk.. Dont know wtf is the deal with Lowe either. I always thought he had the kind of stuff where he could keep being effective as he got older but maybe not...

Kenshin Kawakami, Jair Jurrjens

GOD DAMN BLACKOUT RESTRICTIONS

yeah, game's not sold out, let me drive over there real quick and catch the last...oh wait, it's a FIVE HOUR DRIVE.

heyward, man

Cable co. called me up and said "Mr C, it turns out the game wasn't blacked out, somebody just didn't switch the feed to the game, just as you thought. It's on now."

So, uh, I chewed out the CSR pretty thoroughly.

great at bats from heyward tonight -- oppo HR & oppo single w/ 2 strikes against a lefty to put the braves up 2

yesterday they KILLED him on low & outside pitches and he really roped an important single on a low & outside slider

Bought a ticket to see him play today and of course it's probably going to be rained out. :(

is this game gonna happen today

There's no effing Braves-Giants on Extra Innings, I guess cuz of ESPN exclusivity on Sun nights?

i was picking it up earlier on mlb tv

I was getting the game via EI as late as half an hour ago (not in front of the television at the moment)...

That's weird, I'm getting it fine on FSS. They shouldn't be blocking it just because it started late.

is there a padres thread? anyway theyre up 14-0 in the 5th

Regression candidate Jair Jurrjens

Of course Blanks is riding my imaginary team's pine tonight

Oh damn, JoJo Reyes given up as a human sacrifice.

Hinske hitting clean-up?!

haha, it seems to be working out okay

<3 pogoing J-Hey

.gif or it idnt happen

another two out, two strike rbi off a lefty

3 out

Classic BBTN move: running stat comparison of the first 12 games of Heyward and Hank Aaron.

Glaus, you syphilitic cock, get off my tv.

^^^thought for a sec this was a cankles post

u owe that syphlitic cock an apology it appears

From the bottom of my heart, I beg the syphilitic cock's forgiveness.

been reduced to a dormant herpetic cock

Taking the walk-off celebration to the tunnel was pretty funny. I wonder if the Phils will be all sour and think it showed them up more than doing it at home plate.

Yunel Escobar seems to be one of the more stupid players in the game today.

That tunnel celebration jinxed the whole damn team.

Heyward not quite looking like Aaron the last week.

Definitely not. The plate discipline is still there, but when he chooses to swing, he's popping it up a lot.

you know it's rough when AJC commenters' traditional hatred of Cox, Chipper, and Wren has finally engulfed McCann, who's one of the more lovable guys in the game.

Looking great against Houston, but, yknow, it's Houston.

Chip Caray's latest verborrhea: he's starting to say "moundsman" instead of "pitcher."

J-Hey's getting his swing straightened out.

I hope Infante takes Escobar's job away from him. For one thing, he and McLouth are a good leadoff-spot platoon. For another, Yunel's a moody, stupid asshole.

http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/11/2010/05/cocka.jpg

LOLLLL

That makes McCann 0 for 2 on the Lasik thing.

McCann's pressing so hard he could swallow charcoal and shit diamonds...Johann struck him out to end the inning and you could hear the "FUCK!!!!!" in every seat in the stadium.

how many times do you see it, a catcher takes a foul ball to the nards and leads off the next inning with a clutch single

I switched to the game during a "Lost" commercial just in time to see that -- OWWWWWW.

WATCH

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p12wyT6utRw

omfg

Don't miss the highlights of this one, guys.

nice one. down 8-0 in the second too. usually teams just give up.

Dusty Baker is such a fxxking moron. He couldn't have handled the ninth any freaking worse.

Well, I just registered for the SABR convention, so unless my life goes south before I can go South I'll be in ATL in early August. Mets are in town when I arrive.

holy shnykies!!!!

Chavez/Venters/Kimbrel deserve the game ball as much as Conrad.

Cox, you dickhead, let Hudson have his fucking CG shutout. Jeez.

^sentimental about junk stats

hahaha, fuck you. I don't care about junk stats, but if I were Hudson and was having a totally dominating game like this one, I'd want a chance to finish it.

heyward hit that ball hard

guy is unbelievable

<3 that dude so much, and not just because I have him on both my fantasy teams

One thing I love about him is that he uses bubble gum instead of tobacco.

Tough, tough luck for Kawakami.

i would be very sad if heyward dipped

what's next beyond the golden sombrero?

The "Olympic Rings" or platinum sombrero applies to a player striking out five times in a game,[1] while a horn (after Sam Horn of the Baltimore Orioles, who accomplished the feat in an extra-inning game in 1991) or titanium sombrero is bestowed upon a player who strikes out six times in a single game.[2]

^^^fact-checking wakeboarder

I'm not in any hurry for Chipper to come back from his poor achy finger.

<3 Omar

ya. he can play forever for all i care (omar)

hmm - thought this was another thread.

Brooks Conrad's really making the most out of his limited playing time this year.

Chipper hints that this may be the end

thank u jesus

la

rry

~~SHOCKED~~ the chris resop call-up didn't pay immediate results!

so Heyward is now at .259 /.378 /.473 . Nice season. Not an All-Star starter rookie season.

Yeah, he shouldn't be a starter.

I agree. He's K-ing his way into not deserving to be on the team at all.

J-Hey to DL (thumb), no All-Star Game.

nice save, Billy!

he was about one centimeter away from getting the loss

fucking Fish

LOL

can't even remember seeing the wheel play work on a bunt

oh for fuck's sake

The Braves have traded shortstop Yunel Escobar and minor-league pitcher Jo-Jo Reyes to the Toronto Blue Jays in a five-player deal that nets shortstop Alex Gonzalez.

Gonzalez, 33, is in the midst of one of his finest offensive seasons.

The Braves also got left-handed minor-league pitcher Tim Collins and minor-league shortstop Tyler Pastornicky.

Gonzalez entered the All-Star break with a .259 batting average, 17 home runs, 25 doubles and 50 RBIs. Gonzalez currently ranks tied for fifth in the American League with 43 extra-base hits.

“This trade improves our club for the second half of the season,” Executive Vice President and General Manager Frank Wren said. “We have been looking at ways to strengthen our club offensively and Alex Gonzalez is a proven veteran player who gives us added power. He is a winner and a solid offensive presence in the lineup as well as a quality defensive shortstop.”

I... buh... wha...

oh my god

did not expect this! :D

i gotta look up the prospects involved before i pass judgment though

apparently Yunel has a bit of an attitude problem?

Collins is good - has "future closer" written all over his ass.

yunel is one of the best defensive shortstops in the game and isn't really a worse hitter than gonzalez

the braves simultaneously sold low and bought high here

I read that Collins is 5'5"

20 second-half HRs for Yunel

0 for A-Gonz!

pretty sure they'll both hit 5-10

I am very excited about Atlanta's new 30-something SS with the sub-.700 career OPS.

Excuse me, Collins is 5'7", 155 lbs

Another 5'7"-ish/160-ish lefty? Where were these MLB scouts when I was being recruited by dinky Lutheran colleges?

Yunel's a moody, stupid asshole.

― Grisly Addams (WmC), Tuesday, May 4, 2010 7:30 PM (2 months ago)

-------------------

Yunel Escobar -- showboat on D, slacker on O, egomonster all the time.

― Grisly Addams (WmC), Thursday, May 20, 2010 2:07 PM (1 month ago)

This may not be a great move long-term, but I think I like it for this season.

AA on that issue: "We did a lot of homework & we feel like this is going to be an environment for him to really thrive."

sort of a non-quote i guess. we'll see soon enough how he goes over with Cito.

good thing Hanson speaks English, otherwise they'd trade him for sure-handed veteran Ted Lilly and a kid who might one day be a major league utility infielder.

AA on that issue: "We did a lot of homework & we feel like this is going to be an environment for him to really thrive."

Professional baseball team or private school?

Canada.

20 second-half HRs for Yunel

(and five walks)

solid

Heyward is not a slow guy by any means, but damn, he has awful lead/first move instincts as a base stealer.

Brooks Conrad's really making the most out of his limited playing time this year.

― Grisly Addams (WmC), Thursday, June 10, 2010 6:22 PM (1 month ago)

lol

Prado hurt (right hand) in head-first slide. DON'T DO IT, KIDS!

that looked really bad

Broken pinkie knuckle, out 7-10 days. Could have been a lot worse, really.

so what's good to eat at the Ted? on my way in an hour.

haven't been in awhile but i've always loved the taste of victory after the braves crush the mets

yeah, before that

http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/atl/ballpark/concessions.jsp might help. honestly the last thing i remember was having a hot dog and recalling it tasting like a generic ball park hot dog. there's a new taqueria there it appears that could be promising.

The concourse food there is kinda crappy actually. I don't remember the barbecue being worth writing home about at that place that used to be called Skip & Pete's. (Still called that? I think I saw a different sign there last month.) Never eaten at the Chophouse.

xp - I missed the taqueria! Would have tried that out for sure.

I sat in the 12th row field level, behind 3rd base. After Frenchy's HR, I turned to the rows above and did the Chop and war whoop.

Kris Medlen out early with a UCL. He got HBP in his throwing elbow during his last start this past Friday, which weakened the ligament I guess.

UCL injury, I meant to say.

Looks like Medlen's done. I hope Wren is working the phones -- I don't think the healthy starters + AAA + AA are going to be enough.

oh hey, I'd sell one of you my Tom Glavine Night ticket for tomw if you can meet me downtown before the game. Face value for a field-level seat near RF foul pole -- $33, includes a $15 coupon to spend on food and merchandise.

I wish I could! I'm under a heavy work deadline though, and I'm five hours and a time zone away, so Atlanta is always a 2-day trip for me. (Still in the Braves blackout zone though, goddamn MLB razzafrazzin fuckers)

well if I have to use it -- I hate Glavine, but at least Zito is pitching.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXhvE1tnC1g

waiting out t-storm

I love when PTV has the game, and there's a rain delay, and my cableco switches to the raw feed and leaves it. Watching the tarp ripple in the breeze is very soothing.

no rain delay*... it's the glavine event taking way longer to prep for than expected.

*ie, no tarps on the field.

I'm looking at a tarp on the live video feed, mister smarty, and the tab I have open to my fantasy team says "DELAY".

xpost! i take that back, they just reported they put it back on.

they did pull it off tho, those cockteasers.

This presentation is like a funeral. Cox: "Tommy, you were a heck of a player and you were a heck of a guy."

Morbs and the SABR crew picked a hell of a game to go to.

Yeah, but dejected Braves fans leaving en masse makes it all worth it. (would rather have them win the East than the Phils, obv)

During the ceremony I think it was Schuerholz who was reading off the blurbs on the other Braves w/ retired #s, and he called Aaron "the all-time home run king"? I yelled "VERY ORWELLIAN!"

Always lolz when The Wave dies at the SABR section.

lol, Wagner not taking any shit off the universe tonight.

Looks like Chipper may have blown up his left knee (with his parents in the stands watching).

and with a friend of mine heckling him.

Brooks Conrad's really making the most out of his limited playing time this year.

― Grisly Addams (WmC), Thursday, June 10, 2010 6:22 PM (1 month ago)

and again!

I mean really!

Did you see the final play of the game? Grounder by Bourn to Conrad -- he stutter-steps a couple of times while he's getting the ball in his hand right, and then it looks like he suddenly realizes who's running, so he fired to first so hard I'd swear it was faster than any of Wagner's pitches. Dude's got a cannon arm.

RIP Larry

Bummer. I wanted him to retire earlier in the year, but he really was playing a lot better. I blame Joe Simpson -- he jinxed him the other day when he remarked how hard Larry was swinging the bat, no more defensive half-swings, etc.

goodnight, funnyman

Remember, you'd rather these guys win the East than the Phils. You don't think the Mets are going to do it, do you?

nope

welcome to I Love Schadenfreude.

Brooks Conrad's really making the most out of his limited playing time this year.

― Grisly Addams (WmC), Thursday, June 10, 2010 6:22 PM (1 month ago)

(just broke a scoreless tie)

Where would Hudson place for the NL Cy around here?

Behind Hanson.

ahhhhhahahahahahahaaaaa

ok wut was that and can they please do more of it

what dies first: Derrek Lee's disc or Glaus's knees?

aaaaaagh, I don't know about this Derrek Lee business. On the other hand, Glaus looks 90 years old out there.

Atlanta lost All-Star third baseman Chipper Jones for the season with a knee injury on Aug. 10. First baseman Troy Glaus, a former third baseman, could be moved back to third if Lee is acquired.

Also, Bruce Levine of ESPNchicago.com needs to wake the fuck up.

from that dispatch:
"Lee, who is presently dealing with a bulging disc on his lower left side, received an epidural on Monday to relieve the pain and will not be ready to play again until Thursday.

Braves top scout Jim Fregosi watched Lee hit four home runs during a series in St. Louis over the weekend. Fregosi reported back to general manager Frank Wren that Lee was swinging the bat as well as he has all season, according to a source. "

Neyer comments:

"The key passage here: Lee was swinging the bat well.

"It's hard to swing the bat well with a bulging disc. Impossible, maybe. Add the fact that before last weekend's homer-fest, Lee was sporting a .246/.332/.383 batting line for the season, and you have to wonder if he's really any sort of upgrade over what the Braves already have."

lol, these fuckin' guys

i hope Lee sinks the Braves!

o rly, well then I hope you liveblog the Giants' descent to 4th place.

i'm just think if Lee was going to move than he should have went to the Angels.

the Giants will probably end up in fourth either way, i'm upset about this last week for sure.

i'm i

sorry about my live blogging, just have to vent while watching the game. it does make me feel better however.

wheeee, last-at-bat win #22

so remember when we were making fun of Infante's all-star selection?

0_o

Apparently he just needed to move to the NL -- .317/.358/.427 in three years as a Brave.

The Cubs obtained and dealt him (along with Will Ohman... for JOSE ASCIANO) during the '07 offseason.

These guys are (mostly) fun to watch.

Hanson + Jurrjens + Prado + Raw Dog + Heyward = $2.155M salary total. ^_^

So you'd really better win the WS in the next couple of years huh?

(yeah, us too :/)

I have absolutely no idea if this team will be worth a crap next year, so a WS needs to happen now!

Joe Simpson just passed this tidbit along -- somebody asked Wagner why he was retiring since he was pitching so well, just as strong as ever, velocity's still up there blah blah blah. Wagner said "Brett Favre's fucked it up for all of us."

ha hah ah ahahaa

btw Infante's still not a deserving All-Star

ha, conrad just hit a fly ball to left field and it was obv a fly out off his bat but you could hear some isolated screams from the crowd right after contact

Holy shit! I turned this off in disgust in the 7th and just now read the recap.

Good old LOLlie P.

MIAMI — Chipper Jones was thrown out of Saturday’s game by home-plate umpire Doug Eddings in the first inning after saying something from the bench that the ump didn’t appreciate.

What’s unusual about this, of course, is that Jones is on the disabled list, recovering from knee surgery. The third baseman has been in uniform on the bench during games the past week.

Coincidentally, during a 2005 game at Florida, Eddings ejected three Braves including pitcher Mike Hampton, who was also on the DL. Eddings got into a heated argument with Braves catcher Johnny Estrada that night and tossed Estrada, Hampton and manager Bobby Cox.

http://s190.photobucket.com/albums/z212/T-dogggg/Reactions/th_chipper.gif

that was mike hampton's greatest contribution to the braves

Simpson was really letting Eddings have it tonight, just short of calling him a corrupt sack of shit (in that pleasant Joe Simpson way of his).

Great game from Jurrjens.

Wow @ Simpson! He is really feeling his Malt-o-Meal this weekend. Before the first inning was done he'd already called the Marlins front office "classless and low" and called out Hanley Ramirez for being an attention whore.

;_;

via Neyer:

http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/post/_/id/6618/jason-heywards-chase-for-400

Aaaagh these fuckin' guys!!!!!! Shit!

really takin' the gas pipe, eh?

Jurrjens has sore knee; Brandon Beachy to make start in MLB debut

go Beachy go

Braves fans presuming they had the WC locked up but considering there are 5 more games against Philly alone, they may not see October.

Don't presume my presumption -- I've been prepared for no-playoffs for three weeks.

nice deefense by the putative ROY on that 5th-inning fly

what was McCann doin on that sac fly?

I don't even want these guys to stumble into the playoffs at this point -- watching them get pantsed and stuffed into their own locker in the first round would be embarrassing.

They still have to face Philly too right?

Yeah, last series of the season.

Prado RIP

;_;

yowch

Neyer yesterday:

"The Braves have two more games against the Marlins, who aren't playing for anything and won't be using Hanley Ramirez. Then they've got three against the Phillies, who really can't do anything else except get somebody hurt.

Meanwhile, the Giants and the Padres have to try to kill each other this weekend.

As much as anything, this is why the Braves are a great bet for the wild card."

Meanwhile, the Giants and the Padres have to try to kill each other this weekend.

― kind of shrill and very self-righteous (Dr Morbius), Wednesday, September 29, 2010 4:24 AM (4 hours ago)

Not necessarily. The way the Padres have been playing over the last month, they may drop out of contention before they land in SF.

At this point, I sincerely hope SF and SD both make it in. I'm tired of this gang of toothless asthmatics. Better luck next year.

Braves kicking ass today. Basically if the Padres lose today the Braves are in.

look again

it's 7-8 but the Phillies only have three outs left

Can't believe this game ended up so close!

gonna be tough w/out Prado

btw I walked thru the ATL airport yesterday around 2:30 pm, from one end of terminal B to another, and there was nothin on bar TVs but the NFL.

Not surprised.

Hello 2 the Fredi Gonzalez era

No objection.

since Fredi was attending research talks at the SABR convention, i'd say it's a good hire.

Man, if the Braves and the Mets get talented, forward-looking managers the NL wild card'll get a lot tougher.

Ya, if only the Braves had a manager with some talent instead of being stuck with that Cox guy for the past 20 years.

but as Neyer hinted about Cox's decisions in this last series, "there's a reason they go out."

Fine, Cox's shit doesn't work in the playoffs, we already knew that. We know he can't manage his bullpen in the postseason and all that, but luck is still more of a factor in the postseason than anything most managers do or don't do.

But y'know, look out! The Braves might get a forward-thinking manager and jump right into the playoff hunt one of these years.

at least one smart enough to bench Brooks Conrad in a timely fashion?

One would hope.

That wasn't what I meant, William! I was hoping the Bravos would pick some idiot, but I didn't really expect them to.

The Mets, on the other hand - that could be a seismic shift.

Fine, Cox's shit doesn't work in the playoffs, we already knew that.

uh, how many pennants did he win, six?

Yeah, but none after 1999. You could argue that he had lesser talent to work with, or that he made more mistakes than he had in the past (and you could argue that it had something to do with age -- everyone's skills degrade with time). I don't really know. Like you said, failing to make defensive substitutions in the 9th inning of a playoff game is almost indefensible.

Anyway, luck usually trumps managing in the playoffs -- which was the main point of Neyer's post.

Like you said, failing to make defensive substitutions in the 9th inning of a playoff game is almost indefensible

See what I did there!!

(actually it was an accident)

actually 5 pennants but who's counting

Hubbard and Cadahia fired. Fredi's bringing his own guy in as bench coach; Pendleton is out as hitting coach and being moved to 1B coach. All good moves. Chipper as hitting coach is kind of a high risk/high reward thing, but it may be a little early to speculate on that one.