Thread for the 2013 Atlanta Braves Trail of Tears

86 wins - o/u?
Best outfield in baseball? Tell that to the Angels.
The year Wren admits the Uggla contract is toilet paper?
Is nothing sacred?

should have been thread title:
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BBZ1tccCEAEQvMz.jpg

I blame omar.

Starters:
C: Brian McCann + Gerald Laird eventually (Laird + Christian Bethancourt until then)
1B: Freddie Freeman
2B: Dan Uggla
3B: Juan Francisco or Chris Johnson
SS: Andrelton Simmons
LF: Justin Upton
CF: B.J. Upton
RF: Jason Heyward

Rotation:
Tim Hudson
Kris Medlen
Mike Minor
Paul Maholm
Julio Teheran

Relievers:
Craig Kimbrel
Jonny Venters
Jordan Walden
Eric O'Flaherty
Cristhian Martinez
Luis Avilan
Gearrin or Varvaro

Bench:
Whoever's not starting that night at 3B
the backup catcher
Paul Janish
Reed Johnson
a lotta names in competition for the 5th spot

http://cdn0.sbnation.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/8418795/20120617_jla_av3_054.0_standard_709.0.jpg

feel like beachy and medlen could potentially be a devastating pair over the next decade.

OTM. I wish Beachy was a lefty so they could show Maholm the door when BB gets healthy. I love Medlen so much -- he's like a cross between Greg Maddux and Alfred E. Neuman.

beachy to date has quite the statline:

237.2 IP, 252 K, 3.07 ERA, 1.14 whip

Braves improve one of the shittiest TV deals in the league, no more games on Peachtree TV.

http://www.ajc.com/news/sports/baseball/braves-tv-deal-changes-games-move-peachtree-tv/nWcNF/

The shift means that the two Fox-owned cable channels will have rights to all of the Braves’ local telecasts — 150-plus games per season — and that Turner will be out of the Braves TV business for the first time since the mid-1970s. It also means the last of the Braves’ telecasts are moving from a free over-the-air station, which Peachtree TV is in Atlanta, to cable.

no more braves on broadcast tv :(

Yeah, this improves my situation because my local cable co couldn't find its own ass with both hands and somebody was always forgetting to switch the CSS feed over to PTV at the right time, but this is a bummer for Atlanta area people I guess.

julio teheran, 5 IP, 0 H, 6 K today

                                   IP   H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR
 K Medlen (W,1-1)                   5  14   9   9   0   4   1

"I've never had an outing like that in my life," said Medlen.

freddie and andrelton (in his return from honkbal) are a combined 7-for-8 with four homers and eight rbis today. after five innings

it's only the pirates, tho

*snoopydance*

I am very ready for Opening Day.

                                   IP   H   R  ER  BB  SO  HR
 J Teheran (W,3-1)                  6   0   0   0   3  10   0

Havin' a good spring.

One reason I want to get to a Braves game this season is because the Holeman & Finch people are going to have a hamburger spot at Turner Field.

McCann's Burgers cries softly.

Evan Gattis makes the opening day roster as Laird's backup until McCann comes back. (Also, Jordan Schafer is the utility outfielder.)

awesome. gattis started last season in high-a as a 25-year-old; love to see guys like that get a shot.

Apparently he's been tearing it up this spring, and this is McCann's contract year, and he's not getting any younger or healthier. I wouldn't be surprised if the Braves moved him this year -- the Schuerholz/Wren brain trust is refreshingly unsentimental post-Francoeur.

they've got bethancourt in the system, but i don't know that he's ever going to hit (or walk) enough to be viable. only 21, tho

In Venezuela, Gattis acquired the nickname El Oso Blanco, Spanish for “the White Bear,” and became a Paul Bunyan-esque folk hero in Zulia and the surrounding area while belting home runs, including several to give his team a lead or win.

yessss

Roster is set.

Projected opening day lineup:
Andrelton Simmons, SS
Jason Heyward, RF
Justin Upton, LF
Freddie Freeman, 1B
B.J. Upton, CF
Dan Uggla, 2B
Chris Johnson, 3B
Gerald Laird, C

Starting rotation:
Tim Hudson
Paul Maholm
Kris Medlen
Mike Minor
Julio Teheran

Bullpen: Craig Kimbrel, Eric O'Flaherty, Jordan Walden, Luis Avilan, Cory Gearrin, Anthony Varvaro, Cristhian Martinez
Bench: Reed Johnson (OF), Juan Francisco (3B), Ramiro Pena (INF), Evan Gattis (C), Jordan Schafer (OF)
On the disabled list: Brian McCann, Jonny Venters

Uggla looks a lot better without the inflato-arms, and the homers go just as far.

will lose half his gay following

The Diamondbacks are going to seriously regret the Justin Upton trade.

I'll drink to that.

His HR swing last night looked like a mirror image of Utley's, with that short followthrough.

Homerfest is carrying over from spring training.

9th	B Upton homered to center.	5	5
9th	J Upton homered to center.	5	6

Low wattage

fun

@ajcbraves
According to David Vincent of SABR, 25th time in MLB history that 2 bros homered in same game. #Braves

#rallykillers

fuckin love these guys

hahaha, I turned my attention to an Ozu film on the computer when the lead was 5-1, and when I turned back around, Justin was just crossing the plate with the game winner.

ATLANTA -- The Atlanta Braves placed first baseman Freddie Freeman on the 15-day disabled list Sunday with a strained right oblique.

Freeman, who his hitting .417 with one homer and seven RBIs through the first five games, said he was upset that team management did not tell him before making the decision.

He added that the injury first occurred in a workout March 31, the day before the season started, and that he wanted to keep playing through the pain.

Dang, Justin Upton hates baseballs.

I hope Wren is prepared to swap Laird for prospects in a few weeks when McCann is healthy -- the Gattis era seems to have begun.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Evan-Gattis-El-Oso-Blanco-The-White-Bear-LARGE-Shirt-Jersey-Atlanta-/200912540130

https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/3125043264/0063e1ab8cddf11ff31f199fe12a0e72.jpeg

yessss

p. much the best twitter avatar imo

Marlins announced Francisco's HR at 433', but apparently ESPN looked at it and said "nah, bro, that was 459."

also, GATTTTTTIIISSSSS

Fredi's actually starting Gattis at 1B tonight.

some great 9th innings around mlb tonight

― Pope Rusty I (Dr Morbius), Friday, April 12, 2013 9:10 PM (44 minutes ago)

at least one great 10th inning too

oso blanco

^^^ http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v617/WidowOfDestiny/Jiggle_Panda.gif ^^^

So much fun to watch right now. Maholm's hot start even more unexpected (to me) than Gattis'.

5 runs off of 5 solo homeruns. i have a feeling that hasn't happened very many times.

Luis Avilan, who has picked up every bit of Jonny Venters' slack during his injury, goes down mid-pitch in the 9th holding his left ham -- bad enough that he had to be taken off on a cart with the head groundskeeper holding his leg stable.

uptons here

I love games with big leads, because Joe Simpson and Chip Caray have time to try to get their heads around sabermetrics, and that shit is hysterical.

the braves, in the event that they played the pirates in the playoffs, invited sid bream to throw out a first pitch. he declined

love that dude

This fuckin' Uggla --

2012: 168 Ks in 523 ABs
2013: 170 Ks in 445 ABs

bref has him at -1.1 war

$26M is a lot to eat, but God they gotta get rid of him somehow.

turdgla

swedish for 'shitty owl' iirc

i find this year's team kind of unlikable tbh. they keep having these bitchassed outbursts that im not feelin. they should sign smoltz & chipper to the postseason roster to cheerlead the team

i find this year's team kind of unlikable tbh

can't even imagine what you're talking about, chip

who imagined they wd get more hateable w/out Larry Jones?

he sure didn't act quite as *B*A*L*L*E*R* as some of those rapscallions today, what with their rap music and their sideways ballcaps

and their "swag"

http://www.datingtrek.com/images/you-certified-baller.gif

Can't wait for the team/broadcaster spin on the Chris Johnson/Terry Pendleton confrontation last night. Simpson has made some very oblique references to CJ's "competitiveness" -- i.e., he's a moody dick and TP had his fill of it after the game.

http://www.mlb.com/news/article/atl/atlanta-braves-first-base-coach-terry-pendleton-third-baseman-chris-johnson-share-heated-exchange-in-dugout?ymd=20130928&content_id=62106088&vkey=news_atl

i was hoping pendleton got mad because johnson slid into first

was TP mad about CJ throwing the helmet, or did CJ do one of those typical baseball player moves where he didn't run his fastest out of the batters box until he saw Rollins catch it? the replay doesn't show CJ until the play at 1B so it's tough to tell.

Here's a Vine of CJ's effort out of the box: http://www.talkingchop.com/2013/9/28/4782016/terry-pendleton-chris-johnson-fight-braves -- he's not trotting, but he does need to put his head down and quit looking at Rollins. I think the explanation that TP was sick of CJ moodily throwing shit is the right one.

CJ's shoulder jammed

http://www.sbnation.com/mlb/2013/9/29/4783356/chris-johnson-injury-shoulder-atlanta-braves

“Hey, I’m a nut job sometimes,” said Johnson, who got thrown out by Jimmy Rollins on a close play to strand the tying run in scoring position in a 5-4 loss. “My helmet slipped out of my hand and hit someone. That’s not good. I’m in the wrong right there. I came in today, talked to TP, apologized and we’ll move on.”

http://www.ajc.com/news/sports/baseball/c-johnson-apologizes-to-pendleton-after-dugout-con/nZ97p/

Hey

"My helmet slipped". guy can't even man up and admit to throwing his helmet.

Indications are that Braves are leaning toward Freddy Garcia to start Game 4. Has not been officially decided.

Names I never expected to see on the Sept. roster in April: Garcia, Elliot Johnson. (Mainly because I'd never heard of Elliot Johnson.)

think he had a band in the 90's?

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/10/01/dan-uggla-to-be-left-off-braves-roster-for-nlds

winning comment:
That’s cool bro, just more time to lift weights.

all the white fans who bust on BJ give uggla way more slack and it ticks me off

la stella's final line at double-a: .343/.422/.473 with 37 walks and 34 strikeouts in 81 games

la stella's first seven arizona fall league games: .429/.625/.619 with 11 walks and 0 strikeouts

no homer power or speed to speak of, but i think dude is ready

RIP Popeye Arms
(not that that is in much doubt anyway)

rest in piss

Andrelton's 2013 highlight reel lasts almost a half hour.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stx_4PZrFqw#t=1023

gtfo cobb county

Yeah, what the fuck?!

Great wording:

✔ @Braves
We have secured a large tract of property at this location & will work to build a world-class ballpark for our fans. #Braves

The Atlanta Journal Constitution is now reporting (no named sources, just "we’re told") that the Cobb County stadium would involve $450 million in public money, $200 million from the team.

http://www.fieldofschemes.com/2013/11/11/6174/report-braves-to-announce-plans-for-new-stadium-in-cobb-county

now the worst people in Metro Atlanta will feel safe enough to go to Braves games

they can't work with Turner Field because it doesn't have a MARTA spur, so they're building a new stadium in a county that won't let MARTA in because of racism.

not surprised that Schuerholz, a dude who mentioned Limbaugh repeatedly in his autobiography, would be all about white flight.

why the fuck is public money still being used to build stadiums?!

the office of Cobb County's commissioner is saying there's no public money involved and that the deal is private, at least according to a guy on Twitter.

daily reminder that sports owners are bad people

'cumberland braves'

who paid for Turner Field?

After the 1996 Olympics were complete the stadium was leased by the Atlanta Braves. Private entities, including NBC and other Olympic sponsors, agreed to pay a large sum of the cost to build Centennial Olympic Stadium (approximately $170 million of the $209 million bill). The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) sought to build the stadium in a way that it could be converted to a new baseball stadium, and ACOG paid for the conversion.[1] This was considered a good agreement for both the Olympic Committee and the Braves. The 71,228 seat Georgia Dome had been completed four years earlier by the state of Georgia, so there was no need for another large stadium in downtown Atlanta. Furthermore, the Braves had already been exploring opportunities for a new stadium. The Atlanta Fulton County Recreation Authority owns Turner Field and leases it to the Braves, who operate the stadium. The current lease runs through 2016.[8]

http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/63845824/

http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/82022/saying-good-bye-as-the-braves-leave-atlanta-for-atlanta

Let me just state that it’s comforting to live in a city, a state and even a country where our elected officials feel so free to build sports facilities with public dollars for private businesses. It’s reassuring to know that our schools, police departments, fire departments, roads, bridges, parks and sewers are in such tremendous shape that we can afford to commit $650 million for two new stadium projects.

If the Sudan got a new soccer stadium, it would totally revitalize the area.

If Mayor Kasim Reed hadn’t been carrying Arthur Blank’s water for month, making it seem like a Falcons’ potential move to the suburbs was like the coming of apocalypse, he would deserve praise for his comments Monday. But he is being a completely phony because he took the opposite position with the Falcons.

"I started off thinking this is one of the worst things ever, got most of the way toward thinking it's not, and now I'm back to worst ever again. Which is what I always wind up thinking about these deals. What Selig and His Merry Band do isn't as disgusting as the NFL's brain-injury coverup, and it's not as disgusting as the NCAA's various perfidies. Mostly because, for all of our complaining, the free ballpark money is generally disbursed by freely elected public officials, with only the usual, mostly legal low-level bribery and coercion."

http://www.baseballnation.com/2013/11/12/5094666/atlanta-braves-ballpark-moving-cobb-county-2017

http://www.talkingchop.com/2013/12/11/5200864/local-tea-partiers-to-file-lawsuit-in-effort-to-block-new-stadium

If it is just a procedural issue, it shouldn't raise any problems. However, based on the language used by the group, it would seem that they're challenging the Commission's right to extend a tax that was set to end for an additional 30 years without a referendum.

after an adjustment period i'm pretty much 'whatever' about this. i'll go to the cobb stadium once to see what its like and catch the rest of the games on the radio. i cant even imagine how abominable the area around the cobb cloverleaf is gonna be on gamedays

funniest quote to come from this -

Cobb County GOP Chairman Joe Dendy sent out a statement that included these thoughts on mass transit and taxes:

"It is absolutely necessary the solution is all about moving cars in and around Cobb and surrounding counties from our north and east where most Braves fans travel from, and not moving people into Cobb by rail from Atlanta.
"The other important part of the formula is for the citizens of Cobb not to experience any kind of tax increase. The influx of people into the county for the games should provide the revenue needed to make this a successful venture."

the pics here are pretty amusing - http://deadspin.com/chipper-jones-rescued-freddie-freeman-in-the-snowstorm-1511430389