2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

[DonkeyJote]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

He was sent down because he sucks. I don't care if you can hit the ball 500ft, he is just like Uggla but worse because he doesn't walk. Stop trying to hit the ball 500ft every swing. How about hitting it 300ft in the gap or just putting the ball in play. Power is nothing if you don't make contact.

And contact is nothing if you get stranded on 1B every time. The majority of his AB's have been batting 7th or 8th, when an all or nothing approach doesn't hurt you, because it's unlikely the guy behind you is going to drive you in anyway. When batting 5th or 6th this season (51 ab's), he has hit .333, 5 hr, 12 rbi, had a .358 obp and a .608 slg. When he did it last year (also 51 ab's), he hit .294/.308/.490 with 2 hr and 10 rbi. He's a very good fastball hitter, and he's only 25. Someone is going to pick him up, and he's going to do very good things for them.

That all said, he was the odd man out. Pena and Schafer have both played great. So it came down to Gattis, Francisco, Laird, and Reed Johnson for two bench spots. Neither Francisco or Gattis have ever played RF, and Gattis plays LF poorly as is. Francisco has barely played any OF, and that was all in the minors. So Reed has to stay. Gattis is the best hitter on the team right now, since Upton is pretty deep in this slump, plus he's 5 for 7 with 3 hr and a double as a Pinch Hitter. Cutting Laird would mean they couldn't use Gattis as a pinch hitter anymore. So that leaves Juan. Chris Johnson has been great, and there's no reason to think he can't be the answer at 3B.

[p_rushing]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

And contact is nothing if you get stranded on 1B every time. The majority of his AB's have been batting 7th or 8th, when an all or nothing approach doesn't hurt you, because it's unlikely the guy behind you is going to drive you in anyway. When batting 5th or 6th this season (51 ab's), he has hit .333, 5 hr, 12 rbi, had a .358 obp and a .608 slg. When he did it last year (also 51 ab's), he hit .294/.308/.490 with 2 hr and 10 rbi. He's a very good fastball hitter, and he's only 25. Someone is going to pick him up, and he's going to do very good things for them.

That all said, he was the odd man out. Pena and Schafer have both played great. So it came down to Gattis, Francisco, Laird, and Reed Johnson for two bench spots. Neither Francisco or Gattis have ever played RF, and Gattis plays LF poorly as is. Francisco has barely played any OF, and that was all in the minors. So Reed has to stay. Gattis is the best hitter on the team right now, since Upton is pretty deep in this slump, plus he's 5 for 7 with 3 hr and a double as a Pinch Hitter. Cutting Laird would mean they couldn't use Gattis as a pinch hitter anymore. So that leaves Juan. Chris Johnson has been great, and there's no reason to think he can't be the answer at 3B.

Sorry but don't bring stats to the table when the splits don't back up your point.

With 0 outs he is .133/.161/.167 and with 1 out .205/.262/.462. He is a lot better with 2 outs overall, .359/.405/.513. His SOs are the same across those splits. He has 27 SO when behind in the count and only 3 when ahead.

Who cares who is hitting behind him with less than 2 outs. He hasn't hit with less than 2 outs, so all he is doing is ending innings before the top of the lineup can come up.

His SOs shows he doesn't adjust his swing much. Once he is behind in the count, it is a 50% chance he strikes out. 52% of his outs are SO. You can only get away with that if you have a big contract or are productive with your non-outs.

[DonkeyJote]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

Sorry but don't bring stats to the table when the splits don't back up your point.

With 0 outs he is .133/.161/.167 and with 1 out .205/.262/.462. He is a lot better with 2 outs overall, .359/.405/.513. His SOs are the same across those splits. He has 27 SO when behind in the count and only 3 when ahead.

Who cares who is hitting behind him with less than 2 outs. He hasn't hit with less than 2 outs, so all he is doing is ending innings before the top of the lineup can come up.

His SOs shows he doesn't adjust his swing much. Once he is behind in the count, it is a 50% chance he strikes out. 52% of his outs are SO. You can only get away with that if you have a big contract or are productive with your non-outs.

I could throw more splits at you to, though, that show more than how many outs there are. With runners on, he's .317/.333./.587 this year. And if you don't like K's, that's one thing. But the dude is plenty productive when he hits the ball. 5 hr and 16 rbi in 108 ab's for a 3b is pretty good. I'm not trying to make a case we should've kept him. I said he was the odd man out. And I doubt he'll become a superstar. But he's still only 25, with only 469 career AB's and serious power. At the very least, he can become half of a very good platoon.

[Sportsforever]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

This is basically how I feel about it:

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/atlanta...000900303.html

I'd rather have him than the glorified softball player that is Gerald Laird.

[LowerWolf]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

My breakdown:

Six players for five bench spots. 1. Gattis has to stay. Obviously. 2. Laird stays to give you the flexibility to use Gattis as a PH when McCann starts. 3. Schafer stays. Obviously. 4. Pena stays. Obviously.

That leaves Francisco and Johnson. Francisco is younger, has more power, plays 3B and could play LF in a pinch. Johnson brings "veteran leadership" or something along those lines and very little else. Schafer can back up all three OF positions.

That said, it doesn't really matter. The decision has been made.

[aukevin]

This is basically how I feel about it:



I'd rather have him than the glorified softball player that is Gerald Laird.

They want Laird for next year as Gattis's backup if they don't keep McCann. Or at least that's how I see it.

[decga]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

My fellow Braves fan. I am a little late to this party, so forgive me in advance if I mention points that has been touch upon. I have been brewing and stewing since the Prado trade.

Braves & Mr. Wren will get just what they deserve and it probably won't be a World Series ring.

They sign Schafer back & then went out signed B.J. What they didn't believe in Schafer holding down LF or CF? Did Bourn or did management want him back? Why trade Prado?
I think they had World Series competitor with Bourn & Prado. Picture this lineup

1. CF Bourn
2. 3B Prado
3. RF Heyward
4. 1B Freeman
5. C McCann
6. 2B Struggla
7. SS Simmons
8. LF Reed or Schafer
9. pitcher

[Blzer]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

Heyward needs to change his swing. Too much length on the front end (that is, on the start of the swing). Direct route would suffice.

[DonkeyJote]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

My fellow Braves fan. I am a little late to this party, so forgive me in advance if I mention points that has been touch upon. I have been brewing and stewing since the Prado trade.

Braves & Mr. Wren will get just what they deserve and it probably won't be a World Series ring.

They sign Schafer back & then went out signed B.J. What they didn't believe in Schafer holding down LF or CF? Did Bourn or did management want him back? Why trade Prado?
I think they had World Series competitor with Bourn & Prado. Picture this lineup

1. CF Bourn
2. 3B Prado
3. RF Heyward
4. 1B Freeman
5. C McCann
6. 2B Struggla
7. SS Simmons
8. LF Reed or Schafer
9. pitcher

So you'd rather have Prado, with his .260/.309/.356 line than Johnson (.336/.367/.479) and Upton (.249/.358/.518). If so, you're insane. The Braves clearly got the better of that trade.

Heyward needs to change his swing. Too much length on the front end (that is, on the start of the swing). Direct route would suffice.

I refuse to believe that armchair coaches know more about this guys swing and approach than he does or the Braves coaching staff does. He's a professional hitter, and they're professional coaches. It's the same swing that got the guy 27 hr last year. He's obviously doing something right.

[TheMatrix31]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

He's not doing much of anything right now. Him and Justin have to wake up. They're the offensive cornerstones of this franchise. Frankly, I'm very worried about Jason Heyward. Doubts are starting to creep into my mind about him being a superstar. He's young but he has to start acting like it otherwise his ceiling is gonna shrink fast.

[decga]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

So you'd rather have Prado, with his .260/.309/.356 line than Johnson (.336/.367/.479) and Upton (.249/.358/.518). If so, you're insane. The Braves clearly got the better of that trade.



I refuse to believe that armchair coaches know more about this guys swing and approach than he does or the Braves coaching staff does. He's a professional hitter, and they're professional coaches. It's the same swing that got the guy 27 hr last year. He's obviously doing something right.

Chris Johnson is not a .300 hitter and by the way 3HRS, seriously, seriously. I appreciated the Chipper endorsement of the guy, but come on he went to his dad college.

Prado did not bat .260 for us last year. I am insane like a madman. I will take a consistent lineup 5 days out of a week with guarantee production anytime.

[thefakeJTS]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

Chris Johnson is not a .300 hitter and by the way 3HRS, seriously, seriously. I appreciated the Chipper endorsement of the guy, but come on he went to his dad college.

Prado did not bat .260 for us last year. I am insane like a madman. I will take a consistent lineup 5 days out of a week with guarantee production anytime.

So you want the same team that went to the wildcard last season, but with Schafer as a regular and Chipper gone? I really hope that you are joking.

My only problem with this team is that I would rather have Pena at 2B everyday. I don't know what is wrong with Heyward, and I'm not going to guess about what it is. However, he looks horrible at the plate and might be worse than BJ right now.

[Blzer]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

I refuse to believe that armchair coaches know more about this guys swing and approach than he does or the Braves coaching staff does. He's a professional hitter, and they're professional coaches. It's the same swing that got the guy 27 hr last year. He's obviously doing something right.

I might be on the armchair right now, but I do this day in and day out. Of everything I like about the guy, his initial start is one thing that I cringe about day in and day out.

By the way, I'm just waiting for the success to come through. I'd love for his swing to produce his results. I just don't want another player to replace him soon, because Gonzalez will do just that in another month.

[lonewolf371]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

My fellow Braves fan. I am a little late to this party, so forgive me in advance if I mention points that has been touch upon. I have been brewing and stewing since the Prado trade.

Braves & Mr. Wren will get just what they deserve and it probably won't be a World Series ring.

They sign Schafer back & then went out signed B.J. What they didn't believe in Schafer holding down LF or CF? Did Bourn or did management want him back? Why trade Prado?
I think they had World Series competitor with Bourn & Prado. Picture this lineup

1. CF Bourn
2. 3B Prado
3. RF Heyward
4. 1B Freeman
5. C McCann
6. 2B Struggla
7. SS Simmons
8. LF Reed or Schafer
9. pitcher

That's not a very good lineup. Compare it to the Orioles':
Player OBP/SLG vs. Player OBP/SLG
Bourn .345/.411 vs. McLouth .376/.439
Prado .309/.356 vs. Machado .361/.508
Heyward .283/.236 vs. Markakis .357/.448
Freeman .370/.461 vs. Jones .346/.530
McCann .354/.544 vs. Davis .439/.738
Uggla .300/.390 vs. Wieters .298/.423
Simmons .284/.368 vs. Hardy .274/.425

So for the first seven spots, the Orioles, a 3rd place team, are better at almost every position. J. Upton helps that lineup a lot.

[Sportsforever]

Re: 2013 Atlanta Braves Thread

As for Heyward, I have no idea why he's not producing. Right now his swing is generating high choppers to the infield and it seems like he's late a lot. I do like that his K rate has gone down and his walk rate has gone up....those are things that bode well for him. His BABIP is WAY low right now, but that is not just bad luck. He's not making good contact.

As for the Prado thing...I love Martin...one of my favorite Braves. I'd make that trade again RIGHT now. We are a very good team this year and that trade is a big part of it.