PREVIEW-2012
BY DEXTER McKEE
SPORTSWRITER
ATLANTA SUN
ATLANTA - WITH LAST WINTER'S DISMANTLING OF MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL AS WE KNEW IT, NOT EVERYTHING IS NEW FOR BRAVES FANS,
JASON HEYWARD IS STILL A BRAVE, ANYWAY. SO IS FREDDIE FREEMAN, ALBEIT IN THE MINORS.
THE LANDMARK DECISION BY FEDERAL JUDGE GARY WADE IN NOVEMBER 2011 SET ALL MLB AND MINOR LEAGUERS FREE - SOMEWHAT. ALL WERE SUBJECT TO AN 75-ROUND DRAFT, WHICH IN THEORY, WAS TO RESTOCK BIG LEAGUE ROSTERS AS WELL AS CLASS AAA AND AA TEAMS.
THOSE NOT SELECTED IN THE JANUARY 2012 DRAFT WERE SET FREE TO NEGOTIATE WITH TEAMS OF THEIR CHOICE. THOSE UNDER CONTRACT WERE KEPT THAT WAY - PLAYERS WHO WOULD HAVE BECOME FREE AGENTS FOR 2012 WERE AWARDED ONE-YEAR DEALS WITH A 30 PERCENT BONUS ADDED TO THE LAST YEAR OF THEIR PREVIOUS CONTRACTS.
"THAT RULING KEPT US - AND MANY OTHER TEAMS - FROM DRAFTING CERTAIN PLAYERS," SAID BRAVES GM LEE GANNON. "IT BECAME A NEW BASEBALL WORLD FOR VETERANS AND THOSE WITH ONLY ONE-YEAR CONTRACTS."
ATLANTA WENT WITH THE THEORY - ADOPTED BY ABOUT ONE-THIRD OF ALL THE CLUBS - OF DRAFTING YOUNG TALENT AND DECENT PLAYERS ALREADY UNDER CONTRACTS WITH TWO OR MORE YEARS LEFT.
"WE HAD A WEEK (TO PLAN FOR THE DRAFT) AND WE GOT ABOUT 90 PERCENT OF THE PLAYERS WE WERE AIMING FOR," GANNON SAID.
"... AND WITH THE EIGHTH SELECTION, THE ATLANTA BRAVES SELECT OUTFIELDER CARLOS GONZALEZ."
THE MAIN REASON?
"ACTUALLY, WITH HIS TALENT AND CONTRACT (FIRST YEAR OF A SEVEN-YEAR DEAL), WE THOUGH CARLOS WOULD BE GONE WHEN WE PICKED."
THE BRAVES' NEXT PICK, THE 53RD SELECTION, WAS OUTFIELDER NICK MARKAKIS, CONSIDERED A BARGAIN WITH A A 4-YEAR, $16 MILLION CONTRACT. THE BRAVES STUCK TO THEIR GAME PLAN, GRABBING HEYWARD NEXT FOLLOWED BY SWITCH-HITTING CATCHER RYAN DOUMIT. SEE BOTTOM OF PAGE FOR DRAFT RESULTS.
STARTING PITCHING
ATLANTA GOT A RICH YOUNG STAR IN YOVANNI GALLARDO - AND PLENTY OF HOPE IN RICKY ROMERO, IAN KENNEDY, DEREK HOLLAND AND GREG SMITH.
"GALLARDO IS PROVEN - AS ARE THE OTHERS, TO VARYING DEGREES," SAID HEAD ATLANTA SCOUT EARL TATUM. ROMERO, HOLLAND AND SMITH ARE ALL LEFTIES.
RELIEVERS
GANNON CHOSE THE ODD PLAN B HERE: GETTING ESTABLISHED VETERANS ON ONE-YEAR DEALS THAT AVERAGED ABOUT $1 MILLION EACH. TATUM SAID IT WILL BE BOOM - OR BUST - FOR AS MANY AS HALF THOSE PITCHERS: TAKASHI SAITO, ARTHUR RHODES, TIM BYRDAK, RUSS SPRINGER ...ETC.
"IF THEY ARE OVEREXPOSED - HAVING TO THROW IN TOO MANY GAMES - A FEW WILL BECOME INEFFECTIVE OR BREAK DOWN," TATUM SAID. "IT'S DEFINITELY A HUGE GAMBLE.
THE BRAVES WAITED TO GET RYAN FRANKLIN, THE LAST ESTABLISHED CLOSER.
OUTFIELD
THE DRAFT ALSO BROUGHT ABOUT AN UNEXEPTED PLAN C - SOME PLAYERS TARGETED FOR MINOR-LEAGUE DUTY PUSHED THEIR WAY ONTO THE 25-MAN ROSTER.
"OF COURSE, AARON CONNER (18-YEAR-OLD CENTERFIELDER) AND HANK CONGER (A YOUNG CATCHER) WERE THE TWO BIGGEST SURPRISES," TATUM SAID. CONNER IS ONE OF JUST THREE PLAYERS IN THE ORGANIZATION THAT ARE NATURAL CENTERFIELDERS (MARC WATSON AND BRAD STARKS ARE THE OTHERS).
CONNER PUSHED DOMONIC BROWN TO TRIPLE-A - AND ALSO CREATED A LOGJAM IN THE ATLANTA OUTFIELD.
"WITH THE DESIGNATED HITTER IN BOTH LEAGUES NOW, IT WAS SOMETHING WE WERE PREPARED FOR," TATUM SAID.
GONZALEZ, CONNER, MARKAKIS, HEYWARD AND MIKE STANTON WILL ROTATE BETWEEN OF AND DH. DOUMIT CAN PLAY RIGHT, 1B BILLY BUTLER HAS EXPERIENCE AT BOTH CORNER POSITIONS AND 22-YEAR-OLD UTILITY PLAYER TIM GRISSOM CAN PLAY ALL THREE OF SPOTS.
TATUM SAID GRISSOM AND UTILITY INFIELDER MIGUEL CAIRO WILL PLAY KEY ROLES.
"GRISSOM PLAYS ANYWHERE BUT FIRST BASE AND CATCHER. HE MIGHT BE THE ORGANIZATION'S BEST ATHLETE," TATUM SAID.
INFIELD
FOR NOW, TATUM SAID, GRISSOM WILL FIND HIS PLAYING TIME WHEN 3B DAYAN VICIEDO, SS STEPHEN DREW AND 2B ADRIAN FERNANDEZ NEED BREAKS. BUTLER CAN BE SPELLED BY CAIRO OR DOUMIT, WHO IS THE NO. 1 CATCHER.
PREDICTION:
88-74, NL EAST CHAMPS.
BY DEXTER McKEE
SPORTSWRITER
ATLANTA SUN
ATLANTA - WITH LAST WINTER'S DISMANTLING OF MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL AS WE KNEW IT, NOT EVERYTHING IS NEW FOR BRAVES FANS,
JASON HEYWARD IS STILL A BRAVE, ANYWAY. SO IS FREDDIE FREEMAN, ALBEIT IN THE MINORS.
THE LANDMARK DECISION BY FEDERAL JUDGE GARY WADE IN NOVEMBER 2011 SET ALL MLB AND MINOR LEAGUERS FREE - SOMEWHAT. ALL WERE SUBJECT TO AN 75-ROUND DRAFT, WHICH IN THEORY, WAS TO RESTOCK BIG LEAGUE ROSTERS AS WELL AS CLASS AAA AND AA TEAMS.
THOSE NOT SELECTED IN THE JANUARY 2012 DRAFT WERE SET FREE TO NEGOTIATE WITH TEAMS OF THEIR CHOICE. THOSE UNDER CONTRACT WERE KEPT THAT WAY - PLAYERS WHO WOULD HAVE BECOME FREE AGENTS FOR 2012 WERE AWARDED ONE-YEAR DEALS WITH A 30 PERCENT BONUS ADDED TO THE LAST YEAR OF THEIR PREVIOUS CONTRACTS.
"THAT RULING KEPT US - AND MANY OTHER TEAMS - FROM DRAFTING CERTAIN PLAYERS," SAID BRAVES GM LEE GANNON. "IT BECAME A NEW BASEBALL WORLD FOR VETERANS AND THOSE WITH ONLY ONE-YEAR CONTRACTS."
ATLANTA WENT WITH THE THEORY - ADOPTED BY ABOUT ONE-THIRD OF ALL THE CLUBS - OF DRAFTING YOUNG TALENT AND DECENT PLAYERS ALREADY UNDER CONTRACTS WITH TWO OR MORE YEARS LEFT.
"WE HAD A WEEK (TO PLAN FOR THE DRAFT) AND WE GOT ABOUT 90 PERCENT OF THE PLAYERS WE WERE AIMING FOR," GANNON SAID.
"... AND WITH THE EIGHTH SELECTION, THE ATLANTA BRAVES SELECT OUTFIELDER CARLOS GONZALEZ."
THE MAIN REASON?
"ACTUALLY, WITH HIS TALENT AND CONTRACT (FIRST YEAR OF A SEVEN-YEAR DEAL), WE THOUGH CARLOS WOULD BE GONE WHEN WE PICKED."
THE BRAVES' NEXT PICK, THE 53RD SELECTION, WAS OUTFIELDER NICK MARKAKIS, CONSIDERED A BARGAIN WITH A A 4-YEAR, $16 MILLION CONTRACT. THE BRAVES STUCK TO THEIR GAME PLAN, GRABBING HEYWARD NEXT FOLLOWED BY SWITCH-HITTING CATCHER RYAN DOUMIT. SEE BOTTOM OF PAGE FOR DRAFT RESULTS.
PREVIEW
STARTING PITCHING
ATLANTA GOT A RICH YOUNG STAR IN YOVANNI GALLARDO - AND PLENTY OF HOPE IN RICKY ROMERO, IAN KENNEDY, DEREK HOLLAND AND GREG SMITH.
"GALLARDO IS PROVEN - AS ARE THE OTHERS, TO VARYING DEGREES," SAID HEAD ATLANTA SCOUT EARL TATUM. ROMERO, HOLLAND AND SMITH ARE ALL LEFTIES.
RELIEVERS
GANNON CHOSE THE ODD PLAN B HERE: GETTING ESTABLISHED VETERANS ON ONE-YEAR DEALS THAT AVERAGED ABOUT $1 MILLION EACH. TATUM SAID IT WILL BE BOOM - OR BUST - FOR AS MANY AS HALF THOSE PITCHERS: TAKASHI SAITO, ARTHUR RHODES, TIM BYRDAK, RUSS SPRINGER ...ETC.
"IF THEY ARE OVEREXPOSED - HAVING TO THROW IN TOO MANY GAMES - A FEW WILL BECOME INEFFECTIVE OR BREAK DOWN," TATUM SAID. "IT'S DEFINITELY A HUGE GAMBLE.
THE BRAVES WAITED TO GET RYAN FRANKLIN, THE LAST ESTABLISHED CLOSER.
OUTFIELD
THE DRAFT ALSO BROUGHT ABOUT AN UNEXEPTED PLAN C - SOME PLAYERS TARGETED FOR MINOR-LEAGUE DUTY PUSHED THEIR WAY ONTO THE 25-MAN ROSTER.
"OF COURSE, AARON CONNER (18-YEAR-OLD CENTERFIELDER) AND HANK CONGER (A YOUNG CATCHER) WERE THE TWO BIGGEST SURPRISES," TATUM SAID. CONNER IS ONE OF JUST THREE PLAYERS IN THE ORGANIZATION THAT ARE NATURAL CENTERFIELDERS (MARC WATSON AND BRAD STARKS ARE THE OTHERS).
CONNER PUSHED DOMONIC BROWN TO TRIPLE-A - AND ALSO CREATED A LOGJAM IN THE ATLANTA OUTFIELD.
"WITH THE DESIGNATED HITTER IN BOTH LEAGUES NOW, IT WAS SOMETHING WE WERE PREPARED FOR," TATUM SAID.
GONZALEZ, CONNER, MARKAKIS, HEYWARD AND MIKE STANTON WILL ROTATE BETWEEN OF AND DH. DOUMIT CAN PLAY RIGHT, 1B BILLY BUTLER HAS EXPERIENCE AT BOTH CORNER POSITIONS AND 22-YEAR-OLD UTILITY PLAYER TIM GRISSOM CAN PLAY ALL THREE OF SPOTS.
TATUM SAID GRISSOM AND UTILITY INFIELDER MIGUEL CAIRO WILL PLAY KEY ROLES.
"GRISSOM PLAYS ANYWHERE BUT FIRST BASE AND CATCHER. HE MIGHT BE THE ORGANIZATION'S BEST ATHLETE," TATUM SAID.
INFIELD
FOR NOW, TATUM SAID, GRISSOM WILL FIND HIS PLAYING TIME WHEN 3B DAYAN VICIEDO, SS STEPHEN DREW AND 2B ADRIAN FERNANDEZ NEED BREAKS. BUTLER CAN BE SPELLED BY CAIRO OR DOUMIT, WHO IS THE NO. 1 CATCHER.
PREDICTION:
88-74, NL EAST CHAMPS.
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