As summer is officially about to start in a couple weeks, mother nature has already given us a taste of what is to come with a couple days this week approaching 90. Hello summer, good bye spring. I like spring because it is warmer and things are green but I like summer more because it signals an end to my allergies and it is the heart of the baseball season. Basketball will finally be over in a couple of weeks, the playoffs go on forever it seems and baseball will be on its own to capture our hearts and give us memories of our youth. Summer is a time of innocence, a time to relax after long days out in the sun. It is time to recharge the batteries if they need recharging. And speaking of recharging the batteries, my hometown team, the Atlanta Braves, certainly know how to do that to this beleaguered 22 year old, just out of college, without yet a job in this poor economy, but I digress. Back to the recharge, it all started at 6:00 EST, that is Georgia time for all you Central Time Zoners, and 18:00 military, when the Braves announced that they had released Tom Glavine, 43 year old LHP with 305 career wins. Timing was curious and at the time, we fans did not fully comprehend what exactly was about to hit us in the next hour or so. Initial reaction was of shock and then curiosity and then I began to think. Before hearing any comments from GM Frank Wren, I knew this would be a PR nightmare, but I felt it was the move that gave us the best chance to win this year. Because if we had put him on the roster we would have to pay him $1 million, that is an awful lot to commit to a guy coming off of elbow and shoulder surgeries over the last year. The reports say his fastball consistently hit 83-84 MPH on the gun. Now that is pretty good if you are in high school but not if you are trying to get guys out at the major league level. I know he has never been known for velocity, but when you throw that slow your margin for error is very slim. His bread and butter pitch, the change-up is not as nearly effective when the fastball is only in the mid-80s. I do not fault the Braves management at all for this, this was a performance decision, as they said, but within that it was also a business decision. Wren said screw PR my job is on the line we need to win now and by bringing up top prospect 22 year old Tommy Hanson, he and his scouts felt like he gave them the best chance to win this year and at a cheaper price. This kid needs to get to pitch in the majors, he has already proven he can get AAA players out, let us see what he can do. The initial plan with Glavine was to put him in the regular 5 man rotation in mid-April, but setbacks caused that to be pushed back and he did not prove to be ready until now. Well now is too late, Hanson is ready, we cannot afford to lose any more ground by giving up games to a guy who will not pitch out of the 6th inning (Glavine). Not to harp on a future HOF but that is reality, that is what he was at best, a 6 inning pitcher. Not one Braves scout thought he had the stuff to get guys out at the major league level on a consistent basis. Hanson has the better potential and the better stuff right now, and potential is a dangerous word, but this guy has the stuff to get it done. No more Jo-Jo Reyes, and although Medlen will be good soon, Hanson has the potential to be special, his statistical numbers are outstanding, go look them up if you are curious. Let's see what this kid can do, I am excited for his debut this weekend.
The other major move yesterday was the addition of gold glove CF Nate McLouth from the Pittsburgh Pirates for minor leaguers, Gorkys Hernandez, Charlie Morton, and Jeff Locke, one OF and two pitchers. This news came down during the first couple of innings of last nights game against the Chicago Cubs. My friend Justin called me as soon as he announced it, we could not believe it, what a steal, what a player. One of our favorites. This is a move that says we are tired of sucking and this is move built on the long term with McLouth being signed for the next 3.5 years. He is going to provide the pop that we have been missing in the OF and on this team in general. A guy we can also place at the top of the lineup and use his speed to steal bags, to take the extra base, and to run down balls in the field. He is another left handed bat but a guy who can hit LHP so that will not be a problem. For this move to be made, we needed to give up some guys. Hernandez, a good CF prospect at the AA level is still a year plus away, Morton, in my opinion based on what I saw last year from him, will be a number 3 starter at best in the majors, Locke may be the best of the bunch, but he is struggling at high A ball and is still at least 2 years maybe more away from contributing. Due to our recent drafts, the minor league system for the Braves is filled with depth, especially in the OF and the pitchers. So we dealt from a position of strength, a smart business move. Plus we still have Jordan Schafer who struggled mightily his first 2 months this year for the Braves, who still might be a contributor for us sometime soon, but now is not yet his time, and it is fine now that we got a guy who can produce. When the kid is ready we will call him back up, but I do not anticipate that until late in the season. We probably still need another bat, but who knows where we will find it and who knows if we will get it, but I like these moves, they are bold moves but they are the right moves. The object is to win games now, and that is what these moves are telling me. I can't wait to see how this will all turn out. Yea come on!
Mb
No comments:
Post a Comment