Meta tags:
description= A blog dedicated to the Atlanta Braves. News, rumors, commentary and much more.;
Headings (most frequently used words):
braves, the, of, have, to, for, are, choptalk, one, swing, bat, closes, book, on, 2013, may, medicine, cure, blue, flu, is, chief, needed, young, rotation, no, stranger, adversity, trade, deadline, report, schedule, sets, them, up, smooth, sailing, bats, chopping, at, bit, we, re, way, home, bullpen, burnout, do, heyward, obsession, subscribe, by, email, twitter, feed, archives, categories,
Text of the page (most frequently used words):
the (808), and (403), that (243), #braves (165), for (145), this (142), with (104), have (101), you (82), can (76), but (74), will (73), they (73), are (71), season (71), has (68), not (66), his (63), game (60), would (59), all (57), one (57), out (57), there (54), games (52), heyward (51), was (51), fredi (49), what (49), team (48), who (46), then (44), bullpen (43), been (42), baseball (41), year (41), from (41), their (39), over (38), him (36), now (35), get (34), league (34), ball (34), when (34), even (34), upton (33), gonzalez (33), off (33), could (33), jason (33), more (33), them (32), wren (31), time (31), which (31), atlanta (30), 2013 (30), back (30), line (28), just (27), very (27), some (27), about (27), series (27), lead (26), where (26), into (25), play (25), think (25), rotation (24), may (24), any (24), field (24), well (24), every (23), players (23), club (23), frank (22), these (22), win (22), schafer (22), our (22), because (22), make (22), down (22), dodgers (22), like (21), day (21), come (21), lot (21), being (21), good (21), guys (21), were (21), still (21), take (20), player (20), way (20), going (20), most (20), other (19), your (19), point (19), major (19), put (19), best (19), really (19), however (18), only (18), hit (18), how (18), big (18), far (18), many (18), need (18), also (17), base (17), last (17), hitting (17), much (17), run (17), both (17), home (17), outfield (16), needs (16), does (16), see (16), long (16), start (16), playing (15), while (15), those (15), won (15), kimbrel (15), don (15), already (14), end (14), top (14), spot (14), better (14), too (14), innings (14), division (14), against (14), east (13), man (13), right (13), look (13), leagues (13), trade (13), why (13), doesn (13), guy (13), playoff (13), enough (13), garcia (13), playoffs (12), minor (12), october (12), leave (12), regular (12), few (12), runs (12), made (12), despite (12), almost (12), able (12), medlen (12), post (12), comment (11), posted (11), written (11), bob (11), something (11), 1st (11), weeks (11), reason (11), position (11), give (11), two (11), things (11), move (11), set (11), times (11), teams (11), had (11), fans (11), someone (11), world (11), national (11), young (11), bat (11), mlb (10), 2011 (10), 2012 (10), tomahawk87 (10), mcvinua (10), jordan (10), fan (10), freeman (10), bats (10), mccann (10), situation (10), order (10), little (10), batting (10), issue (10), believe (10), before (10), anyone (10), next (10), after (10), nothing (10), starting (10), uggla (10), injury (10), justin (9), possible (9), opportunity (9), gattis (9), teheran (9), struggling (9), sure (9), making (9), getting (9), night (9), same (9), without (9), left (9), away (9), did (9), again (9), full (9), say (9), played (9), single (9), close (9), maholm (9), never (9), road (9), comes (9), schedule (9), inning (9), said (9), new (8), tagged (8), help (8), solid (8), work (8), want (8), freddie (8), bench (8), part (8), around (8), isn (8), craig (8), flaherty (8), course (8), thing (8), together (8), late (8), hudson (8), record (8), once (8), capable (8), blow (8), winning (8), swing (8), bit (8), catcher (8), didn (8), freddy (8), card (7), pitching (7), possibly (7), job (7), came (7), comfortable (7), different (7), putting (7), struggles (7), throw (7), since (7), pitch (7), type (7), certain (7), himself (7), continue (7), find (7), injuries (7), quite (7), venters (7), roster (7), people (7), happened (7), bad (7), decisions (7), stretch (7), ace (7), hasn (7), know (7), beat (7), such (7), chance (7), decision (7), hits (7), difficult (7), 2nd (7), simmons (7), tell (7), 8th (7), blog (6), april (6), basis (6), having (6), power (6), pressure (6), seem (6), always (6), critical (6), gotten (6), often (6), issues (6), through (6), strong (6), staff (6), roles (6), pitchers (6), feel (6), fill (6), looking (6), level (6), another (6), term (6), bases (6), star (6), past (6), hope (6), summer (6), kris (6), actually (6), offense (6), thus (6), production (6), turner (6), beachy (6), working (6), sometimes (6), fact (6), place (6), done (6), allowed (6), today (6), either (6), deadline (6), short (6), david (6), carpenter (6), email (5), choptalk (5), wild (5), sports (5), june (5), saying (5), sitting (5), here (5), glove (5), least (5), outfielders (5), several (5), mind (5), results (5), under (5), absolutely (5), entire (5), money (5), others (5), sit (5), hurt (5), void (5), went (5), bullpens (5), outside (5), less (5), seasons (5), relievers (5), lost (5), biggest (5), certainly (5), eric (5), important (5), mets (5), each (5), role (5), forward (5), veteran (5), haven (5), yes (5), manager (5), 500 (5), dan (5), years (5), washington (5), couldn (5), nationals (5), wouldn (5), closer (5), likely (5), dollar (5), deal (5), arms (5), starters (5), forget (5), struggled (5), doing (5), else (5), try (5), allows (5), everyone (5), offensive (5), chris (5), johnson (5), produce (5), limited (5), during (5), plate (5), hitters (5), winter (5), knew (5), reds (5), 4th (5), locked (5), rather (5), front (5), wordpress (4), com (4), name (4), sign (4), subscribe (4), free (4), august (4), september (4), should (4), true (4), moving (4), week (4), bottom (4), average (4), success (4), lower (4), future (4), million (4), ever (4), franchise (4), paper (4), maybe (4), stands (4), runners (4), large (4), bring (4), element (4), supposed (4), half (4), speed (4), confidence (4), names (4), themselves (4), question (4), lose (4), elite (4), relief (4), doubt (4), management (4), office (4), filled (4), affective (4), happen (4), aren (4), fear (4), beyond (4), began (4), miss (4), enormous (4), arguably (4), numbers (4), successful (4), rare (4), become (4), months (4), losing (4), streak (4), hands (4), final (4), whether (4), given (4), nearly (4), eventually (4), holding (4), marlins (4), weekend (4), own (4), especially (4), pretty (4), break (4), keep (4), pitcher (4), starter (4), great (4), gave (4), multiple (4), suffered (4), brought (4), walden (4), experience (4), starts (4), american (4), lack (4), heat (4), plays (4), sense (4), mean (4), extremely (4), found (4), catchers (4), brian (4), proven (4), gives (4), moves (4), trying (4), means (4), change (4), prove (4), push (4), spent (4), figure (4), era (4), threw (4), spring (4), training (4), similar (4), everything (4), report (3), uncategorized (3), brewers (3), july (3), month (3), 100 (3), impressive (3), seems (3), center (3), solution (3), evan (3), due (3), whole (3), wants (3), catch (3), ready (3), excellent (3), knows (3), 7th (3), took (3), 3rd (3), performing (3), stand (3), option (3), missing (3), gets (3), yet (3), perfect (3), saw (3), related (3), argument (3), giving (3), clubs (3), affect (3), rest (3), mid (3), prospect (3), speak (3), gone (3), currently (3), none (3), deals (3), match (3), create (3), seen (3), removed (3), surgery (3), mechanics (3), struck (3), goes (3), topic (3), article (3), stats (3), stop (3), mike (3), julio (3), emerge (3), tim (3), although (3), support (3), thrown (3), expectations (3), shot (3), talent (3), high (3), outcome (3), surely (3), thought (3), argue (3), ago (3), until (3), hold (3), sweep (3), earlier (3), career (3), interesting (3), orioles (3), ultimate (3), goal (3), momentum (3), quality (3), heard (3), questions (3), between (3), consistently (3), fresh (3), difference (3), brothers (3), ton (3), wins (3), list (3), deeper (3), added (3), worse (3), hot (3), signed (3), shown (3), points (3), problem (3), days (3), across (3), panic (3), attitude (3), consistency (3), period (3), puts (3), consistent (3), hanging (3), exactly (3), opinion (3), averages (3), arm (3), behind (3), first (3), wasn (3), productive (3), types (3), forced (3), hitter (3), answer (3), effort (3), injured (3), bourn (3), advantage (3), ones (3), talented (3), records (3), possibility (3), mark (3), backs (3), hand (3), ahead (3), rumors (3), wood (3), missed (3), poll (3), jaw (3), quickly (3), ankle (3), fractured (3), throughout (3), stepped (3), held (3), itself (3), opponents (3), avilan (3), huge (3), allowing (3), called (3), pitched (3), batters (3), divisional (3), round (3), advance (3), combination (3), amount (3), earned (3), kemp (3), news (3), 162 (3), easy (3), 2014 (3), leadership (3), significant (3), save (3), wanted (3), site (2), required (2), loading (2), comments (2), collapse (2), view (2), log (2), subscribed (2), tigers (2), phillies (2), gwinnett (2), giants (2), cardinals (2), pujols (2), january (2), march (2), select (2), archives (2), join (2), address (2), receive (2), posts (2), open (2), alternative (2), idea (2), opens (2), lineup (2), small (2), sample (2), size (2), looked (2), bringing (2), table (2), monday (2), nightly (2), laird (2), leaving (2), basically (2), cover (2), driving (2), 6th (2), approach (2), competed (2), situations (2), handle (2), guaranteed (2), matter (2), dealing (2), appear (2), surrounding (2), paid (2), neither (2), unfortunately (2), hole (2), frame (2), hype (2), blew (2), brief (2), attempt (2), present (2), ability (2), lots (2), reasons (2), provide (2), leaders (2), grow (2), within (2), welcome (2), bigger (2), replace (2), pieces (2), plug (2), dry (2), closers (2), return (2), remaining (2), remember (2), forever (2), nor (2), stick (2), handed (2), tommy (2), john (2), immediately (2), worked (2), statement (2), couple (2), talk (2), johnny (2), process (2), entity (2), chances (2), ask (2), heart (2), morale (2), rarely (2), buster (2), barely (2), burnout (2), mound (2), appears (2), personally (2), 5th (2), emerged (2), fast (2), 10th (2), convinced (2), standards (2), higher (2), likes (2), epic (2), pull (2), boss (2), deliver (2), result (2), face (2), changed (2), instant (2), use (2), fully (2), consecutive (2), anyways (2), strangle (2), scenario (2), standings (2), jays (2), add (2), call (2), highly (2), brandon (2), double (2), date (2), main (2), aaa (2), relax (2), focus (2), candidate (2), sent (2), old (2), correct (2), health (2), outs (2), appearances (2), tear (2), witnessed (2), load (2), jonny (2), attempts (2), nice (2), sept (2), read (2), direction (2), sits (2), watching (2), head (2), altering (2), soon (2), leader (2), benefit (2), majority (2), case (2), fence (2), luxury (2), understand (2), obviously (2), comparisons (2), imagine (2), door (2), piece (2), comparison (2), 150 (2), afford (2), quit (2), defense (2), basemen (2), experts (2), leaves (2), occasionally (2), ways (2), positions (2), tricky (2), represent (2), molina (2), frustration (2), worth (2), outstanding (2), love (2), silver (2), reach (2), 300 (2), possesses (2), begin (2), beltran (2), ended (2), michael (2), general (2), traded (2), worst (2), die (2), optimism (2), realize (2), side (2), roughly (2), assuming (2), royals (2), arguments (2), soft (2), fine (2), smooth (2), sailing (2), sets (2), search (2), spots (2), action (2), everyday (2), sort (2), makes (2), feels (2), recovery (2), stone (2), show (2), signs (2), accomplish (2), recent (2), meetings (2), combined (2), suffer (2), packing (2), fort (2), motions (2), becomes (2), choice (2), disabled (2), cry (2), wait (2), plagued (2), adversity (2), alex (2), managed (2), faces (2), myself (2), matching (2), luis (2), disappointed (2), stranger (2), lights (2), interest (2), chicago (2), white (2), sox (2), scoreless (2), outing (2), championship (2), assumed (2), paul (2), yankees (2), attempted (2), bold (2), predictions (2), knowledge (2), expect (2), blink (2), eye (2), chief (2), needed (2), eastern (2), string (2), 9th (2), terms (2), ryu (2), victory (2), dodger (2), matt (2), ethier (2), kershaw (2), winner (2), secure (2), except (2), dominance (2), blue (2), improve (2), heading (2), nights (2), loss (2), impact (2), believes (2), competitive (2), second (2), guess (2), questioned (2), juan (2), uribe (2), slider (2), somewhere (2), circle (2), life (2), closes (2), dedicated (2), commentary (2), started, design, website, write, bar, manage, subscriptions, reader, content, privacy, account, recaps, payroll, reports, jose, reyes, jair, jurrjens, agency, derek, lowe, constanza, albert, categories, november, december, tweets, braves_choptalk, twitter, feed, subscribers, enter, notifications, older, solutions, pursued, imperative, keeps, options, explores, eager, key, lacking, defend, listen, plugged, catches, hopefully, creates, include, uptons, thrived, tore, showing, got, moved, performance, areas, drop, near, generally, speaking, sending, message, occupy, statistical, financial, aspect, exercise, arguing, energy, diamond, performances, penciled, dropped, athletic, specimen, feet, inches, tall, weighs, 240lbs, deer, icon, excitement, water, gather, enthusiasm, based, emotion, factual, information, early, labeling, failure, surface, inks, heywards, decade, unique, circumstances, respective, obsession, constant, calming, fester, step, fallen, loses, assume, sing, agents, poking, inventory, system, damage, dip, created, clubhouse, journeymen, contracts, replaceable, mix, christian, martinez, member, typically, core, members, suddenly, anger, circumstantial, clouded, realized, handled, simply, factor, factors, requirement, latter, historical, proportions, hearts, opposing, trailed, regarding, york, breaking, zaps, faster, blowing, turns, heated, debate, focused, block, signing, juices, recognizable, details, discussing, misunderstood, grab, emerges, nicely, outings, shaky, watch, argued, overly, dominating, sharp, danger, 2001, window, replaced, forgiving, melvin, oakland, ours, upset, hosted, larger, pay, roll, satisfy, failed, competing, music, accountability, measures, timely, blasts, underestimate, pace, homers, nervous, glimpses, snapped, funk, sunday, wake, morning, claw, impossible, unlikely, recall, strasburg, gio, yard, fetched, dickey, fall, victim, agreement, showdown, town, emphasis, valuable, depth, asset, bridge, project, demotion, inch, jump, exit, stage, immune, various, touted, hate, changing, showed, predecessor, brilliant, ease, fulfilling, hopeful, header, 18th, mistaken, inserted, note, angels, appeared, varvaro, gearrin, allow, normal, stellar, tonight, radar, gun, stint, blessing, disguise, recreate, punch, receptive, age, salary, completely, hey, tried, joining, bouncing, fixed, adjustments, staying, trend, obligated, simple, taxed, haunt, occasional, sake, odd, concerning, complete, staffs, saves, wear, verify, stamina, parts, ridiculous, fastball, simplify, rid, developed, computer, contract, minimum, strikeout, unfamiliarity, figured, privilege, swinging, millions, dollars, contribute, flawed, unfamiliar, lowest, tampa, tearing, arrival, usual, bore, reference, math, fun, enjoyed, cheering, stressing, bravos, assess, dog, country, weather, humidity, cause, fly, park, alarming, rate, style, predict, defined, bashing, picked, conclusion, firm, wishy, washy, contributing, helping, inconsistent, cage, coaches, films, till, hours, trust, relationship, emotional, outburst, house, display, authority, examine, aspects, suggestions, coaching, included, extended, decisive, solve, problems, displays, faith, troops, employees, hesitates, establish, stability, suggestion, 336, solo, shots, pillows, maximize, predictable, involve, gist, environment, strive, responsibilities, settle, craft, employment, walking, asking, wall, bunch, tells, selected, department, pulling, worn, obvious, clock, group, category, identical, flattering, betweenwhat, movie, adventure, translate, throwing, tracking, balls, sacrifice, becoming, overall, fields, agile, footwork, predicting, title, mentioned, choose, finds, experimented, falter, moments, flare, dramatics, drive, trouble, proves, reduced, pinch, posey, yadier, beating, adage, per, catching, accurate, valid, concern, articles, mentioning, brings, apparently, handing, slugger, awards, abused, established, credible, improved, younger, tremendously, willing, amounts, throws, air, swipe, obp, humanly, 310, batter, box, entered, knowing, unproven, ignition, cheer, leading, pom, poms, minute, moment, fix, panned, passion, refused, carlos, pan, following, decided, instead, departure, argues, boat, smart, whenever, pure, men, assembled, anticipate, live, chopping, opportunities, clear, vision, wher, waits, stronger, easily, classic, swept, cincinnati, ryan, braun, lined, crippling, milwaukee, below, flirting, san, francisco, concludes, unofficial, counted, prefer, scuffling, opponent, perfectly, captain, hesitant, internet, theories, floating, materializing, addresses, comings, knock, fairly, minimal, judging, status, weaknesses, magnified, jammed, packed, stops, skill, available, breed, baseman, 280, decent, threat, paths, unless, sat, let, steady, filling, vulnerable, combining, arizona, honest, pleasant, surprise, 332, highest, comparable, output, staggering, shoulder, lock, third, trading, value, resign, built, anywhere, untouchable, build, progress, improvement, admit, mistake, obtain, essentially, strategy, flexibility, loved, optimistic, kind, realizing, dynamic, budding, super, gold, building, anticipation, version, towards, renewed, further, reassurance, harsh, reality, longer, contender, pick, heal, safety, comfort, peace, occurs, athlete, bounce, favoring, limping, body, remain, wishing, speedy, hoping, sooner, later, joke, painful, lining, directly, activities, broken, torn, acl, grave, returns, deserves, recognized, eerie, feeling, mention, wrapped, ideal, minus, fought, includes, resolved, 290, 380, percentage, scored, stolen, buried, deep, forgotten, 366, seemed, definitely, column, suggest, wise, ranging, margin, afternoon, citi, recap, medical, occurred, refresher, imagined, deceptive, motion, kept, balance, bordering, electric, dna, effective, sinker, positive, outlook, affected, concerned, fair, dearly, reshaped, remained, concerns, strike, mixing, spectacular, lefty, boy, sporting, shiny, 21era, tremendous, contributions, word, bug, premier, unable, ending, mode, feared, revered, active, ring, exception, gerald, louis, consider, shine, brighter, mounts, levels, experiencing, beneficial, act, mentor, careers, intent, skip, 167, charts, 28era, notably, 2005, houston, astros, clinching, natural, exist, inexperienced, beginning, surpassed, expand, standard, procedure, 2009, strain, avoid, thank, goodness, skate, suspect, breath, dreaming, reread, previous, 10x, assure, correctly, crazy, insane, prepared, backlash, zeros, tomorrow, hero, obtained, exchange, undisclosed, cash, considerations, keeping, quiet, risk, accidentally, purposely, stumbled, nicknamed, recently, skeptical, anymore, inexpensive, eat, became, anything, nlds, champions, deserve, recognition, expert, busy, activity, labeled, dogs, autumn, winds, scoring, turn, hard, friend, dependent, trailing, tough, tie, maker, offensively, happy, 138, 24th, weapon, arsenal, 181, walked, 155, 186, passes, 126, 183, 222avg, 240avg, majors, 13th, addressed, matched, hyun, jin, occasions, resulted, faced, los, angeles, reads, regularly, campaigning, shaping, shelf, balanced, thurs, andre, slightly, thinner, rifle, faithful, energizes, poor, send, essential, clearly, boast, total, striking, closed, landed, folks, spear, straight, clayton, award, terrorized, ups, accomplishing, positives, hang, its, hat, thursday, must, excited, unpredictable, task, greinke, feat, taken, boasts, incredible, achieved, fail, number, seed, secured, manged, dominant, dominate, medicine, cure, flu, 1940, brooklyn, coined, til, promise, disappointment, root, finally, strength, youth, sport, youngest, adding, continuing, develop, drastic, spoken, possess, urgency, snap, track, managerial, answered, shortly, form, beloved, sound, confident, returning, rangers, services, changes, walk, fashion, anchor, grabs, familiar, business, upon, responsible, ignore, significance, andrelton, opening, 75million, managers, truly, looms, organization, fire, dusty, baker, satisfaction, hire, hopes, fit, dugout, ran, gas, crucial, sides, undesirable, strikes, preserve, greatly, benefited, steal, aware, perception, standing, hammered, scores, relevant, contests, amounting, dominated, defeat, manner, split, advancing, glad, deserved, unsure, perspective, yourself, particular, drove, expected, original, panicked, appreciative, forth, traveled, premiere, middle, wonder, prediction, wrong, experienced, begins, newly, rebuilt, favorite, amongst, translation, obstacles, proud, bust, billy, beane, crap, generations, cubs, angry, thrilled, flat, confused, meeting, red, stat, coming, horrific, battling, summed, crushed, necessarily, ramifications, trades, agent, signings
Text of the page (random words):
uld wake up monday morning with an 8 5 game lead and a strangle hold over the n l east not to say washington still couldn t claw back but that would be quite a whole to over come and would really be a big blow to their already struggling morale as a ball club this is an opportunity for the braves to really deliver a big blow in these 4 consecutive games they play from now until sunday if they make the most of them they could really be sitting in a good spot 8 dan uggla uggla hasn t been the player that we thought he would be when he came over from the marlins which is why i think a lot of fans are so nervous about b j upton they can see glimpses of the same thing going on and many would argue uggla has never fully snapped out of the funk that he began with 2 years ago however this year uggla has already hit 10 home runs and we re a 1 3 of the way through the season a few of them have been timely blasts that changed the outcome or at least the course of a game in the late innings you can never underestimate the power of the long ball as instant offense and thus far dan has given the braves just that on pace to hit nearly 30 homers even 25 would be a very solid power year for uggla and the braves could surely use the production 9 fredi gonzalez eventually the manager has to face the music and take accountability for the results of their players right now the braves are in a good spot sitting 10 games over 500 and holding a 4 5 game lead in the national league east however is making the playoffs enough what measures is frank wren currently holding fredi gonzalez to if fredi were to make the playoffs as a wild card and once again lose in the one game playoff is that enough to satisfy the boss at what point does wren say we want to win the world series and you ve failed to deliver us that result with a team that s more then capable of competing at a high level i still believe that bob melvin out in oakland has gotten far more out of his players then fredi has out of ours last year they won a division and 94 ball games they took the tigers to 5 games and had a shot to pull of the upset they hosted a playoff series at home and yes the braves also won 94 ball games but fredi did it with a lot more talent and a larger pay roll the braves haven t won a playoff series since 2001 and eventually the standards of just getting in will be thrown out the window and replaced with higher expectations i know the braves management likes fredi a lot but they have also already put up with a lot in forgiving him for the epic late season collapse of 2011 10 will an ace emerge i think the 10th and final thing to watch for the braves is whether or not an ace will emerge from this staff at the start of the season some argued it would be the veteran tim hudson while others were convinced it was kris medlen neither one has been overly dominating and although medlen could have a better record if given more run support he still hasn t been nearly as sharp as he was last year and is actually in danger of being removed from the rotation all together i think right now the staff ace appears to be mike minor he s the guy i personally feel most comfortable giving the ball to every 5th day and possibly close to that is julio teheran who has emerged quite nicely in his last few outings hudson and maholm have been shaky despite maholm s very fast start down the stretch every rotation needs that one guy who can stop a losing streak and who can lead their rotation into the playoffs the guy who will get the ball in game 1 hands down the guy you want on the mound with your season on the line someone needs to grab that role going forward i hope that player emerges over the summer months by bob mcvinua written by tomahawk87 leave a comment posted in atlanta braves baseball heyward mlb n l east pitching tagged with atlanta braves baseball bj upton braves fredi gonzalez jason heyward pitching rotation may 21 2013 bullpen burnout i don t want this article to become one that is filled with stats and numbers i don t want to go into the details of the past season this season or any other season all this is about is discussing an often misunderstood entity of the game of baseball the major league bullpens the topic of bullpens rarely turns into a heated debate even by baseball s biggest fans people are far more focused on the starting rotation and the position players that play every single day it s rare for there to be a block buster bullpen signing or trade that really gets the juices of baseball fans going and the names in each bullpen are barely recognizable to most baseball fans however we can t over look this important element of the game and what really goes on in the process of making decisions regarding this entity of the game bad bullpens hurt your chances of being a successful ball club just ask the new york mets who for several seasons now have had enormous issues at the back end of their bullpen there s nothing more heart breaking for a team and nothing that zaps morale faster then the bullpen blowing a late game lead a lot of talk has been made of the atlanta braves bullpen the past several seasons johnny venters eric o flaherty and craig kimbrel made up arguably the best back end of any bullpen in the major leagues they put up numbers of historical proportions and struck fear in the hearts of opposing teams that trailed the braves in the late innings but suddenly fear anger and even circumstantial doubt has clouded fan bases and management a like after the braves realized that not one but both of their elite left handed relievers were going to be lost for the season and possibly beyond due to the need for tommy john surgery people immediately began to say that fredi gonzalez miss handled his bullpen and simply over worked them and to that statement i have absolutely no argument because i think that played an enormous factor in what happened to the two star relievers bad mechanics and being over worked to me are two of the biggest factors in the requirement for tommy john surgery and the latter was certainly an issue in atlanta the past couple of seasons however we have to remember one thing outside of elite closers bullpen guys are not forever nor do bullpens stick together in the long term typically that just doesn t happen if you even look back to the 2011 season the braves bullpen in less then a season and a half as seen 3 of it s 7 core members from that year leave the team almost half the bullpen is gone from that year and we aren t even 2 full seasons removed christian martinez is on the d l and now venters and o flaherty will join him now if those 3 guys do not return to the braves bullpen this year then you now have one remaining member of the 2011 braves bullpen on your present day roster and that s of course craig kimbrel bullpens are filled with journeymen relief pitchers who are often on 1 2 year contracts again outside of elite closers none of these guys are on long term deals why because quite often they are replaceable you can mix and match sign and trade guys around to create a bullpen that is affective did fredi damage two of our best relief pitchers no doubt about it he went to the well far too many times and now that well has gone dry he needs to dip into another well that is now currently being created by management both in the clubhouse and in frank wren s office will these loses hurt the braves without question you can t lose two elite pitchers out of your bullpen and feel no affect but at the same time you can t assume that the braves won t find other pieces to plug in there to fill the void that was left by the injuries the braves can look to sing free agents that may be poking around looking for work they can make a trade by giving away a mid level prospect for some relief help they can do an inventory so to speak on their minor league system and see who may be able to fill one of these roles at the big league level as long as craig kimbrel stands strong at the back end of that bullpen then there will be a constant calming affect with all the rest of the staff confidence will continue to fester and grow within that bullpen as we welcome new guys into bigger and better roles this is an opportunity for new guys to make names for themselves and for new guys to step and replace those who have fallen at the end of the day isn t that what sports is all about by bob mcvinua written by tomahawk87 leave a comment posted in uncategorized april 21 2013 do the braves have a heyward obsession there are lots of reasons for playing lots of different players and all of them come with a unique set of circumstances some players are written into the line up card because they provide speed or power some because they are the leaders of their respective ball clubs and others are just in their because they make too much money to sit on the bench despite their struggles but when fredi gonzalez inks in jason heywards name into the line up card what reason is he giving himself is he playing jason for his ability to help this ball club win baseball games is he putting him out there so that he can work through his struggles or is he putting him out there because he s jason heyward and he s supposed to be a franchise player for the next decade and a half certain players bring a certain element to the game that isn t on the field related a certain element that is based more on emotion then it is on factual information we are only a brief way into this 2013 season and it s too early to be labeling anyone as a success or failure for the season and i won t even attempt to do that however i can bring some issues i see with heyward to the surface of this argument that i m going to present to you guys since before heyward even saw a pitch in the major leagues he was a braves icon there was so much excitement and hype around him that blew even freddie freeman s move to the big leagues out of the water freddie freeman despite often out performing jason heyward does not gather the same type of enthusiasm maybe it s because on paper jason heyward is almost a perfect a athletic specimen he stands 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 240lbs he can field his position throw out base runners hit for average hit for power and the man can run like a deer despite his large frame there are very few baseball players that look as good as jason does on paper unfortunately baseball games are not won on paper they are won on the diamond with excellent team and player performances on a nightly basis and i believe that things may be getting a little too comfortable for mr heyward being penciled into the line up card night in and night out despite his struggles and on top of that has not even been dropped out of the 2 hole yet fredi is dealing with the pressure to play heyward because he can not appear to give up on the team s franchise player there s the energy surrounding the upton upton and heyward outfield the only issue is one upton is playing excellent baseball the other upton gets paid too much money to bench and heyward is neither of those two things with heyward under performing from a statistical stand point and only making 3 6 million from a financial aspect the braves could exercise the option of sitting heyward now if any of you are arguing that no one has ever gotten better by sitting on the bench and missing at bats you re absolutely right but i m not sure that s jason s entire issue i think the braves have possibly made it a little to comfortable for jason in atlanta always putting him in the line up and generally speaking batting him in a critical part of the line up the top 3rd is sending him the message that he is guaranteed to occupy that spot no matter what the results may be but what if the braves took a different approach with heyward and fredi put him in a position where he competed for playing time and competed for at bats with the other outfielders several situations come to mind of how fredi could handle this in the near future drop heyward to 6th or 7th when jason was put in the bottom part of the order last season he thrived and basically tore the cover off the ball for weeks on end he was hitting for a solid average and showing off his power while driving in runs a lot of his success last season came from the lower part of the order and the reason he got moved back up to the top of the order was because of his excellent performance in the 6th spot not sure if he s more comfortable there or if it s a lower pressure situation only jason knows this but he does seem to hit better in those areas of the line up evan gattis needs a job if you have been a fan of what evan gattis has been bringing to the table for the braves then you may want to listen to this alternative solution with freddie freeman due back on monday the whole at 1st base will now be plugged on a nightly basis so if gattis wants to get regular at bats then he will have to catch however laird catches at least 1 day a week with teheran and in a few weeks mccann will hopefully be ready to come back this creates a possible situation of moving justin upton to right field and having gattis play lf leaving the struggling heyward on the bench the line up would include all the major bats of freeman mccann gattis and the uptons a solution to our lead off needs the idea of possibly sitting heyward also opens up the opportunity to get jordan schafer into the lineup in a very small sample size schafer has looked impressive this year and seems eager to get some playing time the key here is that schafer is a true lead off man something that the braves have been lacking all year schafer can also defend the outfield with his solid glove work and could take over for bj in center while moving him to right field these are all just possible solutions and i m not saying that any of them should be 100 pursued at this point in the season but it s imperative that fredi keeps his options open and explores any and every alternative that would help the braves win ball games by bob mcvinua written by tomahawk87 leave a comment posted in atlanta braves mlb n l east sports tagged with baseball braves heyward nl older posts subscribe by email enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email email address sign me up join 20 other subscribers twitter feed tweets by braves_choptalk archives archives select month october 2013 2 september 2013 1 august 2013 1 july 2013 1 june 2013 2 may 2013 2 april 2013 2 march 2013 1 january 2013 1 october 2012 1 september 2012 1 august 2012 1 july 2012 5 june 2012 2 may 2012 5 april 2012 3 march 2012 2 january 2012 1 december 2011 5 november 2011 4 october 2011 1 september 2011 21 august 2011 23 categories albert pujols atlanta braves baseball bj upton brewers cardinals constanza derek lowe frank wren fredi gonzalez free agency giants gwinnett braves heyward jair jurrjens jose reyes justin upton minor league reports mlb n l east payroll phillies ...
|
