Yeah, we might have a bit of a decision to make regarding what to do at 3B if Garcia keeps playing like this. Ideally, he keeps playing like this so we don't have to sign someone to a megadeal. Plus, I'd still like to see what we have in Ruiz. Maybe we can stick him in a platoon with Garcia sometime next year.
Lourdes Gurriel Declared Free Agent By Mark Polishuk | August 8, 2016 at 3:45pm CDT Cuban star Lourdes Gurriel Jr. has been declared a free agent by Major League Baseball, Fangraphs’ Eric Longenhagen reports (Twitter links). Gurriel is subject to international bonus pools now since he is just 22 years old, though he’ll be free of any spending restrictions when he turns 23 on October 19. The expectation is that Gurriel won’t sign until after his next birthday, as his market will be open to all 30 teams. Ten teams (including such big spenders as the Dodgers, Red Sox, Cubs, Yankees) are currently limited to signing of $300K and under for pool-eligible international players due to exceeding their pool limits in either of the last two years, so it only makes sense that Gurriel and his representatives at WMG would want as many suitors as possible given the wide interest in Gurriel’s talents. Gurriel has a career .277/.362/.426 line over 1098 career plate appearances in Cuba’s Serie Nacional, with much of his success coming in the last two years. In a scouting report from April 2015 (subscription required), Baseball America’s Ben Badler ranked Gurriel as the fourth-best player in Cuba at the time, crediting his patient approach at the plate, bat speed and good command of the strike zone. Gurriel has “a chance to be a plus hitter with a high OBP” with potential 20-homer power. Gurriel has played all four infield positions and in left field during his brief career, mostly recently getting a chance at shortstop. Badler doubts he has the range to stick at the position in the majors, though he could be a plus defender at third base. There are some cons, however, as Longenhagen tweets that Gurriel has received some “mixed” reports from scouts — he has a long swing and may be a “bit of a project for 23.” Concerns notwithstanding, Gurriel will certainly receive a bonus well into the eight-figure range. Many teams will check in, though the Astros stand out as an obvious candidate since they have already signed Gurriel’s older brother Yulieski. The younger Gurriel will require probably a year or two of minor league seasoning, which could give Houston give to figure out where exactly it would fit him into a lineup already stocked with established and young talent (Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman,A.J. Reed and Yulieski himself) at Gurriel’s potential positions. Yulieski has spoken in the past about playing with his brother under ideal circumstances, though he acknowledged the difficulties in such an arrangement given how the two are at such different stages of their careers.
I am good with getting more Cuban players. They all seem to have personality issues that don't mesh well with the team.
We haven't gained games on anyone. Twins and Reds have been hot too. Rays and Dbacks are coming into play now though.
Right, but we could just continue to play like shit. When my butt hurt sadness goes away, I'd appreciate Bo Jackson pt 2 in our lineup
Traitor? Have I become a Mets fan? Nah. I hate Cobb Co. Racist pieces of shit ruining our metro and most likely resulting in a worse fan experience. It's not like I have stopped following the Braves. I still read this thread, just went from being one of the most active to apathetic.
Couple pages back, I think. Definitely a good idea, though not sure it'll help as much as they think.
At one point you renounced your fandom because city > team. We are still reviewing your application to rejoin.
Braves announce Auburn Night at Turner Field Ron Sanders - 18 minutes ago Merica (Photo: Atlanta Braves/MLB) A number of former Auburn players have been a part of the Atlanta Braves over the decades. Now, the franchise will celebrate Auburn Night at Turner Field on August 20 in a game against the Washington Nationals. The Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Auburn Club are excited to announce Auburn Night at Turner Field on Saturday, August 20 as the Braves battle National League East Division Rival the Washington Nationals at 7 p.m. Arrive early to network with members of the Auburn family at a pregame gathering at the Club Patio beginning at 5 p.m. All tickets include a donation to the Atlanta Auburn Club Roy B. Sewell Memorial Scholarship Fund, and an Auburn themed Braves hat. Pricing: Terrace Reserved - $44 Outfield Pavilion - $35 Upper Box - $25
Another good one last night. We've won 4 in a row and are now 500 in the second half. I've turned a corner. . I want to finish the second half strong. As long as we have a top 5ish draft pick this year we should get an elite talent.
Braves since the AS break: First 10 games: 2-8, .678 OPS, 2.8 R/G, 0.6 HR/G, 5.65 ERA Past 14: 10-4, .773 OPS, 4.7 R/G, 0.8 HR/G, 3.09 ERA
Game Report: Ian Anderson August 11, 2016 By Kyle Glaser DANVILLE, Va.—In a matter of 64 pitches, Ian Anderson showed exactly why the Braves drafted him No. 3 overall in June, but also where he needs to grow in order to reach his immense potential. Anderson made his first start with Rookie-level Danville on Wednesday night, giving up two hits and a run in 3 2/3 innings before being pulled as he neared his pitch limit of 65. He showed a 93-96 mph fastball with late life and a sinking mid-80s changeup, but saw his initially strong command falter near the 50-pitch mark. He came away with a no-decision in Danville’s 5-4 loss to Bristol. “I was happy with it,” said Anderson, 18. “I thought I threw the ball well, did everything I could. It was good to get the first start out of the way. I know what I need to work on, but overall I felt like was satisfying.” The 6-foot-3, 170-pound righthander pounded the lower half of the zone with all three of his pitches, mixing a 79-82 mph curveball in with his fastball and changeup, and drew weak contact throughout the night. Anderson’s final batter, Bristol shortstop Adrian Valerio, chopped out weakly to third base, a fitting end to an evening where Anderson induced twice as many groundouts as flyouts. His only hits allowed were a pair of ground-ball singles. “I thought he looked pretty good,” Danville manager Robinson Cancel said. “Live fastball, good curveball, good changeup. We got reports on him obviously before he came here and he was as good as the reports said.” Anderson’s final line—3 2/3 innings, two hits, one run, two walks, two strikeouts—doesn’t jump out, but it was nonetheless a tantalizing debut in limited time. At the same time, Anderson showed he still has multiple areas to improve. His fastball velocity dropped to 91-93 mph as he neared the 60-pitch mark, and his inconsistent curveball bounced in the dirt more often than not. He also threw three wild pitches, although all three were blockable balls in the dirt that escaped his catcher. “I was just trying to be a little too fine with it instead of pounding the zone like I did the first two innings,” Anderson said. “It happens. Something I’ll learn from and move forward. It’s all about making adjustments and working on the fly as you go.” In addition to his raw stuff, Anderson’s poise on stood out as well. After putting himself in a hole with two walks and two wild pitches in the third inning, he got ahead of Bristol’s leading hitter Victor Fernandez and got him to fly out to end the inning and escape the jam. Again in the fourth, with his pitch count rising and a runner in scoring position, Anderson made a key pitch to get the weak chopper on what was his final pitch of the night. The run he was charged with scored after he left the game, when reliever Evertz Orozco replaced Anderson and promptly served up an RBI double. “I think he’s pretty mature for an 18-year-old kid,” Cancel said. “I like what I saw there.” It has been a quick rise for Anderson, who pitched his final high school game less than two months ago (June 11) and now has a 0.42 ERA in his first six professional starts, the first five coming in the Gulf Coast League. While he clearly has things to work on, he is showing the stuff, poise and ability to justify the Braves’ decision to make him their top draft choice. “He’s pretty great,” Cancel said. “He’s going to be a special kid.” NEWS AND NOTES • Danville first baseman Ramon Osuna hit a go-ahead two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to give the Braves a late lead. The Braves’ 14th-round pick in June smashed a hanging slider over the high wall in right center, with the TrackMan system at the park registering the ball’s exit velocity at 110 mph and a home run distance of 430 feet. The 21-year-old lefthanded hitter out of Walters State CC in Tennessee is hitting .344/.413/.531 with nine doubles, three homers and 18 RBIs in 29 games since being drafted. • Fernandez went 2-for-4 for Bristol to raise his average to .322 and also threw out a runner at the plate with a sensational throw from left field in the first inning. The runner on the play, Danville’s Matt Gonzalez, didn’t even slide after Fernandez’s throw reached the plate on the fly and beat Gonzalez by about 10 feet. The 21-year-old from the Dominican Republic was part of the Pirates’ 2014 international signing class.
Max Wildstein@MaxWildstein In exchange for Brian McCann, the #Yankees wanted Ender Inciarte and Mike Foltynewicz from the #Braves, according to @JonHeyman. I wouldn't give them either guy straight up for McCann
I would probably never answer a phone call from Cashman again if that even has the slightest bit of truth. McCann is worth a low level prospect, and that's if we pick up any big portion of his salary for the next 3 seasons. But 2 young talented MLB players? Borderline insane.
The Atlanta Braves are said to have concerns about Matt Kemp’s weight and will likely encourage an offseason workout program to get him back to his halcyon days. Weight loss was already on Kemp‘s own to-do list, say people close to him, so he and the team are on the same page. Kemp is listed at 215 pounds, but that might be on the low side. When he was runner-up in MVP voting to Ryan Braun, Kemp was listed at 208 pounds. He brings needed power, and the Braves took him once they negotiated their responsibility down to $31.5 million over the remaining three years on his deal. He has 24 home runs on the season after hitting 23 last year and 25 the season before. But his on-base percentage is still under .300 on the year and his defense has steadily declined. But the Braves have a projected future outfield of all left-handed hitters: Ender Inciarte, Nick Markakis and Mallex Smith. Kemp can serve as either a platoon or a full-time player that balances the lineup. Freddie Freeman was excited to have another power hitter in the lineup, and Kemp is the righty they need. But the Braves want to see his defense get back to something closer to what it was in past years. Perhaps a weight reduction could help
Who was it that wanted to get rid of Markakis before the deadline? Dude's been tearing it up. It's been so much fun watching Braves games lately. I almost forgot what it's like to win, even if these wins mean nothing.
ManBan DFA'd. Feel terrible for that guy. Great amount of talent, but his arm was just a mess. We also claimed Kyle Kubitza off waivers from Texas. Kubitza was the guy we traded for Ricardo Sanchez. He's been a mess at the plate since leaving the organization. Used to be an OBP machine, with a few seasons of over a .400 OBP while with the Braves. Since leaving his OBP is around .330 and his batting average is treading Mendoza line territory. So the Braves is taking on a restoration project for basically nothing.
That's a horrendous call on replay. Even the Nats announcers don't agree with it and are laughing about it. Should be 4 runs in, 0 out, and tying runner on 3rd base. Now there's 1 out, and nobody on. Just horrendous umpiring.