what a great day for Los Angeles cantinas

12/17/2008 10:43:15 PM

Wren said he faxed signed term sheet to Furcal's agent, and that's when he was informed the agent's partner (homo?) had been talking with the Dodgers.

Doesn't smell good on Raffy's end.

Well, I mean, $30M smells nice. Just kinda dirty the way they did it.

[Edited on December 18, 2008 at 7:19 AM. Reason : ]

12/18/2008 7:19:25 AM

If the Braves don't get Furcal, then oh well. He started off last season on a torrid pace before getting hurt, but I think he is past his prime. It would be nice to get a leadoff hitter and then have flexibility in the lineup if Escobar is not traded.

The Braves need to just give up the idea that they can compete next year and focus on a 2-3 year plan.

12/18/2008 8:26:53 AM

yep.... next year is going to be really bad

12/18/2008 10:25:51 AM

Oh GOD,

Schuerholz is PISSED

Quote :

"Braves president John Schuerholz has vowed to never again do business with Rafael Furcal's agents, whom Schuerholz accused in a newspaper interview of conducting "despicable" dealings with the team"

http://www.wralsportsfan.com/mlb/story/4174840/

12/19/2008 7:01:39 PM

Chipper and McCann are playing in the WBC

Also, I forgot the WBC existed

12/20/2008 1:25:47 PM

I'm probably in the minority, but I like the WBC.

I just hope Johan Santana doesn't pitch in it

12/20/2008 1:29:49 PM

Did not see this one coming. Smoltz's about to sign with the Red Sox according to ESPN.

Quote :

"John Smoltz has pitched his entire major league career with the Atlanta Braves, but he is on the verge of a deal with the Boston Red Sox, according to sources. Smoltz, 41, has pitched in 708 games for the Braves, winning 210 games and earning 154 saves. He has been been rehabilitating his shoulder since having surgery last season, and there have been reports that the has made excellent progress. Smoltz's departure from Atlanta would come in a winter in which the Braves have struggled to fill holes in their rotation; Atlanta was unable to land Jake Peavy, after extensive trade talks, and was unable to sign free agent A.J. Burnett. Boston's proposed deal with Smoltz is for $5.5 million in base salary, and $5 million in incentives. Assuming the Red Sox close out negotiations with Smoltz, they will go into spring training with six veteran starters -- Josh Beckett, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Jon Lester, Tim Wakefield, Brad Penny and Smoltz. Penny agreed to terms on a one-year, $5 million deal and will be in Boston Thursday for his physical examination. But the Red Sox have come to believe in the idea of going into each season overloaded with starting pitching; their assumption is that, at some point, injuries will factor in the equation, or some members of the rotation will need rest. The signings of Smoltz and Penny also give the Red Sox the flexibility to consider trading one of their young starting pitchers -- most notably Clay Buchholz, whose name has come up in trade talks with the Texas Rangers, for catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia, as well as with other teams."

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3817694&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines

1/8/2009 9:28:33 AM

the only thing i can figure is he wants one more crack at a world series, since obviously the braves are probably 2-3 years away from that kind of potential. i can't imagine they wouldn't pony a measly 5 mil to keep him

1/8/2009 9:33:03 AM

^^There's been rumors of that for at least a month.

1/8/2009 10:04:10 AM

havent heard any rumors whatsoever

this one was a shocker


I thought if anybody besides the braves, it would be the yanks

1/8/2009 11:20:21 AM

^ I heard the Red Sox rumors a while back as well. I just figured Smoltz would retire if he and the Braves did not come to some type of agreement. I am surprised the Braves are not trying to keep him at a bargin price of $5M. I think he'll fit with the Red Sox well though and give them some quality innings, even if it is only a 100 or so next year. The Braves are going to suck harder than a Dyson.




[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 11:32 AM. Reason : xcv]

1/8/2009 11:31:52 AM

I really dont see where he fits with the Red Sox

as a set up man?

Rotation already has: Beckett, Dice-K, Lester, Wakefield, Penny

They also have Clay Bucholz

Closer: Riverdance Papelbon

Not sure what their thoughts are on where smoltz will fit in

1/8/2009 11:45:02 AM

Reports are that he will start.....Wakefield likely to long-relief unless Penny has injury problems which he usually does.

1/8/2009 11:54:03 AM

red sox and yankees are going to fight it out in the AL this year

I think rays will fall off like rockies did last year

1/8/2009 12:43:07 PM

The Red Sox are so money as an organization. They have awesome, top flight major league talent, but their farm system is LOADED also. They remind me of the late 90's Braves, but they actually win World Series titles...

^ nah, the Rays were good ALL year last year, not a fluke like the Rockies were in September...

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 12:49 PM. Reason : x]

1/8/2009 12:49:02 PM

Quote :

"Multiple sources have said the Braves were offering slightly more than $2 million guaranteed and performance-based incentives that could have increased Smoltz's earnings to approximately $7 million."

Wow

Doesn't get any more lame than that. See ya John. Thanks for everything. Sorry Frank Wren's a douche.

1/8/2009 2:15:53 PM

John Smoltz is signing with someone other than the Braves. As far as im concerned he has just stamped his seal of approval for this being the worst team the Braves have had since the 80's.

Although if he has to go to another team Ill pick Boston. And I think they want him for the playoff push, not much else. Im sure hell pitch a lot before then to try and get ready; but smoltz is well known for his ability in the big games i.e. playoffs.

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 2:31 PM. Reason : addition]

1/8/2009 2:28:57 PM

I hope the braves return to the cellar for many years to come.

I once called myself a braves fan. I roomed with a die-hard braves fan in 2005 and we would watch every braves game. I bet I watched 140 games that year. I was ALL-IN with the braves. 140 games is about 420 hours of my life. Thats 17.5 days of my life. Thats over a half of a month that I spent watching Baseball.

only for them to peter out like they always did losing 3 games to 1 to the astros in the first round.

I was so mad, i ripped down our braves poster and cussed out my roommate and spit on our tv.

since then I have wished for the braves to get so bad that they have to move to montreal or somewhere where it is so cold your dick has to wear a coat if you have to pull it out to piss outside

1/8/2009 2:38:34 PM

horrible move by the braves only offering 2m guaranteed. Granted, they have a business to run but a low ball offer like that is crazy.

1/8/2009 3:48:19 PM

^^ Who is this guy again?

My thoughts on Smoltz:

He'll be lucky to pitch 100 innings this year, he'll be even luckier to pitch ten next year. We're already going to rule the shitter in 2009, there's no point in keeping anyone around that won't be able to contribute in 2010 and beyond. I hate to see Smoltz go, but he deserves to win another ring and he'll have a good shot in Boston. His only value in Atlanta this season would be elder statesman/pitching coach for guys like Jurrjens, Hanson, et al. There's no point in keeping him around when we can use the open spot in the rotation to give innings to all the young guys.

It's sad to see him go, though; he's probably my third favorite Brave of all time and the only guy left from the olden days. I've still got a hat with his signature (and Chief Knockahoma's) from 93.

1/8/2009 4:05:08 PM

Quote :

"They remind me of the late 90's Braves, but they actually win World Series titles"

Why do shitheads like NyM410 continue to ignore the fact that the Braves won in 95. I know you know that, stop trying to trash the Braves just because the Mets haven't won shit since the mid-80s and are a laughable franchise historically.

Anyway the Braves offer to Smoltz is embarassing, but Ernie is right. We need to rebuild and let the veterans go other than maybe Chipper. You've got to still have at least one every day "star" to help attendance. Although Chipper playing every day is about a likely to happen as the Braves are to win the NL east this year.

Smoltz is simply insurance for the Red Sox once Beckett, Wakefield, Penny, etc get hurt which is guaranteed. They are are hedging their bets that everyone won't be injured at the same time like the Braves had happen to them last year.

1/8/2009 4:16:27 PM

Quote :

"They remind me of the late 90's Braves, but they actually win World Series titles..."

Off the top of my head, the Red Sox had five players on their roster in 2007 that came up through their own farm system. Which is nothing compared to the Braves in the 90s (specifically the 95 Braves) when nearly the entire roster was home-grown talent.

It's a different game today, no one has come close in the past ten years to what Schuerholz and Cox did in the 90s. You'd think that more GMs would catch on that the best way to win consistently is through the draft and player development, not the free agent market. The Rays are on the right track, though. Like Nym said, they're for real, not some flash in the pan.

1/8/2009 4:30:53 PM

I don't dislike the Braves, but at the end of the day the Braves are the Bills of MLB....and this year I predict a 4th place finish for them at best.

1/8/2009 4:47:34 PM

Man what if you were a braves and a bills fan??

suicidal tendencies

1/8/2009 4:52:10 PM

It's hard to take anything a Yankees fan says seriously, but come on. The Braves won 13 division championships in a row and World Series, the Bills never won shit.

I don't understand how anyone can hate on the Braves' run. What team did better in from 91-05? The Yankees? Their run started four years after the Braves and they only won three Word Series. With their payroll that's a pretty massive failure in itself. Give Schuerholz Steinbrenner's checkbook and we'd have won 'em all.

I've said it a million times before, no fan of any other team can talk shit about what the Braves did. Yeah, they should have one more than one Series, but at least they made it there consistently while your favorite player was sitting on their damn couch every October

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 5:02 PM. Reason : ]

1/8/2009 4:56:46 PM

hahahhahahha ernie you need to get your facts straight

bills won 4 straight conference championships (only team in super bowl era to do this)

Yankees won 4 world series

1/8/2009 5:01:18 PM

The Bills never won a Super Bowl = The Bills never won shit

And yeah, the Yankees won three between 91-05, which is the time period being discussed here

1/8/2009 5:02:14 PM

^^^ agree with your post, but the Yankees won 4 WS titles during their run and were the best team of the 90s because they won in October. The Braves were easily the best team in the NL in 90s.

Comparing the Braves to the Bills is stupid because the Braves did actually win once.

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 5:03 PM. Reason : beat me to it]

1/8/2009 5:02:28 PM

NO you dip shit they won 4

IN THAT TIME PERIOD

1/8/2009 5:03:04 PM

Quote :

"Yankees won 4 world series"

1/8/2009 5:03:13 PM

Oh, fuck me, I was wrong

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 5:05 PM. Reason : ]

1/8/2009 5:03:46 PM

probably the team that won 4 world series

also probably the Marlins and Blue Jays

they, too, won multiple World Series in that time period

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 5:06 PM. Reason : lol at calling the Yankees' 4 world series in that time a "massive failure"]

1/8/2009 5:04:22 PM

After 92, the Blue Jays finished under .500 for most of the next 13 years

The Marlins were dogshit outside of their two championship years

Both won an extra WS, neither had a better run that Braves

1/8/2009 5:06:51 PM

Quote :

"Why do shitheads like NyM410 continue to ignore the fact that the Braves won in 95. I know you know that, stop trying to trash the Braves just because the Mets haven't won shit since the mid-80s and are a laughable franchise historically."

Just out of curiosity, how many titles do the Braves have since they moved to Atlanta? The Mets in that same time period?

Also, I did clearly say late-90's...

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 5:08 PM. Reason : the yanks payroll was under control until after 2001]

1/8/2009 5:07:13 PM

regardless of this thread, i'm a proponent of the 'championships = success' theory in sports

hence why NC State is a better basketball program than Gonzaga

and the Yankees were clearly better than the Braves from 91-05 (4 titles vs 1 title)

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 5:08 PM. Reason : .]

1/8/2009 5:07:52 PM

I said the Yankees were the better franchise during the Braves run, ok

1/8/2009 5:09:01 PM

you also said considering their payroll, the yankees 3 or 4 world series in 15 years was a "massive failure"

but i'm not here to bash your braves, just to clarify the yanks' titles

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 5:10 PM. Reason : ,]

1/8/2009 5:09:43 PM

Me saying that it was a "massive failure" was hyperbole

Considering their talent and their payroll, they should have won more

I'm sorry that I skipped over a World Series

1/8/2009 5:12:01 PM

before your edit, you skipped over 2 world series, not 1

besides, if anyone else was wrong about a stat, you'd happily correct them, so whats the big deal

1/8/2009 5:15:22 PM

It's not a big deal at all

You were the third person to point out the error and you're trying to drive it into the ground

Congrats on making me look foolish, Treetwista

1/8/2009 5:17:24 PM

i must have waited 5 seconds to click reply resulting in me being the 3rd person to correct you

when you make that big of a blunder, i guess i shouldve expected multiple people to beat me to the punch

[Edited on January 8, 2009 at 5:22 PM. Reason : nm]

1/8/2009 5:20:38 PM

I've heard that the Red Sox are trying to move Bucholz for a catcher, namely Salty.

1/8/2009 5:34:47 PM

You can attack me personally all you want, but just so we are clear I wasn't hating on the Braves or you for that matter. What they did with those all those division championships was very impressive, and no one is disputing that. My comparison to the Bills was that like the Bills they were the brides maids often. And Yes the Bills never won the SB, but come on anyone can see the parallel. As you have clearly stated the Braves won the division championship 13 times..........13 times, but only won 1 World Series. Because at the end of the day it's not about winning division championships it's about winning the World Series.

P.S. I don't dislike the Braves....I actually root for them over the Mets every day. I wish them luck this year, but don't hold much hope for them. It's all about pitching and they don't have it this year.

1/8/2009 6:27:23 PM

Atlanta is burning for the second time.


People are in disbelief

1/9/2009 12:17:35 AM

Atlanta will lose 100 games this season

1/9/2009 8:41:02 AM

more like 100 of the first 101, amirite?

1/9/2009 9:11:58 AM

Quote :

"I hope the braves return to the cellar for many years to come. I once called myself a braves fan. I roomed with a die-hard braves fan in 2005 and we would watch every braves game. I bet I watched 140 games that year. I was ALL-IN with the braves. 140 games is about 420 hours of my life. Thats 17.5 days of my life. Thats over a half of a month that I spent watching Baseball. only for them to peter out like they always did losing 3 games to 1 to the astros in the first round. I was so mad, i ripped down our braves poster and cussed out my roommate and spit on our tv. since then I have wished for the braves to get so bad that they have to move to montreal or somewhere where it is so cold your dick has to wear a coat if you have to pull it out to piss outside "

bandwagon, you are the worst kind of fan

1/9/2009 9:13:35 AM

I've been disappointed with the braves as of late. I mean you let Francouer play pretty much the whole year with the dude is batting like sub .225 and striking out 3/5 times?? Send him down for a good stay, I dont care if he is a hometown player..I think it will be a while before things in Atlanta are straightened out

1/9/2009 10:15:52 AM

can you be a bandwagon fan if you jump off the wagon and dont jump on another wagon???

wouldnt that mean that we are all on a wagon if we have a favorite team??

1/9/2009 11:37:44 AM