starting off positive by acquiring billy wagner. hopefully it's a productive offseason

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4705811

12/2/2009 1:48:59 PM

Positive?

12/2/2009 1:54:54 PM

-ly

12/2/2009 1:56:55 PM

this going to be a good year

they have a chance to...

WIN MORE THAN THEY LOSE

im calling it now 83-79, 13 GB Philly

12/2/2009 2:04:24 PM

Go Braves!!

12/2/2009 2:06:13 PM

I think I read we extended offers to Soriano and Gonzalez. SUPER PEN

12/2/2009 2:10:05 PM

Glad to hear about Wagner. I knew the Braves would make a play for him as he is a true Southern redneck and probably wants to play in Georgia. Plus him and Chipper are buds.

No way we keep Gonzalez as he has Bor-ASS as his agent. Braves will not be able to offer him a multi-year deal at the $$ he/Boras will demand. I think he ends up with the Yankees.

I hope we can keep Soriano, but I think he'll get a big contract too. Wagner, Gonzo, and Soriano are considered the top three relievers available this offseaon based on what I've read.

Hopefully the Braves will offer arbitration to both Soriano and Gonzo so that they get draft picks in return when they sign with other teams. Each guy is a type A free agent.

LaRoche will probably get arbitration offered as well. Supposedly the Braves are going to try and deal Lowe, but I still think Vazquez will be the one to go as Lowe has no value with his big contract. Mike Cameron, Jermaine Dye, and Nelson Cruz are OF targets for the Braves to replace Garrett Anderson.

12/2/2009 3:32:19 PM

LaRoche isn't getting arbitration

12/2/2009 3:38:49 PM

When is brackman gonna play in tha majors. I refuse to post in the Yankees thread.

12/2/2009 6:14:35 PM

Braves signed Saito from the Red Sox. He had very good numbers last year and will be the 8th inning guy or closer if Wagner gets hurt. He is old, but the Braves got him for relatively cheap. Much cheaper than Gonzalez or Soriano (both of whom are very likely gone now).

12/8/2009 9:00:16 AM

soriano accepted arbitration, so he'll be back for another year

12/8/2009 9:19:05 AM

^ wow I am surprised (and slow on the MLB news today). He'll probably earn ~$8 million next season meaning the Braves will have tied up around $18 million on three good relievers next year. I am surprised that they are spending that much considering the need for bats, but they must be thinking that Heyward will be ready next year.

12/8/2009 9:52:11 AM

Sucks for you guys. Hope that Gonzo signs with a team in the bottom 15 so you get that draft pick.. if not you wasted your picks on a guy who might not even pitch 50 innings (Wagner).

12/8/2009 9:56:17 AM

I thought the same thing ^ did. I don't like this at all. Wagner hasn't been worth a whole lot lately.

12/8/2009 12:15:23 PM

is wagner supposed to be the closer? i hope not, i hate that dude.

12/8/2009 12:18:22 PM

^ Wagner is most definitely the Braves plan for a closer next year. He was hurt last year obviously, but looked great at the end of the season. The Braves took a gamble on him. He has some incentives in his contract for him to pitch well this year so I think he'll surprise people in 2010.

The Braves definitely wanted the draft picks that Soriano would have brought them, but they may still be able to trade him (they need his permission until somtime in the summer) so all is not necessarily lost in terms of getting something for him. If they can't move him, they still have an outstanding 7-8-9 inning trio that includes a power lefty, a power righty, and a junk baller.

With the starting pitching the Braves have and now bullpen depth especially when you throw Moylan in the mix, they have arguably the best staff in the National League.

I'd rather have the best staff in the NL than the best lineup. Although I doubt they'll be able to compete with the Phillies again.




[Edited on December 8, 2009 at 4:19 PM. Reason : df]

12/8/2009 4:17:45 PM

I was hoping we would get Dye in a trade last year, so hopefully they'll snag him as a FA. We need a bat to hit in front of McCann, and maybe in front of Chipper if he's gonna be as bad as he was last year. I think Dye would be awesome, but since he'll be getting older there's still PT for Church, maybe KJ if he needs some extra PT, etc.

I'm assuming all of these guys are coming back, I really have no idea..

[Edited on December 8, 2009 at 5:10 PM. Reason : V i think you're lost..]

12/8/2009 4:48:50 PM

28-27

12/8/2009 4:57:29 PM

Quote :

" The Braves have traded reliever Rafael Soriano to the Rays, SI.com has learned. Tampa Bay will receive right-handed reliever Jesse Chavez in the trade. The deal will be complete after medical data is reviewed. Soriano will approve the deal. He accepted arbitration, but the Braves didn't have a spot for him after signing Billy Wagner and Takashi Saito. Soriano, who turns 30 on Dec. 19, should make about $7 million in arbitration. Soriano saved 27 games in 31 chances last season with a 2.97 ERA, and struck out 102 in 75 2/3 innings. "

Not sure I like or agree with this trade. We have an overflow in the bullpen so we trade a closer for another addition to the bullpen? I wish we could have gotten some offense in return instead of another pitcher.


[Edited on December 10, 2009 at 3:10 PM. Reason : ']

12/10/2009 3:09:45 PM

I just found out about that trade last night. Seems like a stupid fucking move by the Braves. Sure, maybe we don't need Soriano with Saito, Wagner, whoever else.. but I still think he's one of the better relievers in the NL, and who knows with injuries and everything. I'd really like him to still be our closer, but maybe we just couldn't afford him and need to make room for eating Lowe's contract and trading him for a bat.

12/20/2009 12:35:44 PM

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4764085

vasquez to the yankees for melky cabrera

12/22/2009 10:15:03 AM

yeah, Melky fucking Cabrera?? he's garbage compared to Vasquez.... but, Frank Wren was on an Atlanta radio show defending it today and said they werent done, so Melky could be part of another deal. He said they are definitely going after a 30HR, 100RBI guy... the host thought Adam Dunn

12/23/2009 2:14:24 AM

honestly, my first thought was "wtf? we can do better" but then i remembered that we are pretty desperate to make a move. yeah, Javi was pretty great in his year here, but he cant be traded to a west coast team, and we really need a bat.. honestly, I don't think I want Uggla at all, he might be fine at 1B, but he'll hit about .250 with 25 HR, which I think just about any idiot can do swinging really hard. I'm not too upset about Melky, I think he's progressing, and could play a good amount with Diaz getting an AB every once in a while from him and Church (mostly splitting time with church though). We'll see, I really don't think Vazquez for Uggla is worth a damn to our offense though.

12/23/2009 2:34:14 AM

church is gone (well, he should be, he wasn't tendered a contract).

i don't care much for this trade either, as i think we could have gotten more out of dealing vaz elsewhere, but the fact that he couldn't be traded west really hurt our options.

you should also consider the other parts in the deal: pitchers arodys vizcaino and mike dunn.
dunn is a power lefty who is near ready for the bigs. at worst, he at least becomes a top LOOGY guy, a "position" the braves are very fond of.
vizcaino was not only the yankees best pitching prospect, apparently the next best pitching prospect was a distant second to him. he's young (18 i believe) with only rookie ball under his belt, but he comes in with some high expectations, slotting somewhere around #4 or #5 in our top prospects list (if i had to guess).

melky isn't the offensive power we needed, but he's still a good well rounded baseball player. hard to believe he's still only 24, and most have considered him through the years as having good potential, and could still get better. imo he immediately becomes the best defensive outfielder we've got atm.

the yankees also threw in $500k, which isn't much, but that gives us a net payroll gain of around $9M to use on another piece, which has been the goal for a while now given we had so many starters.


the main thing that gets me is that we kept derek lowe. i think he'll do better this year, but he has gone on record as being upset/offended that we were trying to trade him. i hope he doesn't become a cancer now that it's pretty much a given that he'll play out 2010 as a brave.

12/23/2009 7:06:42 AM

The Braves are in "serious discussions" with Troy Glaus. Deal appears done if he passes the physical (which is no guarantee for Glaus).

My feelings depend on what we'll have to pay for him. He's made >$12 million the last two seasons, so that's not good. Especially for a 33 year-old guy going into his 12th year coming off nearly an entire missed season. His last 4 full seasons before that were solid, but not great (.864 OPS). If we can get him for a bargain price, then great, but if we pay $13 million dollars for him, then imma be

12/23/2009 2:21:47 PM

1 year contract for 2M with incentives

12/23/2009 4:25:38 PM

^If that's true, I'd be cool with that....

12/23/2009 4:41:44 PM

Quote :

"yeah, Melky fucking Cabrera?? he's garbage compared to Vasquez.... but, Frank Wren was on an Atlanta radio show defending it today and said they werent done, so Melky could be part of another deal. He said they are definitely going after a 30HR, 100RBI guy... the host thought Adam Dunn"

We already had him. His name was Mark Teixera.

12/24/2009 10:50:35 PM

Heyward named #1 prospect by ESPN

http://bit.ly/a19qHo

[Edited on January 28, 2010 at 9:16 PM. Reason : ]

1/28/2010 9:16:42 PM

^ Braves had 5 players on that top-100 list. Not too shabby. The main thing is that the upcoming stars fill current needs (OF, 1B, pitching). Lately it seems the Braves prospects sometimes get stuck behind someone else so they trade them (Elvis Andrus blocked by Escobar, Salty blocked by McCann, etc).

1/29/2010 9:32:15 AM

Heyward, Melky, and Johnny Damon??

Interesting. . .

2/10/2010 6:16:58 PM

Motherfucker acts like he forgot about Nate

2/10/2010 6:42:20 PM

Glavine accepts front office position with the Braves.

http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100211&content_id=8061414&vkey=news_atl&fext=.jsp&c_id=atl

2/11/2010 5:43:58 PM

wait we didn't sign Damon did we? I don't want that no talent hack to be a Brave. We're better than him.

2/11/2010 8:16:34 PM

uh, damon is pretty good. crappy arm, but a damn good top-of-the-order guy

2/11/2010 8:22:37 PM

yeah if right field is like 290 feet. he can't play CF over Melky Cabrera who isn't a CF, has no arm, and I'll jus copy and paste this..

Quote :

"Meantime, Damon, 36, would arrive with flashing caution lights in at least some areas: He's older, his defense has eroded some and there is some sentiment that his offensive numbers last year were inflated by new Yankee Stadium's hitter-friendly demeanor. While he equaled a career-high with 24 home runs, 17 of those were at home. The other seven all came in AL East division ballparks."

I know he's not bad, but I'd much rather keep Heyward, Melky, McClouth, and Diaz in the OF

2/11/2010 8:24:27 PM

Career .350 OBP

Serviceable

Not damn good

2/11/2010 8:25:15 PM

i don't necessarily want him either, but i think he'll be a good pickup for someone

2/11/2010 8:25:41 PM

OPS+ of 118 & 126 the past 2 years. Good signing for someone that needs an OF, but the Braves don't need an OF, hence why it would've been a bad signing for them. Though with the way the A's have been signing OFs this off-season, I honestly wouldn't be surprised to see them add a 7th to their herd of them

2/11/2010 8:38:25 PM

Tigers have offered Damon 14 mill for 2 years so he will probably go there

2/11/2010 8:40:46 PM

Yeah, if we give him that, Frank Wren should trade himself

2/11/2010 8:42:59 PM

ihate damons batting stance.

2/11/2010 9:58:27 PM

The Tigers are stupid to offer that much to Damon. I guess that is why they suck. Thanks for Jair too Tigers.

Anyway while it would be nice to have Damon as an option, I'd hate to see the Braves overpay for him seeing that his stats were inflated by the little league park called Yankees Stadium. I'd much rather wait and see if Heyward and possibly Schafer could make a difference this year. If not, the combo of McLouth (who should be better this year - injuries hurt his production last year), Diaz, and Melky is passable. We'll need Yunel, Glaus, Chipper, and McCann to all be healthy and productive though. Pipe dream probably, but our pitching should keep us in most games.

2/12/2010 8:47:05 AM

Lots of ST games on TV

Tuesday, March 2nd @ 1pm - Braves vs. Mets on MLB
Tuesday, March 9th @ 7pm - Phillies vs. Braves on CSS (Comcast?) and MLB
Thursday, March 11th @ 7pm - Braves vs. Yankees on CSS and MLB
Tuesday, March 16th @ 1pm - Marlins vs. Braves on FSS and MLB
Wednesday, March 17th @ 1pm - Braves vs. Marlins on FSS and MLB
Tuesday, March 23rd @ 1pm - Braves vs. Mets on ESPN
Wednesday, March 24th @ 1pm - Phillies vs. Braves on ESPN
Friday, March 26th @ 1pm - Tigers vs. Braves on ESPN
Tuesday, March 30th @ 1pm - Yankees vs. Braves on CSS
Wednesday, March 31st @ 1pm - Astros vs. Braves on CSS and MLB

2/28/2010 4:04:27 PM

Chipper supposedly reported to camp at 232 lbs which is about 17 lbs higher than what he ended the season at. I guess he said he was weak at the end of the year and wanted to get stronger so he hit the weights hard. I certainly hope this doesn't lead to more injuries. Most MLB players that put on muscle seems to get a injured unless they are roiding.

Also it really sounds like the Braves are going to have a hard time keeping Heyward off the opening season roster. I guess he has been detroying the ball and everyone is going gaga over him. I still think they should keep him in AAA until June just for the sake of his future contract.






[Edited on March 1, 2010 at 1:21 PM. Reason : sd]

3/1/2010 1:20:50 PM

Heyward's already listed on the Braves.com depth chart

[Edited on March 1, 2010 at 1:31 PM. Reason : ]

3/1/2010 1:31:19 PM

^^ Yeah! Make the Yankees wait SIX more years instead of FIVE!!!!

3/1/2010 1:33:06 PM

Is June 1 the official cut off for Super 2?

Or is it somewhat ambiguous, as we've seen in recent years with Braun, Bruce, Price, etc?

3/1/2010 1:35:35 PM

Eh, maybe I'm wrong...

[Edited on March 1, 2010 at 1:38 PM. Reason : i posted i think it's around 85 service days but i'm not really sure]

3/1/2010 1:37:22 PM

Why are we talking about Super Twos?

I mean, Heyward will definitely qualify... in two years.

3/1/2010 1:38:57 PM