APRIL 21, 2017
ATLANTA BRAVES
I have to admit that the Braves front office moves baffle me more than any other team. They have been rebuilding now for the last few years, but it is still a fairly old team, and they went out and traded or free agent signed most of their veterans. 5 of the 8 position players that they listed as their regulars are over 30. Thirteen of the 25 players on their opening day roster were over 30 with two of their regular rotation pitchers over 40. I hear the analysts keep saying that their farm system is packed, but somehow it seems to me that after multiple years of rebuilding, we should be seeing some kids coming up. Maybe these analysts are the same ones that keep saying Crawford is all world. It seems to me that perhaps they are trying to stay competitive while they are rebuilding, unlike the stripped down model that the Phils used. One thing that keeps me from dismissing them as inept is that hidden in the background. John Scherholtz is in charge.
If you look at the Braves on paper, they look much better than they have performed. They have enough proven veteran players to stay in contention, but they never do. Freddy Freeman is at first base again. He is their most dangerous hitter and off to a torrid start, hitting .407 with .500 obp. Funny thing, he has 6 homers already, but only 8 ribbies. He is still young enough to be a part of the rebuilding. They went out this year to get 35 year old Brandon Phillips from the Reds to play second base. He is off to a good start, but obviously just keeping the seat warm. Dansby Swanson came up the last quarter of last year and hit over .300 with a little pop, but is off to a horrible start and has to be of some concern to the front office. Adonis Garcia is back at third and is off to a slow start. He has been a serviceable player the last couple of years. The corner positions in the outfield are old and acquired in their twilight. Markakis is solid and a competent defender, but at 33 can’t be considered a part of the rebuilding process. The same could be said for Kemp who has a reputation for dogging it. Ender Inciarte is their centerfielder. Their starting catcher is Tyler Flowers who is a lifetime .235 hitter with a little doubles type power. All in all, the Braves are not a lineup that any pitcher should take lightly.
The makeup of the rotation is much like the rest of the team. Colon and R.A. Dickey are 43 and 42 and are expected to eat up a lot of innings, but both of them has to be considered day to day. However they both have been difficult for the Phils. They are both off to their recent normal starts. Jaime Garcia was added this year to be a mainstay. Probably their best starter is Julio Teheran, he and Foltynewicz are young enough to be considered a part of the rebuild. I have to say that I have never seen Foltynewicz pitch well.
They are depending on 33 year old Jim Johnson to close for them. He has closed for Baltimore, and had a decent year for the Braves last year. Vizcaino is probably their next best bullpen pitcher. Before last year, he was mostly a quad a pitcher. Jose Ramirez features a 4 seam fast ball that he throws in the upper 90s. Some think he will eventually become the closer, but he gets into spells where he loses home plate. He is off to a really good start. The rest of the bullpen are questionable.
The Braves veterans can hit and can cause problems. The starters can keep them in games and it is clear that in their new stadium, they want to move up in the standings, but as far as the rebuilding goes, I think they are at least one year behind the Phils and maybe two.