9 over .500

by Dale Murphy for HOF on Sep 17, 2009 1:34 AM EDT Comment 27 comments

So, after the incredible walk-off tonight, the Braves are now 77-68 , 9 games over .500. This is our best record thus far this year. As a point of comparison, last year at this time, the Braves were 63-82.

Think about this record...we are already 14 games better than last year....

In addition, let's think back just to spring training. The Braves were scuffling around attempting to piece together a starting rotation. There was an outcry at Frank Wren for releasing Smoltz and Glavine - "we have no pitching." We took the scraps of the free agent pitching market - Derek Lowe and Kenshin Kawakami, and traded a top prospect in Tyler Flowers (and others) for an aging Javier Vazquez.

How far away that seems now...

Sometimes, I just need a little perspective....

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Frank Wren for GM of the Year.

Im not changing my sig until it happens. That man has done a terrific job. Essentially, he’s done this in the past 12 months:

Added:
DLowe
Javy Vazquez
KK
Nate McLouth
Adam LaRoche
Ryan Church
EOF
Boone Logan

Subtracted:
JEFF FRANCOEUR.
Smoltz
Tommy Glavine
Tyler Flowers (still has DH written all over him)
Gorkys Hernandez (you would swear he thinks striking out is a good thing or something…)
Casey Kotchman
Brent Lillibridge
Charlie Morton
Jeff Locke

I know the Smoltz and Glavine situations were both highly controversial, but in the end, they were both the right move. He’s done an A+ job in my book.

Frank Wren for GM of the Year.
"Wait, bait and bash." - Jason Heyward's personal philosophy.

by mvhsbball on Sep 17, 2009 1:48 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

oops

add Garrett Anderson to that list as well. I know he can’t run or field for sh*t, but he’s been a solid contributor and has been the stop-gap OF we desperately needed until Heyward and Schafer are ready.

Frank Wren for GM of the Year.
"Wait, bait and bash." - Jason Heyward's personal philosophy.

by mvhsbball on Sep 17, 2009 1:51 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

LOL

GA seems to have a drag chute behind him when he decides to run. Granted, he’s made some good catches the last two games against the Mets. They probably shouldn’t have been that close to being missed, but he made ’em.

I am not arguing with you~I'm telling you.

by Old Braves' Fan on Sep 17, 2009 1:53 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

yep

with the exception of the disaster in Philly a few weeks ago, GA usually makes a play on the ball. Its never pretty, but he gets it done more times than not.

Frank Wren for GM of the Year.
"Wait, bait and bash." - Jason Heyward's personal philosophy.

by mvhsbball on Sep 17, 2009 2:00 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

“Solid contributor”, are you kidding? Anderson has been absolutely awful this season. .310 OBP and .413 SLG are no where close to a solid contribution, especially not from a corner OFer who isn’t exactly contending for a gold glove.

by Lennox on Sep 17, 2009 5:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Who couldve done a better job on last years FA market?

Frank Wren for GM of the Year.
"Wait, bait and bash." - Jason Heyward's personal philosophy.

by mvhsbball on Sep 17, 2009 11:16 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Aside from spending on Adam Dunn or a trade for Nick Swisher to actually get the middle of the lineup hitter that we needed? Bobby Abreu is putting up a near .400 OBP this season.

Then there were guys like Hinske, Kapler, and Baldelli that are providing similar (or better) offensive production, while player better defense and costing less.

Or we could have just saved the money and given a roster spot to a guy from the minors.

by Lennox on Sep 17, 2009 5:31 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Nick Swisher hasn’t done shit since his 1st month, not to mention he’s helped by the joke that is the new Yankees Stadium. Dunn would’ve been perfect, but do you have $20 million to commit to him?

And do you really wanna go into your season with Eric Hinske, Gabe Kapler or Rocco Baldelli as your starting LF? I hope not.

Frank Wren for GM of the Year.
"Wait, bait and bash." - Jason Heyward's personal philosophy.

by mvhsbball on Sep 18, 2009 1:01 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

If by “hasn’t done shit,” you mean “hasn’t played like shit, as FUGA tends to.” Then, sure.

Since the end of May Swisher’s OPS has been .894.

And he’s played much better on the road than he has at Yankee stadium, in fact an overwhelming majority of his HR have been in road games. He’d actually be a much better hitter if he wasn’t playing half his games at Yankee stadium.

And, yes, given the choice between wasting money on Garret Anderson (who is providing negative value in the field and at the plate), I’ll gladly take a lesser “name” player that provides actual positive value for less money and probably won’t be hitting in the middle of the lineup every game because he has a reputation as a “professional hitter”.

by Lennox on Sep 19, 2009 12:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

The only piece of real value we lost was Flowers. I think he can be a .900 OPS guy in the majors, but it’s going to come as a DH. He’s the perfect guy to replace Thome. Personally, I hope he has a great career for them; because it wouldn’t have worked in the NL. It’s sort of an unfair advantage for AL teams, with guys like that, but hey look at all the value we added.

I didn’t like every idea Wren brought to the table, but I’ve been behind every move he actually made from day one. Lowe’s contract is a bit pricey, but that’s just the market, it still doesn’t look like a bad deal. And now we’re in a position where we have 6 pitchers and can only keep five and have the opportunity to trade one of our arms for some prospects or a big bat for next year. So it’s a great problem to have.

I like the direction this franchise is going with Wren in charge.

Q: If on-base pct is so important then why don't they put it on the scoreboard? -Failcoeur

A: Because the Braves don't want to show their fans how bad you suck.

by timmy3 on Sep 17, 2009 2:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Dude

.900 OPS is like an every year all-star, borderline hall of famer like. No way Flowers is that good.

by eaheckman10 on Sep 17, 2009 7:47 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I never said every year, you said every year. I believe he will have years where as primarily a DH, he breaks a .900 OPS. His on-base skills, and power make that number pretty attainable IMO. Flowers can effin’ hit.

Q: If on-base pct is so important then why don't they put it on the scoreboard? -Failcoeur

A: Because the Braves don't want to show their fans how bad you suck.

by timmy3 on Sep 17, 2009 11:59 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

that was a really good trade for both teams…and it got NO coverage by any of the sports networks.

Frank Wren for GM of the Year.
"Wait, bait and bash." - Jason Heyward's personal philosophy.

by mvhsbball on Sep 17, 2009 1:12 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

At first, Yahoo reported the trade included Lillibridge & Flowers

And ESPN reported that it was Lillibridge and Jo-Jo instead… had a brief moment of hope we were gonna get to keep him.

But of course it was all over the course of the two sentences they gave it on the bottom of their websites.

"...Braves tie! ...Braves tie! ...Braves tie!"

by The Keith Lockhart Era on Sep 17, 2009 1:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

And...

…we’re still in the running for post season.

Excellent outlook. I hated to see Smoltz or Glavine (possibly) pitching for someone else (again), much less against us. Regardless, it was the right move. Rec’d.

I am not arguing with you~I'm telling you.

by Old Braves' Fan on Sep 17, 2009 1:51 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Wren.

I hope we’ve seen the last of the Wren bashing that had been so common place here before. He’s done a remarkable job rebuilding this franchise.

"A player who conjugates a verb in the first person singular cannot be part of the squad, he has to conjugate the verb in the first person plural. We. We want to conquer. We are going to conquer. Using the word 'I' when you're in a group makes things complicated." ~ Wanderley Luxemburgo, 1999

by ejruiz on Sep 17, 2009 2:35 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

ejruiz, Bashing Wren has not been common place on here, imo
Yes, we have had some of it, but not nearly as much as you are intending…….

Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind.

by HEYJUDE on Sep 17, 2009 4:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

implying not intending, (sleepy day after staying up to watch the game)

Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind.

by HEYJUDE on Sep 17, 2009 4:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

there was quite a bit of it going on back in December, iirc…

"Actually, Justin was right."
by bigjoe on May 15, 2009 9:04 AM PDT

by justincredubil02 on Sep 17, 2009 6:51 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Talking Chop Archives: Smoltz Signs With Boston

Enjoy.

"Matt Diaz is a baseball player."-Joe Simpson

by 10-4 on Sep 17, 2009 10:05 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

This was quite the gem:

and let me also point, how "awesome" does this make the javier vazquez trade look? We could had Peavy for Flowers, now we have a guy with a 4. something era and a career losing record

Yeah, how’d that work out again?

"Actually, Justin was right."
by bigjoe on May 15, 2009 9:04 AM PDT

by justincredubil02 on Sep 17, 2009 11:55 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

oooh…then there is this one:

I have been anti-Frank forever, and people on here want to rip you a new one for even suggesting Frank is doing a bad job. WHAT NOW BITCHES?

Yes! Do tell….what now?

"Actually, Justin was right."
by bigjoe on May 15, 2009 9:04 AM PDT

by justincredubil02 on Sep 17, 2009 11:58 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

c’mon man, you gotta include names!

"Matt Diaz is a baseball player."-Joe Simpson

by 10-4 on Sep 18, 2009 8:16 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

jjcollins was responsible for 2 of these, I think…

"Actually, Justin was right."
by bigjoe on May 15, 2009 9:04 AM PDT

by justincredubil02 on Sep 18, 2009 9:21 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

so i clicked on the Fire Frank Wren petition, and this is what I saw:

This petition was removed because the author did not provide a full valid name. Anonymous petitions are not permitted. Authors are given three days to respond with their name before a petition is removed. If you are the author of this petition reply to the email we sent you with your full name. If you are the author and do not have the email we sent you, send an email to support@petitiononline.com asking us to reactivate your petition. Be sure to include your full name and petition ID in the email.

imagine that…

"Actually, Justin was right."
by bigjoe on May 15, 2009 9:04 AM PDT

by justincredubil02 on Sep 18, 2009 12:06 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Wren also promoted Tommy Hanson.

Chipper Jones and others, including me, thought that it should have been sooner, that Wren was delaying it and playing the all about managing arbitration eligility game, instead of putting the primary emphasis on having the best roster and hopefully winning as many real games as possible.

On the other hand, with all young players, it is undeniable that a GM wants them to be ready and experience some real success when given the opportunity. And since Tommy Hanson was definitely ready and has been successful, it has to count – on balance – as another plus move by Wren.

by fandave on Sep 17, 2009 6:13 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Love the optimism

On the one hand, the marginal financial return for all these added victories is nil…the Braves won’t be making adding any playoff revenue, and their ticket returns haven’t rebounded (in fact, I believe they’ve decreased) from last year and prior years. It’s also disappointing to note that the lackluster offense blew strong performances from the starting rotation and the bullpen; bullpen success varies widely from year to year (especially in a year after when we could lose both Mike Gonzalez and Rafael Soriano), and there are no guarantees that our pitching staff will stay as healthy and as effective as they have been this year, either.

From a strictly baseball standpoint, you have to be excited about this club going forward. They have some young building blocks in McCann, Hanson and Jurrjens, and have promising young talent waiting in the wings. If Wren can continue to do an above average job supplementing stars with role players (more LaRoche and O’Flaherty, less Anderson and Kotchman), there’s no reason to not expect the Braves to be competitive for the foreseeable future. Now Frankie just has to make that happen.

by jc25 on Sep 17, 2009 7:30 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs