Braves' Post-Season Roster is Coming Together
by Scott Coleman on Oct 5, 2010 5:58 PM EDT
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PrintWe've heard all day that certain players won't be making the post-season roster for the 1st round, and I'd say the Braves are just about ready to announce the entire thing. Talking Chop will certainly post the final roster once it comes out, but here's a look at what we'll probably see:
Hitters: 14
C - Brian McCann, David Ross
1B - Derrek Lee, Troy Glaus
2B - Brooks Conrad
3B - Omar Infante
SS - Alex Gonzalez, Diory Hernandez
OF - Rick Ankiel, Melky Cabrera, Matt Diaz, Jason Heyward, Eric Hinske, Nate McLouth
Starting Pitchers: 4
Relief Pitchers: 7
Billy Wagner, Jonny Venters, Peter Moylan, Craig Kimbrel, Kyle Farnsworth, Mike Dunn, Cristhian Martinez
There's already been reports today that neither Freddie Freeman nor Mike Minor will make the trip to San Francisco, so that rules those two out. I'm thinking that I'd prefer Freddie over Glaus for the back-up 1B spot because of his superior defense, but Troy has the experience and is right-handed. No complaints about Minor not making it.
It was announced today that reliever Scott Proctor will make the trip, but not the roster. He will serve as insurance in case a pitcher on the roster gets injured.
Jair Jurrjens is in Orlando at the Braves' complex and will actually pitch in an instructional league game tonight. They haven't announced if Jair will make the roster or not, but I'm betting they'll try to get him healthy for any potential games after the first round. No reason to rush him back, as Jair certainly figures into our future plans and Beachy being capable of making a start if necessary.
Takashi Saito was also told he won't be on the post-season roster, and it's probably for the best since he's battled shoulder tendinitis for weeks now. Similar to Jurrjens, I expect there's a good chance we see him if we make the 2nd round. Eric O'Flaherty continues to battle re-occurring problems with blurry vision and won't make the trip to San Francisco either. The Braves still aren't sure why EOF is having all of these problems, and I'm sure it has Eric worried.
So there it is. It would certainly look a lot better with Chipper, Medlen, Prado and others in there instead of the guys we do now, but injuries are something you can't prevent. We just need every one of these 25 guys to contribute each night and hope for the best.
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there it is,,,,
i was just going to ask about the roster….. Thank you sir……
Jason Heyward is what Willis was talking about.....
screw Mike Dunn.
Hopefully O’Flaherty freaking comes to.
"It looks like The Hound of the Baskervilles out there." - Steve Stone
"...I'm reminded of Wuthering Heights." - Harry Caray
~
Swing and a drive...Belted right! Welcome to the Show!!!
by Chief Noc-A-Homa on Oct 5, 2010 6:07 PM EDT reply actions
??
Mike Dunn has been pretty damn good since being back with the big club. Obviously, we would want EOF back instead because he has a bit more of a track record, but Dunn has filled in quite well for EOF
"The Dos Equis guys want me to be the least interesting man in the world" - Drama
Consider the source.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 3:17 AM EDT up reply actions
EOF caught mono in July.
He is not going to be physically able to help us this postseason, period.
Have you checked the Giants lineup? They’re not exactly the ’27 Yankees either.
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
by Scott Coleman on Oct 5, 2010 6:18 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Jose Guillen!
I’m intimidated.
"Yeah, and I have an enchanted jock strap." -- Karl Karlson
by Jacob Peterson on Oct 5, 2010 8:24 PM EDT up reply actions
Its nothing to sneeze at
They’ve got more power than us, that’s for sure. Also, Andres Torres is scary if he gets on base.
One late game threat to really watch
Travis Ishikawa. His overall numbers are very unimpressive, but he has hit the Braves, very well. It’s a very small sample size, but he’s hit .380 against the Braves since 2008 and run into a homer every year, but as long as a short series is concerned, all precautions should be taken into effect. With Aubrey Huff likely starting at first, Ishikawa will very likely see PH/defensive sub duties late in games, but that’s when his hits would hurt the worst.
No wonder nobody likes you, Tuttle... everything's a (Pujols) damn debate.
This is the kind of stuff
That should be in posts on the main site lol. We need more in depth playoff coverage like this.
He doesn't have much power...
but good contact.
As Buster Olney called it earlier, they are a bit of a “softball lineup”, so late game situations may come down to defensive subs (and we also need to capitalize with big innings when they make mistakes) as Sandoval, Burrell, Guillen, Huff, pretty much all of their starters defensively are average to worse.
I’m glad we have 34 outfielders, 1.5 of which we can count on every day.
DON'T GO TO SLEEP EARLY OR JEFF FRANCOEUR WILL HAUNT YOUR DREAMS AND LOWER YOUR OBP. - Scott
by BullManUGA on Oct 5, 2010 6:16 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
Angry Rant Warning
I know he hasn’t shown a whole lot in the chances he’s had, but I think Freddie is way more valuable than Melky.
And in the month since Freddie was called up, he has 2 XBH in 24 AB, a 2b and a HR. Melky has how many? TWO. Both doubles. In 65 AB.
Given the choice between Melky PH and Freddie PH, I’d take Freddie any day.
Instead we carry 6 outfielders. 3 of those can’t hit a lick, but at least they are all below average fielders.
Seriously I cannot see any scenario where we have a drastic need for a defensive replacement with neither Ankiel or Nate available.
Seriously, is Melky even a better LF than Diaz anyway? UZR says emphatically no. Melky’s UZR in LF is -7 and in CF is -8. Diaz’s UZR in LF is 0. I.e. Diaz has been average and Melky 7 runs below average and that is in relatively similar amounts of chances in LF.
Melky was the 6th worst OF in terms of UZR in the majors.
Now surely UZR isn’t perfect, but has anyone really seen anything at all to suggest Melky is better than Diaz out there? Melky’s arm is better, but that’s it.
This concludes my current round of Melkitis and related anger. Still pumped about the series, but you just know that if he’s around he’ll find his way into games, probably starting, probably batting higher than 8th.
It basically comes down to how Freeman would be used. There is no point in carrying a third string 1st baseman. Hinske is the primary LH pinch hitter, with probably Glaus or Melky as RH pinch hitters. Freeman really would have no role on the team other than just getting some experience.
I think I would rather have Boscan than both of them so that Ross can be used as a pinch hitter some.
Agree with Ross hitting more
It might be a problem that I’ve repeatedly asked myself “would Ross really be that much worse than Melky in LF.”
And Melky as a RH PH is embarrassing.
This
is the most intellegent post I’ve seen all week. Why the hell not put Ross in LF? It can’t be worse than Melky who’s one donut away from Prince Fielder status. And I’m reminded of Ross’ last start when he went 3-4 with 3 2b’s….
GIVE ROSS MORE AB’S GIVE ROSS MORE AB’S
"I wasn’t thinking about it. That’s the worst celebration of all time. I didn’t know what to do. I got lost in the moment." - Brian McCann
by HansonManCrush on Oct 6, 2010 8:41 AM EDT up reply actions
It is partially about next year.
The odds of Freddie vs. Melky are small. Freddie playing in the AFL helps. That’s the math.
That makes a little sense
At least something good comes out of it anyway. But I will have a hard time focusing on that when Melky bats 5th tomorrow.
You are right about Melky. He never has been very good and he’s having the worst year of his career. He’s below replacement level. Jeff Francoeur can pinch hit against lefties and has a good arm. You can actually make a case he belongs in the major leagues as a role player. Melky? What does he bring to a team? He’s a 0 tool outfielder. Can’t hit, no power, no speed, bad defense, OK arm.
But you know what? He actually hits left-handed pitching better than the Braves’ two other center fielders. McLouth and Ankiel are bad against righties and really, really bad against lefties. Melky is equally bad against righties and lefties.
The Braves’ centerfielders are so bad, it actually makes sense to have Melky on the team.
Melky has more than an “ok” arm, and he doesn’t have “bad” defense. He’s actually decent on D with a good arm. He can also play all three OF positions and is league average offensively.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 11:28 AM EDT up reply actions
In what?
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 1:55 PM EDT up reply actions
Glaus
Little surprised to see him on there, as he hasn’t played the field in over 2 weeks.
If Albert played in the AFL, they’d have to rename it the AZ/NM Fall League, based on where his homers landed.
Was thinking the same...
He’s a terrible defender and he hasn’t hit since June. Hinske can spell Lee at first. Not sure about this one.
Glaus is on there for two reasons
1) Pinch hitting. The guy has power and can hit in clutch situations.
2) Super backup. If Lee/Infante/Brooks were to get hurt, Glaus could come in for 1B (and in a real big pinch) 3B.
Glaus
he has been a rally killer. Hits in to too many weak ground ball double plays. Maybe the rest will do his worn out knees some good, but he can run anymore and his power is spotty as best. I guess experience counts for something though, and I would rather have him than Ankiel. He sucks.
Sure, I understand the logic, but it’s a little surprising. You would think that if Bobby wanted him for the playoffs, he would have made more of an effort to see Troy field the ball in the last month, and would have tried to get Glaus more ABs to help him get his timing and shake some of the rust off. Neither of those things really happened, which made me expect that Glaus would be left off.
If Albert played in the AFL, they’d have to rename it the AZ/NM Fall League, based on where his homers landed.
i'm gonna lose my composure if you people keep up this kind of talk about the mvp
plus he’s got plenty of postseason and big game experience with the yankees
Glaus
Troy Glaus is a rested professional bat. I wish his defense were just a little better so he could be starting at third base. If we were in the AL we would be thankful to have that kind of power bat in our line-up. He could do massive damage as a dh. As it stands he is on the roster because he deserves to be there. If we get to the series the AL team better watch out when they are at home with Glaus hitting in the 6 spot.
Hmmm
11 pitchers seems like too many. Beachy probably serves as a long reliever, and Cristhian Martinez is probably going to serve the same role. Seems like overkill. I think I’d rather have Freeman.
dunno about beachy in long relief
but martinez seems unnecessary. agree i would rather have freeman than martinez.
I'm pretty sure
Cox would want Lowe starting in a potential game winner (even if it is short rest) rather than Beachy. The guy has started in enough pressure games anyways.
Then why did you say Beachy is there as 4th starter?
Are you saying Beachy would start if the Braves are down 1-2? I don’t see that.
I think he's there
In case Hudson/Lowe/Hanson get injured. I just don’t see Cox sending Beachy out for Game 4 if we are up 2-1 OR losing 1-2.
If one of the SPs gets injured, can’t you just substitute them off the playoff roster anyway?
If Albert played in the AFL, they’d have to rename it the AZ/NM Fall League, based on where his homers landed.
But we could probably call on JJ by then…hmmmm……interesting…
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 1:56 PM EDT up reply actions
You underestimate him...
Beachy will be a valuable asset in this series, well before the 15th!!! Just because he hasn’t been up all year doesn’t mean he’s not better than guys like Dunn and Martinez coming out of the pen, or worthy of the 4th start. The guy threw well twice vs. The Phillies. If he can do that in front of 2 sell out crowds with the playoffs on the line, than he can compete well vs. the Giants.
I trust Beachy right now more than I do “everyday” Johnny V since Bobby has worn him down.
I think we will see Lowe in the 4th game, but we’ll see Beachy in this series, and he will do well.
The appropriate comparison is between
Beachy / Lowe in games 4 and 5 and Lowe / Hanson.
Either way, Lowe gets a start, but in the first scenario he’s well-rested. But you’d have to figure that getting Tommy that 2nd start is a bigger advantage than getting Lowe a bit more rest. Bobby is not going to throw Beachy unless he’s desperate.
"Yeah, and I have an enchanted jock strap." -- Karl Karlson
by Jacob Peterson on Oct 5, 2010 8:26 PM EDT up reply actions
But Beachy has relief experience...
with the lack of a need for a 4th starter, Bobby has to see that he shouldn’t be along for that reason (maybe injury insurance, but not as a planned starter). Without Saito, we need a righty reliever after Kimbrel and Moylan (and Farnsworth, yikes). So Martinez and Beachy have a chance for some high leverage innings. Beachy has had a good heater, and looks solid when he keeps it down. Tuned up for a post season inning, I could see him running it up 95+. If he does that in the lower third of the strike zone, with command of one other pitch, and that can be a devastating bullpen arm. Plus, if Jurrjens can’t come back for a start in the NLCS, Beachy has his post season jitters out of the way should we need him to start later down the line.
I think Beachy throws.
That's what I thought
Nobody seems to have a definitive answer – although I’m 99.99% sure he’s ineligible.
That's what I thought too.
In fact, when he wasn’t called up before the deadline, I remember thinking, so much for him being on the postseason roster.
With some roster tweaking,
based on injuries and stuff, I’m sure they could work around it, though I’m not positive
Yes.
With Prado’s injury, we get an extra position player who wasn’t on the pre-September roster. That could be Freddie (though it won’t be unless Glaus or Lee gets hurt).
"Yeah, and I have an enchanted jock strap." -- Karl Karlson
by Jacob Peterson on Oct 5, 2010 8:23 PM EDT up reply actions
The eligibility rule means basically nothing at this point
So long as the guy was in the organization before Sept. 1 he can take the place of any injured major league player.
So between Medlen, Chipper, Prado, Saito, EOF, et. al. we could basically start the Mississippi Braves without running into any eligibilty problems.
He’s not “officially” eligible, but we’d have 0 problem getting him in this freakin huge loophole.
Why
On earth do they need both Ankiel and McLouth?
"I wasn’t thinking about it. That’s the worst celebration of all time. I didn’t know what to do. I got lost in the moment." - Brian McCann
by HansonManCrush on Oct 5, 2010 8:01 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
They don't
not at all.
But really, who would Bobby choose instead of one of them? The only other player I could see him taking (given the injury situations) is Boscan, and we certainly don’t need a third catcher. You could argue for Freeman, but then we’d have 3 1Bs, which is also redundant. If Saito was 100% I’d rather have him, but he clearly isn’t. The options aren’t good, in other words.
"Yeah, and I have an enchanted jock strap." -- Karl Karlson
by Jacob Peterson on Oct 5, 2010 8:21 PM EDT up reply actions
J.C. Boscan will be an emergency replacement player.
The birth of Jason Heyward was God’s punishment for the sins of the people in New York and Philly.
A question on emergency replacements....
they can’t replace anyone DURING the series can they? I was under the impression your 25 is set at the beginning of every series, and you can’t add or subtract until a following series.
They changed the rule, you can replace a player who is injured during the series- but said player who gets replace is out for the following series.
So if someone goes down in the divisional, they’re out for the LCS, but would be eligible for the WS roster.
Interesting
Thanks for the info.
If Albert played in the AFL, they’d have to rename it the AZ/NM Fall League, based on where his homers landed.
injuries are something you can’t prevent
but but but… “PREVENTION AND RECOVERY”
"Yeah, and I have an enchanted jock strap." -- Karl Karlson
2011
If the Braves adopt that slogan for next season, I think I’ll cry.
I like people until I meet them.
Not even the biggest Frank Wren haters
think he’s that stupid.
"Yeah, and I have an enchanted jock strap." -- Karl Karlson
by Jacob Peterson on Oct 5, 2010 8:22 PM EDT up reply actions
I'm just glad
that you were able to post something about a postseason roster
"Tony Gwynn made sacrifices. Cal Ripken made sacrifices. I'm not sure Derek Jeter made sacrifices given the ungodly deep pockets the Yankees have." - Chipper Jones
by MBL1 on Oct 5, 2010 8:24 PM EDT via mobile reply actions 1 recs
Just be patient…
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
by Scott Coleman on Oct 5, 2010 10:13 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Lowe starting game 1
Not quite roster talk, but what does everyone think of Bobby going Lowe, Hanson, Huddy?
I actually like this look, going with the hot hand out of the gate and giving Huddy a few extra days rest.
Hmm valid point
But I think Huddy was kinda running out of gas at the end there, I’m hoping that with a bit of rest he’ll be back to his dominant 3 hit, 1 run per game form.
I think
Its simply that Hudson needs the rest, plus game 3 is pretty imporant and our first one at home.
The rest thing is probably why.
That and Hanson is not a bad Game 5 option, if only he’d lift that curse off Braves bats.
More strikeouts...
Also make him a pretty good option. I’m fully on-board with the pitch-to-contact mindset, but sometimes weakly-hit balls can find holes. A few lucky hits coupled with the Braves defense could spell trouble at any given time.
The ability to strikeout batters with consistency in big situations is a definite plus.
-C
It’s rough to sit through these games and not have someone that can’t hit a Ball?
Game 3 is huge too...
say we lose both games at their place, we need to win 3 to stay alive.
Or if Lowe or Hanson can steal one there, having the advantage of Hudson in game 3, and getting that W would allow us to take a commanding 2-1 lead.
And Hanson in game 5 works fine. The kid hasn’t been phased yet, and has been as good as anyone we send to the hill since arrival.
but injuries are something you can’t prevent
Hah, everyone knows the Phillies played courageously through adversity all year, and the Braves’ injuries are inconsequential.
Morgan: Do you think I could come into the clubhouse after the game and display my ass for both those veterans and the younger guys?
Baker: Well, Joe, you are on the payroll of the team, and you're a legend, so I suppose — holy shit!
[Joe has appeared next to Dusty, in the dugout, completely naked]
Morgan: Hey.
A little OT:
I got my tickets for the game Sunday and I have never been so excited in my life! Turner field is gonna be rocking and I can not wait. I am just so proud of what this team has done to get into this position and I can not wait for all the talking heads out there picking against us to eat crow.
"The Dos Equis guys want me to be the least interesting man in the world" - Drama
There are plenty of teams who could use him. They would be stupid to look at his W-L or him being sent down and decide that he must suck.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 2:18 PM EDT up reply actions
The problem is, other teams won’t get a ton of useful information from KK’s limited usage this year. The fact that he has been all but deported to Japan is not going to help keep his name in GMs’ minds.
If the Braves are unable to deal him this offseason, I wonder whether Bobby’s absence will work in his favor.
"Jason Heyward was a Greek philosopher reincarnated as a baseball player." - Don Sutton
Likely.
We won’t get anything at all for him, but someone will jump at the chance to solidify the back-end of their rotation. Bear in mind, the Braves standard for a solid back-end is considerably higher than the vast majority of MLB teams.
Wouldn’t have before, but our use of him the last part of the season has dropped his peripherals enough that we may have to pick up some of his contract.
-C
It’s rough to sit through these games and not have someone that can’t hit a Ball?
Hello everyone.
Just got back from my trip. I’ll get around to scoring NAHWAL tomorrow. But I have a question-
anyone up for Playoffs NAHWAL? You must respond to the comment I made in the Final NAHWAL thread or I won’t go through with an email to gondeee.
Thanks
Carpe Diaz
Maybe make it a front page thing? It would be a lot of scoring, but i think a bunch of TCers would do it.
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
by Scott Coleman on Oct 5, 2010 11:46 PM EDT up reply actions
That’s why I want to know I have at least, say 8 people. That way I can go to gondeee and say we have a core group who would do it, and ask if we could, and then ask if it should be front paged
Carpe Diaz
TC should be hoping the next few days with the playoffs…i’d put money on at least 25 entries.
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
by Scott Coleman on Oct 6, 2010 12:01 AM EDT up reply actions
Today I was on MLB.com filling out a post season bracket and I tried, lord I tried, to not have the Braves going to and winning the world series, but I couldn’t do it.
just for the record...
Rays over Rangers in 4
Yankees over Twins in 5
Phillies over Reds in 3
Giants over Braves in 5
Rays over Yankees in 7
Phillies over Giants in 5
Rays over Phillies in 6
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
by Scott Coleman on Oct 6, 2010 12:05 AM EDT up reply actions
I see absolutely nothing wrong with this.
"Check out this bitchin' homemade tesla coil!"
by bwellnjonesco on Oct 6, 2010 8:16 AM EDT up reply actions
Curt Shilling just said something pretty interesting...
According to him, the umpires are all usually hitter-friendly. So in other words, expect a small zone.
I’m not sure if that helps us or hurts us.
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
And now all ESPN talks about is how the Giants pitching is going to shut us down.
Maybe.
But our pitching is really fucking good too. They seem to forget that.
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
This meme is pissing me off.
These teams are very evenly matched. Our staff is excellent and our offense is spotty. Both things are also true of the Giants.
Was I the only one who saw Cain throw BP to the Pads friday night? I’m not counting on a rerun of that, but he’s not exactly Gooden in ’85 great.
"Everybody's gotta do what they've gotta do." - Joe Simpson
If you match the probable lineups up...
Torres
Sanchez/Fontenot
Huff
Posey
Burrell
Uribe
Guillen
Sandoval
and
Infante
Heyward
McCann
Lee
McLouth
Gonzalez
Conrad
Ankiel
I mean, I guess the Giants lineup is a little better than ours, but just barely. And if Bobby would actually do the unthinkable and hit Heyward-Lee-McCann 3-4-5 like he should, we’d be even better looking.
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
by Scott Coleman on Oct 6, 2010 3:45 AM EDT up reply actions
The "thinking" seems to be
That we’ll all be so scared of the Giants Mound Masters that everyone will sneak out of the dugout sometime around the 6th inning and make a run for the airport.
"Everybody's gotta do what they've gotta do." - Joe Simpson
I dont think that will be our lineup
I think/pray/hope that Bobby hits Lee 3rd like he should
by drumzalicious on Oct 6, 2010 4:46 AM EDT up reply actions
I would prefer:
Infante
McLouth
Heyward
Lee
McCann
Conrad
Melky
Gonzalez
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 5:13 AM EDT up reply actions
Or Diaz instead of Melky.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 5:13 AM EDT up reply actions
Melky
just simply should not see playing time at all.
by drumzalicious on Oct 6, 2010 1:47 PM EDT up reply actions
Hearing Mitch Williams
Go on a rant about how the Braves pitching staff has let them down THE WHOLE SEASON the other day just about made me put something heavy through my bigscreen. 3rd best ERA in the bigs, but they’ve let the team down.
Then I watched this and felt better…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iknGBwd4seI
Fuck you, Mitch Williams.
-C
It’s rough to sit through these games and not have someone that can’t hit a Ball?
Pardon my French
But Mitch Williams is a twat
"The Dos Equis guys want me to be the least interesting man in the world" - Drama
www.douchebag.com/mitch_williams
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
by Scott Coleman on Oct 6, 2010 3:30 AM EDT up reply actions
I really
dislike Melky being on the roster.
If he is somehow in one of the starting lineups i will scream!!!
Is this still speculation? because I don’t see us carrying 6 OFers to the postseason.
My guess:
C: McCann, Ross
1B: Lee, Glaus (Hinske)
2B: Conrad (Infante)
SS: Gonzalez, Hernandez (Infante)
3B: Infante (Glaus, Conrad, Hinske)
LF: Diaz, (Melky, Hinske)
CF: McLouth (Melky)
RF: Heyward, (Melky)
Melky is infinitely more valuable than Ankiel since he can play all 3 spots adequately, and he brings more to the plate. For position players, I have Ankiel and Freeman not making the cut, giving us a total of 14 players with decent position flexibility. Our bench consists of Melky, Hinske, Glaus, Ross and Diory – not too bad, except for a pinch-running situation. It sucks that Hicks is hurt.
For pitching, I have:
Lowe, Hanson, Hudson, Beachy, Wagner, Saito, Kimbrel, Venters and Moylan as locks. That leaves 2 positions for EOF, Dunn, JJ, Proctor, Farnsworth and Martinez. Of these, I see EOF and Dunn making the cut, leaving off the rest.
So there you have it. IMO, that is the best we can do, unless JJ is healthy which would allow him to take Beachy’s spot.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 3:24 AM EDT reply actions
Read the write-up at the bottom...
Saito and EOF both out.
'Terrible preview...pretty weak, didn't learn anything new. pretty sad." - mastermike
by Scott Coleman on Oct 6, 2010 3:34 AM EDT up reply actions
I hadn’t heard that. I thought this was all speculative.
In that case, I take a risk with JJ and Proctor.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 4:10 AM EDT up reply actions
Bat’s not good enough for left, and Ankiel does nothing better then Heyward that is condusive to helping a baseball team win postseason games.
Because he is the worst OF on the roster offensively, and his defense is not substantial enough to warrant a roster spot in the post season. He does nothing that Melky can’t do, except pitch in a 15 inning game.
And as far as RF goes, I think the young man has that one on lock-down.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 11:00 AM EDT up reply actions
What exactly can Melky do?
Melky is not “adequate” at any outfield position.
And you suggest that Melky can play any OF position as if Ankiel can’t and the reason seems to be because Ankiel is a bad hitter and Heyward plays RF.
Pardon me, but isn’t Melky a bad hitter as well.
I think you underestimate the fact the Ankiel is an average fielder, and Melky is a terrible one.
Melky has hit all of .255/.317/.354. Ankiel just with the Braves (not including his better play in KC) is .210/.324/.328.
Melky’s SLG is only higher than Ankiel because of batting average. So Melky’s SLG is higher because he hits more singles. Well Ankiel’s walks are worth almost exactly as much as Melky’s singles.
As far as actual power goes, Ankiel’s ISO (that is how much of his SLG is actual extra-base hits) is .118 compared to Melky’s .098.
Think of it this way:
Melky’s plate appearances end this way: 68.3% out, 24.8% on first (single, walk or HBP), 5.3% double, .6% triple, .8% HR.
Ankiel’s end (based on his time with the Braves): 67.6% out, 26% on first, 4.3% double, .7% triple, 1.4% HR.
The extra base hits come to 6.5% of PAs for Ankiel, and 6.7% for Melky. (And clearly more of Ankiel’s are HR.
For the season as a whole, Ankiel is: 67.9% out, 23.8% on first, 5.4% double, .4% triple, 2.5% HR.
Plus Melky is just freakin cold. For September he’s done even worse than usual .231/.282/.262. Ankiel in that time is .200/.347/.325.
The only number that supports Melky over Ankiel is BA.
Even if you still think Melky is a better hitter than Ankiel, do you really think he’s so much better as to overcome the fielding?
I have to agree with you, although you can argue it both ways.
In the end, Melky is just a huge defensive liability. Considering how porous our infield has been lately, we don’t need defensive issues in our outfield.
I do like that Melky is a switch hitter, I guess.
All in all, the debate is over one 4th outfielder vs. another 4th outfielder.
So, you are taking about a month’s-worth of Ankiel’s numbers and comparing them to Melky’s? Why don’t you use the stats from the months when Ankiel was horrible?
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 1:59 PM EDT up reply actions
He made three comparisons...
Melky year v. Ankiel w/ Braves
Melky year v. Ankiel year
Melky Sept v. Ankiel Sept.
Their stats on the year are very comparable, other than Melky’s horrible defense. In September, the stats do slide in Ankiel’s favor, with the exception of AVG, which you’ve repeated stated is not as important as not making outs.
Seems pretty cut and dry…
-C
It’s rough to sit through these games and not have someone that can’t hit a Ball?
He didn’t use Ankiel’s yearly totals.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 2:19 PM EDT up reply actions
Yes he did.
For the season as a whole, Ankiel is: 67.9% out, 23.8% on first, 5.4% double, .4% triple, 2.5% HR
-C
It’s rough to sit through these games and not have someone that can’t hit a Ball?
Additonally, Ankiel's KC numbers are better than his Atlanta numbers
He mentioned that early, and thus chose to use the worse data set to make the comparison.
Would you like him to include Ankiel’s AAA numbers this year as well??
-C
It’s rough to sit through these games and not have someone that can’t hit a Ball?
Just saying...
how can Melky play all 3 OF spots, but not Ankiel? Especially when considering Ankiel is a vastly superior fielder than Melky and has the best arm of all OFs, so it’s not like McLouth.
Middle Infield
I really think we need to drop Martinez and add a Middle Infielder, we basically have 1 backup for 3B, 2B, and SS in Diory Hernandez. I think Joe Thurston should have been called up when Prado went down so that we at least have more than 1 player who can Play the MI positions. What happens if Omar goes down( God Forbid it please) in game 1. We basically have to put either Hinske or Glaus at 3B when neither has played any 3B in at least 2 years. Thurston would be a nice player to have on the post season roster instead of Martinez. If we get into an extra inning game we have Beachy to throw out there for 3-4 innings if needed so we really dont need another long man.
Just my $.02
Only four of ESPN’s 27 “experts” pick the Braves to win the NLDS; none have them advancing to the World Series. Let’s prove them wrong!!!
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs/2010/news/story?id=5651702
The computer sim thing they do had the Braves with a 60+% chance of winning the series.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 8:07 AM EDT up reply actions
If i see a starting outfield with Ankiel and McLouth, I’m going to puke.
Coming soon: winningugly visits Atlanta, takes dump in royhobbs’ Braves hat.
I know it will never happen, but just for reference since the All-Star break Diaz is .255/.339/.451 against righties. It’s a small samples size, but for his whole career he’s .269/.327/.382 against them.
Sure it’s nothing amazing, but it’s not magically worse than the other guys just b/c he’s a RHB.
This season against righties Melky is .266/.320/.365. Career: .273/.330/.389 so even over his whole career Melky was really not better than Diaz against RHP.
To be fair, Melky has been better recently, .279/.338/.385 since the All-Star break, bu again, still not as good as Diaz (similar OBP, better SLG).
Nate is .205/.317/.368 this season, and .235/.312/.441 in the second half. (His career number are solid, but if Nate was playing like he did earlier in his career this wouldn’t be a question anyway).
Ankiel is .254/.323/.462 career, .256/.339/.462 this season, .226/.327/.366 since coming to Atlanta.
I think I’d probably go Ankiel and Diaz in CF and LF against RHP. Obviously Diaz in LF against LHP and probably stick with Ankiel since all 3 of the CF options have been truly terrible against LHP this season.
I convinced myself a few days ago, Diaz, Ankiel, Heyward is probably the best we can do with 5 4th OFers to go along with Heyward. McLouth, Cabrera and Hinske need to ride some pine. Ankiel is weak offensively, but he can play CF and at least has a good arm he’s willing to use.
Write your own recap!.....mvhsbball
Nate has been mashing since he came back from AAA – OPS-ing more than .800.
This guy wants to suck all the cubs dick can he not have an unbias some what partition reguards
by RWH2 on Apr 5, 2010 10:20 AM CDT
by justincredubil02 on Oct 6, 2010 2:00 PM EDT up reply actions
Nate had a hot two weeks...
the last two weeks, he’s started to go back to the earlier Nate, unfortunately.
Infield Help
I agree that we need another IF on the roster. We are running two “back ups” out to starting roles as it is in Conrad and Infante. To make things worse you would like to have the ability to put in a defensive sub for Conrad late in the game and with only one extra infielder you can’t. I think the biggest problem is that the Braves simply have no depth in the IF right now. That was one of my biggest frustrations with the Braves front office is that they didn’t try to find an extra infielder to replace Infante as the utility guy for the bench. It would have been nice to have someone who could hold his own at SS if we needed. Ideally I would have liked them to go after a good bench option-a Mike Aviles from KC….a Keppinger from the Astros…or Counsell from Milwaukee. Heck..I would have been willing to overpay for an option like Peralta who could play 3B, 2B, 1B, and if you HAD to..SS. It just pains me that we are going into a knife fight with a bunch of spoons. Not sure what the value of having Ankiel and McClouth on the roster…but my hunch is that there simply isn’t a better option. I realize that people are advocating for Freeman and I think that case can be made…but he is still LH and doesn’t help out anywhere but 1B…where we will have depth (Lee, Glaus, Hinske, Ross, heck…even Diaz and Infante have played 1B). There isn’t a viable middle infield option in the organization…nor even a good bench bat right now that would be better.
We’ve been pretty short of infielders on the farm for a year or two. Hicks, Timmons, Thurston and Hernandez all have their good points, but could also be considered AAAA for an inability to stay in MLB. Seems like the club has addressed the issue pretty strongly in the last 8 months though.
E Salcedo, biggest signing bonus ever to an IFA
My Jones, Instructional League learning new positions
Lipka, Andrellton Simmons and Brandon Drury drafted as SS’s, supp, 2Round, 13Round
Cunningham, Leonard and Terdoslavich drafted as 3B, 2Round, 3Round, 6Round
Pastornicky brought in by trade
Not all those guys will stay in the left side of the infield, but the left side of the infield has been seriously addressed for the future.
Write your own recap!.....mvhsbball
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