Talking Chop: FanShots

"I told (Heyward) the other day, I don't know what the f--- I was thinking."

2010-03-11T03:18:37Z

"I told (Heyward) the other day, I don't know what the f--- I was thinking."

Bobby on retiring the year after Jason Heyward breaks into the league. Could he possibly pull a Favre and continue to manage after 2010 to see Jason Heyward in his prime?

Crazy Realignment Ideas

2010-03-10T23:57:56Z

Chino's packing! Any guesses as to what is floating around in that Fupa? (Thanks to Joe...

2010-03-10T23:10:30Z

Chino's packing! Any guesses as to what is floating around in that Fupa?
(Thanks to Joe Lucia.)

"I think we need him," Jones said. "I think we need him to be a contender in the East. We need him...

2010-03-10T16:17:06Z

"I think we need him," Jones said. "I think we need him to be a contender in the East. We need him from Day One."

Chipper Jones on our Future RF.

Spring Training Power Poll

2010-03-10T05:22:17Z

Spring Training Power Poll

Ranking the MLB teams 1-30. Braves clock in at #12. Fair assessment?

It's a Boy!!!

2010-03-10T04:07:59Z

It's a Boy!!!

So I just found out I'm having a boy....I'm thinking Jason Heyward as a first and a middle name. (My wife already ruled out Larry Wayne) Any other cool Braves themed names?

Schafer update: "That's the best that I've felt in 10 months"

2010-03-10T02:59:12Z

Schafer update: "That's the best that I've felt in 10 months"

From Bowman's Blog

Well, it looks like I won't be getting any work done today.

2010-03-09T17:52:45Z

Well, it looks like I won't be getting any work done today.

MLB fires three Ump Supervisors

2010-03-09T15:17:06Z

MLB fires three Ump Supervisors

Unfortunately "Bill Hohn" and "Angel Hernandez" are not mentioned anywhere, as those who were fired. To tell you the truth, I'm not that familiar with the three names that got the axe, over the phone no less, while the three names "coming out of retirement," I am familiar with, and the three names of umps who get to keep their jobs despite similar transgressions I'm familiar with too. It's good to see MLB actually doing something about umpires, but something seems a little awry, in this case.

I'm not saying, I'm just sayin'.

Gammons: Heyward Works Hard to Play Hard

2010-03-09T13:29:11Z

Gammons: Heyward Works Hard to Play Hard

Good article by Peter Gammons about Heyward's upbringing.

"Home runs, I know they're going to come," Heyward said. "I know that's part of my game; I'm not...

2010-03-09T04:23:11Z

"Home runs, I know they're going to come," Heyward said. "I know that's part of my game; I'm not worried about that. But I was just happy about having a good at-bat because he made some good pitches. It was a good at-bat, a good swing."

http://scores.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=300308106&teams=atlanta-braves-vs-detroit-tigers

This is the best part about Heyward. He knows the importance of pitch selection and patience.

What Makes Chipper So Good

2010-03-09T02:28:01Z

What Makes Chipper So Good

The Jon Sciambi piece about Chipper Jones, announcing, and sabermetrics from a while back just continues to provide fascinating revelations.

In this article, Dave Allen of FanGraphs breaks down how Chipper's approach differs depending on how good the pitcher he's facing is. He's more aggressive on 1st pitches against better pitchers, unlike the rest of the league, who have no difference in their approach. It's a little stat-heavy, but a nice validation of Chipper's approach. Turns out Chipper knows a little something about hitting.

Braves off season in review...

2010-03-08T18:01:55Z

Braves off season in review...

Not a bad summary at all, and especially liked this line regarding the Javy/Melky deal...
"You could make the argument that every team would be better with an extra $11.5MM spent, and the Braves just didn't have the budget to keep Vazquez. "

Composite Ranking of Prospects

2010-03-07T19:35:06Z

Composite Ranking of Prospects

This article analyzed 13 seperate prospect lists to arrive at a combined, weighted list of the 161 prospects ranked in any of the 13 lists. Good stuff.

Big surprise, I know, but J-Hey was number 1. Freeman was 41st; Vizcano 50th; Teheran 53. Also receiving honorable mention, based on inclusion in only 1 of the 13 lists, were Minor, Kimbrell, Spruill and R. Delgado.

Kyle Cofield

2010-03-07T09:38:32Z

Kyle Cofield

Where does Talking Chop rank Kyle Cofield as a prospect? I didn't see his name in the top 25.

Braves starters have not allowed a run in the first five games of spring training, getting two...

2010-03-07T04:47:24Z

Braves starters have not allowed a run in the first five games of spring training, getting two scoreless innings each from Tommy Hanson, Tim Hudson, Kenshin Kawakami, Derek Lowe and Kris Medlen.

-DOB

http://blogs.ajc.com/atlanta-braves-blog/2010/03/06/stat-of-the-day-3/?cxntfid=blogs_atlanta_braves_blog&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

McLouth's vision

2010-03-05T17:33:03Z

McLouth's vision

Nate McLouth got new contacts this season after getting his eyes checked, and it turns out he was getting shafted by the Pirates:

Last season, McLouth hit .256 with 20 homers and 70 RBI. He expects to put up better stats this year after getting contact lenses in the offseason.

"It's kind of like going from watching standard definition television to watching HD," he said. "I notice a big difference, both seeing pitches and in the outfield."

McLouth said his vision could have been corrected years ago, but he never bothered to visit an optometrist. The Pirates checked his vision each year during spring training, but never detected any problems.

"A blind man could pass that test they do," McLouth said, noting it basically consisted of reading an eye chart.

Calero Signs with Mets

2010-03-05T15:27:55Z

Calero Signs with Mets

I can't believe this wasn't fanshotted already, with all of the people around here who wanted to sign this guy. At least we can put that to rest, for better or worse.

[Update]: According to Amazin Ave: "Per Joel Sherman, Calero will earn $850K if he makes the team and another $650K in potential performance bonuses."

Seems pretty cheap to me...

Jordan Heyward???

2010-03-05T13:35:45Z

Jordan Heyward???

See NOTES. Can you believe they would disgrace the MAN??? They also don't know who's playing when. Come on Yahoo! get it together!

Ranking the GMs

2010-03-05T03:06:16Z

Ranking the GMs

How the heck are Theo Epstein and Brian Cashman ranked in the top 3? If anyone else had their bank accounts, they would be good too.

Also, how the heck is Frank Wren only #17???

I think this writer may be on crack.