Talking Chop, an Atlanta Braves community

"I’m playing next year," he told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday. "I still feel like I can go out there and play a good third base and be a threat, at least, at the plate. I’m having a good defensive year, and the [batting] average is on the rise." So much for the grand off-season plans some of us had. What is the best course of action to upgrade the team in the off-season, now that we know what Chip is doing?

I'm a cartoonist, recently added baseball cartoons to my racing toons. Unlike the racing ones, which star the drivers themselves, these are about the fans. Many teams will be represented but the stars are these two twin sisters, one a Braves fan, the other a Cubbies fan.

Great stuff about our old man Chipper.

Chris DiMino of 790 the Zone was the first to report that Chipper Jones will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL. Obviously, this was very bad news. The Bravos are in the middle of a close playoff race and Chip was hitting .307 with 4 HR’s and 13 RBI’s over the last 30 days. Now the front-office is forced to make some decisions. There are really only 3 choices.

Chipper on Escobar: "Do not give up on this kid" On June 14, Braves manager Bobby Cox removed shortstop Yunel Escobar from a game due to a lack of focus. His attitude was infuriating not only Cox, but also opponents and teammates. But Escobar led the NL in OPS in July, and seemingly has turned an emotional corner. Ask Chipper Jones. "Escobar, I feel, is one more notch mentally from being the best shortstop in the National League," the Braves' third baseman says. "He's got the defensive game, the offensive game. Mentally, he's not quite there yet. But he's about to elevate himself into one of the top one or two shortstops in the league. "That's when sometimes reading news clippings might help you. It will piss you off. He got hacked off at what people were saying about him. Maybe that's what it takes to get the message through. Nobody appreciates being bad-mouthed in the press. And he was getting it. "Anytime Bobby Cox pulls you off the field in the middle of a game, it's bad. He wanted to make a point. He made that point. But I harp on the people of Atlanta: Do not give up on this kid. He's the best shortstop I've ever played with. "He's young, hungry, a good player, a good kid. We just need to tone him down just a little bit, get him not to make mental mistakes."

This is slightly funny, but it does seem to be poking fun at the southern man known as Chipper. Not sure whether to be offended or laugh, since I, too, am from the southern portion of the US (only a couple of hours from where Chipper is from) and I'm not a redneck (though there are good bit down here), but I guess the term comes with the territory, unfortunately.