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Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Braves’ season full of surprises, mostly nasty
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So now we have the answers to some of the puzzles of the spring (and other observations on the Braves):
• In case you missed the seasons of the 1970s and ’80s, you’re getting a taste of how it was back then, when the beleaguered managers ranged from Lum Harris to Russ Nixon — and even Ted Turner got in a lick. (His record: 0-1).
• We now know that John Smoltz and Tom Glavine won’t be 15-game winners. Between them they have won five, and most of the rest of the time have been medical guests and relics of another age. It isn’t easy to turn off your dreams.
• We now know you can’t survive in the NL East with a crew of relief pitchers collected off the street, such as Jeff Ridgway, Royce Ring, Chris Resop, Jeff Bennett, and at the same time, trade away one who has proved himself — Tyler Yates.
• With Rafael Soriano and Mike Gonzalez, two celebrated “closers” in the ranks, they appeared well stocked in that department, but how can they be of value when there’s very little to be “closed”?
• We now know that the envisioned outfield threesome of Matt Diaz, Mark Kotsay and Jeff Francoeur would be operating on only one-third efficiency. Whoever could have imagined Frenchy dawdling along in the .230s batting range, and that Diaz would become a season casualty? Except for Kotsay, the outfield has been cursed.
• We now know that Mark Teixeira was here only on borrowed time, and that the deal giving away five blossoming prospects to get him was a big-time blunder, being aware that he was here only on loan.
• At least we know now that Clint Sammons has a future in the big leagues, probably not as a main man, but as a backup he’s quite an upgrade from Corky Miller.
• You can’t be sure how long Jorge Campillo can carry on, but we now realize that he can pitch in the big leagues, and not only that, but he can swing a rather noisy bat.
• We now realize that Bobby Cox can’t — what’s the term? — “make silk purses out of sow’s ears.” It’s painful to see him suffering through night after night of blowing leads, watching his bullpen self-destruct, and to hear and read the cruel comments floating through the air and on the Internet. The Braves haven’t been this far out of the race since 1990. True, but now we know he’s not dealing with a full deck.
• Now, through the lines and on the street, this speculation: You suppose John Schuerholz saw this coming on and moved out of the general manager’s office just in time? Pure folly. He is a wise baseball man, but he’s no kin to Nostradamus.
• As if it had not already been confirmed, we now know that Chipper Jones won’t be checking in with a .400 batting average. Frankly, I doubt that any major league player will ever do it again, especially in the National League.
• Who’d have thought that one of the Braves would wind up on the world stage? Scott Thorman takes time off from the Richmond farm club to be Canada’s first baseman in the Olympic Games.
• Hey, do you suppose that if Yunel Escobar knew it was going to be like this, he would have endured all those dangers on that boat getting out of Cuba? Silly question.
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