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February 2008
Big ballgame … well, for Feb. 29 it is
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Don’t know what it’s like where you are, but here it’s just ridiculously beautiful out for this big Grapefruit League opening home tilt with Los Dodgers.
The Disney folks apparently turned on their sinister weather-control machines to ensure we have picture-perfect conditions for this televised game and for ESPN The Weekend, that network being a subsidiary of Dark Star and all.
Cynicism aside, you’re gonna love it if you get to tune in today to watch this thing on The Worldwide Leader of Self-important Titled Events (nevermind ESPN The Weekend, how about this past week, er, Judgment Week? North Carolina vs. Boston College, Kansas vs. Iowa State …. Judgment Week?)
Anyway, it’s beautiful here, and Peter Gammons and the boys (and girls) are here with The Network, and having Peter here is enough to make it feel like a good thing. Sure feels more important than a Feb. 29 exhibition that no one will remember in four weeks … or in four days, for that matter.
Andruw’s not here. Said he’d rather wait to get booed at Turner Field than get booed here and there. But I’ve got news for him: I’m willing to bet he’s in the Julio Franco/Greg Maddux category in terms of return receptions in Atlanta, rather than the Tom Glavine category.
In other words, I bet Andruw gets an ovation, even a standing ovation from most, when he comes back the first time to Turner. And why not? Dude played his posterior — ample as it might have been in latter years — off while winning 10 consecutive Gold Gloves, playing virtually every day, and hitting more than a few bombs for the Braves over the past decade-plus.
OK, anyway, a few things before I head over to watch Smoltz throw this little simulated-game thing on the backfield at 11 a.m.
Oh, by the way, while I’m thinking about it, here are the major league leaders in quality starts over the past two seasons: 1. Smoltz 50, 2. Peavy 49, 3. Haren/Lackey 47 apiece, 5. Oswalt 46, 6. Glavine 45 (tied with Arroyo, Johan Santana, B. Webb), 10. Sabathia 43.
Flowers has a future: Maybe a bright one, in fact, with the Braves. Roswell’s Tyler Flowers, a 22-year-old catcher/first baseman who is 6-4 and 245 pounds, hit a two-run homer in the ninth inning Thursday at Dodgertown in his first Grapefruit League game.
The non-roster invitee hit .298 with 12 homers, 34 doubles and 70 RBIs in 106 games last season at Class A Rome, where he played mostly first base after coming back from a knee injury.
I asked Bobby Cox about him this morning, and the manager said: “He’s a legit prospect, with that power. Pitchers love to throw to him [as a catcher], because he’s a big target back there. He’s got a chance to be a big leaguer [in the future]. He’s been the talk of camp, the one guy who’s been able to hit our pichers in the early going.”
Chipper on Frenchy’s contract status: I’m hearing mixed things about Jeff Francoeur’s contract negotiations these days, things that lead me to believe it’s no longer so likely that he’ll get a long-term extension worked out anytime soon.
I asked Chipper Jones what he thought about the situation, whether he thought it mattered or was important at all whether Francoeur did a deal now or kept going year-to-year deals like most players of similar service time.
“He’s the least of my worries,” Hoss said of his young pupil of sorts. “He had a chance to sign last year, and again, he’s playing the waiting game. He’s gonna go out and bust his tail for the next year or two, try to put up the best numbers he can, sweeten the pot for a little down the road.
“Unlike what Mac did [Brian McCann signed a six-year, $26.8 million contract last spring]. Mac’s a catcher, you can get hurt anytime [as a catcher], you can understand him wanting to get some security.
“Frenchy’s playing it the other way, and I’m sure if he stays healthy and continues to put up numbers, it’s gonna pay off for him.
“Who knows, he might out-price the Braves here before too long.” (That last line was a reference to Mark Teixeira, because I had been talking to Chipper about the chances of signing Teixeira before we talked about Frenchy. I have a Teixeira story I’m finishing for tomorrow’s paper, to be posted online later today.)
I asked Chipper if he could see both sides of it, see why Francoeur might want to wait if the Braves don’t give him the contract he thinks he’s worth right now.
“Oh, yeah, no doubt about it,” Chipper said. “I would’ve liked to have seen Frenchy sign something last year, just to …. [he didn’t finish the sentence here].
“But every guy’s different. Some guys don’t want to give up a year or two of free agency. That’s fine. I’ve been there. That’s a matter of personal preference.
Schafer impressing early: Jordan Schafer hit six consecutive opposite-field line drives on six pitches in one round of batting practice Thursday morning at Dodgertown.
In his next round, the Braves’ center field prospect hit five more opposite-field drives to left and one up the middle. He was honing his inside-out swing, not trying to pull anything out to right in his first visit to Dodgertown.
“He’s for real,” said hitting coach Terry Pendleton, as he watched the kid’s disciplined display. “He works. He’ll come out and really work on something.”
Schafer carried it over to Thursday’s game, getting an opposite-field single in the first inning and another hit in the two-run seventh in the Braves’ loss.
OK, that’s it: Eighteen minutes that took, start to finish. Don’t try this at home. Crusading Everyman is a paid professional.
”OL’ 55” by Tom Waits
Well my time went so quickly, I went lickety-splickly out to my old ‘55
As I drove away slowly, feeling so holy, God knows, I was feeling alive.
Now the sun’s coming up, I’m riding with Lady Luck, freeway cars and trucks,
Stars beginning to fade, and I lead the parade
Just a-wishing I’d stayed a little longer,
Oh, Lord, let me tell you that the feeling’s getting stronger.
And it’s six in the morning, gave me no warning; I had to be on my way.
Well there’s trucks all a-passing me, and the lights are all flashing,
I’m on my way home from your place.
And now the sun’s coming up, I’m riding with Lady Luck, freeway cars and trucks,
Stars beginning to fade, and I lead the parade
Just a-wishing I’d stayed a little longer,
Oh, Lord, let me tell you that the feeling’s getting stronger.
And my time went so quickly, I went lickety-splickly out to my old ‘55
As I pulled away slowly, feeling so holy, God knows, I was feeling alive.
Now the sun’s coming up, I’m riding with Lady Luck,
Freeway cars and trucks, freeway cars and trucks, freeway cars and trucks…
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Braves’ last visit to “Dodgertown”
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
DODGERTOWN, Fla. _ We’re here in a corner of baseball heaven. And if this is our last trip to Dodgertown, then we’re glad at least that we just walked through the chow line ahead of Tommy Lasorda in his full Dodgers uniform.
I was one of the first into the dining room, since I had to scarf some food and get back over here to write a blog. You’ve gotta get to the mess hall pri-tee early (as Larry David would say) to beat Lasorda.
Anyway, there was an older couple behind me at the salad station, and up walks LaSorda in uniform. They start talking (Tommy knows everyone in the vicinity of Vero Beach, and I mean everyone) and Lasorda tells the guy he just got back from New York.
The man asks why he was in NY, and Lasorda starts telling him, and that’s when I thought of the line from History of the World, Pt. I, when Mel Brooks said, “It’s good to the be the king.”
Not that anyone was baring cleavage to Lasorda or anthing, but just to hear him tell the story of why he was in NY, this 80-year-old dude being summoned by a friend who owns an Italian-restaurant chain, to help his son with something or other, and then while he’s there, his buddy “Mr. Modell” asks Tommy to come speak to his employees (I’m assuming he meant Modell’s Sporting Goods, but since I was eavesdropping I didn’t think it would be tactful to ask for clarification).
OK, so where were we? Oh, yeah, Dodgertown’s Last Stand. If the Orioles don’t move here after the Dodgers leave for Arizona, then the Orioles better have a helluva sweetheart deal from Fort Lauderdale officials.
Because let me tell you, having lived 13 years in Fort Liquordale and spent plenty of time at that dump of a ballpark where the Orioles have spring training, it’s incomprehensible that they wouldn’t pack up the trucks and head a couple hours north to this old-school gem of spring training if they have the chance. I’ll cry if I drive by Dodgertown someday and there are condos where once stood Holman Stadium and all the backfields and dormitories (yes, they still have the low-slung dormitories here, just like in the Jackie Robinson Story.)
OK, I wouldn’t actually cry. Then again, I wouldn’t actually have reason to ever drive anywhere near Vero Beach again if there’s no spring training. But that’s beside the point.
What was the point?
Oh, yeah, Andruw Jones. He’s not skinny. But he looks happy and actually looks kinda good in Dodger blue.
No, that wasn’t the point. It was Dodgertown.
First, the idea of the Orioles moving into Dodgertown. They’d have to swap out all these blue and red seats at Holman Stadium, to begin with. Then there are the street signs and such. Oh, what a mess.
(Oh, just got to throw this in here: They’re making Juan Pierre do something to earn his eight-figure salary — he’s out at home plate right now, catching the ceremonial first pitch from Maury Wills…. Oh, that was a cheap shot. Sorry.)
(Speaking of Wills, do you realize he once stole 104 bases in 117 attempts? That’s only slightly better than Willie Harris last season… oh, wow, I’m really not being nice today.)
Anyway, how ‘bout the Orioles at Dodgertown? Would it be O-Town? Birdland? (A not to Charlie “Yardbird” Parker, who has absolutely nothing to do with the Orioles, but so what.) No, I’ve got it: Cal-town.
OK, we’ll stop.
“I just can’t imagine another team coming in here,” Braves broadcaster Pete Van Wieren told me while ago at the batting cage. “What do they do, change Don Sutton Street to Jim Palmer Street? It just wouldn’t’ be the same.”
Especially not without Tommy Lasorda going through the food line every day at noon, in full uniform, and eating at his reserved table in the corner, the one with “Reserved for Tommy Lasorda” card a little sign in the middle of it.
Remind me to tell you sometime about how Bowman and me got to the dining room early one time, and a new waitress seated us at LaSorda’s table (the little sign wasn’t out yet), and before an older waitress could come over and kindly ask us to move our butts to a different table, I spilled some pasta sauce on the white tablecloth. I’m not making this up, I swear. You should have seen them scrambling to get a new tablecloth down in about 2 minutes, before The Man walked in….
OK, gotta watch this game. Tim Hudson’s pitching today. We’re getting underway. Braves only brought McCann, Francoeur and Diaz among lineup regulars. Diaz is leading off, Jordan Schafer in center and batting second (and Schafer just singled in his first at-bat).
Full lineup: 1. Diaz, LF; 2. J. Schaefer, CF; 3. Francoeur, RF; 4. McCann, C; 5. Scott Thorman, 1B; 6. Martin Prado, 3B; 7. Brent Lillibridge, SS; 8. Diory Hernandez, SS; 9. Hudson.
”WITH THESE HANDS” by Alejandro Escovedo
Feel the fire burning from the other side
Flames scream hear the children cry
You see the wicked prowl across the border
They say death’s the only peace the poor understand
Run for cover, run for cover the storm is breaking
Father, son, Mother, daughter
Their earth is shaking
Run to the river, The water is cool
Run to the river the water will heal your wounds
Say what you will
With these hands
Say what you will
I’ll say it with these hands
There’s danger on the highway, It’s in the shadows
Darker, Darker, Darker, I see the light
It’s moving faster, howling like the wind blows
Time comes when you longer fear the night
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Dawgs here, brought football weather
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. _ Greetings on a chilly, windy morning at Dark Star, where the weather can’t dampen the mood on the first gameday of spring training.
The UGA ‘Dawgs are in town, and the Braves are deploying most of their regular lineup, at least for the first few innings.
That includes Mark Kotsay in center field, batting sixth behind Jeff Francoeur and ahead of designated hitter Joe Borchard.
All other projected starters are in except catcher Brian McCann (former ‘Dawgs catcher Clint Sammons is getting a bone tossed his way, so to speak), and left fielder Matt Diaz, whose wife had a baby yesterday.
Bobby Cox hasn’t said yet whether Diaz and Brandon Jones will platoon, but there are indications that Diaz could get the majority of playing time in left, at least early. Diaz will make the trip to Vero Beach to face the Dodgers in the Grapefruit League opener Thursday.
(The starting outfielders except Kotsay will make that trip; don’t expect to see him on long bus rides, and if you’ve ever had a bad back you’ll understand. None of the starting infielders will be on that trip, by the way.)
Anyway, back to today. Yes, it’s chilly (upper 50s, very windy). And yes, the field’s still a little damp. And so you might be thinking with this weather, and Kotsay’s back….
Because, admit it: Many of you are going to be watching closely every time Kotsay swings and misses, or dives for a ball in the outfield, or tries to break up a double play. Not today, because the game’s not on the tube, but you know what I mean.
You’re going to be watching in the early season, at least, to see if he winces or leans over and grabs his back. To see if he shows the first sign of a recurrence of back problems.
I know I am.
But after talking to Kotsay for a while this morning in the clubhouse, it really does sound like he feels the best he’s felt since 2004, and that he believes he can play 140-150 games and prove skeptics wrong.
There’s a small scar at his lower back from the arthroscopic surgery he had 11 months ago, a reminder of the painful bulging disk that undermined his performance for the past two seasons and part of 2005, since the first in a couple of violent collisions with walls.
But Kotsay, who I’ve known since the Marlins drafted him out of Cal State Fullerton in 1996, told me he really feels good, finally. Surgery repaired the disk, and he’s maintaining a regimen of core-strengthening exercises and stretching designed to keep everything strong in his lower back.
We haven’t played a Grapefruit League game yet, and a lot can happen between now and March 30 at Washington, D.C. None of us are naïve enough to believe that Kotsay is in the clear and doesn’t have anything to worry about.
But so far, it’s been very encouraging.
Here’s a telltale sign of how good he feels: “I don’t have to come into the training room every morning to get treatment.”
When his surgically repaired back feels so good that daily workouts don’t require a trip to the training table to get things started, it’s usually a great indicator.
He’s 32 and almost certainly here for only one year, taking the baton from Andruw Jones and handing off to Jordan Schafer. But Kotsay wants to make sure his leg of this center-field relay is a stellar one, for the Braves, who showed a lot of faith in him, and for himself, to restore his value heading into free agency.
“There were a few other options out there, and they chose me - that makes me feel good,” Kotsay said of the Braves, who acquired him in a trade from Oakland that sent reliever Joey Devine and another pitching prosect to the A’s, who agreed to pay all but $2 million of Kotsay’s $7.35 million salary this season.
“They [Braves] were confident about my health,” said Kotsay, who told the Braves he had no problems during his winter workout regimen that included lifting weights, running and hitting.
He’s reported to camp early with the pitchers and catchers and has taken batting practice every day. He did baserunning drills without incident Thursday, and has been taking “good, hard routes” while shagging balls the past few days in the outfield.
“I’m not gonna say I feel like I did in ’04 yet, when I played [148] games,” Kotsay said. “But I definitely feel like I did prior to that season. I’d like to play 150 games.”
Kotsay’s last full, healthy season was 2004 with Oakland, when he had career highs in average (.314), doubles (37), home runs (15, which he matched in 2005), on-base percentage (.370) and slugging percentage (.459).
Since then he’s played 139 games (2005), 129 games (’06) and 56 games (’07). Last season he started and finished the season on the DL, rushing his return from surgery at midseason in hopes of helping the A’s make a playoff run. He didn’t (.214 with one homer in 206 at-bats) and they didn’t.
Now he’s got a fresh start and a healthy back (knock on wood).
He knows we’re going to be watching closely, at least for a while.
“They [fans] are going to be that way all the through the season,” he said, and he understands why that’s the case. But he doesn’t think Braves officials have those doubts.
“They brought me here to fill a role,” he said. “To play up to my capabilities defensively, and just be consistent day in and day out.”
He believes he’s going to do that. But he knows only time will tell.
The lineup: Teams are using the DH for today’s exhibition game, and here’s the Braves’ lineup — 1. Kelly Johnson, 2B; 2. Yunel Escobar, SS; 3. Chipper Jones, 3B; 4. Mark Teixeira, 1B; 5. Jeff Francoeur, RF; 6. Mark Kotsay, CF; 7. Joe Borchard, DH; 8. Brandon Jones, LF; 9. Clint Sammons, C.
And yes, UGA will use wood bats, as always. Braves do the college team (UGA or Tech) a favor of scheduling them each year, and that’s part of the deal. Braves provide the wooden bats, by the way.
Move the benches: Loved seeing giant-killer Vanderbilt pull off another upset of a No. 1-ranked opponent last night, the fourth straight time they’ve beaten a top-ranked team at home. However, I still say their arena setup shouldn’t be allowed, with the benches at the ends of the court. It cost Tennessee last night when Bruce Pearl couldn’t communicate with his players at the other end of the court and let them know not to foul as the shot clock was running down on Vandy. (Had to get that in there for Buster, a Vandy grad.)
”ABSOLUTELY SWEET MARIE” by Bob Dylan
Well, your railroad gate, you know I just can’t jump it
Sometimes it gets so hard, you see
I’m just sitting here beating on my trumpet
With all these promises you left for me
But where are you tonight, sweet Marie?
Well, I waited for you when I was half sick
Yes, I waited for you when you hated me
Well, I waited for you inside of the frozen traffic
When you knew I had some other place to be
Now, where are you tonight, sweet Marie?
Well, anybody can be just like me, obviously
But then, now again, not too many can be like you, fortunately.
Well, six white horses that you did promise
Were fin’lly delivered down to the penitentiary
But to live outside the law, you must be honest
I know you always say that you agree
But where are you tonight, sweet Marie?
Well, I don’t know how it happened
But the river-boat captain, he knows my fate
But ev’rybody else, even yourself
They’re just gonna have to wait.
Well, I got the fever down in my pockets
The Persian drunkard, he follows me
Yes, I can take him to your house but I can’t unlock it
You see, you forgot to leave me with the key
Oh, where are you tonight, sweet Marie?
Now, I been in jail when all my mail showed
That a man can’t give his address out to bad company
And now I stand here lookin’ at your yellow railroad
In the ruins of your balcony
Wond’ring where you are tonight, sweet Marie.
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Tex limbers up for a playoff run
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Want to know one reason, other than immense talent, that Mark Teixeira has put up better offensive statistics than all but a handful of major league players during the past five seasons?
I say this because I’m sitting here, my lower back still sore from a run in our friendy, sterile suburban neighborhood last night, drinking coffee and trying to wake up, while watching Tex do an impressive little routine at the batting cage.
The rest of the players are sitting in the dugout, looking much as I do right now (tired), waiting for the workout to start, and Teixeira is alone next to the cage, supporting himself with one hand on the rail while he does a set of stretches that would make a gymnast (or legendary punter Ray Guy) proud.
He holds his other hand out, head-high, and does a series of kicks, touching his hand with his foot each time. Then he switches around and does the same with the other hand and leg.
Then does a series of leg lifts to each side, I guess to stretch his hips out. He raises his leg until it’s parallel with the ground, straight out to his side. Then the other leg.
Then he does a thing that almost resembles figure-eights with each leg, moving the leg around in circles at painful angles, rolling it over, again and again.
At one point Mark Kotsay comes from the dugout and joins Teixeira. Kotsay, who’s in great shape this spring, mimic Teixeira’s movements, but only gets his legs about half as high in each exercise. After a minute or two, he hits Tex in the butt and says something I imagine is along the lines of, “I’m not worthy.”
Then strength and conditioning coach Frank Fultz comes over and does the same drill, Fultz raising his legs about one-quarter as high as Tex. For a moment, all three guys are holding onto the cage with one hand and doing the leg stretches, with Tex continuing to raise his in military-precision movements, not distracted by the other two guys, who are still doing theirs at one-half and one-quarter the angles of the switch-hitting first baseman.
Tex is a conditioning monster, in addition to being one of the more disciplined hitters you’ll find (I was talking to him this week and he laughed about how a lot of the Braves young players like to hack away at the plate).
Those guys will learn, but it’s worth noting that Teixeira already has, that the former Georgia Tech star has been a consistent, all-around excellent hitter since the day he got to the majors.
Oh, yeah, it’s worth noting that that five-year span, in which his 365 extra-base hits rank fifth in the majors, his 555 RBIs rank eighth, and his 170 homers rank ninth, that also happens to be his first five seasons in the bigs.
The only players with more extra-base hits in the last five years are Pujols, Big Papi, Alfonso Soriano and A-Rod. All are very rich, and Teixeira is going to join them among the highest-paid players after this season. Count on it.
Whether the Braves have the payroll to carry a six- or seven-year contract with an average annual value of more than $20 million, I have serious doubts. Maybe they’ll surprise me and raise it above $100 million next season and a little more each year after that.
Maybe Teixeira will really, really surprise me and tell Boras to take a substantially lower offer from the Braves than he’s likely to get from one of the New York or Los Angeles teams, or from Boston or Baltimore.
That’ll have to play out, because I don’t see the Braves having much chance to sign him until he gets to free agency. He’s come this far, and Boras likes to let his clients test the free-agent waters and find out what’s out there.
When I asked Tex if there was anything he could say to make Atlanta fans feel a little better about the upcoming season and the Braves’ chances of keeping him, etc, he said that they should know he’s going to do everything he can to help the Braves get to the postseason this year, and left it at that.
Enjoy him while you can, Braves Nation. As GM Frank Wren said, you make trades knowing the worst-possible scenario could unfold, that the guy you traded for won’t re-sign with you or might get hurt, or that he won’t lead you to the promised land you hoped he might.
The Braves say they’d do the July 31 trade again that sent five prospects, including Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Matt Harrison and Elvis Andrus, to Texas for Teixeira and lefty Ron Mahay, who left as a free after after spending the final two months of the season with the Braves.
Because they did the deal to get Teixeira, to have two playoff runs with him at the middle of their lineup. And if they could keep him longer, that’d be a bonus.
The first playoff run ended before it started. No postseason games for Atlanta last year.
But the Braves are about to crank up another season, this time with Tex hitting behind Chipper Jones from Day 1. And they see no reason at all that, if they stay healthy and play and pitch the way they’re capable, that they can’t win the division and get back to the postseason.
And if they get there, they like their chances with a rotation led by Smoltz, Hudson, Glavine and possibly Hampton, and with a lineup that includes Hoss and Tex as a powerful switch-hitting duo in the middle, the a duo the likes of which no team in the modern era, and perhaps any era, has featured.
OK, gonna get down to the clubhouse now: Before I forget, someone asked about Peter Moylan and Rafael Soriano and their early schedules.
Moylan is schedule to make his spring debut Friday against the Dodgers here at Dark Star, and Soriano on Sunday against the Astros, also here at The Place Where Dreams Come True (that’s the slogan over the entrance now, where it used to say Happiest Place In The World, or On Earth, or something).
Glad that we’re starting games here tomorrow, because the daily routine of batting practice and such gets old quickly.
Dawgs tomorrow, then Dodgertown on Thursday.
Are the denizens ready? Then let’s do this.
”18 WHEELS OF LOVE” by Patterson Hood
Mama ran off with a trucker
Mama ran off with a trucker
Mama ran off with a trucker
He is making her give life another stab
They can see the world from way up in the cab
Mama ran off with a trucker………..
Peterbilt Peterbilt
She can quit her job and be his little bride
He can get a local route and stay home by her side
She can fix him roast beast and sweet potato pie
He can eat a lot of it cuz he’s a big ol’ guy
They got married in Dollywood
(by a Porter Waggoner lookalike)
18 Wheels of Love
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Check egos at clubhouse door
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - Top of the mornin’ to you. Still rubbing sleep from my eyes and slamming coffee after staying up watching the Oscars and the Jimmy Kimmel Show (if you didn’t see the latter, which I’m fairly certain most of you probably did not, because you have real jobs and enjoy sleep, then ask someone or Google the segment with Ben Affleck, Kimmel’s response to girlfriend Sarah Silverman’s recent announcement of an, uh, “affair” with Matt Damon.)
Anyway, Jeff Francoeur.
You might say Francoeur has the world by the tail. In fact, Chipper Jones has said exactly that a few times (Hoss likes to weave in a homespun saying now and then).
But if any of you ever wonder about Francoeur, or any other young Brave, facing the danger of an unchecked ego, it’s only because you haven’t spent time in the clubhouse or around the batting cage.
Most of the stuff overheard is not suitable for a family newspaper, or even for its sometimes uncouth offspring, the blog. Besides, guys wouldn’t say anything around us if we started printing everything we heard in their workplace.
But here’s an innocuous slice of life at camp, a G-rated slice of an often R-rated pie, to give you some idea of how egos are kept in check around a baseball team.
Francoeur, whose offseason weightlifting regimen and significantly increased muscle mass have been well documented this spring, hit one towering fly ball after another onto the grass berm beyond the left-field fence Sunday at batting practice.
He was pulling everything to left field, which doesn’t always sit well with Chipper or hitting coach Terry Pendleton. Disciplined hitters (and old guys) want to see the kids practice going the other way, hitting to the opposite field.
Anyway, Francoeur pounded five consecutive batting-practice pitches from bench coach Chino Cadahia onto the berm. It was an impressive power display, drawing oohs and ahhs from hundreds of fans.
Chipper was in the same hitting group, and he stood by the batting cage and smiled. “Throw some outside [pitches],” he said to Cadahia, because Jones wanted to see Francoeur hit some balls to right field.
“Those are outside,” Cadahia said from the mound. “He’s just got that kind of power.”
Chipper smiled again and said quietly, to a couple of players nearby. “Yeah, he does.” Then he gave it one of those Chipper smirks and said a little louder, “What time is it?”
Someone answered, “3 o’clock.”
And Chipper nodded and said, “They don’t play a lot of games at 3 o’clock.”
Francoeur heard it all and just smiled. He can take it, and dish it out, as well as anyone on the team.
So 5 minutes goes by, Chipper and Mark Teixeira each take their turns in the cage, each hitting some line drives up the middle and the other way, and then Francoeur gets back in the cage. Again, he starts pulling balls over the left-field fence.
Chipper chimes in, this time sharpening the needle: “Lose an Andruw, gain an Andruw.”
Ouch.
Francoeur immediately responded. “Chino, outside.”
Cadahia threw the next pitch outside, and Francoeur blistered it back up the middle off the screen the coach was pitching from behind.
And that was that. Chipper smiled. Francoeur smiled. Pendleton chuckled.
And batting practice continued.
Good luck, mate: Before I head down to the field, I’d like to say something about a sensitive subject.
Kangaroo testicles.
Now, before we go any further, I’d like to make it clear I neither condone the hunting or taxidermy of kangaroos or their body parts. Let’s get that straight. I can’t even fathom someone shooting one of those cute, goofy looking animals.
But for whatever reason, some are killed legally in Australia (you can look it up, but they laws that permit annual quotas and also allow farmers to kill kangaroos on their property, something like that. Like I said, complicated).
Anyway, back to the testicles. Apparently a pair of taxidermied kangaroo testicles is regarded as a good-luck charm by Aussies, like a rabbit’s foot (or like me rubbing my bust of Elvis that I bought one late night many years ago at a cheap gift shop on the Canada side of Niagara Falls).
So Braves reliever Phil Stockman, a good bloke if I’ve ever met one, gave starting pitchers Tim Hudson and Mike Hampton each a pair of kangaroo testicles on a key chain. And told them to rub them before each start.
Hudson’s “charm” was hanging in his locker last I checked.
That’s all. I really don’t need to add to this note, do I?
OK, gonna get down to the field: Clubhouse access was limited this morning, because Braves had a tea meeting with the team doctor, a sort of followup after taking their physicals Saturday and Sunday (which is why they were still working out at 3 in the afternoon Sunday).
So I need to get down there and talk to some people. Going to write a story on Jair Jurrjens today, and we’re expecting to get the pitching lineup for the beginning of the Grapefruit League season after the workout.
That should allow us to count forward and figure out how it’s likely to line up when the regular season begins.
Later.
”DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN” by Bruce Springsteen
They’re still racing out at the Trestles
But that blood it never burned in her veins
Now I hear she’s got a house up in Fairview
And a style she’s trying to maintain
Well if she wants to see me
You can tell her that I’m easily found
Tell her there’s a spot out ‘neath Abram’s Bridge
And tell her there’s a darkness on the edge of town
Everybody’s got a secret Sonny
Something that they just can’t face
Some folks spend their whole lives trying to keep it
They carry it with them every step that they take
Till some day they just cut it loose
Cut it loose or let it drag ‘em down
Where no one asks any questions
Or looks too long in your face
In the darkness on the edge of town
Some folks are born into a good life
Other folks get it anyway anyhow
I lost my money and I lost my wife
Them things don’t seem to matter much to me now
Tonight I’ll be on that hill ‘cause I can’t stop
I’ll be on that hill with everything I got
Lives on the line where dreams are found and lost
I’ll be there on time and I’ll pay the cost
For wanting things that can only be found
In the darkness on the edge of town
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Smoltz reinventing self (again)
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. _ Just back from the clubhouse and an interview with John Smoltz, an interview that reminded me of what makes him so different.
Relentless drive. An absolute refusal to fade away until the last ounce of quality pitching is squeezed from a right arm that’s been surgically repaired four times.
The Braves pitching pillar is reinventing himself again on the fly, making adjustments when others wouldn’t dare tinker with success.
(While we’re writing, we’re watching the Braves pitchers take fielding practice, a rite of spring that you don’t ever see once the season begins. They finished physicals today, or as the over-30 players call it, “getting the finger.” Oy.)
OK, back to Smoltz. How many would make significant changes in pitching approach after a season in which they posted a 3.11 ERA, tied for the second-most quality starts (26) among NL pitchers, and ranked fifth in strikeouts per nine innings (8.6)?
But that’s what Smoltz plans to do, beginning with an unusual spring-training program that will include only two or three Grapefruit League starts and the rest of his work to be done, according to Smoltz, in simulated games against Braves minor leaguers on the backfields.
The 40-year-old Braves icon wants to pitch back there with the kids so he doesn’t get too geeked up in game situations and lose focus of what he wants to do this spring, which is to improve his changeup and especially work on his sinker and curveball.
The pitcher who made a living off of mid- to upper-90 mph fastballs and splitters wants to do whatever it takes to get more double-play grounders and popups, to become more efficient with his pitch counts so he can extend his career and keep winning games.
He’s tired of hitters sitting on his hard stuff and getting hits seemingly every time he makes a mistake on any pitch.
“In the past, power in the [strike] zone allowed me to get away with mistakes,” said Smoltz, who realized he no longer has that luxury, because he’s lost a little on his fastball and hardly ever throws the arm-stressing splitter that used to drop off the table as hitters flailed at it.
He pitched with more soreness at times last season than he would admit, and Smoltz said there were times he wasn’t quite sure how he was getting the results he got.
“Put it this way — last year I held my breath [on some pitches] and couldn’t believe the results,” he said this morning.
Yes, Smoltz threw some pitches he thought would get scalded after they left his hand, but they didn’t. But he also pointed out that he induced remarkably few double-play grounders.
True, that: Smoltz induced eight in 205-2/3 innings, second-lowest per nine innings among NL starters. Only the Mets’ John Maine induced them at a lower rate, with five in 191 innings.
So anyway, long story short, Smoltz believes he needs to make adjustments if he’s going to get through the season healthy and be at his best if and when the Braves make the playoffs, which is what he wants more than anything else.
The man absolutely pines for a return to the postseason, after watching Josh Beckett and others get lauded as the best big-game pitchers in today’s game. Smoltz is driven by that stuff, because he honestly believes he can beat anyone in a big game with everything riding on the results. Still believes it.
Tough to argue with his record: All-time leader with 15 postseason wins (15-4) and 194 strikeouts in 207 postseason innings).
It’s killed him to sit at home the past two Octobers, here in the twilight of his career with the sand running out. He wants another shot at greatness on the biggest stage, and Smoltz and others believe this Braves team is better equipped to get there than recent editions have been.
So he wants to be sure he’s ready if they do. And that starts this spring, with fewer starts in Grapefruit League games that mean very little to nothing, and a lot more work on backfields, where Smoltz said he will pitch to hitters who don’t know what pitches are coming.
He doesn’t want to pitch in front of 5,000 or 10,000 fans down here, because when he puts himself in those situations, the competitive juices take over and “I want to get guys out,” he said.
He doesn’t want to worry about getting them out now, but rather wants to do the things that he believes will better prepare him to get guys out all season and into October. Hopefully, far into October.
“This is the most I’ve ever looked forward to spring training,” said Smoltz, who is different than most, in that he actually looks forward to the challenge of reinventing himself and then challenging hitters with his new approach.
“This is going to sound like a stupid statement,” he said. “I don’t want to be in a hurry, but I have a lot I want to do [this spring].”
Then get to work, old fella. Braves Nation eagerly awaits the results.
Rotation plans coming soon: I asked Bobby Cox about the pitching plans for the beginning of the Grapefruit League schedule this week, and he said he wanted to talk to the pitchers before he gives them to us.
Should have them after today’s workout, and I’ll put them either here or in the comments portion of our blog below. Or both, if I remember.
Chuck “frustrated” by inactivity: The Braves thought Chuck James would be two or three weeks behind the other pitchers because after a winter of rest to following his slight rotator-cuff tear diagnosed after last season.
But he feels great throwing on the side and in long-toss, so now the Braves are considering adjusting their plans to get him in games earlier. They only had James penciled in to pitch in one game March 20, but it looks like that could change.
Might know more later today, but definitely soon. He told Cox and Roger McDowell that he wants to test it, because he’d rather have soreness and realize that he’s not ready than to just assume he’s not.
Braves might decide that having him wait a couple more weeks before he throws in games probably isn’t going to make a different in terms of his long-term health. In other words, they might decide that if that tear isn’t healed, then it’s probably not going to heal without surgery. So might as well test it.
That’s what James wants to do. He said he’s willing to risk it, for peace of mind. He said being here and watching everyone else practice and throw is killing him, because he feels too good to be sitting on the sidelines.
”UP AROUND THE BEND” by John Fogerty
There’s a place up ahead and
I’m going just as fast as my feet can fly
Come away, come away if you’re going,
Leave the sinking ship behind.
Come on the rising wind,
We’re going up around the bend.
Ooh!
Bring a song and a smile for the banjo,
Better get while the gettings good,
Hitch a ride to the end of the highway
Where the neons turn to wood.
Come on the rising wind,
We’re going up around the bend.
Oooh!
You can ponder perpetual motion,
Fix your mind on a crystal day,
Always time for a good conversation,
There’s an ear for what you say.
Come on the rising wind,
We’re going up around the bend.
Yeah!
Oooh!
Catch a ride to the end of the highway
And we’ll meet by the big red tree,
There’s a place up ahead and I’m going,
Come along, come along with me.
Come on the rising wind,
We’re going up around the bend.
Yeah!
Do do doo do…
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Who should bat leadoff for Braves?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. _ Good morning/afternoon on another mid-70s day from Dark Star, where I’d like to know who you think will bat first and second for the Braves ahead of Hoss and Tex.
(Actually, I’d like you to deliver a Mellow Mushroom pizza with pineable and jalapeno peppers to me here in the pressbox, but I realize that’s probably not going to happen. So….)
We know Chipper Jones is batting third, and we know Mark Teixeira is batting fourth. But it really isn’t quite clear who’ll bat leadoff and who’ll replace Egar Renteria in the 2-hole, though I’ve got a good idea on the first part.
Though Kelly Johnson hit quite well in the leadoff spot early, before he started getting moved around and platooned, etc., I think Yunel Escobar is going to get the nod from the get-go this year.
Could be wrong. Wouldn’t really surprise me if Kelly is there. But at this juncture, before the first Grapefruit League game has been played, I’m gonna put my money on Escobar.
The Cuban shortstop hit .326 overall as a rookie, including a sizzling .351 with a .400 OBP in 151 at-bats as a leadoff man, trailing only Florida’s Hanley Ramirez (.405) in leadoff OBP among NL qualifiers (Kelly J. was fifth at .372).
Kelly had 63 strikeouts in 306 at-bats as a leadoff man, while Yunel had 22 in 151 at-bats from the top of the order. And late in the season, Escobar impressed by hitting .352 and posting a .405 OBP in August and hitting .311 with a .407 in September, putting up strong numbers in the latter part of his first season in the majors, when other younger players sometimes struggle.
“I think he can be a .300 hitter in the league, no doubt in my mind,” said hitting coach Terry Pendleton, who loves Escobar’s talent, confidence, and practice habits. “I think he can be an Edgar Renteria with possibly more power.”
Assuming I’m correct and Escobar hits leadoff, who’ll bat second? I’ve said since the day the Braves traded for him that I thought Kotsay would fit well in that role, provided he’s healthy. So far he’s looked as good or better than anyone expected, showing no lingering problems from back surgery he had last March.
Chipper says he likes the idea of Kotsay batting second because he makes more consistent contact than Kelly Johnson, who has more power. If Kotsay is healthy, Chipper likes Kelly hitting behind Jeff Francoeur or Brian McCann in the order.
Kotsay’s numbers were lousy last year, but anyone who’s seen him before his back problems started a couple years ago, and anyone who’s seen him hitting so far down here in camp, knows that he’s a very good hitter when healthy, a guy who has what the players and coaches call consistent quality at-bats, a tough out who works counts.
In other words, perfect to hit in front of Chipper and Teixeira. He has plate discipline and good bat control, essential in that 2-hole if you’re asked to move a runner over. If Kotsay stays healthy — always that “if,” until he proves he can hold up. But so far, he really looks good.
If the back surgery was good, then hey, there’s no reason why he can’t be close to the hitter he once was. It’s not like he’s old. Before last year’s .214-.279-.296, 206-AB injury debacle of a season, Kotsay had hit .275 or higher in eight of 10 full seasons in the majors, and had 482 or more at-bats in seven.
Gonzo update: Mike Gonzalez continues steady progress in his recovery from Tommy John surgery, and the left-hander is on pace for a return in early June — about one month earlier than the Braves had first anticipated last year after his surgery.
He threw 15 pitches at 50 percent and 30 at 75 percent off the mound Thursday, and said again he’s had no setbacks, no scar tissue breaking up, none of the minor stuff that can discourage a pitcher coming back from TJ surgery. But he also realizes that can happen anytime, that he might feel a twinge here or an ache there once he really starts airing it out.
In the meantime, he’s tentatively scheduled to begin throwing curveballs next week, another big step. Gonzalez said being in camp and getting so close to a return is making him anxious.
“Getting antsy,” he said. “It’s like taking time out and watching everybody play in recess.”
Kotsay’s arm: Someone asked me about Kotsay’s defense, and I said when he was with the Marlins in 1998-2000 (I covered that team then), his arm and instincts were outstanding and his range way above average. I haven’t seen him as much in recent years, but when healthy, everyone agrees he’s still one of the better defensive center fielders around.
He was a part-time closer in college at Cal State Fullerton, with a fastball in the low-90 mph range. The arm might not be quite as strong as it was, but it’s still plenty strong, and he still can hit a target as well as anyone in the game.
“His arm’s probably more accurate than any in baseball,” Cox said.
Kotsay told me Francoeur’s got a stronger arm than he does, but that Kotsay can hit the target better. I’d agree with that, no question, having seen Francoeur launch a few to the fifth row. (Kotsay said he told Frenchy he wants to put a trash can at third base and see which of them can throw it in the can from RF. By the way, Kotsay was a RF back with the Marlins, had 40 assists in a two-year span.)
Francoeur’s got an absolute cannon, and watching him load up to throw out a daring first-to-third runner or a guy trying to stretch a single into a double is always fun. Love to watch that.
With him and Kotsay out there, it’ll be interesting seeing how many guys try to take an extra base against them.
Schafer already hooked up: With Nike, that is. Kid’s only 21 and hasn’t played above A-ball, but already Jordan Schafer has been signed by the shoe giant with the swoosh on its gear.
Schafer, a non-roster invitee to camp, had a stack of Nike cleats and shoes waiting at his locker this week. The three-quarter-high cleats came in three color schemes, black with red trim, black with white trim, and black with gray trim. He took them out of the box and smiled with approval.
Of course, he’s not quite as high on the Nike scale as Teixeira, who had stacks of very sharp custom-made cleats and running shoes waiting at his locker when he arrived. (He has some blue training shoes with red swooshes that would sure look good on a KU fan, uh-hum.)
Blue jerseys? Braves haven’t announced it yet, and I don’t even know that it’s been approved by MLB yet, but I heard the Braves are going to wear blue jerseys for some games this season. They haven’t decided yet when to wear them, but one option discussed is to use them as a road alternate jersey.
They won’t be the powder-blues the team wore in the ‘80s, but a new jersey with their regular dark blue. Again, none of this is official and Braves aren’t commenting unless and until it is.
A tune to start the weekend:
”SUSPICIOUS MINDS” by Mark James (sung by The King)
We’re caught in a trap
I can’t walk out
Because I love you too much baby
Why can’t you see
What you’re doing to me
When you don’t believe a word I say?
We can’t go on together
With suspicious minds
And we can’t build our dreams
On suspicious minds
So, if an old friend I know
Drops by to say hello
Would I still see suspicion in your eyes?
Here we go again
Asking where I’ve been
You can’t see these tears are real
I’m crying
We can’t go on together
With suspicious minds
And be can’t build our dreams
On suspicious minds
Oh let our love survive
Or dry the tears from your eyes
Let’s don’t let a good thing die
When honey, you know
I’ve never lied to you
Mmm yeah, yeah….
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Shaking out the Braves roster
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Just drinking coffee and waiting to watch a workout after The Speech. Bobby Cox is delivering it now, after we were asked kindly (yeah, right) to leave the Braves clubhouse and shut the door on the way out, or words to that effect.
So a couple of things to clean out the notebook this morning while we wait.
Roster breakdown: Can’t get enough of this stuff here, I know. So let’s hit it.
This Braves camp is a bit different in that there are so many candidates for the last few spots on the roster, because there’s a few different ways it could go.
GM Frank Wren cited starting pitching, bullpen, backup catcher, and utility and/or outfield backup as the areas still undecided. “And I can’t say today how any of the four are going to turn out,” he said. “We probably have 20, 21 [hopefuls] and we’re looking for four to win battles in certain areas.
“There are a lot of potential parts, no question. The good thing is, you’re talking about talented guys…. We feel like there’s 21 legitimate candidates for our 12-man pitching staff. We have not been [in that situation] in recent years.”
Much of the pitching staff is already settled, of course. Barring injuries, you can pencil in John Smoltz, Tim Hudson and Tom Glavine in some order at the top of the rotation, and Mike Hampton will be in one of the back two spots if he’s ready to go.
In the bullpen, five spots will be filled by closer Rafael Soriano, right-handers Peter Moylan, Manny Acosta and Tyler Yates, and lefty Will Ohman.
That leaves one rotation spot (two if Hampton doesn’t make it to the post) and two bullpen spots, with lefty Chuck James facing competition from rookies Jair Jurrjens and Jo-Jo Reyes and from Jeff Bennett. I’ll go with Jurrjens as the early leader in that race, but that could obviously change if someone dominates in spring games.
Among the relief candidates are three who are out of options: Blaine Boyer, Chris Resop and lefty Royce Ring. I’ll wait to see them in some games before handicapping that race.
In the field: Do you keep Scott Thorman as a backup 1B and pinch-hitter, considering he isn’t likely to play more than a few games at 1B unless Mark Teixeira’s hurt, and Thorman hit .186 (35-for-188) with six homers, 54 strikeouts and a .229 OBP after May 19?
He was 10-for-43 (.233) with two homers and one walk as a pinch-hitter last season.
Thorman’s a good soldier, a great dude, popular in the clubhouse, all that good stuff. And he’s not a terrible defensive 1B. Oh, he’s also out of options, no small consideration. But again, he’s not playing 1B unless Teixeira gets hurt.
The Braves say he made strides as a pinch-hitter late in the season, and he’s obviously got immense natural power. But unless they believe Torman can really be a solid pinch-hit threat, or he’s a good enough OF to play there from time to time, or that he’s an answer at 1B if Teixeira leaves as a free agent after next season — then it could be argued that the roster spot could be better served.
Expect to see Thorman play some OF this spring, either to showcase him for possible trade or for the Braves to determine if he can play there.
The Braves already have four OFs with the expected platoon of Matt Diaz/Brandon Jones in LF, Mark Kotsay in CF and Jeff Francoeur in RF, so they really don’t need another pure OF as long as Kotsay is healthy.
If he gets through spring and looks like he can play 140 or more games, the Braves could rely on one of their utility men to play CF, either Omar Infante or perhaps Brent Lillibridge (another reason I think Lillibridge has a good chance to make the team, particularly if Infante’s on the DL to start the season).
It’s not as if they have a lot of options for backup 1B, by the way. But since Teixeira is expected to play every day, basically, they could get by with h Infante, Diaz or backup catcher Javy Lopez as the backup 1B.
But if Teixeira were to get hurt and be out for any stretch, the Braves would need a 1B, and they don’t have one major league-ready to bring up from the high minors. And if they played Lopez there for any length, they’d have to have Diaz ready to bring in as an emergency catcher (Diaz can do that; he’s caught in instructional league).
Confused yet? This is what Wren meant by so many “moving parts.” A lot of these decisions have to be made in concert, not in a vacuum (how about that terminology at 10 a.m.? Yes!)
Speaking of Javy Lopez…. I think you can pencil him in. Realizing we are still a week away from the first game, the impression I get from looking at Lopez and talking to people in camp is that he’s in great shape and can help this team off the bench.
He’s improved his defense from below-average at the height of his Braves slugger days to at least serviceable, and probably a tick or two above that. Again, let’s see how he holds up playing games this spring. But so far, he’s made a good impression.
Watching him hit balls the other way with an easy swing in batting practice, I couldn’t help but think, how did this guy get cut by the Rockies after hitting close to .400 in early exhibition games last spring? (I think in complete sentences like that, making me unusual.)
But then I remembered that he really was pretty brutal defensively in recent years, and not until motivated to make this comeback did he hunker down and get to work honing his rusty defensive skills. As Eddie Perez pointed out, at one time Javy Lopez was a young catcher with very good defensive ability.
So pencil him in as the backup catcher, perhaps even backup 1B. Sorry, Brayan Pena fans (and I’m one; how can you not be?). I just don’t see him making this team.
As much as has been written about his versatility, Pena isn’t a major league utility man. He’s a switch-hitting catcher with a little power. Not a great defensive catcher, but serviceable.
Somebody could use him, and he’s out of options. If the Braves can get anything in trade, I think he’s gone this spring.
Even if Infante begins on the DL, it might be tough for Pena to open the season on the Braves roster. Martin Prado or Lillibridge seems more likely for such a role, but again, it’s early. Let’s wait to see how these guys do in some games.
Going back to Thorman, to answer my own question, it wouldn’t surprise me at all if he’s on the team, especially if he can play a little in the OF and not be a liability out there.
OK, the meeting’s over and they’re out on the field doing some warmup sprints now, so I’m gonna leave it off here. Discuss among yourselves and I’ll try to add anything I can to the discussion. But again, it’s early.
Hey, let’s wake up to a tune by the mighty Clash.
”LOST IN THE SUPERMARKET” by Joe Strummer and Mick Jones
I’m all lost in the supermarket
I can no longer shop happily
I came in here for that special offer
A guaranteed personality
I wasn’t born so much as I fell out
Nobody seemed to notice me
We had a hedge back home in the suburbs
Over which I never could see
I heard the people who lived on the ceiling
Scream and fight most scarily
Hearing that noise was my first ever feeling
That’s how its been all around me
I’m all lost in the supermarket
I can no longer shop happily
I came in here for that special offer
A guaranteed personality
I’m all tuned in, I see all the programs
I save coupons from packets of tea
I’ve got my giant hit discoteque album
I empty a bottle and I feel a bit free
The kids in the halls and the pipes in the walls
Make me noises for company
Long distance callers make long distance calls
And the silence makes me lonely
I’m all lost in the supermarket
I can no longer shop happily
I came in here for that special offer
A guaranteed personality
And its not here
It disappear
I’m all lost
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Early tip: More pop from Yunel
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Yunel Escobar shook my hand this morning, and I’m still having trouble holding a pen 30 minutes later.
That’s only a minor exaggeration.
We’ve already spent more than enough time commenting on the improved strength and conditioning of several Braves during this offseason, but please allow me just one more case. It’s worth it.
Because the Braves shortstop is ripped. Seriously. If there is a shortstop as strong, other than perhaps Miguel Tejada, I’m not aware of him.
And I wasn’t the only person who noticed how much muscle Escobar added since October. You know how when you shake someone’s hand sometimes and they get all fingers, but you can usually adjust and recover to make it a real handshake and not quite so embarrassing?
Reliever Blaine Boyer said he shook Escobar’s hand this morning and had that happen, only he couldn’t get his fingers out to adjust. Escobar squeezed and Boyer said he just about broke his fingers. I’m sure Boyer was exaggerating, too, but you get the point.
2B Kelly Johnson saw Escobar today for the first time since October and sent to give him a friendly hug. Kelly said when he put his left arm over Escobar’s shoulder, he noticed immediately how much bigger his back and shoulders were.
What does this mean? It means Bad News for the Toros.
OK, it’s early and I’m only on my third cup of coffee. Don’t even know why I thought of that line, but I did. Let the kids play. Let them play….
But anyway, what it means is, take Escobar in your fantasy league and pencil him in for 45 doubles and 12-15 homers.
I know, I know, he only totaled 46 doubles and 10 homers in 836 career at-bats in the minors. So what?
This is not the same player who struggled at times to adjust in the minors, who was uncomfortable at times, who had some attitude problems while adjusting to life in the U.S. and what was expected of him in the minors.
He’s developed, mentally and physically. The mental-maturity part occurred last season, when Escobar was called up to the majors, where he felt he belonged. Then he showed he did, indeed, belong.
Bullpen coach Eddie Perez, the wise former Braves catcher who’s like an unofficial mentor/advisor to a lot of the young Latin players, worried about Escobar after being around him during the 2006 season in the minors and seeing his temper and immaturity.
But last spring Perez quickly noticed a difference, and by midseason he was convinced it was a real change in Escobar. He made no waves in the Braves clubhouse, and his new teammates all liked and admired him.
Of course, there was plenty to like on the field. He hit .326 with 25 doubles and five homers in 319 major-league at-bats, with a .385 OBP (higher than any of his three seasons in the minors) and a .456 slugging percentage.
And he only got better after other teams developed scouting reports on him, unlike so many rookies who have their weaknesses exploited the second or third time a pitcher faces them.
Called up to the majors the beginning of June, Escobar hit .305 with a .345 OBP and .760 OPS in 82 at-bats that month.
Then he hit .328 with a .375 OBP and .754 OPS in 58 at-bats in July.
Then hit a gaudy .352 with a .405 OBP and .891 OPS in 105 at-bats in August.
He finished by hitting .311 with a .407 OBP and .907 OPS in 74 at-bats in September.
He had 20 extra-base hits in 179 at-bats during those last two months, while playing in a platoon at second base with Johnson or filling in for injured shortstop Edgar Renteria.
Now he’s not going to have to bounce between positions, and presumably not between spots in the batting order. The shortstop job is Escobar’s, the Braves having so much confidence in his ability to excel as a full-time SS that they were willing to trade quiet leader Renteria to Detroit.
Escobar hit .355 with an .870 OPS vs. lefties last season, and .303 with an .811 OPS vs. righties. Had 148 at-bats vs. lefties, 178 at-bats vs. righties. He can hit ‘em both, in other words.
As a leadoff hitter, he hit .351 with a .400 OBP in 151 at-bats. Obviously he’s a candidate for the full-time leadoff job. If manager Bobby Cox has already decided between Escobar or K.J. for the leadoff spot, he isn’t saying.
(Johnson hit .268 with 29 extra-base hits, a .372 OBP and a .441 slugging percentage in 306 at-bats as the leadoff man, so it’s not like this is an easy choice. Maybe he’ll even use both of them in the role, in some combination.)
As for my projection of 12-15 homers, don’t scoff. Cox said if Escobar wanted to hit for power, he could hit a lot more than that. But he’s got a line-drive stroke that serves him perfectly, driving balls to every part of the park.
I just happen to believe that quite a few more of them are going to clear the fences this season, with that added muscle and that comfort level. Not that he wasn’t comfortable the day he got here. Escobar has the swagger, for sure.
“He’s going to hit for power,” Johnson said. “I think it’ll be that right-center, Giles-back-in-the-day power. It’s gonna come. His [Escobar’s] hands … he’s got the best hands here. Stays inside the ball, consistently. He’s going to to add that pop.”
Braves officials got a lot of laughs — after getting over their initial disbelief — from an SI.com scouting report on the Braves that portrayed Escobar as some fringe major leaguer, a utility infielder they called him, who got lucky and/or peaked last season. Yes, peaked his first season, apparently.
The article mentioned that the Braves could cut their losses early and go with Brent Lillibridge at shortstop. As far as we know, this was meant to be a serious “scouting report.”
Let me assure you: Escobar is the shortstop, and will be all season, barring injury. And if he’s a utility infielder, well, the Braves would love to have a lineup with that kind of utility player at about five or six positions.
Lillibridge can be a “frontline shortstop” in the majors, according to Braves GM Frank Wren. He’s got that much talent, offensively and defensively. But I just don’t see a spot at shortstop on this team anytime soon.
The Braves really believe the cannon-armed Escobar can be an All-Star caliber player very soon.
Fortunately for Lillibridge, he (Lillibridge) can play several positions, including the outfield. And plenty of teams would line up to trade for him, if the Braves decide they’d like to fill another need by using him in a deal. Not that I’ve heard that’s going to happen or is even being considered. But anything can happen quickly in this business, as you know.
By the way, Lillibridge’s wrist is healed and he’s cleared to do everything in camp. He spent part of the morning, before this first full-squad workout, working with Johnson, Escobar and several young Braves middle infielders on double plays.
And he still looks about 12.
“Which is amazing,” Johnson said, when I asked him about Lillbridge’s boyish appearance. “Because he’s married and went to college and all, and he still looks so young. But he’s really athletic. He can play.”
OK, time to watch some of this workout. Braves are doing it without Cox, who’s away for his mother-in-law’s funeral.
Right now Terry Pendleton and Glenn Hubbard just finished hitting grounders to infielders on the main field. Wren, team prez John Schuerholz and chairman Terry McGuirk are all down there on the field.
Now it’s time for batting practice, and Mark Teixiera, Chipper Jones and Jeff Francoeur are in the first group, and Rafael Soriano is on the mound. I’m headed down to the field.
Spring has officially sprung.
”JUST A WAVE, NOT THE WATER” by Butch Hancock
Thirst is not the answer, oceans come and go
I loved her seven seas worth, Lord I loved her so
But she let me down so easy, one slow drop at a time
I would’ve killed myself but it made no sense
Committing suicide in self defense
But I lost everything I brought her
When she said Babe, you’re just a wave, you’re not the water
Centuries ago we were living on the gold coast
She was still in love with a long, gone, cold ghost
I was only trying to turn back the tide of her tears
I felt like an endless ocean, rolling through the fog
Full emotion drifting like a weather beaten log
I even thought that I out-thought her
Till she said babe, you’re just a wave, you’re not the water
I said someday we’ll love again, then you’ll know the score
I’ve taught you everything I know and maybe even more
That’s true she said, more than you ever will
I’ve said I’ve been your raging river, precious African queen
I’ve shown you everything that I’ve ever seen
But she knew more than I had taught her
When she said babe, you’re just a wave, you’re not the water
Well I followed her far and wide with all of my will
Water on the move, you know it never stands still
And I moved every muscle, just to prove it can be done
Then up some old sad river, where snow white lilies float
I came to her for mercy, but I hardly rocked the boat
She seemed surprised that I have caught her
But she said babe, you’re just a wave, you’re not the water
She said babe, you’re just a wave, you’re not the water
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Hank and Tex in the house
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — A couple of decent sluggers rolled into Braves spring training today, Mark Teixeira and an older fella named Hank.
Tex and the Hammer at Dark Star. Things are picking up.
Hank Aaron was here with the rest of the Braves executives for annual meetings they have at the start of spring training. Sure, they could have them in Atlanta, but abundant sunshine, golf and private jets make this quick trip south a pretty attractive option for a meeting space.
Teixeira is signing autographs as I write this, as about half of the fans in attendance at this morning workout scrambled for a place in line next to the dugout as soon as they saw the first baseman emerge.
Anyway, there’s no update whatsoever on a possible Teixeira contract extension. Braves aren’t talking about it, and neither is agent Scott Boras. And by the way, Teixeira laughed when I asked him about the rumored rift between him and Boras.
“Scott and I have a great relationship,” he said. “We talk about once a week.”
And one other thing: Teixeira is not building a house in Atlanta. At least not yet. He owns land in Atlanta, but he’s had that for some time, and he also owns plenty of land in other areas of the country. Loves the real estate.
He spent the winter at his home in Arizona, like he’s done for several years.
I know GM Frank Wren and Boras have had at least preliminary contract talks, when Teixeira signed his one-year deal this winter for $12.5 mill and avoided going to arbitration. But whether they’ve discussed parameters on a long-term deal, I don’t know.
Asked Tex directly if he thought something could get done before the end of the season, before he becomes a free agent.
“I’m always willing to listen,” he said. “But at the same time, I have much more important things to worry about. If I take care of things on the field, that will take care of itself.
“If you’re worrying about contracts, you’re not going to take care of business on the field. Twenty-four other guys on this team don’t care about my contract.”
I smiled and told him at this point that yes, they actually do care. Because they want him re-signed. And Teixeira laughed, because he knew that was correct.
Might the contract issue become a distraction of him and/or the team during the season?
“I’m not going to let it be a distraction for me and my team,” said Teixeira, who is making $12.5 mill this season, his final year of arbitration eligibility. “If you want to talk about baseball, I’ll talk all night.
“But if you want to talk about contracts, my agent is always willing to talk. And I’m sure Frank [Wren] is always willing to talk.”
Teixeira hit .317 with a 17 homers and whopping 56 RBIs in 54 games for the Braves after he was traded from Texas in a seven-player deal on July 31. The Braves gave up five prospects, including catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia and shortstop Elvis Andrus, to get Tex and lefty Ron Mahay (but mainly to get Tex).
The move didn’t bring a postseason berth to the Braves, but they’ve got at least one more shot to get there with Teixeira. And he belives this is the best shot he’s had in his career to reach the playoffs, despite all the talk of the Phillies and Mets being clear favorites to win the NL East.
“I know I’m capable of having my best season in this lineup,” he said. “If we play up to our potential we can definitely win the division, and after we get to the playoffs we’ll see what happens.”
J.S. also in the house: No, not John Smoltz; he’s been here a week. We’re talking John Schuerholz, who’s at Braves spring training for the first time as anything but a GM.
He’s the club prez now, having turned over the GM reins to Frank Wren after the 2007 season. And Schuerholz said he had no regrets, that he loves his new role, and that Wren has done an outstanding job assembling this team.
Schuerholz also scoffed when I told him that some still seem convinced he’s still pulling the strings on player moves.
“How many times do I have to say that’s wrong,” Schuerholz said. “People will write whatever they want anyway. But cynicism aside — none, zero [Schuerholz’s role in personnel moves this winter]. As I said when we made the announcement, he is the general manager. He will make the decisions, with his staff.
“And that’s the way it’s happened. Will he keep me abreast about things, keep me in the loop? Yes, and he has. But it’s been a very complete transition process, not even a blip on the screen. I think he’s done an excellent job.”
”HEY, GOOD LOOKIN’” by Hank Williams
Hey, hey, good lookin’,
Whatcha got cookin’?
How’s about cookin’ somethin’ up with me?
Hey, sweet baby,
Don’t you think maybe
We could find us a brand new recipe?
I got a hot-rod Ford and a two-dollar bill
And I know a spot right over the hill.
There’s soda pop and the dancin’s free,
So if you wanna have fun come along with me.
Hey, good lookin’,
Whatcha got cookin’?
How’s about cookin’ somethin’ up with me?
I’m free and ready,
So we can go steady.
How’s about savin’ all your time for me?
No more lookin’,
I know I’ve been tooken.
How’s about keepin’ steady company?
I’m gonna throw my date-book over the fence
And find me one for five or ten cents.
I’ll keep it ‘til it’s covered with age
‘Cause I’m writin’ your name down on every page.
Hey, good lookin’,
Whatcha got cookin’?
How’s about cookin’ somethin’ up with me?
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Braves overshadowed by Mets-Phils talk
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It seems like most Braves either read Jayson Stark’s ESPN.com story about the matter or at least heard the latest quotes in the strengthening Phillies-Mets rivalry in the division once ruled by Atlanta.
The few Braves I talked to about it seemed to get a kick out of Mets CF Carlos Beltran’s statement, “This year, tell Jimmy Rollins we’re the team to beat.” They smiled or laughed, and no Brave seemed upset.
Hey, when you’ve finished third two years in a row, you probably figure it’s time just to let your performance do the talking and not worry about what others think.
A year ago Chipper Jones got a little peeved when Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins said, “I think we’re the team to beat — finally.” Chipper liked Rollins’ confidence (Chipper has been known to be a bit cocky and confident himself) but saw it as a lack of respect that Rollins, at that time, didn’t really include the Braves in the picture.
But when I asked Chipper about Beltran firing the latest salvo in the new marquee rivalry in the East, Hoss just smiled and said, “He did, didn’t he.” Almost like he could’ve imagined himself saying the same type of thing in the past, which, of course, he might have.
But now the Braves aren’t talking about lack of respect or how they shold be favorites or anything else. Andruw Jones was the guy who, each of the past couple of springs, said the Braves still had the same attitude, still expected to win.
Andruw’s gone now, and the Braves’ only active multi-year streak of note these days is their years away from the postseason — two.
But don’t for a moment believe they see themselves as no more than a long-shot candidate to win the division, the way some others do. The Braves genuinely believe they’ve put together a team fully capable of winning the division, despite the obviously strong opposition they’ll face in the Mets and Phillies.
“We’ll fly under the radar, Dave,” manager Bobby Cox told me this morning, and he smiled and left it at that.
Fans of the Braves and Mets, in their heart of hearts, realize their teams have big question marks in the rotations: For the Mets, Pedro Martinez still has to prove he’s anything close to being ace-version Pedro and can hold up over the course of a season. El Duque is as old as Methusalah (or as old as Julio Franco, take your pick).
Oliver Perez has had how many good seasons in five years? Oh, and do you really want aging Billy Wagner with the ball in the ninth inning of a really high-stakes, tied game? Really?
For the Braves, there’s Mark Kotsay’s back and the memory of new closer Rafael Soriano’s midseason 2007 homer binge and Mike Hampton’s elbow (and other body parts), though to be truthful, the Braves aren’t counting heavily on him. There’s medical wonder John Smoltz, who has shown little if any sign the past two years of his age or four elbow surgeries. But the fact is he’s 40 and, whether it’s this season or next or three years from now, at some point he’s going to begin slipping.
Same for Tom Glavine, who is 41 and said he would’ve retired if the Braves weren’t interested in bringing him back for this season (Mets fans would have you believe he’s already in full decline, that his last three starts in 2007 were the precipitous decline; most impartial observers would tell you it’s usually more of a gradual process, and Glavine was too good before those three starts to have done it with a shot arm).
The Phillies? They have MVP candidates in Rollins, Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, but as talented as 1-2 starters Cole Hamels and Brett Myers are, Hamels still has to prove he can be a durable ace over the course of a season, and Myers is coming back from the bullpen. Then there’s the real rotation concerns: 45-year-old Jamie Moyer (that’s FORTY-FIVE) and Adam Eaton (6.29 ERA) and Kyle Kendrick, who had a good rookie season, but had only 49 K’s in 121 innings and, well, he’s hardly a proven commodity.
And speaking of closers, do you really want Brad Lidge with the ball in the ninth inning and, say, Albert Pujols at the plate?
Everybody’s got strengths, everybody’s got weaknesses. It’s a three-team race, and I think it’ll be a three-team race into September. How about you folks?
Gonna rain today: Weather’s been beautiful so far at Dark Star, but today it’s cloudy and a storm is approaching. Braves should be able to get their workout in before the rain. They’re already about halfway done.
Since the sky isn’t blue today, the song will be. Literally.
“Blue Sky” was written by Allman Brothers guitarist Dickey Betts about his native American girlfriend, Sandy “Bluesky” Wabegigig. They were married for two years and had a daughter, Jessica, in 1972. He wrote “Jessica” a year later.
“Blue Sky” marked the first time Betts sang lead for the Allmans, and he later sang lead on their biggest hit, “Ramblin’ Man.”
Don’t say you never got musical history on the Braves/MIB blog — whether you wanted it or not.
“BLUE SKY” by Dickey Betts
Walk along the river, sweet lullaby, it just keeps on flowing,
It don’t worry ‘bout where it’s going, no, no.
Don’t fly, mister blue bird, I’m just walking down the road,
Early morning sunshine tell me all I need to know
You’re my blue sky, you’re my sunny day.
Lord, you know it makes me high when you turn your love my way,
Turn your love my way, yeah.
Good old Sunday morning, bells are ringing everywhere.
Goin’ to Carolina, it won’t be long and I’ll be there
You’re my blue sky, you’re my sunny day.
Lord, you know it makes me high when you turn your love my way,
Turn your love my way, yeah.
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Kotsay, K.J. seem healthy and primed
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It’s an absolutely beautiful morning here at the Land of the Overbearing Mouse, and we’re watching Timm Hudson throw batting practice to Mark Kotsay and the catchers. To paraphrase P. Floyd, wish you were here, it’s all blue skies and no pain (so far, at least).
Speaking of Kotsay, the hitting coach has only had a few days to watch the Braves’ new center fielder, but Terry Pendleton already has seen enough to discern a few things.
“He’s got great hands — he knows how to use that bat,” said Pendleton, who hasn’t seen any wincing or anything else to suggest that Kotsay had back surgery a year ago that kept him on the disabled list for most of a career-worst 2007 season. “No sign whatsoever [of that injury], which is great.”
Kotsay arrived at the same time as I did today, and we spent a couple of minutes admiring Pendleton’s customized Harley-Davidson Road King out in the players’ lot. Kotsay has a Road King that he’s stripped down and customized, but he’s not riding it these days, not with three little kids and a career he’s trying to revive in his free-agent year.
The bike’s back home in Southern California, and Kotsay is here with a new team, blending in seamlessly from everything I’ve been able to observe and what I hear from tohers.
Guys who didn’t know him a week ago are already saying the same things that guys who played with him said when I covered the Marlins, Kotsay’s initial organization. And also what guys said when he played for San Diego and Oakland: great team guy, perfect fit in the clubhouse, etc.
Kotsay told me the back feels great, no problem. And sure, I know what you’re thinking: what else is he gonna say? But I tend to believe him, because he’s showed no sign of favoring it, and he’s taken as many more turns than anyone in the batting cage during live batting practice. (Coach Bobby Cox said he’s gonna tell Kotsay to take off Monday, because he’s done so much so quickly.)
(By the way, Kotsay is permitted to take part in the workouts because the Braves asked for and got a waiver to allow him to participate, since he’s coming back form an injury. Other early arrivals such as Chipper Jones and Kelly Johnson can only hit on their own in the batting cage, but they show up at the same time as the pitchers and catchers, suit up and go about their business.)
Back to Kotsay’s back. For what it’s worth, I watched out of the corner of my eye this morning as he scanned Pendleton’s bike. He squatted down to look at the engine, and Kotsay did so without showing any of the sort of discomfort that most of you or I might feel doing that at 8 a.m.
Hey, just pointing this out. Because for a guy who had back surgery a year ago, who had back issues that diminished his performance for parts of the previous two seaons, that’s a good sign.
No one expects Kotsay to produce anything close to Andruw Jones’ power numbers But if he’s healthy, Kotsay will play very strong center-field defense and hit for a batting average, probably closer to .300 than .250. (In that particular statistic, he’ll likely outdo Andruw, who hit .222 last season. That and possibly OBP, where Kotsay should be around .350 playing every day in this lineup.)
Sure, this could all change with one diving catch or one bad swing that tweaks his back. But there is reason to believe, from what he’s said and from how he looks in the batting cage, that Kotsay might produce good returns on the $2 million portion of his salary that the Braves are responsible for this season.
When they let Andruw Jones walk, the Braves lost a popular team member who was a 10-time Gold Glove winner and could hit 40 homers and drive in 100 or more runs. In Kotsay, they’ve got a guy who has already fit into the fabric of what’s known as baseball’s most cohesive, disruption-free clubhouse.
And if the back holds up, they’ve got a guy who’ll fit just fine into a potent lineup and an outfield that would once again be about as solid as any from left-center field over to the right-field line.
Big up the middle: They’re young and still developing, but the Braves believe Yunel Escobar and Kelly Johnson has the makings of a top-shelf middle-infield combo, with sound defense and outstanding offensive potential.
Johnson reported to camp in better shape than a year ago, because he was able to spend the winter doing conditioning and weightlifting work. A year ago he spent the entire winter in a crash course on the art of second base, with almost daily tutorials from Glenn Hubbard at Turner Field.
The results were evident most of the season, only a late-season flurry of miscues on backhanded plays marring an otherwise impressive debut at second base for a converted outfielder who missed the 2006 season recovering from elbow surgery.
Johnson admitted he was scared at second base last spring and early in the season, but said he now feels comfortable there.
For a guy who was worried about having balls hit to him in the early season, his offense certainly was impressive: .276 with 10 triples, 16 homers and a .375 OBP, despite a late-season slump that might have been caused in part by fatigue from putting in so much extra work in his first season back from the elbow surgery.
Before hitting .195 with three extra-base hits and a .287 OBP in his final 24 games, Johnson had batted .292 with a .391 OBP and 49 extra-base hits, 80 runs and 63 RBIs in his first 123 games.
Cox said he doesn’t plan to announce a batting order until late in spring training, and won’t say who’ll bat first or second ahead of Chipper Jones and Mark Teixeira. I’m not sure he even knows yet.
Johnson and Escobar both excelled in the leadoff role last season, Johnson posting a .372 OBP with 29 extra-base hits and 40 RBIs in 306 at-bats from the top of the order, and Escobar hitting a whopping .351 with a .400 OBP in 151 at-bats at the leadoff spot as a rookie.
My guess is that one of them will be in the role, but I really don’t know which. When I hear anything telling, I’ll let you know.
OK, finishing early today: I’ve got to get to the clubhouse. Braves are wrapping up a short (two-hour) workout today, since only six pitchers threw batting practice. Most others had already thrown back-to-back days.
Oh, and Bobby Cox pulled Dale Jr.’s name in the Braves’ Daytona office pool. And then they insisted it wasn’t rigged.
Chipper and Mike Hampton have gone over to the 500 and been in the pit area in recent years, but neither was going over today, even though Hampton, a friend of Jimmie Johnson’s, was offered a helicopter ride over.
“Got to meet with some lawyers and financial people today,” Hampton said, with a tone of dismay. “I’m [old]. I know I’m [old] when I’m meeting with lawyers instead of going to Daytona.”
”ICY BLUE HEART” by John Hiatt
She came onto him like a slow movin’ cold front
His beer was warmer than the look in her eyes
She sat on a stool, he said, “what do you want?”
She said, “give me a love that don’t freeze up inside.”
He said, “I have melted some hearts in my time dear
But to sit next to you, lord, I shiver and shake
And if I knew love, well, I don’t think I’d be here
Askin’ myself if I’ve got what it takes.”
To melt your icy blue heart
Should I start?
To turn what’s been frozen for years
Into a river of tears
“These days we all play cool, calm and collected
Why, our lips could turn blue just shooting the breeze”
But under the frost, well, he thought he detected
A warm blush of red and a touch of her knee
He said, “girl, you’re a beauty like I’ve never witnessed
And I’ve seen the Northern Lights dance in the air
But I’ve felt the cold that can follow the first kiss
And there’s not enough heat in the fires burning there.”
To melt your icy blue heart
Should I start?
To turn what’s been frozen for years
Into a river of tears
With Glavine back, notepads are full
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Good morning and a raised cup (sixth, by last count) of coffee from The Happiest Place on Earth (rolled eyes).
The Braves are about to hit the field for their first pitchers-and-catchers workout, but we can assure you that at least one aspect of Tom Glavine’s game hasn’t eroded.
His interview skills.
Before the Braves had their initial team meeting (which they’re still in as we speak, at 9:53 a.m.), Glavine slipped into his Braves gear, went through a conditioning workout (before the team’s first official workout), and then filled it up for a half-hour in a media scrum in the Braves dugout at Champion Field (there, I’ve used the proper name. Hope they’re happy. Free passes to something, please).
If he can still pitch half as well as he can answer questions, then he’ll be a mighty solid No. 3 starter.
Glavine is still a bonafide ace in the interview dept. None better. None.
It was not the throng of reporters that he got used to during his five seasons in New York, but Glavine brought his “A” game for the 10 or so media members on hand, including a couple of NY reporters, a few Atlanta writers and TV types, and ESPN’s Jayson Stark (with his video-blog cameraman in tow. How ‘bout if we had a video guy to follow your Crusading Everyman around for this blog?)
Anyway, I’ll use a lot of the Glavine stuff for the story I’ll write for the paper and website later today. But a few choice morsels for now:
— Glavine said he arrived at 7:10 a.m., and only Bobby Cox, Eddie Perez and strength coach Frank Fultz were in the clubhouse at that early hour.
“All the old guys get here early — we need to make sure we wake up,” Glavine joked.
— I asked if the mood in the clubhouse was like it used to be, when the Braves were always reigning champions who expected to win, or whether he sensed it was more a hunger to get back on top. Glavine said, “A little bit of both. This organization, as successful as it’s been, there’s a built-in expectation to win.
“But obviously there’s the realization of what’s happened the last two years; that’s fresh on everybody’s minds. Everybody in [the clubhouse] is hungry to get things back on track.”
— Glavine said if the Braves hadn’t been interested in bringing him back this season, he would have retired.
He said that he knows those who are skeptical of his continued ability to still perform at a high level will point to his last three starts for the Mets, when he was 0-2 with a 14.81 ERA.
He said those who aren’t skeptical will look at his entire body of work from last season. Glavine was 13-6 with a 3.88 ERA in 31 starts before those final three.
“When people are skeptical of you, of course it motivates you,” he said. “But at the end of the day, it’s not a huge motivator for me.” Rather, he said he’s motivated by his personal expectations and goals for himself and the team.
— On the Mets: “They’re a big-market team that has the ability to be aggressive every yeaer. They’re doing a lot of things. Over the course of the last five years, they’ve done a good job reestablishing themselves as a class organization that will have to be contended with on a yearly basis.”
Folks, until we see Glavine pitch, here’s my bottom line on this subject, which we’ve kicked around and dissected all winter: He won 13 games and pitched 200-1/3 innings last season, and he was 8-1 with a 3.20 ERA in his 16 starts before those final three.
The Braves don’t need him to be an ace, and aren’t expecting it, though he probably will pitch like one some nights. What they need is a reliable third starter behind Smoltz and Hudson.
Glavine pitched 200-1/3 innings last season; the Braves got 430 innings from Smoltz and Hudson, but their next-highest total was Chuck James’ 161-1/3, and after that it fell off to Buddy Carlyle’s 104.
This rotation is so much deeper, with Glavine and Jair Jurrjens added and with Mike Hampton possibly back, the Braves aren’t expected to need Buddy Carlyle to make many, if any, starts. Even James will have to fight to win a job.
Bennett is serious: The Braves’ long man/spot starter could end up being Jeff Bennett, who was already running the stadium stairs when I sat down in the pressbox at 7:55 a.m.
Bennett has dropped nearly 60 pounds since last July, when he weighed 270 and his wife told him he was fat. He’s a slim 210 now, and Bennett came to camp with one thing in mind: Winning a spot in the rotation.
Don’t know if he’ll be able to do that barring a couple of injuries, but it’s possible. And that “sixth starter” job that Smoltz describes could go to Bennett, who seems perfectly suited to the role, given his background as both a major league reliever and his success late last season as a starter at Richmond, then with Atlanta and during winter ball.
Kotsay, Frenchy here: Most or all of the Braves’ outfield is here, after new center fielder Mark Kotsay and Jeff Francoeur reported and suited up this morning, six days before position players are required to report.
Left fielder Matt Diaz was the first non-catching position player in camp, arriving three days ago (but he lives just down the road).
Both Kotsay and Francoeur appear to be in outstanding condition. Francoeur, as I noted earlier, has added about 10-15 pounds of muscle, and it’s evident in the way he feels out his uni. Kotsay is about the same as I remembered him years ago when he was with the Marlins, except for the full beard (which I’d imagine won’t last long, since John Smoltz is the only one that gets away with that.)
(Well, sort of. Brian McCann grows his during the season, so it’s not really noticed. Next thing you know, he has a full beard and no one says anything. But I saw McCann with a beard yesterday, too.)
OK, gonna go down to the field: I want to nose around, see how Mike Hampton’s doing, talk to a few guys, check out some throwing sessions.
Oh, did want to say, I met Jurrjens this morning. Very polite, nice kid. Not quite as big as I anticipated, probably about 6-1, 6-2. But then again, if someone had told me two years ago that little Chuck James would win 11 games in the majors in 2006 and 2007, I’d have said, “You’re kidding, right?”
I’ll write plenty of comments later today. But it’s the first workout and I need to get down on the field, and figured you guys would rather me file early so you could start discussing things and coming up with some questions.
Who knows, maybe we can even get Chipper to post today, if he’s near a laptop (I haven’t seen him here, so I’m assuming he’s not coming to the ballpark today).
”SLOW TURNING” by John Hiatt
When I was a boy,
I thought it just came to ya
But I never could tell what’s mine
So it didn’t matter anyway
My only pride and joy
Was this racket down here
Bangin’ on an old guitar
And singin’ what I had to say
I always thought our house was haunted
But nobody said boo to me
I never did get what I wanted
Now I get what I need
It’s been a slow turnin’
From the inside out
A slow turnin’
But you come about
Slow learnin’
But you learn to sway
A slow turnin’, baby
Not fade away
Now I’m in my car
I got the radio on
I’m yellin at the kids in the back seat
‘Cause they’re bangin’ like Charlie Watts
You think you’ve come so far
In this one horse town
Then she’s laughin’ that crazy laugh
cause you haven’t left the parking lot
Time is short and here’s the damn thing about it
You’re gonna die, gonna die for sure
And you can learn to life with love or without it
But there ain’t no cure
There’s just a slow turnin’….
All present or accounted for, time to begin
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It’s noon and Bobby Cox is shuffling across the outfield to his car, a puff of smoke billowing from his cigar. He’s in street clothes now, headed out after 6 hours at the ballpark on reporting day for pitchers and catchers.
Baseball gets an early start most days at spring training, and the Braves began Thursday with a coaching-staff meeting as pitchers and catchers trickled into the clubhouse at their leisure.
It was so early and so chilly (33 degrees at 6 a.m.) that even fervent motorcyclist Terry Pendleton did not ride to the park, the third-base coach opting instead for a warm car for the ride down I-4.
But the sun warmed things up quickly and most of the Braves’ pitchers got in a quick throwing session on the field after reporting to Dark Star. And beginning Friday, the schedule is no longer at their leisure (though it’s not exactly grueling at Braves spring training, it is punctual).
The first official workout for pitchers and catchers is Friday, and they were required only to call in Thursday to let the team know they were in town — that’s all that’s required in “reporting.” According to the Braves, no visa issues will delay anyone’s arrival this year.
Most young er guys and plenty of veterans come by the ballpark on reporting day, get fitted for workout gear, get situated in their lockers, exchange offseason stories with teammates they haven’t seen in a few months, and let the manager and pitching coach see their face and know they’re fit and eager.
So the real action doesn’t start until tomorrow.
But we’ve got several things to catch you up on today. So here goes.
Hampton is healthy: I know, I know. You’ve heard it before. Can’t blame you for being skeptical — we all are. But the lefty who’s missed the past two entire seasons, who couldn’t make it through the first inning of his first (and only) winter-ball start in Mexico, threw again off the mound for McDowell this week in Atlanta.
“Roger said he threw really, really good,” Cox said. “Better than good.”
Again, I know you’ve all heard this before. I feel your pain. Or Hampton’s pain. Or whatever. You know what I mean.
Point is, Hampton, right now, this moment, unless he took a bad step off the edge of a bunker somewhere today (he wasn’t in camp yet for me to ask), is healthy.
If you can allow yourself to envision the former (long-ago) 22-game winner getting through camp healthy and opening the season as the Braves’ No. 4 or No. 5 starter, behind John Smoltz, Tim Hudson, Tom Glavine and one of the several vying for the other spot … well, it’s potentially a formidable rotation.
OK, I’m having a real hard time envisioning Hampton getting through the next six weeks and opening the season in the rotation, but hey, it’s possible.
“We’re just hopeful that he can stay healthy,” Cox said. That statement was a good indication of the difference in the situation entering last spring and now.
Last spring, the Braves needed Hampton to stay healthy. This spring, they’re just hopeful that he can. Because this spring, they’ve lined up Plans B, C and D if he’s not. Maybe even Plan E.
Bennett loses weight, gains options: Actually, Jeff Bennett hasn’t gained any minor-league options. He already had two remaining, contrary to some reports.
There was confusion in some quarters this winter about his options status. It was reported he was out of them. He’s not. Has two left.
That means if Hampton were healthy and, say, Jair Jurrjens or Chuck James outpitched Bennett for the final rotation spot, the Braves could have Bennett start the season as a long reliever — or as a starter at Class AAA Richmond.
In fact, since he has two options they could do the same thing in 2009. They don’t have to worry about exposing him to waivers before sending him down.
Of course, that’s not how Bennett’s thinking entering spring training.
He pitched great for Richmond in the postseason last year (2-0, 1.04 ERA in three Governors Cup starts), went 2-1 with a 3.46 ERA in three games (two starts) for Atlanta in a September callup, then pitched extremely well in four of his six starts in the Venezuelan Winter League.
He’s 27 now, and worked hard to drop 60 pounds since early last season, down to 210, including 15 pounds trimmed since September due largely to his chicken-and-rice diet in Venezuela.
He’s finally, completely recovered from arm surgery that slowed the former Milwaukee reliever’s career, and Bennett said he is ready to push hard for a spot in the Braves’ rotation.
“The way he threw last year, you’ve got to consider him,” Cox said.
Bennett said, “I’m gonna try my best to get that starting spot. But whatever Bobby needs me to do, I’m gonna do without any questions. There’s definitely a [rotation] spot open, though.”
By the way, I wasn’t the only person who did not recognize Bennett, who has neither the shaved head nor beefy physique he had in September.
“I had no clue who he was when I saw him,” Cox said, chuckling. “I told him, ‘They make arepas [corn-based bread] in Venezuela.”
Not so fast, Mike: Although Mike Gonzalez believes he’ll be ready to pitch as soon as late May, he understands why the Braves want to make sure he doesn’t rush his return from elbow surgery.
“It’s very tough, probably one of the toughest thigns I’ve ever done — holding back on the reins,” said Gonzalez, who had Tommy John elbow surgery on May 31, 2007. “But talking to [John] Smoltz and other guys who’ve had the surgery really has helped me, because they’ve told me what to expect.
“There’s going to be some rough days, I know.” But he added, “I’m pretty sure I’m going to be back sooner [than expected]. I think they [Braves] are looking at late May or early June, if I don’t get any setbacks.”
For now, the Braves are officially staying with their earlier projection of June or July. But Cox seems open to the possibility it could be mid-June instead of around the All-Star break in July, which was the original projection.
“He’s ready to go, in his mind,” Cox said. “But it’s going to be June, probably. The hardest thing is to tell them they can’t, ‘You’ve got to wait.’ Because in their mind, they can.”
Gonzalez is in camp and playing catch with throws at about 75-percent effort from 120 feet. It won’t be much longer before he’s on the mound. “I’m going to start throwing curveballs next week,” he said.
Old home week: Tom Glavine’s locker is back where it was six years ago, next to those belong to John Smoltz and Chipper Jones on seniors row just before you get to the equipment room in the Braves’ spring-training clubhouse.
“Seems like he never left,” Cox said. “Weird. Strange. And Javy is just across the room.”
Indeed, non-roster spring training invitee Javy Lopez has the same locker he had in his last previous spring with the Braves in 2003, and he looks ready to shed that non-roster label as quickly as possible. The man’s on a mission.
He was a power-hitting star when last a member of the Braves in 2003. Now he’s competing for the backup catcher job, hoping to rejuvenate his career at 37.
He seems quite serious about it, which is why Lopez didn’t even consider bringing his chopper down to spring training, like he did last spring in Arizona when he was with Colorado (and he got waived before the end of camp).
Out of options: Cox said things could get “interesting” in a few position battles that include players out of minor league options.
Here are the ones you folks should keep in mind, the relevant out-of-options players who I’m guessing could be traded if the Braves don’t plan to keep them on the 25-man roster: relievers Blaine Boyer, Chris Resop and lefty Royce Ring; first baseman Scott Thorman, and catcher/utility man Brayan Pena.
Mohawks, briefly: Three Braves pitchers — towering Aussie Phil Stockman, Hawaii native Tyler Yates, and young Jo-Jo Reyes — attended their first hockey game Saturday when they saw the Thrashers play at Philips Arena. They loved it.
They were apparently so caught up in the excitement, all three decided to get Mohawk haircuts at a booth set up at the arena by a hair-salon chain.
But when they got down here to camp, Yates was the only one who still had the Mohawk. Stockman had trimmed his hair to a military-length buzz and Reyes had his shaved.
Yates kept his for one day at Dark Star on Wednesday, but made sure he kept his Braves cap on the entire time he was at the ballpark, for fear Cox would see the haircut. On Thursday, Yates showed up with a shaved dome.
Like him already: New lefty Will Ohman was away from his locker when his cell phone rang. I was standing nearby and heard the ringtone, Social Distortion’s “Story of my Life.” A plus in my ledger. Now if he can pitch….
Friday’s workout: The first pitchers and catchers workout is scheduled to start at 10 a.m., after a 30-minute team meeting.
”ANGEL FROM MONTGOMERY” by John Prine
I am an old woman
Named after my mother
An old man is another
Child who’s grown old
If dreams were thunder
Lightning was desire
This old house it would’ve burned down
A long time ago
Make me an angel
That flies from montgomery
Make me a poster
Of an old rodeo
Just give me one thing
That I can hold on to
To believe in this livin’
Is just a hard way to go
When I was a young girl
I had me a cowboy
It wasn’t much to look at
It was a free ramblin’ man
There was a long time
No matter how I tried
The years they just rolled by
Like a broken down dam
Make me an angel
That flies from Montgomery
Make me a poster
Of an old rodeo
Just give me one thing
That I can hold on to
To believe in this livin’
Is just a hard way to go
There’s flies in the kitchen
I can hear them there buzzin’
And I ain’t done nothing since I woke up today
But how the hell can a person
Go on to work in the morning
To come home in the evening
And have nothing to say
Make me an angel
That flies from Montgomery
Make me a poster
Of an old rodeo
Just give me one thing
That I can hold on to
To believe in this livin’
Is just a hard way to go
No more weekends off: P’s & C’s reporting
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The great L.A. Times scribe Jim Murray once said, “Spring is the time of year when the ground thaws, trees bud, the income tax falls due — and everybody wins the pennant.”
And so it is that your correspondent, memorably dubbed as the faux “crusading everyman” by one of our angrier blog participants, has already done his taxes, an annual end-of-January ritual before heading to spring training and being immersed in a six-week world where normal life is put on hold and baseball takes precedence over all else.
We’ll be headed down Wednesday, a day before pitchers and catchers are officially required to report. Need some time to stock the fridge of the rental house and get a lay of the land in our new neighborhood, plus stop by the ballpark at Dark Star to see how many eager Braves arrived early.
First workout is Thursday, and you can bet plenty of eyes will be on Mike Hampton, whose every sprint will be scrutinized to determine if the hamstring is healthy, and every throw observed by the Braves with that crossed-fingers hope they have that he’ll be able to contribute something, anything, to the cause.
But we’ll also be curious to see newcomers Jair Jurrjens and Will Ohman, plus others such as injury-plagued relievers Phil Stockman and out-of-options Blaine Boyer, and also to see how wide-eyed prospect Charlie Morton handles everything in his first big league camp.
I’m gonna keep this blog brief, since not much new to report until we get down there and start daily blogs Wednesday. (No, nothing new to report on Teixeira or Francoeur contract extensions. I don’t expect anything on Tex for a while, and a new Francoeur contract could be kept leak-free private until it’s announced the way that Brian McCann’s was during spring training last year.)
I talked to Morton at pitching camp last week, and thought you might want to hear a little of what they had to say. If I had to bet, I’d say we’re going to see this kid in the majors at some point this summer. But that could just be me crusading again.
Charlie don’t surf: Actually I’m just assuming he doesn’t. It made for a good bold-face subhead in a note about Charlie Morton, the 24-year-old right-hander whose stock has risen dramatically since last summer. Charlie does pitch.
The hard-throwing, 6-foot-5 New Jersey native’s career made an upturn late last season after he was moved from bullpen to starting at Class AA Mississippi.
He impressed enough in the new role to get a spot in the prospect-laden Arizona Fall League, where Morton went 4-1 with a 2.57 ERA and .205 opponents’ average in six games (five starts) for the Peoria Javelinas, 20 strikeouts and eight walks in 21 innings.
He allowed five runs and two homers in one three-inning start, and only one run in the other games combined. Yes, he was quite impressive out in the desert.
Now he’s been added to the 40-man (Braves had to protect him or lose him in the Rule 5 draft) and will be in camp, trying to show the Braves that he’s worth consideration for a bullpen job and/or give them something to think about later this summer if they need a pitcher for any role.
He threw five no-hit innings in his final start, which happened to come with Bobby Cox, Frank Wren and Roger McDowell in attendance (and also me, asking the Braves officials who in the H this kid was and where he came from). Morton said he had no idea the Braves’ decision-makers were there until afterward, and agreed with me it was probably a good thing he didn’t — because he was able to relax.
“It was a good time, that last night,” he said, smiling. “I really wanted to finish strong. I didn’t find out they were there until after the game.”
At pitching camp last week, Morton didn’t try to hide his excitement and nervousness as he sat at a locker stall just down from Tim Hudson’s and John Smoltz’s nameplates, and looked across the way at Peter Moylan and other Braves relievers chatting about how they spent the offseason.
“It’s outstanding, just being in this atmosphere and working with Roger,” he said after a throwing session at Turner Field. “Things like this, and the Fall League, are helping me a lot.”
Asked about being invited to big league spring training, he said, “Yes, sir. I’m looking forward to my opportunity.”
Morton’s numbers last year at Mis’sip didn’t draw much attention — he was 4-6 with a 4.29 ERA in 41 games, including six starts. He had 67 strikeouts in 79-2/3 innings, with 37 walks and 80 hits allowed.
But look inside his splits and you understood why folks took notice late in the season. His WHIP was reduced steadily, from 1.92 in April to 1.56 in July and 1.31 in August. He went from 20 strikeouts with 17 walks in 24-2/3 innings during April-May to 27 strikeouts and 10 walks in 29 innings during July-August.
Then in the Fall League, he continued to prosper, now against better hitters.
Morton has a fastball that reaches 96-97 mph, along with three other pitches that are rated average to above-average: curveball, slider, changeup.
He’s a former third-round draft pick who fell from the top-prospect radar while going 12-18 over his first two minor league seasons in A-ball, and posting ERAs of 4.82, 5.20 and 5.40 in his first three. Last season (2007) was his fourth.
Morton said his breakthrough last season came after he went into the video room with his pitching coach and studied his mechanics closely, comparing what he did when he pitched well to what he was doing on nights he struggled. He worked on getting a better downward plane on his delivery, utilizing his height and leverage.
After that he shone in a couple more outings in the bullpen, then was moved to the rotation and really begin to prosper.
“To me it was about getting to where I could pitch consistently,” he said of his Fall League success, which wasn’t marred by bouts of wildness he’d experienced in the minors. “But then again, that was only 20-something innings. I hope to carry it over now.”
Though his fastball velocity is outstanding, and does allow him to get away with a few more mistakes than some pitchers can, Morton said he’s learned he can’t rely on simply trying to overpower hitters.
“Velocity is a good thing, definitely a plus,” he said. “But I’ve seen people throw 98 and not get people out. That was the thing with me. It was frustrating.”
OK, time to pack and choose CDs to take to spring training: It’s always an important part of the preparation, to make sure I’ve got the proper mix of music to cover it all, from early morning ease-into-the-day drives to late-night wake-your-a$$-up songs to keep from driving off the road on the Florida Turnpike (Metallica always good for that).
Picked up some good CDs this past week, including the new ones by Bob Mould, Lupe Fiasco and British Sea Power. Gonna have plenty of time to play them and a bunch of others between now and opening day (not any radio worth listening to in Central Florida, which isn’t a bad thing long as you’ve got tons of CDs on hand).
One that got lost in my pile and has been on my player the past few days: Instant Karma, the John Lennon tribute/covers album that’s a benefit to save Darfur. Love Green Day’s “Working Class Hero” and REM’s “Number 9,” and I’ve gotta say, Christina Aguilera actually does a solid job on “Mother.”
Oh, and has any REM fan got Finest Worksong, the tribute CD with other Athens bands performing REM’s songs during a 2006 show at the 40 Watt Club? I got it a few weeks ago at Schoolkids Records in Athens. Patterson Hood from Drive-By Truckers covers five songs solo, including So. Central Rain and Second Guessing.
Five Eight does a reworked version of Driver 8 called “Fiver 8,” which becomes a chronicle of their stint as REM’s opening band in California a few years ago.
And so….
”DRIVER 8” by REM
The walls are built up, stone by stone,
the fields divided one by one.
And the train conductor says_ “Take a break Driver 8,
Driver 8 take a break_We’ve been on this shift too long”
And the train conductor says_‘“Take a break Driver 8,
Driver 8 take a break. We can reach our destination,
but we’re still a ways away”
I saw a treehouse on the outskirts of the farm._
The power lines have floaters
so the airplanes won’t get snagged.
_Bells are ringing through the town again.
Children look up, all they hear is sky-blue, bells ringing
And the train conductor says, “Take a break Driver 8,
Driver 8 take a brea. We can reach our destination,
but we’re still a ways away”
Way to shield the hated heat.
Way to put myself to sleep.
Way to shield the hated heat.
Way to put myself, my children to sleep.
He piloted this song in a plane like that one.
She is selling faith on the Go Tell crusade.
Locomotive 8, Southern Crescent, hear the bells ring again.
Field to weed is stricken thin.
And the train conductor says, “Take a break Driver 8,
Driver 8 take a break. We’ve been on this shift too long.”
And the train conductor says, “Take a break Driver 8,
Driver 8 take a break. We can reach our destination,
but we’re still a ways away.”
K.J. gets overlooked, but shouldn’t
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Well I didn’t plan to crank out another blog before the weekend, but for some reason there were more than 800 posts on the last one after a coupl days. Humm, seems to be a lot of interest in some cat going by the screen name U Kno Who.
Seriously, it was a good couple of days with our special blog guest, and hopefully we can get Chipper and other Braves to stop by during the coming weeks while we’re sequestered at Dark Star, and perhaps even during the season. In the meantime, we’ll keep plugging away with the nice, motley cast we’ve assembled.
So I’m just gonna give you a quick blog here today, providing a clean slate on which to post on through the weekend. We’ll start daily blogs middle of next week from that familiar ‘burb just outside Orlandopolis, where the only thing sunnier than dispositions of well-trained Disney employees is the sun itself.
Are you folks excited about spring training? Have these past couple of days helped push the needle a bit?
Frankly, I wasn’t quite ready to focus on spring training a couple of weeks ago, but now I’m getting in the mindset. Ready for some 6:30 a.m. wakeup calls, foggy early morning drives to the ballpark, music and cigars filling the rental car, and sun shining on the dew of a freshly mowed ballfield.
K.J. ready for more: With the moves made this offseason — Tom Glavine’s return, Yunel Escobar replacing Edgar Renteria at short, Mark Kotsay replacing Andruw Jones in center — and contract discussions regarding Mark Teixeira and Jeff Francoeur, it’s been easy to overlook 2B Kelly Johnson.
But I’ve got a feeling that’s going to change soon. As many of you already understand, this is another Texan (nod to Hoss) who can flat-out hit. And until his late-season difficulties with backhanded plays, Johnson played steady defense at second base in his first season at the position after moving from the outfield.
Do most folks realize how good his offensive numbers were? Think about it — K.J. missed the 2006 season for elbow surgery and had little more than a half-season of big league experience before batting .276 with 26 doubles, 10 triples, 16 homers, 68 RBIs (while hitting mostly 1st, 7th, 8th or 9th) and a .375 OBP.
As a leadoff man, he had 29 extra-base hits (six triples, nine homers), 40 RBIs and a .372 OBP in 306, which ranked among the leadoff OBP leaders in the NL.
Now Johnson said he’s stronger after doing more weightlifting than he was able to do a year ago, when he was in the last stages of recovery from elbow surgery and worked all winter on second-base defense with coach Glenn Hubbard.
“I’m feeling really good,” he told me on the phone recently. “No pain in the arm. Just being able to have a little bit of a rest helped. I went full-bore on defense from the beginning last winter because I had to. This year I was able to rest until November, and then get strong. I’ve doubled my strength this year.
“Couldn’t have asked for a better offseason as far as getting ready. I’m just a little more mentally refreshed. I couldn’t lift many weights last year, couldn’t go up with my arm. I had to do reps with lighter weight.”
In the 2008 Bill James Handbook, the statistical guru projects Johnson to rack up offensive totals in 2008 that compare favorably to Yankees star Derek Jeter.
James projects Johnson will hit .282 with 30 doubles, eight triples, 19 homers, 76 RBIs, a .384 OBP, .473 slugging and .857 OPS.
James projects Jeter will hit .312 with 35 doubles, two triples, 15 homers, 76 RBIs, .385 OBP, .443 slugging and .828 OPS.
Some fans (and others) assumed after Johnson was dropped from the leadoff spot last summer, and after he was moved from full-time to platoon duties with Escobar, the Braves must not be too high on the converted outfielder. Not so.
Every time a Braves official was asked about Johnson, the reply was positive. The Braves said they were quite pleased with his performance, but some folks didn’t seem to believe it, probably because of the moves mentioned above.
Johnson believes he’ll improve defensively now that he’s comfortable at second.
“I was scared out of my mind last year,” he said. “I heard guys saying ‘Oh, Kelly can be the second baseman.’ But in my mind I’m thinking, ‘I’ve never played second base before.’ It was like a tryout. And then I didn’t get any action the first couple weeks in games, like, one ball hit to me.
“I was like, ‘Oh [sh—], oh [sh—]. It was ridiculous.’ This year I should be more at ease, a little more free up in the head. I’m ready to go.”
Ok, before I forget … You folks in the northeast Atlanta area who aren’t working this afternoon should stop by Ella Guru CD store in the Toco Hill Shopping Center, where I’m gonna be manning my buddy Don’s store a few hours.
He’s flying back to Austin, Texas, for a reunion concert by a band he used to manage years and years ago, and I felt bad that he was going to have to shut down the store today because he couldn’t find any former employee who wasn’t busy and could man the register in the early afternoon.
So I offered my services for a few hours today, since I’m supposed to be off. Ink-stained wretch to record-store nerd. Love it.
I’ll be keeping up with the blog on my laptop while I fulfill what once seemed a dream job for me — working in a record store (I didn’t understand you weren’t going to get rich working in such a store. Or anything close to rich).
For an afternoon, I can spin tunes and sell some CDs, provided folks stop in between noon and 3:30, when my man got some relief coming in.
And since Don’s a big baseball fan and all, he’s even offering a 20-percent spring-training/Braves-MIB discount on used CDs for one week starting today. Just mention the code DOB to the person behind the register. No kidding.
See ya at the record store. Or in Orlando. Or on the blog. All good.
Oh, and if you haven’t heard the new North Mississippi All-Stars CD, it’s quite greasy and rockin’ — and very good. Some mighty fine releases the past few weeks, including albums by Bob Mould, Drive-By Truckers, Whigs, Selmanaires, Anna Kramer and the Lost Cause, and Sheryl Crow (yes, I’ll admit I like it, and not just because she’s, well, mighty fine).
”OUT HERE IN THE MIDDLE” by James McMurtry
They broke into your car last night, took the stereo
Now you say you don’t know why you even live there anymore
The garage man didn’t see a thing, so you guess it was an inside job
You made a reservation, a table for three
They said you’d have to wait, somebody must have bribed the maitre’d
Boss got mad and he blamed it all on you
Food was bad and the deal fell through
Well out here in the middle you can park it on the street
Step up to the counter, you nearly always get a seat
Nobody steals. Nobody cheats.
Wish you were here, my love
Wish you were here
We got tractor pulls and Red Man chew
Corporate relo refugees that need love, too
We ain’t seen Elvis in a year or two
We got justification for weath and greed
amber waves of grain and bathtub speed
We even got Starbacks — what else you need?
Out here in the middle, where the center’s on the right
And the ghost of William Jennings Bryan preaches every night
To save the lonely souls in the dashboard lights
Wish you were here, my love
Wish you were here
Out here in the middle, where the buffalo roam
We’re putting up towers for your cell phones
And we screen all applicants with a fine-tooth comb
Wish you were here, my love
Wish you were here
Smoltz pulls up shorts (and socks), goes to work
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Editor’s Note: Someone using the name U Kno Who jumped into this blog and offered some interesting - and quite revealing - information about the Braves and popular infielder Chipper Jones.
It was later discovered that U Kno Who was none other than the Braves’ All-Star.
Jones spent a few hours chatting with fans on a variety of subjects ranging from the biggest hit and worst error of his career, life after baseball and gift advice for Valentine’s Day. Scroll down to Feb. 6 at 7:56 p.m. to read the start of Chipper’s conversation.
It ain’t easy looking either venerable or old-school in the baggy, knee-length shorts favored by the current generation of athletes. But John Smoltz managed that trick Tuesday.
OK, maybe he just looked old, not old-school. But since the bearded Braves icon is a few years younger than me, I’m going with old-school.
Anyway, Smoltz made his initial appearance Tuesday at the Braves’ voluntary pitching camp, which began Friday at Turner Field (Smoltz was in Arizona for Super Bowl weekend).
When the aging ace enters the clubhouse on such occasions as this, conversations stop and all attention turns to the Braves’ elder statesman, who strode through the clubhouse just after noon Tuesday, carrying hangars with a jacket, slacks, tie and shirt, which he’d brought for another of the endless commercials or public-service spots he’ll be asked to do from now through spring training.
He was running late, so he hurriedly dressed at his locker, raced to a room where the camera crew was set up, then hurried back and spoke to a couple of writers as he changed from his jacket-and-tie into workout gear.
And here’s where we ran into old, er, old-school.
A few (far) younger Braves were still hanging out in the locker room, having finished their workouts and in the process of dressing and leaving, when Smoltz held court with us.
About 10 feet away, if Smoltz had looked out of the corner of his eye, he might have caught Jo-Jo Reyes watching him closely as Smoltz, who’s been in the majors since Reyes was 3, handled another interview as easily as he always does.
When Smoltz had answered all the questions, he had also finished dressing for what would be his first throwing session off a mound in four months, since the season ended.
He walked across the clubhouse toward the indoor batting cage wearing those blue shorts, which, to begin with, he wears an inch or two higher on the waist than Reyes and most Braves wear them.
Most others taking part in this camp do so in loose, untucked T-shirts of all varieties, and short socks that either barely rise above their shoetops or stop below the calf.
Not Smoltz.
The 40-year-old wore a baseball undershirt, tucked neatly into his shorts, and had on the blue, knee-high socks that are worn with Braves uniform pants. His were pulled almost to his knees.
In a matter of 20 minutes, he’d arrived, changed clothes, done his public-service spot, changed again, answered State of the Smoltz questions, laughed at a reporter’s suggestion that Smoltz might demand a contract renegotiation in light of Johan Santana’s Mets deal, discussed the status of his beloved Michigan State basketball team and the teams that represent two reporters’ alma maters (Kansas and Dayton), and revealed plans for playing golf as he makes his way down the Atlantic coast before reporting to spring training next week.
Now, Smoltz had on proper gear and was headed to the mound to shake off rust as he prepared for his whopping 20th season in the majors, all with the Braves (not including the whole season he missed recovering from the most severe of his four elbow surgeries). No other active player has been with his team as long.
As he headed across the clubhouse, the eyes of a few young pitchers were on him.
Smoltz has a plan: In his ongoing, annual evolving effort to find the best formula for remaining healthy all season, Smoltz plans to approach spring training a bit differently this season, with less emphasis on Grapefruit League games.
“I’ve got a plan, as usual, going into spring training,” he said. “Things I want to work on. There might be a lot of behind-the-scenes work, rather than pitching in games. I want to take it slow. It might not follow protocol.
“I want to execute this plan, hopefully have a longer year.”
By that he means pitch all season and into the playoffs, where Smoltz longs to return to the big stage he most enjoys, the pressure-filled postseason.
He said he planned to discuss with manager Bobby Cox and pitching coach Roger McDowell a plan that would probably have Smoltz pitch in a handful or so Grapefruit League games and a few simulated games instead of taking each of his would-be turns in exhibition games in Florida.
Smoltz said at this point of his career, it’s more important for him to work on the things he needs to during spring training than to pitch in games every fifth day. He’d still pitch in plenty of games, just not every fifth day.
The way he figures, the plan makes sense this spring for two reasons: It would better allow him to work on the two-seam fastball and curveball he wants to hone; and would allow the Braves to get some starts for the several pitchers who will likely compete for one or two jobs at the back of the rotation.
Smoltz said the Braves’ improved depth should help him and Tim Hudson feel less pressure to carry so much of the load for the pitching staff. He thinks it might allow Smoltz or Hudson to skip a start or two, if one of them has some soreness, the kind of soreness they wouldn’t have let keep them out of a start when the short-handed Braves relied on them so heavily for each start in recent seasons.
“I’m not a ‘glass’ player, I’m not fragile,” said Smoltz, who pitched 205-2/3 innings last season and had his first DL stint since 2003, for an inflamed shoulder after he slipped while making a warmup pitch in an early season game.
“But at the same time, if I make some adjustments - I can’t avoid a slip, but I can be economical in my work,” Smoltz said. He added that he wanted to be “proactive” in hopes it would allow him to be at his best for the stretch drive and into the postseason, where he and the Braves aim to be.
Smoltz, who pitched 229-2/3 innings in 2005 and 232 innings in 2006 in his first two seasons after moving back from the bullpen, said he wants to pitch 200-plus innings again this season. He just wants to be more attuned and careful in doing so.
He’s confronted his baseball mortality the last couple of seasons, conceding he’s not the same overpowering pitcher he used to be. It took him longer to recover from the strains and pains of the 2007 season, hence the pace of his throwing program being a few weeks behind past winters.
But Smoltz seems to be intrigued and stimulated by the challenges his age presents, seems almost like he enjoys the necessity of confronting the twilight of his career with an intelligent approach that could extend his effectiveness a year or three longer than most of us expected.
“Last year we didn’t have the luxury of me or Hudson skipping a start,” he said. “This year, we might.”
Again, he praised GM Frank Wren for making moves to develop depth in the starting rotation, something sorely lacking a year ago. Smoltz believes it’ll help beyond taking pressure off the bullpen. “It’s going to help the offense beyond belief, not having to blow an engine trying to score enough runs.”
As for the trade that sent Santana to the Mets from Minnesota, he joked that Glavine was to blame. Glavine’s exit from New York opened the hole in the Mets rotation that they were desperate to fill — and which they did, quite impressively.
That’ll do for now. I’ve got some other notes from my visit to pitching camp today, including some stuff plenty of you will be interested in from my interviews with Phil Stockman (yes, the big Aussie reliever is finally healthy) and prospect Charlie Morton (the 24-year-old flamethrower we saw give up no hits in an Arizona Fall League start).
But I’ll save some of that for another blog later in the week. I need to get this posted. Besides, I’d like to know what denizens think about Smoltz and his place in the Braves pantheon, all that kind of thing. Can you imagine him finishing his career elsewhere? Personally, I can’t.
OK, Here’s a tune by the great J.J. Cale, one that Skynyrd covered quite well.
“CALL ME THE BREEZE” by J.J. Cale
They call me the breeze,
I keep blowing down the road
They call me the breeze,
I keep blowing down the road
I ain’t got me nobody,
I ain’t carrying me no load
Ain’t no change in the weather,
ain’t no change in me
Ain’t no change in the weather,
Ain’t no change in me
I ain’t hidin’ from nobody,
Ain’t nobody hidin from me
I got that green light, baby,
I got to keep moving on
I got that green light, baby
I got to keep moving on
Well, I might go out to California,
might go down to Georgia,
I don’t know
Well, I dig you Georgia peaches,
makes me feel right at home
Now well, I dig you Georgia peaches,
makes me feel right at home
But I don’t love me no one woman
so I can’t stay in Georgia long
Pitching camp convenes, spring training nears
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After the first day of Roger McDowell’s Braves pitching camp at Turner Field, we can say with a great deal of certainty that reliever Peter Moylan has the most heavily tattoed pitching arm in major league baseball.
The good-natured Aussie has lost his mind.
OK, that’s not fair, especially coming from an idiot who has Johnny Cash and Hunter Thompson tattoos.
But really, Moylan has every square inch of his right arm illustrated with ink, after adding a large koi fish tattoo to his inner biceps over the winter — the last significant previously unadorned space he had from wrist to shoulder. I will say, he’s got good work. These aren’t amateur-hour tatts.
If pitchers were permitted to work with uniform sleeves cut at the shoulders, Moylan’s intricate tattoos alone could mesmerize batters into 0-2 counts, where they might be defenseless against the slider he perfected last season.
But anyway …
Let’s get serious here. Pitching camp, Day 1.
What did we observe or learn that we can quickly relate to the good denizens of the Braves/MIB blog?
I’ll try to keep each item brief so that I can get it all in without putting you to sleep.
— Hudson looks, sounds serious: Tim Hudson is in excellent physical condition — but that shouldn’t be surprising, considering the man always looks more like an 800-meter runner or Olympic swimmer than a baseball player. Fit, fit, fit.
What you should care about most is how motivated Hudson seems, how much he wants to get the Braves back to the postseason after a two-year absence, and how Johan Santana going to the Mets only seems to have him more fired up.
“I feel good about our team, top to bottom,” Hudson said. “I like where were are, as a team and a [pitching] staff.
“We can’t be consumed by what other teams are doing. I think we’re pretty good ourselves. I feel real good about our team. I don’t care what other teams are getting.”
As for Santana, with whom he’s quite familiar from his American League years, Hudson said, “He’s pretty good, but he’s not unbeatable. He got hit around a little bit last year.”
When the two pitchers squared off June 14 at Minnesota, Hudson threw seven shutout innings of two-hit ball, while Santana allowed two runs and five hits in seven innings with nine strikeouts, including a Brian McCann home run.
Bob Wickman blew that game by allowing three runs in the ninth, not the first or last game the later-released Braves closer blew for Hudson last season.
Hudson is coming off his first truly “normal” offseason as a Brave, the first in which he wasn’t either concerned about living up to a new contract, or trying to strengthen troublesome abdominal muscles, or hearing trade rumors, etc.
And with Tom Glavine added to a rotation that leaned far too heavily on Smoltz and Hudson last year, both Smoltz and Hudson say they’re eager and optimistic about the Braves’ chances in 2008.
— Glavine has settled in: The first month or so were a whirlwind for Glavine in his return to the Braves. But 41-year-old lefty said he’s gotten back into a routine, has no health issues, and feels better about spring training and the upcoming season than he’s been in a long time.
“I’ve been looking forward to spring training, and this [pitching camp] is a little bit of an appetizer,” said Glavine, who didn’t have any early pitching camps in five seasons with the Mets. “It’s always nice to get a jump on things, so you can start working on things from Day 1 when you get to spring training.”
He made it clear that his improved attitude about the upcoming season wasn’t a reflection of the Mets or how he was treated. He liked the team and the city.
He just hated being away from his family for such long stretches. As he prepared for spring training the the past five seasons, he did so knowing that when the Mets went north, he’d be flying over his family and their Alpharetta home and to New York or wherever the Mets were opening the season.
This time, Glavine knows he’ll be coming home after we’re done in Florida.
“It’s a different feeling,” he said. “Not that I didn’t look forward to spring training when I was with the Mets. But there was a bittersweet feeling, knowing that I was going to be away from my family. Now it’s six weeks of spring training, and knowing I’m going to come back home after it’s over. It feels good.”
“It’s exciting. We’re looking forward to seeing how it all comes together.”
I didn’t ask him about trading Port St. Lousy (he didn’t call it that) for Dark Star (and he didn’t call it that), but I’m sure he’d say the restaurants are a lot better in the greater Orlando area.
Oh, and the Massachusetts native picks the Patriots on Sunday, 30-17.
— Oh, one more thing about Johan: Before I forget, how many out there in Braves Nation still think the Braves should or could have traded for Santana?
Great pitcher, but in my view the price tag is simply too enormous for any team that doesn’t have the deep revenue streams that come with things like a new, Citibank-sponsored ballpark, a huge market, and your own cable network.
But unless the price tag goes over $20 mill a year for Mark Teixeira, I can already hear Braves fans howling about the team’s mistake if they don’t sign him. And on that one, I’ll probably be in agreement with the fans.
Need to get it done.
And yes, they really should get a Jeff Francoeur deal done before the season. And you know what? I get a feeling the Braves will.
“I’m not at liberty to discuss contract negotiations that may or may not be taking pace,” GM Frank Wren said rather coyly.
— Speaking of Frenchy: He’s bigger. Francoeur’s arms and shoulders are more muscular after an offseason working out with a trainer and football players in one of those serious, high-tech programs designed for high-level sports.
He’s added upper-body strength without getting any bulkier. If anything he looks a little more lean everwhere except the arms and shoulders.
Another who is noticeably more muscular: Brandon Jones. Initially I didn’t even recognize the rookie outfielder when I stepped into the room that houses the indoor batting cages and saw him in there taking swings Friday.
The shoulder that Jones hurt in winter ball? No problem. “We call it a stateside wound,” Wren joked, and by that he meant the type of injury a player sometimes gets when he’s ready to come home.
— Blaine Boyer looks, sounds ready: He’s healthy, he’s out of minor league options, and he’s excited for a chance to show and remind everyone what he’s got.
Whether it’s with the Braves or another major league team, I’m gonna predict that Boyer will make an impact this season. He’s nearly two years removed from shoulder surgery and spent the offseason strengthening his legs, a smart move that should help the power pitcher take some stress off that arm.
Boyer told me that he’s getting more extension with his pitching arm than he ever got before, that he didn’t realize before how he was “cutting off” his follow-through, probably because of the discomfort he’d get in his arm.
He said he’s noticed a big difference in how the ball “explodes” from his hand.
Hey, this Braves bullpen is deeper than before, and he’s going to have to earn a spot, not get one just because he’s out of options. But Boyer looks fully capable of doing that. He was popping the catcher’s mitt Friday, throwing hard with an easy delivery on the first day of pitching camp.
— Infante stops by clubhouse: Omar Infante had hoped to get the pin removed Friday from his surgically repaired left hand, but he’s going to have to wait another couple of weeks.
It’s only been two weeks since the veteran utility man had surgery to repair a broken bone after he was hit by a pitch in Venezuelan winter league game.
Infante seems like a real good guy, a friendly sort who apologized for not speaking better English when he answered a couple of reporters’ questions Friday. We explained to him that we’re always grateful when guys try to communicate like he did, and besides, his English really isn’t that bad.
(Certainly it’s a lot better than my Spanish, which is basically non-existent. Hardly a day goes by when I’m not reminded what a wise decision that was by me, taking French instead of Spanish in college. Bonehead. Where’s the guidance counselor when you need one….)
Anyway, Infante still is expected to be ready no later than mid-April, and the Braves aren’t ruling out the possibility of him opening the season with them. Either way, Wren told me he’s satisfied with the bench and isn’t looking to add.
— Thoughts on Lillibridge, Thorman: I asked if Scott Thorman is still considered the backup first baseman, and was told he was. Bobby Cox said the Braves will also play him some in the outfield during spring training.
Wren said the Braves have several ways they could go filling out their bench with what they have now, and that he doesn’t expect those decisions to be finalized until late in spring training. He didn’t get into specifics.
As for Brent Lillibridge, I relayed the question to Wren that someone had for me here last week: Do the Braves consider him a future every-day player or a super-utility type guy?
The GM confirmed what I said last week: Braves believe Lillibridge could end up being either type of player.
“He can do a lot of different things,” Wren said. “No doubt he can be a frontline shortstop.”
But he can also play a lot of different positions, and Wren noted that Lillibridge is more than willing to give that role a go if that’s where he’s needed.
— OK, gotta cut it off here: There was other stuff, but we’re going on forever. Waay long. Sorry about that. Hope I didn’t bog you down with stuff…. John Smoltz wasn’t there today but is expected to show up after he gets back from the Super Bowl…. Mike Hampton may or may not come to the camp, but Braves said it’s perfectly fine if he wants to keep throwing on his own in Orlando, where he has a home (he also has one in Phoenix)…. Oh, and Moylan is working on a changeup that he thinks will really help him against lefty hitters. He’s in great shape, too, by the way, after a winter of swimming workouts in the ocean.
— Just one stat before we leave: Glavine went 18-27 with a 4.03 ERA in his first 62 starts for the Mets from opening day 2003 to Sept. 18, 2004. After making big adjustments in his approach, including pitching inside a lot more, he went 43-29 with a 3.93 ERA in his final 102 starts with the Mets, including those bad three at end of last season.
Here’s how some random pitchers of Braves/MIB blog interest have done since Sept. 19, 2004:
Jon Garland 48-30, 4.07 ERA, 661 innings (100 starts).
Greg Maddux 44-41, 4.29 ERA, 650 innings (106 starts).
Brad Penny 39-23, 3.75 ERA, 575-1/3 innings (96 starts).
Tim Hudson 43-32, 3.95 ERA, 654-2/3 innings (101 starts).
Barry Zito 41-37, 4.10 ERA, 664-2/3 innings (105 starts).
Oliver Perez 27-29, 4.82 ERA, 412-1/3 innings (74 starts).
Tom Glavine 43-29, 3.93 ERA, 628 innings (102 starts).
And since we’ve been playing the Gimme Back My Bullets CD a lot lately:
”EVERY MOTHER’S SON” by Ronnie Van Zant & Allen Collins
Well I’ve been ridin’ a winning horse for a long, long time
Sometimes I wonder is this the end of the line
No one should take advantage of who they are
No man has got it made
If he thinks he does, he’s wrong
Every mother’s son better hear what I say
Every mother’s son will rise and fall someday
I’ve seen it happen so many times, so many times before
Some man got so much money he doesn’t worry no more
Or he’s got such a pretty woman that’ll treat him fine
Well my friend has been a fool
It happens every time
Every mother’s son better hear what I say
Every mother’s son will rise and fall someday
I’m not tryin’ to preach to no one, to no one at all
I’ve seen so many of my good friends just rise to fall
‘Cause they got so much money or a woman so fine
Well my friends have all been fools, it happens every time
Every mother’s son better hear what I say
Every mother’s son will rise and fall someday
What I say
Every mother’s son better hear what I say
Every mother’s son will rise and fall someday
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