AJC > Blog > Archives > 2009 > February
February 2009
Lack of Braves’ spring games on TV is disappointing
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The long winter is finally over: The Braves play their first Grapefruit League today, against the Tigers in Lakeland, Fla. Unfortunately, unless you’re at Joker Marchant Stadium this afternoon, you won’t get to see any of the action — and that’s the way it will be for most of March.
After tomorrow’s game against the Astros, which will be broadcast on ESPN, we won’t see the Braves on TV until Friday, March 27, when they play the Tigers at 1:05 p.m.
I’m hoping that maybe they just haven’t completely filled out their broadcast schedule yet, but I’m guessing that’s not the case. Is it the economy, which seems to take the blame for everything these days? Does it have something to do with the World Baseball Classic being shown on ESPN? Are the new broadcast teams still working out the kinks? I’m not sure what the explanation is, but I know I’m disappointed.
It’s a shame we won’t get to familiarize ourselves with Garret Anderson or Derek Lowe or watch the youngsters battle it out for roster spots and playing time. Heck, I just like having baseball on again, no matter who’s out on the field.
On the bright side, sort of, we will have radio broadcasts on WGST 640 on weekends, starting Friday, March 6, with a 7:05 p.m. game against the Astros. But that brings up another difficult subject: No Skip and no Pete.
I often look wistfully at the radio in my kitchen, which has carried the voices of those two guys as long as that radio has been there, and I know it won’t be the same this year. I’m sure Jim Powell is a nice guy, and it’ll be good to have Don Sutton back, but they’ve got some impossible shoes to fill. It may be a Braves game on the radio, but it won’t feel like a Braves broadcast.
So what are your thoughts on this spring’s broadcast schedule? What do you think of the new broadcast teams?
• Check out our Braves Spring Training Guide
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Has Francoeur learned his lesson?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Maybe Jeff Francoeur is smarter than some folks give him credit for being. He walked up to the line but didn’t actually cross it, avoiding arbitration with the Braves by agreeing to meet them halfway the night before his hearing was scheduled.
In canceling his flight to Phoenix, he gets to make $3.375 million this year and doesn’t have to sit through a laundry list of everything that went wrong for him last year, which was just about everything. Considering how fragile his ego appears to be, that’s a very good thing for the young right fielder.
Unfortunately, avoiding the hearing doesn’t erase the memory of last year, when he hit only .239, left men in scoring position in seemingly every at-bat and was sent to the minors for a forgettable Fourth of July weekend. He didn’t handle any of those things well and, in the process, lost his “golden boy” status with the fans — and possibly with the club.
There’s a “Braves way,” and Francoeur has yet to show that he’s mature enough to embrace it. There’s hope this decision signals a change in that and that he’ll bounce back from a tough year with a new swing and a new attitude. After all, there’s never been any question about his talent, only about his head and his perspective.
The one thing that would help Frenchy the most is to stop focusing on himself and pay some attention to the people who are trying to help him. He needs to come to terms with the fact that his physical ability will only get him so far and he can learn a lot from Chipper Jones, Terry Pendleton and his old buddy Brian McCann.
If he can put last year behind him and grow up enough to realize he doesn’t know it all, the hits — and the fans — will come back.
For the record, I was never all that excited about the idea of Ken Griffey Jr. as a Brave, so his about-face doesn’t really bother me. Although I do think someone should take the “Kick Me” sign off Frank Wren’s back — and soon.
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This Braves fan likes the youngsters
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The high in Atlanta is supposed to be in the upper 60s, and there are daffodils blooming in the yard - ah, spring is here. Finally.
While I’m enjoying the warm temps and the flowers, my favorite harbinger of the new season is that Braves pitchers and catchers are packing up and getting ready to head to Florida tomorrow. I have my tickets to three games on March 19, 20 and 21, and the hotel reservations are made, so now I can seriously start counting the days until we make our annual pilgrimage to the Wide World of Sports complex.
We’ve made this trek for six of the past seven years, and I’ve enjoyed all of them, but this one seems more interesting from a team-building standpoint. I would have loved to see the Braves land a big free agent for the outfield, and I certainly wouldn’t mind having Nick Swisher or Xavier Nady (who seems to always kill the Bravos; he’s a .290 career hitter at Turner Field) in the lineup, but I’d also be OK with seeing what the kids could do.
There are no lofty expectations for this team this year, and while I like watching the Braves dominate as much as any fan, this seems like a good time to develop some of our younger talent and get those guys ready for an extended run in the years to come.
Josh Anderson never got a fair shake last year (not sure what it was about that .300 average and his speed that warranted sending him back to Richmond). He stole 10 bases in 11 tries in 40 games, and for a team sorely lacking in speed, he’d be a huge asset. Gregor Blanco and Brandon Jones hold a lot of promise as well, and I know Matt Diaz may have some critics out there, but I love that guy’s hustle, and he knows how to hit, especially in the clutch.
Another option for the outfield is moving Kelly Johnson back out there and giving Martin Prado a full-time job at second. All Prado did was hit .320 with 105 total bases in 228 at-bats, including .328 over his final 33 games, coming back from a left-thumb injury that cost him 55 games. I’d like to see what Prado could do with the chance to play in more than 78 games.
So how about you? How disappointed would you be if this is the team the Braves break camp with in April? How eager are you to see the youngsters get a chance, or do you think they absolutely have to add another veteran?
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