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Home > Terence Moore > Archives > 2008 > August > 18 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USBraves don’t lose hustle despite losing
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Braves haven’t stopped losing, but you know what? They also haven’t stopped hustling. “No, they haven’t,” said Tom Glavine, the disabled pitcher of yore, referring to the struggling youngsters and veterans throughout the home clubhouse on Monday at Turner Field. Then Glavine added, “To be honest with you, they should be playing hard.”
That’s true. As second baseman Kelly Johnson put it, with his Braves sinking further into oblivion after Monday’s 5-0 loss to the pitiful San Francisco Giants, “We’ve got a young team, and when you’re a player in this situation, you’re trying to establish your career. You’re motivated by what could be. On top of that, it’s just out of respect for your teammates, your manager, your coaches, fans and yourself.”
Yeah, but it’s like this: Sometimes, with 162 baseball games stretching forever, the hustling vanishes. The Philadelphia Phillies are winning, and it happened to them, when reigning MVP Jimmy Rollins was benched for failing to sprint to first base on a dropped pop fly. The Tampa Bay Rays are winning, and it happened to them. The gifted B.J. Upton was benched for loafing on a double-play grounder.
The Boston Red Sox are winning, and you know it happened to them. They shipped the insufferable Manny Ramirez to the Los Angeles Dodgers after they realized Manny being Manny was synonymous with Manny playing them for fools in the field, on the bases and at the plate.
Such issues haven’t happened to the otherwise imploding Braves, owners of one winning month this season. They’ve had other issues, though. After left fielder Omar Infante caught a line drive on Monday in the first inning, he trotted toward the Braves’ dugout. It was the second out of the inning, not the third, which is why the Giants’ Dave Roberts tagged up from third base and scored without a throw.
Infante’s gaffe was more a lack of focus than of effort. “We have meetings about [giving your best], because the last two years before this, we didn’t get knocked off until the last week or 10 days before it got bleak,” said Braves manager Bobby Cox, referring to the 2006 and 2007 seasons that followed the Braves’ record streak of 14 straight division titles. “Right now, it would take a miracle for us to get back in it. But you play for pride. You play for the fans. People pay good money to watch us, and you’ve got to give them a show.”
The ongoing show for the Braves is wretched. As a result, much less than the announced crowd of 18,113 came to Monday’s finale against the Giants, but that’s more folks than the Braves of the late 1980s often attracted at home during an entire week. Glavine remembers, because he was there, when the Braves were destined to lose 100 games before the first pitch of each of those seasons.
Any comparison between the Braves of then and now? “No, because with those teams, we were so bad that there was no light at the end of the tunnel,” Glavine said. “I think with this team, you look and go, ‘Oh, man.’ You get a couple of guys here and there healthy, and they’re back next year. And if you make a splash or two with a free agent or even a trade — I mean, this team has a chance of being right back in the thick of things next year.”
First, the Braves have to get through this year, and that’s the problem.
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Comments
By Herschel Talker
August 18, 2008 9:17 PM | Link to this
Dumb column. Par for the course.
By MurphyRules
August 18, 2008 9:26 PM | Link to this
Good, lord. What a bunch of homers you all are!
By jj
August 18, 2008 9:27 PM | Link to this
Never return to Glory days with Bobby Cox manager. Glavine, Hampton and about 7 more need to go……thats means Frenchy too.
By jj
August 18, 2008 9:27 PM | Link to this
Never return to Glory days with Bobby Cox manager. Glavine, Hampton and about 7 more need to go……that means Frenchy too.
By lee
August 18, 2008 10:05 PM | Link to this
first,
braves will be last
By Scott
August 18, 2008 10:26 PM | Link to this
Although turnarounds do happen quickly sometimes (e.g. this year’s Rays), it usually takes a couple seasons at least to turn the tide.
Los Bravos will have a ton of money to spend to rebuild next year’s roster. Hampton ($15m), Glavine ($8m), Smoltz ($12, sorry but he’s done), Tex ($12m), Hudson ($13m, much of which will be pd by insurance), Andruw Jones ($13m already not being spent), Renteria ($6m available) all adds up to nearly $80 million…how much will Liberty Media actually spend to market their product??
So, what do we need? At least one big bat in the outfield (2 if Francouer doesn’t come around), a better back-up catcher who can hit (McCann will wear out otherwise), more pop off the bench. As far as pitching goes, the bullpen isn’t bad (just way overworked this year) as long as Soriano gets back and Moylan is available by May.
Our biggest holes are in the starting rotation. JJ, Campillo and Morton fill out positions 3-5, but we have no top guys. How would Ben Sheets and CC look in Atlanta…and yes we CAN afford them, but WILL the Braves pay over 30% of their payroll to 2 guys??? Not likely (see Tex wearing a halo right now…and likely pinstripes in ‘09).
As good as Schuerholz was MOST of the time, his decisions the last 3 to 4 years of his tenure were very questionable…gave away our best farm hands for rent-a-players we never kept: Castillo, Renteria, Sheffield, Gallaraga, Tex, JD Drew, and up-and-comers they wouldn’t pay: Furcal, DeRosa, Jermaine Dye, etc.
Bottom line: spend the money, get back on top quickly…go cheap (with depleted farm system) and watch a sub-.500 team for the next few years.
By Seriously
August 18, 2008 10:28 PM | Link to this
Dude. Have you been paying attention? Seriously. They have been phoning it in. Today they played like they had a plane waiting. Seriously. Bobby Cox is not motivating them. Seriously. Clean House.
By Retch
August 18, 2008 10:31 PM | Link to this
What a laugh. A couple of guys healthy and we’re back in it. What is Glavine thinking. This team has about 24 holes in a 25 man roster.
By Mike
August 18, 2008 10:33 PM | Link to this
Terence, you really are clueless. Another pearl of wisdom from a terrible writer.
By ellish
August 18, 2008 10:41 PM | Link to this
Terence you must be looking at a different team. This is a very poor team with poor coaching and a manager that is out of touch with reality.
By cooper
August 18, 2008 10:59 PM | Link to this
Nice imagery but not reality. This team is playing bad baseball and on many nights embarrassing baseball.
By Raleigh Brave
August 18, 2008 11:17 PM | Link to this
This is a joke column right?
By T
August 18, 2008 11:45 PM | Link to this
Yes they are trying. The bad news is they aren’t very good at virtually anything.
In a professional sport where people are expected to pay to see them play…. not good enough.
In fact Terrible. College Baseball players hustle, so do High Schoolers.
I’m glad they are trying to do this for themselves and are professional in the face of basically a wasted year of their professional lives.
But don’t ask people to pay attention to horrible professional sport. That’s what the Falcons, Thrashers and Hawks need to learn too.
Be interesting, people will watch.
Frankly the braves are not remotely interesting… and it’s football season.
By TheAntiMe
August 18, 2008 11:46 PM | Link to this
If I were a GM I would not give Manny Ramirez any more than a 1 year contract. If he doesn’t pull any crap that year, then we talk about another 1 year contract for the next year. Screw Boras.
By Joe
August 19, 2008 1:25 AM | Link to this
what p** me off is how the braves are quitters!!!!!! They quit a month ago when they were only back 7 games. If I recall the phillies won the division last year back 7 games with only ( correct me if I’m wrong ) 17 games left. Why did they quit? Because they are quitters and that p** me off!!!!!!!! Where’s the fight? Where’s the passion? Something better happen soon because I hate quitters!!!!!!!! And casey kotchman sucks so bad because he doesn’t want to be here playing with a bunch of quitters!!!! So Terence Moore I don’t agree with you when you say they haven’t stopped hustling. They havent hustled or played with passion all year long. Again I ask you Terence Moore.. Where is the passion? And where is the fight?
By Jeff
August 19, 2008 1:33 AM | Link to this
Glavine thinks that the Braves will”make a splash or two with a free agent”—-well we had the best free agent available in Tex and we dumped him without even attempting to negotiate with him. With this attitude by the front office, any free agent we sign will at best be second rate and not the type of impact player we need to get back into contention next year and for years to come. If all our farm system can produce is what we have seen as the replacements for our faded stars(Reyes, Blanco,Morton,etc.) its obvious that we don’t have the kind of home-grown talent that we were told existed down on the farm.
By perry
August 19, 2008 5:13 AM | Link to this
I don’t like this team of Braves. I don’t see hustle. I see each batter trying to hit a home run instead of getting on base or moving a base runner over (if there is one). Biggest mistake wasn’t losing Tex, but getting rid of Renteria last year.
By Del
August 19, 2008 5:54 AM | Link to this
Are you kidding me? Are you watching the same Braves team that I’m watching?
By michael
August 19, 2008 6:30 AM | Link to this
Hustle? Are you kidding me? You should write for Fox Noise. This team has quit. And what else would anyone expect from them when leadership quits, and trades away a star player and gets nothing of value in return?
Yeah, I know, “the injuries.” Injuries don’t account for the gaffes in yesterday’s game - and they sure don’t account for getting shut out by the worst pitcher in baseball.
Either you’re getting some sweet perks for putting out a completely false story like this, or you’re writing your articles before the end of the first and going out to the bar early.
By IGivUp
August 19, 2008 7:15 AM | Link to this
One of the seven wonders of the modern world is how Terry Pendleton keeps his job. Braves hitting has reached a new low and no one is being held accountable.
By TROTTINGHOMETUDD
August 19, 2008 7:15 AM | Link to this
YOUR TRYING TERRENCE. I’LL GIVE YOU THAT.
By LarryA
August 19, 2008 7:16 AM | Link to this
Stupidity should not overcome hustle. What happened to the Braves way when these guys were taught the basics and it was drilled into their heads?? The only fundamentally sound player out of the Braves minors in years has been McCann and he has shown to be prone to mental errors a la the throw into left field last night.
And to hear Chipper after the game talk about how tough the Braves had it against the Giants pitching and how Barry Zito is a really tough pitcher - has Chipper looked at Barry Zito’s ERA for the last 2 years? Sorry my friend, he has been a chump for a couple years, it has been a long time since he was a stud. The truth is folks are standing in line to pitch to this lousy lineup. Omar Infante hitting 4th????
By james
August 19, 2008 7:25 AM | Link to this
UM…I don’t think I’m watching the same team this guy is writing about. We are talking about the Braves, right? No situational hitting, bad fielding, mediocre pitching, and more baserunning errors than I care to count. Yeah, seems like they are trying REAL hard.
By Arkie Fan
August 19, 2008 7:25 AM | Link to this
As I stated my opinion in Spring Training, before most of the injuries, our Braves have serios problems. Old pitching, the same management team for way to long. a very poor fundelmental team ( slow, can’t move baserunners over, can’t bunt, weak in power, too many errors, etc. ). All jobs should be graded on performance instead of ?, what ever Cox uses. We need an infusion of new talent and management. 2009 is a coming and what are the plans? We have maybe 8 key players - where are the rest coming from - JT. We need an influx of new talent. Looks like a two to three year process - get on the ball JT. The glory days are long, long gone - the gory days are here.
By Disgruntled
August 19, 2008 7:29 AM | Link to this
Trust me, I have the upmost respect for Bobby Cox, but I believe he has become a little easy on his players. You always here that players would love to play for Cox, ever wonder why? Far too many times have I watched on TV and seen a player jogging to first on a ground ball. I understand it is a long season but you would think at millions of dollars a year that hustle would not be a problem. I make 50k a year and my boss expects me to hustle all year. Makes me wonder if things would be different if we had someone like Charlie Manual, or the Tampa Bay manager.
By Charlie
August 19, 2008 8:01 AM | Link to this
Say what you want, but to me a lack of focus is same as not hustling. Get your head into the game. Not being focused is not being into the game. You don’t hustle when your mind is elsewhere. McCann firing a ball four into left field to bring in another run is also inexcusable. Young or not, with the money these clowns are making, this stuff should not happen. The Braves right now are impossible to watch. They have a Little League caliber of play. Their hitters are totally incompetent. Yesterday there was an article about Kotchman “focusing on hitting”. He follows that with a 0 for 4, with a strike out besides. I realize that Casey CAN’T be as bad as he’s been since the trade, but if this guy “is focusing”, he must be blind and ADHA as well. Kotchman is 80 points below Thurman’s MLB average. Wow! As with the majority of this years Braves, they are as big a loser group as those in the late 1980’s. Joe and Josh lately have lamented how the Braves have run into such good pitching lately. Yesterday they were shutout by the pitcher with the MOST LOSSES IN BASEBALL THIS YEAR. Only a team as lousy as the 2008 Braves could pull that off. The kindest thing of all would be for the Braves to collect their unjustified salaries, forget their remaining games, and just go to their homes. It would be the best for baseball fans everywhere.
By Frank Wren
August 19, 2008 8:02 AM | Link to this
Hey Terence,
To bad they dont have a “hustle” world series….
somebody sure needed to hustle after that ball McCann launched into left field yesterday on ball 4….
and as far as Frenchy goes….how hard is it to hustle when the only thing you do is strike out (and walk back to the dug out) or hit a deep fly ball to second base.
In the event that Frenchy gets a hit over the next 41 days, he might have to introduce himself to Glen Hubbard down at first base.
By Vince
August 19, 2008 8:26 AM | Link to this
This is a BAD team. Back to the drawing board or is it wait till next year which should be Atlanta’s slogan.
By Kenneth Simpson
August 19, 2008 8:47 AM | Link to this
The braves are doomed for a number of years because of some of the stupid trades John S made to rent a player for a year. I agree with the person who said we gave away the best free agent on the market this year without trying to resign him and that was Tex. No way will the braves spend any money trying to sign a pitcher like CC or Ben Sheets and besides Sheets will be like the rest of the bunch and stay hurt all the time.They need to try to finish last for several years and get good draft picks and hope for the best. Quit giving away the farm for rental players. Look at the talent around the majors now that the braves have given away for nothing. It stinks! I think they need a new aggressive manager, new hitting coach and a Leo for the pitching coach. All Cox knows to do now is to show hins but and get thrown out of the game and then somebody that noboby ever heard of managing the team. Smoltz, Glavine, Hudson, and Hampton are through. This is very obvious. Chipper is about finsihed and I don’t know what Frenchy’s problem is. They just stink!
By Jeff
August 19, 2008 9:01 AM | Link to this
As a longtime Braves fan (since 1958), from afar (Pennsylvania),I have been through it all and I thank you for your comments. For the fans who think everyone should go, you just like to see yourself in print. Thank goodness you aren’t in charge of the Braves. As for Bobby Cox, there isn’t a ballplayer today who wouldn’t like to play for him. So stop your stupid comments and appreciate what you have.
By Disgruntled again
August 19, 2008 9:04 AM | Link to this
I’ve got an idea! Let’s fire all the management and coaching staff and let Chipper do it all. It seems for several years now that as Chipper goes, so go the Braves. If it hadn’t been for Larry hitting at a Ted Williams type pace the first of the year we wouldn’t be as close as we are now!!!
By Rick Long
August 19, 2008 9:35 AM | Link to this
Another game, another different excuse for uninspired and boneheaded playing and you write a column about how the Braves haven’t stopped hustling. Are you kidding me? The more accurate question is when is this year’s team going to BEGIN hustling. Mr. Moore, if you haven’t noticed, this team has been sleep walking the entire year.
Also, the lack of accountability on this team is astonishing. However, what do you expect when you have a manager who keeps making excuses like “we hit a lot of balls right at ‘em; the other guy just pitched great (earth to Cox and the rest of the Braves players, you got shut out for 7 innings yesterday by Barry Stinking Zito at home and displayed a lack of fundamentals that would embarass a high school team).
Mr. Wren, can you explain to me why we keep aging dead wood on a team that is going nowhere fast and is in need of a major overhaul (e.g. Nunez, Norton, Tavarez, etc.) rather than giving young players a chance to show whether they can play at this level? While listening to the Braves/Giants game on Friday night (where the slumbering offense wasted yet another fine performance by Jurrjens) I kept hearing Lemke and Van Wieren refer to all of the rookies and young players on the Giants and this is how the Braves started their turnaround before their 14 year run. Seems to me, there is a messsage here guys. At least Giants’ fans have something to look forward to as the dog days unfold rather than Braves’ fans who presumably will be relegated to watching players sink to yet new lows the rest of the year while management continues to delude itself into thinking this team is just a “player (i.e. band aid) or two away”.
Time to take a hard look in the mirror guys!
By Keeping It Real
August 19, 2008 9:44 AM | Link to this
Hustle with limited talent does not make this team attractive. The Braves are boring and now they cannot win. It appears that they will be more boring if they go after free agent outfielders over 30 with no speed. What happened to the farm system? Clear out the older guys on the DA and develop or acquire some young talent like Tampa and Milwaukee have done. Glavine, Hampton, Chipper and Smoltz have enough money to retire. Please encourage them to do so and make room for the young guys. How many good young players have been traded away in order to keep the old guys in Atlanta? The Gwinnett Braves will be more attractive than the Atlanta Braves if this trend continues.
By jgon
August 19, 2008 9:49 AM | Link to this
What a joke. Score 11 runs in a game and the next day you can’t score a run. Just think how many runners they have left on base. they don’t know how to advance a runner.They would a better team with all rookies. Hustle to get the game over with. If they are down 2 runs in the first inning you can watch another game its over.
By ATLborn
August 19, 2008 9:59 AM | Link to this
LMAO!! Some of u folks are just unreal! T. Moore gets hammered endlessly whenever he calls out an Atl area or GA team yet when he writes a positive column about one when its losing then the same ppl that rag him for not supporting local teams hammer him for being a “homer”.
LOL! Just unreal!
By Frank Wren
August 19, 2008 10:06 AM | Link to this
ATTENTION ALL MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL TEAMS
We will trade you Terence Moore and Jeff Francoeur for a dozen baseballs and a sack of potatoes
By Dnice
August 19, 2008 10:08 AM | Link to this
They couldn’t even score a run against sorry behind Zito, what hustle?
By itwasugly
August 19, 2008 10:10 AM | Link to this
The game was horrible to watch as have been the Braves this year. It must be hard for them to even try to play. the hustle is gone and so is the heart. No more phony columns about them this year. It is embarrassing to watch this team. I have been a Braves fan for over thirty years and live in the North east. I am struggling to even put the games on anymore. I am not blaming anyone but it would be refreshing to see a change in management for next year. Bobby Cox has aged and looks awful these days. He is being made a fool out of by his players. I am hoping for the best but am not expecting much from the boys down south in any of the sports except for UGA.
By JR
August 19, 2008 10:32 AM | Link to this
You win in the majors with POWER HITTING AND POWER PITCHING along with mixing some much needed role players. Look at the Braves. They have no POWER PICHING OR HITTING and too many role players.
No way Johnson or Escobar are top of the lineup guys, but that’s all we have, and right now our only hope at winning on the mound is JJ and Campillo. I pray Hampton will regain some form, but I’m on a wait and see plan. Hampton ought to play for us for free for the rest of his career (who knows how long that will be). That would be the admirable thing to do. Chipper should be a man and asked to be traded to the American League where he could DH. I love Chipper just like the next guy, but I want to win. He is costing us too much having to sit as much as he does. Loyalty only goes so far. It’s time to cut our losses like we did with Murph. You see what happened after that. We went on a roll. Also, I will agree with most that it is time for Cox to call it quits. I love him to death, but we need a change.
By James
August 19, 2008 11:20 AM | Link to this
Good article. There is something to say for a team that no matter the circumstances doesn’t give up. It will pay off in the future.
By LHA
August 22, 2008 3:38 PM | Link to this
Bobby has shut it down and the team is following his lead. Thanks for all the great years Bobby, but it’s time to move on. A serious over hall is needed and fresh blood needs to lead it.
By Ralph
August 22, 2008 5:12 PM | Link to this
The only motivated the Braves have to to rush to the bank on pay day. On the field is like watching Tubby the clown, making balloon images of animates. The new general manager, took over a bad team and made it worse. The Braves front office are doing everything to have a losing team. Bobby Cox, knows he doesn’t have it anymore, and should step down for the sake of the team, and take Pendleton with him. Pendleton was a very good player, but since he’s being the hitting coach the Braves, the team SINKS. Enough, about what the Brave are or aren’t by now, being 15 games under, should tell you, and if the don’t know, what’s wrong they should be in the baseball business. In fact to avoid farer embarrassment, the Braves should call it a year and go home.
By Robert
August 23, 2008 1:38 PM | Link to this
The only reason the Braves havent lost any hustle is because they havent had any to lose ever since Donkey took over as manager in 1990
Mr Moore - You are now officially THE king of the apologists for the Braves and Donk Cox
Or you smoke some really bad crack