The latest on the Braves…
- Atlanta wants a solid backup/Plan B at shortstop but is setting its sights higher than a reunion with Edgar Renteria, tweets David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
- The Braves are waiting out C.J. Wilson and Mark Buehrle to see if trade interest picks up in Jair Jurrjens after they sign, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
- Though the Braves might still be willing to trade Jurrjens, MLB.com's Mark Bowman hears that Tim Hudson might not be ready for the start of the season due to back surgery. Given uncertainty about Tommy Hanson's shoulder, Bowman wonders if the Braves will be hesitant to trade Jurrjens.
- Though the Blue Jays have interest in the Braves' Martin Prado, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the teams do not match up given Atlanta's desire for a left field "thumper."
Steve Adams also contributed to this post.
That’s alot of health uncertainty in what most claimed to be an “overstocked” rotation…
Yeah three out of what 10 probable starters have health problems. Plus JJ always had the weird health issues, and Hanson’s pitching stance and windup could end his career soon if he doesn’t change it because of that wicked snapback he does.
Hudson is fine. And we are still quite “overstocked”. We have plenty of guys to come up and take spots if needed.
Yeah. Delgado and Terhan have ML experience and Medlen is in the BP if we need him.
Wait, isn’t Thames a left field thumper?
he’s a left-fielder….
More like a left field bambi
JFYI to Wren/ATL…You aren’t getting anything close to a LF thumper for Prado…And no one wants to take a flier on a SP w/ 4 straight yrs of lost FB velocity (Jurrjens), Bruh!
Are you suggesting that a pitcher HAS to throw 95 MPH to be effective ? Cause Jurrjens was pitching his way into Cy Young discussions before his injury .
How soon people forget it seems.
They also think that the decline in his fastball is due to injuries or something . He did actually throw the fastball 92-93 MPH last year at times . He just didn’t need to do it with consistency . Jurrjens pitches with deception . Not , here’s my 95 MPH fastball , see if you can hit it . He works the corners and edges and changes speeds just enough to throw hitters off . He’s not flashy , but effective .
Kind of like Greg Maddux. I’d take that
Thank you Javier Vasquez for teaching Jair Jurrjens about pitching. It allowed him for better accuracy and longer outings. I hate that people look at the radar to see if a pitcher is any good. It’s not about how hard you throw it, it’s about throwing strikes and making the guy at the plate not get a good piece of it.
Maddux probably wouldn’t have been drafted these days with that ‘sub-par fastball’ of his.
Maddux actually hit mid 90s when he first came up to the bigs..
Im not saying he is the next greg maddux but he pitches a lot like him not very fast but good location with some nasty OS stuff
The Knobler article on CBS Sports says the Braves are telling teams Jurrjens was back up to the mid 90s with his FB in the instructional league…
You’re right. We could get more than just a Left Field Thumper for Prado. Probably get a few prospects in there, too. Under valuing a multi position fielder with a great bat is a mistake that, I am glad, Frank Wren will not be making. So believe me, “bruh”, Prado is worth more than anything your team can afford.
Yeah, I see teams beatin’ down the doors to get Prado…And if he was SO VALUABLE…Why is Wren putting him on the block???
Same goes for Jurrjens…And the bit about pitching w/ disception is a LOAD. Dudes FB has dropped significantly for 4yrs running. 92-94 in 2008…Down to mid/upper 80’s in 2011. That’s got RED FLAG written all over it.
As far as everyone has seen, he isn’t “on the block”. He is entertaining offers and is expecting huge returns for those teams that are interested. That signifies a highly valued player. We aren’t rushing to get rid of him and would just as soon see him back in a Braves uniform next season.
Again, on Jurrjens-velocity has NOTHING to do with how well someone pitches. It could be the way the pitching coach is teaching him to make his delivery. The guy is a really good pitcher. Undervalue him if you want. Again, he will probably be in an Atlanta uniform next year because the return will have to be significant.
Never said anything regarding what level of pitcher he was…Just that the velocity loss is a factor & a sign. Sure, Could be that he went away from his 4-seam & used the 2-seam at the request of his PC…Could be they altered his delivery…or it could be that his Stride/Plant Knee is starting to show signs of wear/tear & he’s shortening his stride to compensate -dropping the velocity – while allowing him to grind through the season…Either way, It’s still a RED FLAG..And that matters in what will be offered vs. what would have been offered w/o that flag!
It’s amazing that the guy pitched as well as he did last year but is still being given a tag of a red flagged player . Some people make it sound like he can’t throw over 90 MPH anymore . But he clearly did on many occasions last year throw 92-93 MPH when needed . It’s true that he was more consistently around the 88-89 range to locate his pitches . But don’t say that he can’t throw the fastball any higher than 90 when he surely can .
Alot has been said about Jurrjens . But he did have a really good year last year , if not his best , for the time that he was able to pitch .
There’s more concern about 2 straight seasons of 20 and 23 starts. That’s 43 out of 66-68 starts. About 2/3. His first 9 in 2011 were impressive. The other 34 starts?? You’re asking for a premiere return based on 9 starts…
Could you even hit a 90 mph fastball
I could and I would sign for the minimum . Once the pitches started to curve though , I would be in trouble .
Yep my problem to i would deff. Sit the bench though for league minimum
Yep my problem to i would deff. Sit the bench though for league minimum
Was this a direct quote form Matt Treanor?
even though i know it’s a pipe dream (because he’d actually cost money), i’d actually like to see buehrle in atlanta.
Why? The last thing the Braves need to do is commit to a FA starting pitcher. It is not even really about the money, but about the depth charts.
Yeah, I am pretty sure the last time we did that, we got crappy years outta Lowe
oh, it’s got nothing to do with reality. i just threw my first “the show” no-hitter with him years ago, so i’ve always kinda liked him.
and yes, with liberty media, it’s always about the money.
I don’t understand how the Braves haven’t acquired Carlos Quentin yet…he is the exact player they are looking for, and the Braves have the pitching prospects the White Sox desire.
I don’t know either . I kinda like the way the Braves and White Sox match up . We could help each others needs .
Quentin if a RF and not a good one. He’s only played in 100+ games in a season 3 times in 6 seasons and never more than 131 – so he loves his injuries. He gets on base a decent amount, but nothing special. And he’s only had 1 season more than 87 RBI and 30 HR back in ’08. Yes, that’s a nice resume, but when you consider he’ll be a free agent in 2013, the ship has sailed on him. Even through arbitration he’ll fetch $7M in 2012. He’d be better than what we have, but we’ve taken flyers on him before and Kenny Williams has wanted the world for him, even during rebuilding mode. Frankly, I don’t think he’s worth it. ATL undervalues defense way too much, especially if they’re not going to re-sign Michael Bourn.
Alexei ramirez and Carlos Quientin for Prado and B prospect, JJ for Yonder Alonso B prospect,,,,
The Braves are too obsessed with getting a left field “thumper”. They need to just keep Prado.
I would like to see them trade Jurrjens for a couple of elite tier prospects.
I’d be fine with that . I think Prado bounces back this year and produces close to what he is being projected at : .289 , .330+ , .415+ , 14HR’s
As much as Quentin would help the power numbers, he strikes out too much and we already have that problem with this lineup.
He struck out a total of 84 times last year in 483 PA’s . Thats not a lot . He only strikes out once every 5 or 6 PA’s . So , once in every game and a 1/2 , he will strike out .
Carlos Quentin is a good OBP player.
If Jays want Prado and dont match u, AA will just figure out a 3-way deal. He did it with Edwin Jackson and St. Louis. He’ll do it again.
I’d like to see a 3 team deal that sends prado and bailey to the jays
When is the last time Braves did a 3 way deal? I think that might be too advanced for ’em.
bailey is going to be overpriced.
he did that to acquire the long coveted rasmus. prado is a nice but unspectacular player, and he pretty much is what he is at this point in his career. i dont see AA bending over backwards to acquire him, there are other viable options on the market.
Prado>Rasmus
In other news, Jurrjens>Tommy Hanson, Hinske > Heyward, and Gonzalez>Escobar.
WOW . And you figured all that out on your own . I’m so impressed . Now can you count to ten ? You do that , and I’ll give you a star sticker .
If you think Rasmus is better than Prado (as a 2B, which is what an acquiring team is paying for), you have to assume that Rasmus still has growth left in his bat and that he can stick in CF. If he moves off CF, Rasmus has to have a LOT of growth left in his bat.
Prado may be what he is at this point, but he is an above average offensive and slightly below average defensive 2B, who also has the ability to play LF and 3B. You can make an argument that Rasmus will be better going forward, but that’s a 50/50 toss up at best.
I can’t figure out if everyone on this board really thinks AA is a genius or is being sarcastic.
Genius
The only uncertainty in regards to Hudson is with Bowman. The other beat writers, Frank Wren, his doctors, and even Hudson himself say there is no uncertainty and he will be ready for spring training. It was his back and limited him in the spring last year. The surgery will allow him to start throwing again in 6 weeks and be ready for pitchers and catchers, which is better than a year ago according to him and the Braves.
The real uncertainty is with Hanson, but with keeping Jurrjens – who could have pitched a playoff game against the Cardinals or the NLDS had the Braves not choked – will ease that uncertainty. The Braves have three young pitchers who are major league ready and another wild card who can jump in the rotation if needed – Teheran, Minor, Delgado, and if needed Medlen. The real question mark is as I mentioned Tommy Hanson.
Not just this . He also pitched the last two years with the same dicomfort that led to the surgery . The guy is a gamer . If he pitched the last two years with the discomfort , why wouldn’t he be ready for spring training .
The question is will the Braves, if all starters are healthy, start the year with an 8-man rotation. Sure…Hell…Keep everyone.. It’s not like other NL East teams are getting better. Ugh…
Hudson will be fine . Jurrjens should also be fine . I’m not sure whats up with Hanson . I thought he was close to being ready to go before the playoffs started . But we still have Minor , Beachy ,Teheran , Medlen(who looked good coming back) , and Delgado . And Christian Martinez could make a spot start when needed and be productive . So we could still trade an arm and still be fine .
Didn’t they unofficially shut Hanson down last year so his shoulder wouldn’t get any worse? I thought that was the reason we didn’t really see him come back?
You might be right . I know Jurrjens was probably closer to being ready to come back than Tommy .
He kept having stiffness leaving him unable to finish a bullpen session. Hanson got an MRI and went to get his shoulder looked at indicating that there was no structural damage. He should be alright, but with his wind up, there’s definitely something worrisome about all this.
People seem to forget Todd Redmond who actually had a lower WHIP than Teheran last year in more innings and then there’s also Vizcaino who could start if needed, I’m sure and Hoover who is awful close to MLB ready.
I think Hoover is gonna be this years Randall Delgado . They will bring him up after the AS break or in September and he will impress .
Im just ready for some moves would like to see the Braves make a splash
if AA wants he usually gets.
As long as he is willing to give up Marisnick then he might get Prado.
I think he is wanting to “buy low” yet again and that just isn’t going to happen this time.
scouts have marisnick higher on the depth charts than Gose..
Given his age, I don’t think he’s moved for anyone outside of a premier player (not straight up obvi)
prado is a nice piece, but he’s not worth a top 5 prospect on a top 3 farm system
eventually
As a Braves fan, I feel they are not going to make any major deals. Kind of in a tough position with question marks in the pitching rotation. I do think Hudson will be fine, that surgery isn’t major. We don’t need power in the outfield if Heyward had a full healthy season, with a good hitting philosophy. He can produce 30 homeruns, he has that kind of power. If Wren trades Prado better not get a platoon guy because splitting time with Matt Diaz is not going to get it done.
If you need a platoon, you’ve got Hinske/Diaz already.
Don’t listen to Bowman. He’s naturally pessimistic and he never ever thinks the team will do anything. Every offseason and trade deadline his rallying cry is “I wouldn’t expect them to do anything”. I once saw a video of Fredi G. criticizing him.
Still don’t understand why the Braves are so high on Pastornicky and not filling their SS gap with more of a sure thing like Alexei Ramirez or the Reds’ Frazier.
Willingham and Kubel seem like reasonable options for us but I’m not hearing about connections there either. So…who ARE we interested in aside from Delmon Young but not really?
I haven’t heard anything that says that Ramirez or Frazier are available. Also, Frazier is no more of a “sure thing” than Pastornicky.
Kubel doesn’t make any sense at all since he is left handed. Willingham makes more sense (if the Braves trade Prado).
Excuse me, I meant Cuddyer not Kubel. But thanks for clearing up who the Braves are actually interested in, real helpful.
This is pure speculation on SS to go after as the Braves are doing no such thing. Frazier is more of a personal preference though I suppose.
Thames isn’t RH either but that hasn’t ruled him out of speculation it would seem, the point I’m trying to make is Wren wants to create a player who is not available to trade for it seems and it’ll seem that way until we start hearing about players we are interested in outside of Seth Smith and Delmon Young who interest has been limited in.
Chris Heisey from the Reds . They want Jurrjens and we need a young LFer who is RH . It’s really the only trade that makes sense unless some other team jumps in , which is always possible .
Heisey interests me, and the Reds have a glut of OFs.
Great comparative advantage trade, which is what the Braves should be looking at with JJ.
That said, I wonder how much more Hanson would bring then JJ, I’d rather have JJ then Hanson, who I think is a bigger risk (bigger reward, but we need someone consistent and JJ is that)
The only real question with Pastornicky at SS is his arm, but a good SS can compensate for an average arm, and he’s good everywhere else. Also FF is an asset and allows for more risk-taking on throws- he saved Uggla about 10 errors last year. Uggla had to throw it into the bleachers for Freeman not to get it. Too bad Freeman’s a garden gnome in terms of range.
He has potential to be a solid #2-type hitter with good OBP skills and a tiny amount of pop, that’s very good for a SS. If no good SS options are avaliable, I’d roll the dice with him and if it fails, there’s always midseason trades.
The Braves have been looking for that left-field power bat every off-season for five years; Wren has started the season with Diaz, Blanco, Anderson, Cabrera and Prado sequentially since 2007, not to mention that most of these players were in a platoon with another player. A trade for a “thumper” seems very improbable.
unless you count Garrett Anderson as a power threat.
This year might be a little different . We have a least two players that we know of as trade bait , with at least ten teams interested in each of them . Then we also have some young talent to package together with those two , if we really wanted to go that route .
Bowman blogged earlier that the Braves backup infield targets are Ronnie Cedeno and Nick Punto. But Frank Wren could have just told him that to get rid of him. You’ve got your story now Mark, go terrorize the buffet.
if they get Nick Punto I am not going to a game at all.
why not? Punto is solid.
Actual fact. Punto has been on the DL more times than any other player in baseball over the last 4 years. Chipper will have company…
Oh COME ON WREN. Edgar was awesome. He could field and he was a decent hitter too. plus he can help move along the rookie shortstops.
it seems like the braves have bad luck when it comes to trades or FA signings. Kawakami, lowe, mclouth, farnsworth, ankiel and alot more have done nothing for the braves except for lowe’s 2010 run in september…They need to make sure the prado deal gets them someone better than prado, not someone who hits more homers.
Ankiel and Farnsworth helped out alot…for one game lol. No seriously, that game 2 of the NLDS in 2010 was all about them. Ankiel’s moonshot and Farnsworth’s phenomenal bullpen appearance kept us in the playoffs one game longer. Funny how they both helped out on the same day and came in the same deal
You forgot Troy Glaus at 3B turning that DP despite the laws of universe declaring it an impossibility. He was so shot up in 2010, but I’ll remember that always.
Uggla, Infante, Jurrjens, Vizcaino (so far), Vazquez, Bourn all were acquired through trades, except Infante who was signed and later traded for Uggla. Yes, we’ve had our fair share of disappointing transactions, but Wren knows what he’s doing. Wren will NOT trade Jurrjens or Prado for someone who isn’t an everyday starter. We don’t view Diaz as that and wouldn’t throw him into an everyday LF gig even if he could hit RH pitching because his defense is subpar. We don’t have to make a trade, so again, unless someone bowls over with something, don’t expect anything.
On December 4, 2007 Infante was traded again, this time along with Will Ohman to the Atlanta Braves for Jose Ascanio. One of the first trades that wren did as GM with the JJ steal being first I believe. I agree that Wren wouldn’t do a trade just because unless there is good value in return….if not than keep JJ till the AS break where demand for pitching will be greater….
yankees need to send nunez and romine to the braves for minor beachy or jurijens. throw in betances and swisher for prado. lol
i hope you’re kidding because we don’t need pitchers or catchers lol. How about…
-Jurrjens
-Prado
-Tickets to the Georgia Aquarium and Zoo Atlanta
-An Andruw Jones bobble-head found under some boxes in the merchandise warehouse
for…
-Nick Swisher
-Eduardo Nunez
-The Editor-in-Chief of the NY Post’s phone number so we can crank call him at 2 in the morning