TODAY: The Braves have “become more receptive to” the idea of giving Gonzalez more time, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman reports. Inciarte is now back and the Braves have a more favorable schedule coming up, so Gonzalez could get “at least a couple more weeks” to get the team on track.
THURSDAY: The Braves have gotten off to the worst start in baseball (7-20 record with a -54 run differential), and the club’s dismal performance has led Atlanta officials to discuss the possibility of dismissing manager Fredi Gonzalez, reports MLB.com’s Mark Bowman. Were Gonzalez to be fired, the Braves would likely turn to bullpen coach Eddie Perez, at least on an interim basis, Bowman adds. Yestetrday, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale listed third base coach Bo Porter and first base coach Terry Pendleton as options when discussing Atlanta’s potential managerial changes.
Of course, as Bowman notes, it’s more than fair to wonder whether any manager could have navigated this roster to a respectable performance. The Braves never fancied themselves contenders in the NL East heading into the 2016 season, but the front office stressed over the winter that it felt the team would improve upon the club’s 67 wins in 2015. Instead, the Braves have seen astonishingly poor performances from a number of players, including infielders Erick Aybar, Jace Peterson (who was recently demoted to Triple-A) and Adonis Garcia. Catcher A.J. Pierzynski has also been among the league’s least-productive hitters, and veteran relievers Jim Johnson, Eric O’Flaherty and Jason Grilli are each sporting ERAs of 5.40 or worse. Gonzalez, of course, can’t be faulted for the fact that Ender Inciarte has played just three games this season, while Daniel Winkler will miss the year following an elbow fracture. Hector Olivera, whom the front office had been counting on to take a step forward, is currently in limbo as the league investigates him in connection with some truly troubling domestic violence allegations.
Then again, a team’s manager is often the first to take the fall when a club underperforms. Such was the case around this time last year when the Brewers fired Ron Roenicke and the Marlins parted ways with Mike Redmond. There’s been some recent buzz about future managerial candidates in Atlanta, with FOX’s Ken Rosenthal writing last week that it was “difficult to imagine” Gonzalez surviving this eight-game road trip, and Nightengale tweeting just yesterday that Bud Black was a strong candidate to manage the team in 2017. That type of talk from well-reputed reporters isn’t often pulled out of thin air, so the discussions among the Atlanta brass have likely been ongoing for a fair amount of time.
Bowman writes that “all indications” point to Gonzalez entering this weekend’s upcoming series in Arizona as the club’s skipper, and recent wins over the Cubs, Red Sox and Mets have helped his case to some extent. Atlanta’s best player, first baseman Freddie Freeman, voiced support for Gonzalez when speaking to Bowman and said that the blame should be placed on the players, not the manager. “We’re the 25 guys [who have to] go out there and play every day,” said Freeman. “We’re obviously not playing to our capabilities. To say that’s Fredi’s fault is unfair in my opinion.” As Bowman notes, there’s an argument to be made that with the Braves’ rotation only just now coming together — Julio Teheran, Jhoulys Chacin, Aaron Blair and Matt Wisler have all delivered fairly encouraging results recently — and Inciarte just now returning, Gonzalez should be given a lengthier look.
The 52-year-old Gonzalez has served as Atlanta’s manager since 2011, and the team is a combined 432-405 during that time even in spite of the woeful results from 2015-16. Gonzalez’s Braves posted winning records for his first three seasons as skipper and won the NL East in 2014, but there’s been a growing number of Atlanta fans calling for change since a late collapse in 2014. That year, the Braves got off to a 52-43 start before limping to a 27-40 record following the All-Star break. Overall, the team is just 101-155 dating back to the second half of that 2014 campaign.
We all know the reasons,Fredi just needs to go sooner than later
Does it really matter? Who ever takes over will be working with a skeletal crew and no hope for prospects to be brought up any time soon. Plus, to not have a decisive plan in place with a direction on building a team shows ownership and upper management is really the problem. So in the end, does it really matter who is managing the team this year? Freddie is too much of a professional to quit but I would be begging for my release.
Why do you think there’s not a plan in place? It sounds like they did a pretty good job gutting the MLB level and restocking the minors. It’s going to be ugly this year, but the future seems bright does it not?
My point is. you don’t leak information out of the front office that you are discussing a managerial move…..you either do it or you don’t! When the Cubs went through their FO changes 5 years ago by bringing in Epstein and then Joe Madden as a manager a couple of years later, you knew there was a plan in place. Not every plan pans out but you got to have a plan to execute……and it should never include leaking out crap into the media then waiting to see what happens. As far as their farm system, I think they have some guys that are close to being ready but its too early to bring them up. So, the plan should be to sit tight for now, work through the season the best that you can and then re-group next year and make your manager change then, if you need to.
It’s known how much leeway Fredi Gonzalez has because of his relationship to the front office and specifically Bobby Cox. That being said, you leak something to the media to get those accustomed to the idea, then have his play since the leak have a direct result in his short-term future. They’re giving Fredi the rope to either save himself or hang himself. We all know his future isn’t set, so it’s only a matter of time.
Have you watched a Braves game this year? I am not one to blame Fredi for everything, but it is clearly time for a change. Of course Freddie supports him, he is the only manager he has had. These kids need some fire lit under them. FO is setting Freddie up to be the leader of a great team, but he also needs to step up himself.
Between the play after the All-Star Break 2015 up until now, there’s no reason the manager still has his job other than the front office waiting until the right time. They were a bad team last year, they’re a terrible team this year with only 3 position players on the 2017 team (Freeman, Inciarte, Mallex Smith). It’s time to cut him loose and either fill in with a vocal supporter and team uniter like Eddie Perez or Bo Porter. Fredi no longer has Frank Wren as an excuse, and it’s not fair to keep procrastinating on firing him because of an inferior line-up. He’s had incredible teams, including the highest-budgeted team (2014) in franchise history — and they missed the playoffs.
I agree, although you left out Markakis. And Lord knows we have no catcher.
My bad. I still think they’ll be in for Lucroy. He should give them a mid-order bat and could provide vet leadership to a young staff. Should be nice to counter with Flowers, who is a great pitch framer. We have some pieces at almost every level that could make a nice package. Even Braun is traded, Lucroy would be close behind. MIL already has a nice farm, but these trades could make them competitive pretty fast.
Doubt the Braves give up valuable prospects for Lucroy, who is a free agent after next season. IF they trade for a catcher I would prefer they get a young guy who is blocked at the MLB level.
I’ve hated the Fredi signing since day one. The FO hasn’t provided him with much of a team this yr but he’s horrible at dealing with the lineup and bullpen. And now I don’t think the players enjoy coming in each day. It’s become a job for them more than coming to play the game they all love. Gotta change that cultural. Fast! Too many young guys coming up that can’t have that mindset.
And Fredi could do a lot more to help the braves be competitive. Why aren’t we playing small ball to the max?? Hit n run ALL the time. Steal bases ALL the time. Even if it leads to some outs. So what?? We’re not scoring anyway. We have to put pressure on opposing teams def when all they can do is hit singles and doubles. Manufacture runs Fredi! That fires up a team just as much as a HR. But no.
I really hope he’s gone sooner than later. The clubhouse needs to hear a new voice.
small ball is kind of a myth that still exists from the old “dead ball” era. The reality is that all the base stealing and hit and running in the world doesn’t really matter if you can’t hit extra base hits and drive runners in. There simply just aren’t enough chances for success and you’d have to get extra lucky in the hit sequencing for “small ball” to be an effective offensive strategy.
First of all he didn’t have a skeletal crew in 2013 when he left Kimbrel in the bullpen and lost the Braves game 4 of the playoffs. He didn’t have a skeletal crew that next year when that same team just collapsed. Or in 2011 when they had one of the worst collapses in the history of MLB. Stop with the excuses about him being given a sorry roster because he hasn’t had bad rosters each year and hasn’t seemed to get past the 1st rd yet. Everyone keeps saying “no manager could do any better with this team” but there are managers that could have managed the Braves past the 1st rd in 2013 and probably got them to play better in the second half of 2014. For you to say that the ownership and upper management are the real problems and that they have no decisive plan in place and have no direction on building a team is completely false. It might not be the plan that you like, but their is a plan in motion that the FO has stuck with and its in motion. Like I said you might not like it or have the patience for it, but thats no reason to spew out false info. The direction that this organization is headed has a great future.
I’m not going to defend Fredi so much in this as I’m going to call this for what it is: a spineless attempt in scape-goating. No other manager would’ve taken this AAA trash team to a much better record. The fault in all of this is with the FO. If anyone deserves to be fired over this it’s the GM (and perhaps the international scouts responsible for Olivera and Toscano). Coppy really needs to step forward and own this terrible season.
Now I’m all for replacing Fredi in 2017. But do it in the offseason for pete’s sake.
I agree that Fredi needs to be gone by 2017, but there’s no point in letting him go at this point unless it’s viewed he’s hindering the development of the young players, which I highly doubt. The only reasons I see them bringing in a new manager is if it’s someone like Chipper Jones or Mark DeRosa who has zero experience and would benefit gaining that experience now rather than later. Also, if they’re set on Bud Black to hire him before he interviews for other openings. But just to have an interim as a holdover until the off season? I don’t get that.
They’ll probably go with an internal interim like Eddie Perez if they do fire Fredi. Can’t see them hiring someone from the outside like Bud Black right away, they’ve got to keep clubhouse morale strong so the players don’t just mail it in the rest of the season. They also risk alienating coaches like Perez, Pendleton and Porter (who all probably aspire to be managers someday) by bringing in someone from the outside right now.
No point?? Have you been watching any games from late 2015 up until now? There’s little to no fire and sporadic play. You really want your developing rookies being conditioned to a unmotivated clubhouse by a leader that couldn’t manage a bullpen or batting card to save his life. Give the ball to Eddie Perez or Bo Porter and let’s move on.
Fredi does get regular criticism for bullpen and lineup mismanagement. He also doesn’t manage a running game well. All of those things could hinder development. If that is a concern for the Braves then they have multiple reasons to move on now, rather than just letting him play out the season..
As I said originally I’m not trying to defend Fredi. I would’ve fired him with Wren following his second September collapse. My point is that this current Braves FO is acting rather shady following the Braves 7-20 record. Go read Jeff Schultz’s article in the AJC today, he pretty much has this situation summed up as far as I’m concerned.
Nothing he states changes that Fredi’s flaws as a manager do not gel well with potential development progression. If you’re bringing up flawed stats like cumulative win-loss records than you’ve lost the plot prior to even publishing the article.
I don’t think they’re acting shady at all. Any GM is going to PR talk about their team being better the following year unless they were a World Series team that sold off their whole roster (and even then some GMs would still make the same claim). If that qualifies him as shady then anyone that replaces him will also be shady as well.
I personally think they’re just taking advantage of an opportunity to distance the team from a manager that should have been fired multiple times, but hasn’t been able to because of internal issues (i.e. Bobby Cox). He should be praised for it when it finally happens.
This reminds me of Schuerholz promising season ticket holders last October that the Braves would not suffer another 95 loss season. Hart encouraging fans that the Braves were not rebuilding, but merely retooling and that they would tow the line between retooling and contending. Better yet Coppy telling the press that this team would be better than last season. This team that had Bud Norris as the #2 starter and a lineup that consisted of mostly replacement level players that were somehow magically going to have career years and play well above their ceilings. No there’s a big difference between PR talk and flat out BS. Maybe Coppy actually believes all this, in which case we can forgive him because he truly is a moron.
Anyhow there’s a reason the Braves are 7-20. Partly due to a rough schedule, but mostly due to a terrible team. Which is all fine since the Braves are supposed to be bad this year, but god put blame where blame is due. It’s not the coaches nor the managers fault. No manager in baseball could have a winning record with this team.
I don’t really care if they fire Fredi or not. Maybe he should fire him now, but the GM should own this, don’t just take the cowardly way out by throwing Fredi under the bus.
Dude you keep bringing up this season, but what about 2013 when Fredi had a team of mashers and the second best record in baseball and couldn’t get past the first rd of the playoffs. He has barely won a playoff game. That moron of a GM that you keep referring to has actually given the Braves a future that fans can be excited about. If we had it your way and keep Fredi the rest of the year, the whole bullpen will probably have tommy john by the end of the year because he wears down everyone in the bullpen. It seems like he has to use 6 pitchers per game. He is going to mess these young kids development up. He can’t light a fire under any of his players. Its time for him to go. You keep saying that nobody could win with this “AAA TRASH” but he couldn’t win in 2011, 2012 or 2013 either. So you can’t just say this year or last. Fredi teams are notorious for collapsing late in the season or in the playoffs. The Phillies have a bad team as well, but their manager has them fighting and scraping each game. The GM isn’t going to just come out and say we’re going to suck and if you thought that he was then you need to reevaluate how you think. Looking at our farm system after Wren left, their is no way that you couldn’t see a rebuild coming. Nobody likes to say that, especially a GM because you have fans that complain about the team not winning, so of course he is going to sugar coat some. The short time that they have stocked this farm is remarkable. Everyone knew they would be bad this year, but nobody could have predicted just how bad they’ve played. Just let Fredi go!
Also you said the GM and international scouts should be fired. The GM has taken our farm system out of oblivion and has made it one of the best in the league. No he shouldn’t be fired and for you to say that shows you don’t know much. The international scouts took a risk on Olivera. Some work out and some don’t. That’s why they are risks. No one (including you) could have predicted what was going to happen with him and domestic violence. They shouldn’t be fired for that. Toscano is getting paid alnost nothing. Also they signed him because he has the same trainer as Derian Cruz (a international prospect we signed last year). Sometimes teams have to do these player packages to get a player they want in the Latin market. It’s funny that you say that you could care less about Fredi, but your screaming for the GM’s head and the International scouts heads because they are considering firing Fredi. I mean Olivera, Toscano or the scouts had nothing to do with this, but your SO sour about the rebuild that you will take any and every opportunity to bash the front office and apparently now the scouts (probably because the FO hired them). Get over it!
If Coppy is a moron for saying things like we’ll be better than last season, then nearly every GM in history is. Nearly all make these kind of statements. Yes that’s a PR statement. He may have also slightly believed it considering how bad the Braves were in the second half of last season, and they were collapsing even prior to flipping any of the contributing veterans.
Does he have some of the blame for the on field product? To a degree he does, but that doesn’t mean he should crucify himself for it. He wasn’t the one that put them in this situation where they needed to scrap the team. He’s the one that was put in a bad situation from the beginning and has to turn things around. His predecessor is to blame for this situation. And Fredi is to blame as well for those multiple collapses that contributed to making the current situation that much worse.
And the whole no manager could have a winning record with this team is a flawed statement. He’s not getting fired because they don’t have a winning record. He’s getting removed because no matter what players they have he doesn’t give them the best chance to compete (as well as for young players to develop) with his flawed managerial skills.
Fredi is a member of the old school way of the Braves that just doesn’t work any more. He needs to be weeded out just like some others. Luckily they’ve been given an opportunity to finally do it.
Seriously Bravobravo? You need to chill out. I really don’t care what happens to Fredi and I don’t have any hate for the current FO. Also I’ve defended the rebuild since Hart took the reigns, so way to put words in my mouth.
I just think it’s asinine to believe that firing Fredi Gonzalez is going to magically fix all the Braves troubles this year. I don’t think replacing him will have a bit of difference honestly. I wouldn’t be surprised if their slide continues even after he’s gone (and yes I think he’s a goner, no way he survives beyond June IMO). This team won’t get better until some of the prospects make their way up to the majors, which I hope the FO is sensible about it and waits until after the super 2 deadline, no point in giving up a year of control to fix this mess now.
Also asinine is thinking a bunch of inexperienced rookies will make the team instantly better. Fredi mismanages games and lacks the consistency and vigor young players need. Any team will be better when we don’t have to field a team of Erick Aybar because we’re showcasing him for a trade, hoping he will turn it around.
Rookies never looked this lost under Bobby. Now granted there were never more than two rookies together with seasoned star veterans.
When they resort to call up career minor-leaguers I don’t think it’s dumb to think that inexperienced rookies (I’m talking about prospects) with high ceilings might actually play better than some of these guys. I’m not saying they’ll suddenly fix everything, nor am I suggesting they still won’t lose 90+ games this year. But the team will probably be better than it is now.
Look I said I wasn’t trying to defend Fredi but all you guys are acting like I said something sacrilegious by suggesting that the crappy April record wasn’t completely his fault. You have taken your Gonzalez hate to levels I cannot reason with so I won’t. He’s damned=if=does/damned-if-he-doesn’t.
Of course the record isn’t completely his fault, but Gonzalez has had excuses his entire Braves career. When he wasn’t winning with the highest-budgeted team in franchise history (2014), it was Wren’s fault because he was too in-your-face with sources citing running off long-time scouts (i.e. Roy Clark) and giving batting tips in-game to struggling players. Last year, it was he doesn’t have a good enough team and (during the first half), we’re playing well. Then, after the All-Star Break, they were abysmal, and they have continued that way. I don’t hate the guy, I’m really indifferent to him because he comes across as indifferent to baseball and life, in general (read his postgame comments). I would prefer a manager that is more skilled at conditioning and developing talent and molding men, and Gonzalez is not that person. When will he take responsibility for any of his teams and quit letting other people fall on his sword?
I didn’t put words in your mouth. Everything that I said you said, you actually said. Maybe I was a little too cranky the other day and might have went a little overboard. I apologize. I’m just tired of getting on these sites and a lot of people being so spoiled by all the winning that they freak out over 2 years of losing and rebuilding. They blame everything on the front office for the roster, but put no blame on Fredi and say that nobody could win with this roster, but they forget all the good rosters Fredi has managed and done nothing with. His mismanagement of the bullpen and horrible lineup construction is forgiven and forgotten for some reason because of some people’s blind hatred for the FO. He doesn’t handle young players well at all and he’ll most likely ruin half of the young pitchers if he ever gets his hands on them. They should let him go now and bring in someone who handles and helps develop young players well. He doesn’t know when to take pitchers out of the game and he doesn’t know when to keep pitchers in the game. Most of the time he doesn’t keep the young pitchers in the game when they are facing adversity, to see if they’ll fold or fight through and that helps them grow as pitchers. He’ll take a pitcher out in the 5th inning with 80 pitches and then whine in the post game about having to use up his bullpen every night, but he never says that he uses one pitcher to throw 6 pitches against one batter and then bring in another pitcher to throw 10 pitches to the other 2 batters and then bring in a different pitcher every inning after that, doesn’t matter if they throw 3 pitches that inning. Its just frustrating. Anyways sorry Jon for being cranky the other day.
I agree that the blame shouldn’t be placed on Fredi but I wouldn’t be so quick to blame the international scouting department. Yeah Olivera has been a complete disaster but not for any reason that any scout could have reasonably predicted. Giving up some solid trade pieces for him hurts, but his contract isn’t that much of a hindrance for us (although it definitely is a hindrance of some sort of magnitude). Toscano is a guy that we are paying pennies for and its understood that he has a ceiling of fourth outfielder at best. He’s not a guy people get fired over. I have a feeling we will be praising the international scouts once the international signing period comes around
What bothers me about Olivera isn’t the fact he’s not playing. It’s the fact that we gave up a lot to get a 31 yr old unproven 3rd base bat and then moved him away from the position he would’ve been most valuable to us to make him more “comfortable”. If he couldn’t stick at 3rd base then the scouts should’ve known that. I know I wouldn’t have traded away a top lefty starter and my best position prospect at the time to get a LF with little power.
Toscano was just a dumb, “lets not leave Cuba empty handed” signing. Just a stupid waste of 6 million. Reeks of Edward Salcedo with the exception that Salcedo actually looked like a legitimate prospect when they signed him.
Very good point. I agree that scouts could be blamed for the team not understanding where to position him. My only argument could be that, given the contract he’s signed for, it shouldn’t have mattered much where he played if he were able to just hit at a level that warranted a starting position somewhere on the field. He so far has not proven that, and may never get a chance to ever prove that he can hit in the majors.
But I wouldn’t classify Wood as a top lefty starter. I’d call him a number 4 or a number 5…and I wouldn’t be surprised if he becomes a late inning reliever in the future (of value, but certainly not as valuable as a top of the rotation starter). I say we traded him at a near perfect time.
I didn’t like seeing Peraza go in this deal, but I don’t think the team’s going to miss him much. Braves didn’t get much in return, but they didn’t lose much either. Considering the relatively high-profile names involved in this trade, not much value seems to have been exchanged. Paco and the competitive balance pick may turn out to be the most valuable assets exchanged, unless Bird can turn it around
You actually bring up another very good point about Olivera. It worries me that the Braves, being corporate owned, might just unload Olivera despite the fact that the guy may actually turn out to be an ok player someday. If rumors are true they’ve tried trading him already, and I can’t imagine the asking price was for much.
Despite what’s happened off the field I do believe he has some value and it would be a shame to see that value tossed aside for public image, thus rendering the trade even worse for Atlanta. I do believe he will get a chance to prove himself, but it might not be with the Braves.
Jon, c’mon man. LAD paid $28 million (signing bonus) in the Olivera trade. Peraza wouldn’t stick at 2B/SS with our prospects, and he never adapted in the OF. With a top prospect that has no position, and struggled to adapt to pitching at AAA, and strikeout prone – he was expendable.
The same way you stated that Braves scouts should have known that Olivera wouldn’t stick at 3B (everyone knew that, that’s why they moved him in 2016), they knew that Wood wouldn’t stick as a starter in a rotation presumably filled with high-ceiling talent. Alex Wood has already had 1 TJ surgery (in college) and has had mechanical flaws, pitching in front of a great defense (JHey, Simmons), while also losing 2 MPH on his fastball. They gave up a lot of risk to obtain what would be an inexpensive bat. No one could have foreseen his off-the-field issue.
Your points are valid but I still believe it was an overpay. It’s certainly been exacerbated by the fact he’s been suspended (with pay, which is a crock of **** in it’s own right, I mean why punish the organization for the flaws of the individual?) and also the presumption that Braves may try and dump him the first chance they get before he can come back and gain some value.
Braves paid talent for dollars – just like we did when we paid dollars for talent to ARZ (Touki Touissanit). In this case, it hasn’t worked out, but it also hasn’t for the other prospects either.
A team will take on the character of the manager and that exactly why braves are playing like they are. Freddi lacks the attitude and character of a mlb manager. However to say freddi is not to blame I honestly don’t know what you have been watching because freddi is to blame. Freddi managerial moves from mishandling the bullpen to who to play is costing the braves. For example last bartolo colon start he has kelly Johnson on the bench and the very next game he is not only playing Kelly but batting him cleanup. I am also sure there are other mismanagement moves like this.
Freddi might not be to blame but what has he ever done to deserve his job? Braves should have fired him when they fired frank wren. The only thing that saved him then is what might save him for rest of this year and that is and was Bobby cox.
The Braves should have asked for LaRussa along with the players they received.
Being deep in Cardinal Country, my father hated the managerial moves LaRussa made.
LaRussa’s track record speaks for itself.
Who know’s what sort of drugs the players could be taking with him in the clubhouse and he would claim to have no idea any of it was going on?
Agreed, obviously an amazing lifetime record. But he HAD to have the perennial All Stars which the Braves do not. Let alone payroll to make those moves possible. With our payroll, you need a Scioscia or Madden who can get the kids to play like men.
Lol at anyone who thinks his dismissal is actually because of 2016.
It’s been a long time coming for him. He choked when they had a good team surrounding him.
The decision to fire him prior to 2017 was made a while ago. They let him hang around cause it didn’t matter but they were always going to start fresh come 2017, and that included the manager.
Yeah I can’t imagine anyone would be mad to see him go. In depth fans will realize that firing him is not much more than a PR move, but its a move that will at least temporarily appease some of the fanbase. I don’t see firing him as a sign that the FO is disorganized. They’re professionals with a lot more information than us, and they certainly developed at least a shell of a plan in case of a disappointing start to the season. That being said…I’d wish they’d fire him already and get this situation out of then news
“Freddie Freeman voiced support for Freeman”
He better support himself. Guessing he supports Gonzalez too*
*idk how to point out a typo without being a jerk.
Yes, he has been given nothing to work with, however I think that the W-L record is only part of the problem. The way the braves are right now, it’s hard to avoid a losing environment. The braves have been declining over the last few years Fredi has been there, and I think the major thing is that the braves are ok with a losing team for now, but with so many good prospects coming up in the near future I think they are worried that a losing environment will carry over to the next wave of young talent that the FO worked so hard to get. I’d rather the braves hire someone new now, so they have more time to implement their ways and get used to ATL before next offseason.
You want a reason to fire fredi for this year alone? I will give you three and they are wisler, Blair and folty. No team can or should trust a manager with young pitchers like this with a manager who has shown he can’t manage a pitching staff. That is also why bud black is on top of the list for manager next year.
I am hoping if Fredi gets the can, that Roger does too. Those two are a pitcher’s nightmare.
Roger is a nightmare? Javier Vazquez, Aaron Harang, Ben Sheets (briefly), Eric O’Flaherty, David Carpenter and more, all had a career resurgence pitching for ATL under McDowell, yet he’s a pitcher’s nightmare? Alex Wood and Kris Medlen have looked their best in a Braves uni (though that was pre-2nd TJ for Medlen). Please separate Fredi’s mismanagement of the bullpen and terrible decisions to pull pitchers when they’re on a roll and don’t blame McDowell. His job is to prepare the pitchers and get them ready, he can’t help it if his skipper doesn’t know how to properly utilize their talents.
I would consider a trade for Fredi Gonzalez for Buck Showalter straight up. I would even thrown in John Russell for free.
That’s a horrible trade
I would get over it.
If Zach Britton and Darren O’Day could dislike this trade-comment, they would. The probability of needing TJ surgery would rise imminently with Fredi putting them in the game.
I would take Buck in a heart beat.
Fredi would love Britton and o’day it would be a return to o’ventral for fredi. Britton and o’day better invest heavily in tj surgery because they would need it. If you doubt it just ask Eric o’flaherty and Johnny venters
Please note: Season tickets for 2017 season go on sale today — the same day as this report. Hmm….
Braves need to get someone better by the deadline. Freddi has done great in the past but the team needs to develop and we aren’t even half way through the year.
I’m not the biggest fan of Fredi Gonzalez as a manager. I’d much rather have a guy has a sabermetrics-first policy when it comes to making in-game decisions. At the same time, this season’s struggles haven’t had anything to do with Fredi. We began the season with a lot of “veterans” on one-year deals filling the gaps until our prospects are ready to replace them, but the reality is that our team, even with its veterans, just isn’t very good. On top of that, there are some guys that just aren’t performing as well as they should be. Some of that will improve over the course of the season. I believe that we’ll be a much better team as our prospects become MLB-ready and as we find out which prospects will be able to cut it against MLB talent. We’ve already seen some of that transition happen. But we can’t rush those guys up — it doesn’t help anybody to have young guys come play in Atlanta and fail repeatedly because they still have holes in their game. I’m one of the few who really believes this team will be competitive next year, and I think our second half this year will be better than our first half. I’m not going to complain if Fredi gets let go, but let’s not pretend that this season’s struggles are his fault.
I wonder what Ted’s up to?
Closing another Ted’s Montana Grill and trying his darndest to find what channel the Braves game is coming on on a nightly basis because he’s too cheap to buy MLB Season Tickets package.
It’s hard for me to believe that any team that is deliberately “tanking” finds it necessary to fire their manager, unless he is doing something harmful to the development of young players. As a Nats fan who watches our matchups with the Braves, I haven’t seen any such evidence in his case.
Flaws in bullpen management, lineup construction and not effectively managing a running game (with a system loaded with speed) isn’t evidence? All of these things absolutely can impact development of young players. And more prospects will be coming up through the minors over the course of the season.
What is your evidence that they are tanking? If they were tanking then Blair (making him more expensive) wouldn’t be up. Bud Norris would still be pitching. Jace Peterson, Adonis Garcia would still be playing 2B/3B and Kelly Johnson/Erick Aybar would be playing every day. “Tanking” and getting your rookies MLB experience (i.e. Blair, Folty, Mallex Smith).
I just don’t get the fascination with Bud Black. He has a worse record than Fredi. Yes, Fredi needs to go, but Bud Black? Seriously?
I have been a Braves fan since the 50’S and if you think these guys are bad some of those mid 80’s teams makes this bunch look murders row. That said what I don’t understand is why not bring up Ruiz and Jenkins. With Incarte, Smith and Markakis in the outfield Ruiz and Freeman at the corners and Teheran, Wisler,Foltynewciz,Blair, Jenkins as your starters and Vizcaino as your closer and then let them play. Catcher,ss 2nd and the pen would be a problem but that can be secondary. if that core group can come together and start leveraging off each other like great teams, then 17 would look really bright. Now is not important, it’s what happens after the all star game. 91 they were sub 500 at the all star break but before the current collapse they collapsed in September. if they do that and especially if the young guns in the rotation come though the baptism of fire in good shape, then next year we will have a pretty good team and still have a bunch of young guns down on the farm to use to fill in the missing pieces. That is the way great teams always do it.
Just get it over with and fire him. Everyone knows he’s a lame duck anyway and I don’t like leaving him out on a limb like this. Rip off the band-aid and let either Perez or Porter get their chops wet. I doubt it will do much for the on-field product but it’s the merciful thing for Fredi G and it gives someone new a chance to show the league if they’ve got the skills to be a manager or not.
Just for fun, a trade for Trout there Braves fans. Blair, Newcomb, Teheran, Chacin, Inciarte, and Freeman.
I’d do it
I figured Angels get pitching help now (Chacin and Teheran) and the future (Blair and Newcomb), and two top position players given Freeman is turning it around.
Honestly, that’s not a bad deal. Freeman (a soCal native) would allow them to move hobbling Pujols to a career DH, where he needs to be anyway. Inciarte would be a greater defensive presence for them without Trout, while they could focus on pitching with Teheran and the future. However, I have a feeling they could get more somewhere else.
Oh I am sure they could possibly get more. I just though for a matter of current win now needs and future this trade works. And the Pujols to career DH was my exact reasoning. I do not think 6-7 prospects type deal everyone will say is best fit.
John Smoltz deserves a look if he actually wants to manage, he has the perfect personality makeup to keep guys loose but serious, and the team went heavy on pitching he knows about starting and bullpen and about the transition required both ways.
I love Smoltz, but he has a cushy job where he becomes the color commentator on Fox baseball, opposite Joe Buck. That’s about as good a job as you can have. And much better job security, plus we get to hear his pitching incite on a daily basis, and drown out Buck in the process.
If there has ever been a roster put together with a less reasonable expectation of success, I haven’t been able to find it. Going in to this past weekend series with the Diamondbacks, the Braves 25-man roster included 14 – yes, 14 – players who were either released, minor-league free-agents, in independent leagues, or otherwise unsigned and available, since the beginning of last season. Brignac, Cervenka, Chacin, d’Arnaud, Flowers, Francoeur, Garcia, Jim Johnson, Kelly Johnson, Norris, O’Flaherty, Ogando, Pierzynski, and Tuiasosopo. And, that doesn’t include the recovering Jason Grilli and the injured Gordon Beckham. The only free-agent signed by the Braves, on the current roster, who might bring anything in exchange from other teams is Nick Markakis.
Fredi is certainly not a perfect manager – but if anyone thinks another manager could do anything more with this roster, I’ll get to differ. This roster was built for failure – with a promise of “Wait ’til next year.”