Reports have pegged the Braves as one of the favorites to sign free-agent left-hander Dallas Keuchel, but David O’Brien of The Athletic throws cold water on that possibility. The Braves have inquired about Keuchel and do have interest in him, per O’Brien, though he writes their interest has been “overstated.” Atlanta has not engaged in deep negotiations with Keuchel, O’Brien adds. The latest from O’Brien jibes with a Tuesday report from Joel Sherman of the New York Post, who wrote that the Braves are “uncomfortable” with the idea of paying Keuchel the prorated value of the $17.9MM qualifying offer (approximately $11.5MM).
- Rangers outfielder Willie Calhoun landed on the 10-day IL on May 22 with a left quadriceps strain. It turns out the injury will likely keep him out of their lineup until at least late June, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News suggests. The 24-year-old Calhoun, a former top 100 prospect, was amid an encouraging season before he went to the IL. Not only did Calhoun hit .304/.416/.557 with eight home runs and more walks (22) than strikeouts (19) in 138 Triple-A plate appearances, but he got off to a .435/.458/.739 start with a pair of HRs in 24 major league PA.
- The Yankees and Giants were among the many teams that showed interest in outfielder Harold Ramirez during his brief stay on the open market last offseason, according to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. The Blue Jays outrighted Ramirez on Nov. 20, and he ended up signing a minor league deal with the Marlins exactly a week later. The 24-year-old has since given the offensively challenged Marlins some much-needed production, having slashed .346/.386/.449 (128 wRC+) in 83 plate appearances.
- Rays outfielder Tommy Pham has been out since May 30 with a strained right calf, but it appears he’ll avoid an IL stint. The club expects to plug Pham back into its lineup Thursday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times relays. Pham’s enjoying his third straight prodigious campaign at the plate, with a .300/.414/.483 (145 wRC+) line, eight home runs and 38 walks against 43 strikeouts in 244 attempts.
Kimbrel would have made more sense than Keuchel.
For the Braves that is.
100% right. So if anyone thought there was a legit chance of getting Dallas after kimbrel was signed, they were crazy. Prob crazy of us to get our hopes up that the braves would get off that large pile of cash of theirs and bring in a little bit of talent anyways
Though it is possible that Anthopolous was just turned off by Kimbrel demanding a 3-year deal. Keuchel has openly said he would take a pro-rated contract. We all now how AA loves those one year deals. It might make sense to sign Keuchel to take some weight off of Soroka and Wright in terms of innings pitched. As rookies there is no way either of them will be able to pitch a full seasons workload and be effective in the playoffs.
Why be scared off by a 3 year deal for one of the league’s best closers? Or a Cy young winner like Dallas? Unless the Braves only plan on contending in 2019 and then rebuild (which is obviously not the case with Atlanta and all that young talent) 3 years is a GOOD thing unless you want to be in the same position overpaying with prospects at the deadline in 2020, 2021, etc…
I think that the Atlanta Braves scouting dept and financial dept may know more about Kimbrel now…as opposed to his prime. Know their own financials and make decisions better than fans. Just let them work…
Actually, because they are publicly owned and an mlb team, us fans have a very clear and open picture of what they have financial. And their scouting department isn’t gonna be leaps better than everyone on the planet when it comes to the games best closer. Pretty simple actually. Don’t have to be a GM or scout in this particular situation. If it’s a draft prospect or minor leaguer, then sure. But all eyes have been on kimbrel for a while. He’s an elite pitcher and at he moment, there is no reason to assume he isn’t
It’s always easier spending someone else’s money especially when you aren’t in on the negotiations.
This comment makes zero sense. It’s actually the complete opposite. They do not want multi year deals so they do not block their youth from moving into the big league line up. Or have players signed to multi year big money deals they do not need because their inexpensive young players could give them the same results. You keep cash available for the next couple years so it can be spent on what they DO need when they have more of a clear picture. It’s not rocket science.
Then why wasnt he signed until now? Because teams didnt think he was worth the compensation. AA set his limit and 45 was too much. What’s so wrong with that? Would he be helpful, sure. But the GM can make that decision and many many have agreed without people calling for his job. It’s just super negative and a weak perspective from fans.
The Braves actually are flush with starting g pitching. They really just need bullpen help. I guess the reason they would want Keuchel is because 2 of their top starting pitchers are rookies who have never pitched more than 140 or so innings in a season. They say they want to keep their innings count low so they could pitch in the postseason. Does that mean that if they were to get Keuchel they would then go to a 6 man rotation?
Fried has also regressed to a #4 type starter and Gausman has had a weird year. I think it would be a great move to add 95+ innings of a quality starter. With that said, I’m not sure the braves feel comfortable meeting the asking price of Keuchel.
Yeah. I agree. I hope Fried returns to for. He hasn’t looked that good the past couple of starts. Over that same period of time, Gausman has looked terrible. Soroka, however, looks like a Cy Young candidate. He and Riley should both compete for rookie of the year. I would love it if the Braves had the rookie of the year for 2 years in a row.
The other thing is, I would have much preferred the Braves spend some $ to sign a player like Keuchel or Kimbrel rather then pay $ and trade prospects to acquire a player from another team before the trade deadline.
II have never heard of a team using a 6 man rotation before, but I figured some team would have done it years ago. I guess it might be pretty cool if the Braves did it first and it started a trend.
The A’s played around with the idea back in the 1980s under Billy Martin. Never caught on. Basically it means fewer starts by the front of the rotation and more by an extended back end.
That’s exactly what the Braves need though. The Braves front end are 2 rookies with injury history and neither of them have ever topped 140 innings in a season before.
The Angels used a six man rotation with Ohtani. They regularly use the six man in Japan. From what I observed the six man rotation was not effective. First you need six quality starters. Second, they need to stay healthy.
Wow. I am literally sitting here having a conversation with myself. Where is everybody?
Maybe because this was posted at 1:54 am. Just a thought.
Many different time zones and not everyone works “normal” hours. I’m up all night for instance.
Living in your mother’s basement is funny but taking to yourself? That’s serious stuff.
Because you have covered all the bases. No extra comment needed!
Braves messed up not signing Kimbrel.
Yankees were interested in a player the Blue Jays refused to keep or give an opportunity to. Well done Blue Jays. You had the room to keep him and didn’t. Just because the current regime did not acquire him didn’t make him less worthy of a chance to hold a place while you rebuild. That’s ok, the imbecilic extension to Grichuk fully redeemed you….
The Yankees were interested in him BUT he signed with Miami
Yes I am aware. I was referring to the fact that the Yankees were interested and the Blue Jays didn’t have a care in the world. Yankees, clearly being a better run organization, being interested in your player is validating to said player.
Damn you’re stupid
This free agent that Atlanta is comfortable to spend money on seems more elusive to find than Bigfoot.
That’s true. Donaldson might be the only exception I’ve seen in a long time and in reality, it addressed an area that ultimately wasn’t a need. Unlike bullpen and the starting pitching.
I don’t even count Donaldson
That was just one friend doing a solid for another friend
How was Donaldson not a need. No one expected Riley to be ready yet and Camargo has shown he would have feel flat this year if given the job. JD has been solid, not 23 mil solid but still 100 games left. He will be okay. Just tried of defending the Braves moves against armchair GMs that always think they know better. This team is like 8th best record in baseball. Our ace sucks, lost the closer and setup man. And…Acuna. Albies and JD have under produced. I think we will be fine and will still make a move or two, but we have to be conscious of money in general. None of us know what we have this year or moving forward, but mainly regardless of the amount we dont k ow the plan. Nor should we as fans. If AA ends up being able to resign Freeman, Swanson, and a few FAs over the next few years and all it cost us was not overpaying for Kimbrel or Keuchel then wouldn’t that make sense?
I just want AA to get his fair shake. I like him and appreciate the shrewdness he has shown. He will strike and spend big when it dictates itself, not before. We are a very solid team and look to only get better. Let’s just take it in!!
Resigning Freeman isn’t extea money at best its probably an even scratch. We’re spending less this year than we did last year. We need more veteran pitching, ecause with an innings limit on Soroka and Fried were looking at our number 1 and 2 starters being pulled before September.
GM’s don’t get the benefit of the doubt, especially ones working for a cheap ownership group.
I said he ultimately wasn’t a need… I didn’t say we don’t like him or aren’t making better use of his talents. But we simply needed a RF and pitching at the time of the signing.
carmargo hasn’t played at all this year so we really don’t know how he would perform year two as a starter. And yes, we only now know what Riley can really do. But bullpen was a much bigger need than Donaldson this offseason and there is no way you can argue around that. Don’t have to be a braves employee to see that
I actually love AA. I think he is a great GM. I do agree that Donaldson was not really a need though. I disagree with the idea that Camargo would have obviously fallen flat. I think the problem is that he needs to be an everyday player with consistent at bats to stay effective. I think instead of Donaldson we would have been better off spending the $ on Brantley (who most analysts had pegged to sign with us during the offseason anyway) or Grandal and/or bullpen help. That being said, I still think the Markakis contract was a steal for the Braves. I also totally disagree with whoever said they didn’t like the Flowers contract. I think whether it is with McCann or Suzuki, platooning Flowers has worked out well because it prevents our catchers from wearing down which allows them to keep their production up all season . It is hard to argue with the offensive production out of the catchers spot since we started platooning with Flowers and his defense is great. I do think replacing Donaldson and Markakis with Brantley and Kimbrel would have helped our team a lot though.
Brantley’s wanted to go to Houston. The money made more sense there (taxes and winning). Camargo has 115 abs and hasn’t played well st all. Maybe with more appearances he would be better but he wasnt great and if going by track record JD makes the team much more formidable. Also, Charlie Culberson doesnt need everyday st bats o be productive…is he better or does he just make the most of what he is given. It’s a production league. You produce or you dont. Camargo isnt. It’s easy to spend other people’s money, I get that. My issue is not the fans disagreeing
It’s that they are “calling for heads and jobs” because they think AA is inept. This just onst correct and we dont know the financial plan with other young players, targets in the next few years or what money is available on general. Have an opinion…but dont assume fans know more and have the right to take a crap all over a man’s work because you disagree with how he does things. Ya know, it’s just about the sheer amount and level of negativity…we are in a great spot now and moving forward. If the guy in charge says 45 million for a guy (that is clearly trending in the wrong direction) is not worth it…I’m happy he made the decision. I mean Soroka/Riley for JTR, not overpaying last trade deadline and resigning acuna and Albies for great teams deals these are great.moves. but that doesnt matter. Fans think too highly of their own opinion and I find it over the top especially these days…sorry for the rant.
Ramirez is an absolute stud. Marlins were lucky thag they had so few OF so as to get him.
If we didn’t sign kimbrel, which addresses a bigger need, then we aren’t signing Dallas. Pretty easy to understand that. Braves aren’t gonna get off that large pile of cash they are sitting on to improve the team today. They will continue to tell us fans it’s for the future. But we full well know they have enough money to improve the team with signings like this and maintain the future. It’s a lie either when they tell us any different
I like how many Braves’ fans think that if they do sign Dallas he is gonna just slide right into the rotation and be the same Dallas from 2017. These same “”fans” will then complain about why the Braves spent money on this bum when he doesn’t perform like 2017. Then again they aren’t the sharpest knives in the door.
i think IMO id love to have the guy. hes a vet with playoff experience. thats a huge plus for our rookies not to mention no one has seen guasman this year. We are still paying Oday 9 million to never pitch again which came with guasman. that could have been money for kimbrel or keuchel. i agree about the fan base. they complain when they spend money and they complain when they dont.
Well, when you spend money on BJ Upton, Derek Lowe, Kenshin Kawakami and don’t for Michael Brantley, Yasmani Grandal, Craig Kimbrel – it evokes different emotions.
come on DMC noone could have saw brantley doing what hes doing this year!! i begged for grandal after realmuto asking price.. kimbrel got a solid deal for sure and his deal makes him the 4th highest paid closer in 2019 which hes worth.. def cant argue there.. upton was a horrible contract and dude was on decline 2 years before braves signed him. i hated the flowers and markakis extensions but i liked the donaldson signing.. every fan is diff i guess but your def spot on
I’m with rundmc! Spot on. Don’t forget that we have had a clear picture of their financials over the last few years as they became public. So they don’t have very good reason on their decision or lack there of. And as most of us are stakeholders, you can understand with the investment and hobby we love continues to make poor decisions.
Yes, hindsight is 20/20, but Brantley got 9M more at an addt year than Donaldson got. They had more confidence in Donaldson/Kakes than Brantley/Camargo or Riley at 3B. Brantley is doing what he’s always done, hitting. He’s just healthy now. It is not like Brantley got Cutch money.
For a team that shrewdly pushed through a stadium approval in the middle of the night that even Obama would be impressed by. Don’t trust all the details of a corporate financial statement.
Brantley has played in more games since the start of 2017 than Donaldson. Brantley has always been a solid hitter. AA has always preferred RH bats. Speaking from experience as a Jays fan. Donaldson is AA’s Russell Martin with less years.
A Brantley/Acuna/Inciarte OF wouldn’t look too bad, with Riley and Camargo mixed in.
Their decision. That’s all that matters. Your opinionndoesnt matter, neither does mine. I’m simply rooting for AA and the entire organization. I dont see much difference between Acuna being hot and AA making deals or choosing to not make deals. It’s all to try and make the ball club better. Jjust let him work. He is very respected. Has a track record of success and deserves to run things how he sees fit. Again, my issue isnt with any one disagreeing it’s the over the top he needs to be fired or head taken off. This is ridiculous.
What success? I’m a Blue Jays fan. AA’s success could not be more overstated in Toronto. He was an average GM, which is not bad. He was elevated to this legend status he never earned or deserved.
They are definitely sharper than John Belushi fans. Also… I am not sure where you are getting your information from. I didn’t read a single post by a Braves fan that even implied anyone thought “he is gonna just slide into the rotation and be the same Dallas from 2017.”
so what do you think he’d do Mr. Wanna be GM?
Sharpest knife in the door????? Does that make sense to you? Pretty sure knives are kept in a drawer and not the door smart guy
He has Bluto for his profile pic. Forget it, he’s on a roll.
Funny. You two dumb asses didn’t even counter my points and I am on a roll because I’m right. seems like the only thing you can evaluate is profile pics like a 12 year old
Well how could we argue with the sharpest knife in the door? Attacking people is also a great way to make a point.
I don’t get how a lot of people are so down on Keuchel. Like Jake Arrieta, he may never again be a Cy Young candidate, but he’s still a hell of an option as a front end starter.
“the Braves are “uncomfortable” with the idea of paying Keuchel the prorated value of the $17.9MM qualifying offer”
Welp. Doubt the Braves will be getting Keuchel now. Yankees or Phillies could trump that.
Liberty needs to sale the team. They only use them as tax write off. Sale them back to Turner
Braves are uncomfortable spending money period! It is very evident. Their strategy is to win or loose with young inexpensive players., inexpensive rehabs on short term contracts and a franchise player. Don’t count on them trading for Bumgarner. The price will be too high for the Braves / Liberty Media.. Face it fellow fans the Ted Turner, John Schuerholtz, Bobby Cox glory days are over.
Mad Baum is only 29. make it happen
As we sit RIGHT NOW, you have soroka and then you cross your fingers for the rest as Fried has become hittable again like in the past and hopefully just going through another adjustment phase. It’s almost as if gausman is telling them whats coming and throwing everything flat in the zone.
It’s obvious these guys just need a little help and might be starting to labor a bit. I’m sure help is on the way, but I see it coming from a trade with SF or TOR well before this regime signing DK.
I hope you are right! Need some pitching help real soon, before it’s to late for 2019. Drinking their 2018 bath water.
.
Yea its not fun when you feel have to score 7-10 runs or have a big comfortable lead to win late, that’s for sure. These big innings with 2 outs are just frustrating lol.
We the fans need to just stop going to games until something changes. Why put money in their pocket when they dont do a thing to make us better.