If the Braves continue to carry twelve pitchers, there really isn’t room for anyone else unless a trade goes down. Since one or two usually do, though, expect someone not listed to make the team.
In addition to Matt Diaz, possible backups for Adam LaRoche include James Jurries and Scott Thorman. Both are power hitters; Jurries, a righthanded hitter, spent last season in AAA, while Thorman, a lefty, started off in Mississippi then moved up to join him. Jurries is probably a more finished product, but the Braves seem to be higher on Thorman. Neither is considered much of a defensive player. I like Jurries as a platoon partner for LaRoche. He hit .284/.357/.537 last season, and is capable of Kevin Millar’s career. Millar had two at-bats in 1998, as a 26-year-old, and has spent most of the time since then in the majors; Jurries was 26 last season. A steroid suspension last year cost Jurries both playing time and (probably) most of what little attention the team seemed to have given him. Thorman doesn’t offer the platoon possibility, but is young enough (23 last season) that his .506 AA slugging percentage is very interesting. Actually, one of him and Jurries would be a cheap alternative that could give you 35 homers if some occasionally ugly defensive play.
For glove men and middle infield, the pickings in the system are slim. The Braves signed Cesar Crespo, ex of the Padres and Red Sox (and the Mets, Marlins, and Pirates farm systems) to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training. He sucks, but at least has a little major league experience and will take a walk, which puts him head and shoulders over these other guys, who seemingly don’t even have the full use of their extremities. Tony Pena Jr. had over 500 plate appearances for Richmond last year and must have led the International League in outs, hitting .249/.285/.347. At that, he’s still a better bet than Mississippi’s Luis Hernandez, who hit .243/.315/.311. I have made a lot of fun of Jonathan Livingston Seagull Schuerholz over the years, but L’il Jonny is probably the most promising shortstop in the upper reaches of the Braves’ minors. In Mississippi, he hit .278/.347/.371, but bombed in Richmond, .175/.255/.203. Former Rangers “prospect” Jason Bourgeois was in Richmond last year too, though I don’t know if he’s in the system now. (Nope, he went in the minor league Rule 5 draft.) He fit right in, hitting .240/.301/.317. Martin Prado finished the season as the Mississippi second baseman, hitting .280/.354/.364. He was considered a prospect at one time but those don’t look like prospect numbers to me, nor do his eight career minor league homers. He was better in Myrtle Beach, .306/.353/.411.
Other Catching Possibilities
Nobody routinely carries three catchers anymore, so barring injury the other catchers at spring training are mostly there so the pitchers don’t have to wait. If McCann suffers a major injury, the Braves will certainly consider promoting Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who is a heck of a prospect but very young (20) and likely to wind up moving to first base in the near future. If McCann has a short-term injury or Pratt gets hurt, the options are Eddie Perez and Brayan Pena, neither of whom can throw through tissue paper. Perez really should retire and take a well-deserved coaching job, as he likely will at the end of spring training. Like a lot of other fringe roster candidates, Pena would have been a more valued player twenty years ago, when teams were more likely to carry a third catcher. He’s a classic third catcher, a guy who can switch-hit, hit for a high average, and runs well for the position, but doesn’t have the defensive skills expected for a regular or the power to play first base. As benches grow shorter, it is ironically the best bench players, the platoon guys and the pinch-hitting candidates, who get squeezed out, while the defensive backups stick around.
James Jurries – Baseball Statistics – Biography, Minor League Stats and Baseball Cards
Scott Thorman – Baseball Statistics – Biography, Minor League Stats and Baseball Cards
Cesar Crespo – Baseball Statistics – Biography, Minor League Stats and Baseball Cards
Tony Pena – Baseball Statistics – Biography, Minor League Stats and Baseball Cards
Luis Hernandez – Baseball Statistics – Biography, Minor League Stats and Baseball Cards
Jon Schuerholz – Baseball Statistics – Biography, Minor League Stats and Baseball Cards
Martin Prado – Baseball Statistics – Biography, Minor League Stats and Baseball Cards
Brayan Pena – Baseball Statistics – Biography, Minor League Stats and Baseball Cards
Eddie Perez Statistics – Baseball-Reference.com
Good run through Mac! Welcome back AAR, I am glad you made it back. Thanks for going so I didn’t have to!
Off topic:
I am reading “Three Guineas,” by Virginia Woolf for a class. Has anyone on here read it and if so, what did you think?
Braves web site says this about Sosa in the Winter League Playoffs
“As for Sosa, he’s continuing to be used by Licey as one of its top setup men. In nine postseason innings (seven appearances), he’s allowed five earned runs. He has, however, also recorded nine strikeouts while issuing just two walks.”
Lot of runs, but his walks are down.
Thanks, Smitty. It’s good to be back.
I’ve never read Woolf. I’ll be interested to hear what you think.
Seagull? The word “Seagull” is involved in this kid’s name??
Yeesh…. Let’s hope neither Marcus Giles nor Pete Orr get hurt.
Nah, his real middle name is “Lawrence”, but he was named after the bird.
I think one other infield possibilty has to be Yunel Escobar, the Cuban signee form last year’s draft. He had a very good year in Rome, is defensivley ready for the majors, and is old enough that he will be too old soon.
I realistically think that if JS Jr. isn’t on the team out of spring training, he’ll get the call in September.
this is all so very interesting that I think I need to go lay down nice work though Mac
Any predictions on current batting order with regards to Laroche/Francouer? Who bats 5th? Will Bobby flip them any based on the pitcher that day? Also Langerhans/McCann, where will they be used most in the order? Avoiding any major injuries or season long slumps, this could be a decent lineup.
Batting Order SHOULD be: Giles, Langerhans/KJ, Chipper, Andruw, LaRoche, Renteria, Francoeur, McCann. But it won’t be.
Does anyone know the status of JC Holt?
I think Francoeur is about as good 6th hitter as anyone we can put out there. If you’re gonna have a guy with power who hacks, I think 6th is a great place. Yeah, 7th is better, we’re not exactly the ’53 Dodgers, ’78 Red Sox or ’95 Indians. I’m just gonna hope for the best with Frenchy. I wouldn’t hate it if he hit 5th sometimes.
Unfortunately, LaRoche is a much-less-than-perfect 5th hitter. I would love to drop Adam from 5th, but I’m guessing Bobby is tied to the Right-Left-Right middle of the order.
I was thinking along the same lines as far as the lineup is concerned. It would be great to see what Andruw could do with real protection behind him in the order because I doubt he will be allowed to hit with the game on the line as many times next year when they can take the bat out of his hands and pitch to Laroche or whoever.
L’il Jonny is probably the most promising shortstop in the upper reaches of the Braves’ minors.
That’s probably the most depressing thing I’ve ever read.
Mike-
JC Holt, as you may know, had kind of a down year last year at Rome. He went through most of the season not hitting so well, but he really turned it up a few notches toward the end of the year. My understanding is the organization is happy with his progress….again, based on what he did at the end. I’m guessing he’ll end up at Myrtle Beach this year. As far as the organization’s plans for him, who knows? The Braves drafted a high schooler named Brandon Monk last year that they’re pretty high on at the moment (he’ll be in Danville, I’d guess, for 2006). So I’m thinking there’s JS Jr., Martin Prado, Holt, and Monk in the mix for 2nd base. Jr. will get a look, not much more, Prado isn’t impressing anybody, Monk is very early in the running, and Holy hasn’t shown enough consistency yet. If he has a good year at MB and continues progress through AA and AAA, it could make the Marcus Giles discussion a moot point in 2 or 3 years. All very premature, of course.
If anyone cares, Estrada ended up signing with the D’Backs a 1 year/$2M deal.
Why should Laroche be hitting behind Andruw instead of either Francoeur or McCann?
That seems to be a question that many were asking last year.
Look, if they’re hitting well, that’s fine. I don’t expect them to hit well. Yes, I think LaRoche will be a better hitter, at least at the beginning of the year.
LaRoche will be the better hitter in April, June, and October. McCann can have the rest of the months, you know the ones where Adam can’t make contact until there is a runner at first then he hits a two hopper to the second baseman?