Morton, Flowers among nine cut | ajc.com
Nine total cuts, mostly no surprise. I was surprised that Phil Stockman was sent down so quickly, but I probably shouldn’t have been. The Braves don’t take him seriously. None of the cuts had a real chance to make the team.
If you’re in the Braves Journal Yahoo League (1), the draft is tomorrow at 6 CT. I should be there, but could get delayed.
Why should the Braves take a pitcher with 4 career major league innings in which he walked 4 and gave up 3 hits seriously?
He’s good though.
Yes, I’m back on the top 10… twice!
6? I thought it was at 5 CT (aka, 4 EST). 🙁
Sounds like I’ll only be able to make the start of it. Shame, too, since I really didn’t bother ranking 400 guys. ^_^
Ron, are you serious? I think you’ll find several HOFers whose first 4 ML innings were a lot worse than that, my point being SMALL SAMPLE SIZE. Check his minor league track record for a much better idea of what kind of pitcher Stockman is.
Stockman may well get a chance to contribute this season. But the only way he would have made the club out of ST is if half the bullpen got hurt.
Just like the bench, a lot of the makeup of the bullpen will be dictated by who’s got options left.
Stockman’s just one of those guys who will likely get a better shot with another organization eventually. I like him and think if he pitched 70 innings, he’d have an ERA in the 3’s.
from a few threads ago since I have been absent for a bit:
I am really pleased with what I’m seeing from Jurrgjens & frankly, Chuck James better root for a Hampton injury; that’s the only way James stays in. If hampton’s healthy come March 30th (a big ‘if’ and I doubt he will be), you have to make James the odd guy out, IMHO.
At this pace James is on schedule to start the year on the DL and then Rehab in the minors. But yeah I agree that Jurjjens is a shoe in for the rotation. As for Stockman he has options left until someone gets injured there is no rush.
from DOB… “Morton was optioned to Class AAA Richmond, where he’ll be part of an opening-day rotation that could include the likes of Chuck James and Jeff Bennett.”
I know Bennett wont be in our rotation to start the year, but if he isnt the long relief guy I dont think he’ll clear options and be in our org. Same with Thorman and Pena. Some team will take the risk on these guys
this just in………..hampton has just been diagnosed with a malady commonly known as “bleeding ass warts”. this rare disease was previously known only among the remote tribesmen of new guinea and the only known cure for it is bathing in the mudbanks along the sewerogoo river for 89 straight days…………so, if he leaves today, he’ll be ready by the all-star break……………………honest.
If Chuck James isn’t good enough (or ready) to make the rotation, that may be a good sign about the strength of the staff given that he was the number 3 last year. Of course, we don’t know how it will actually work out. I suspect that James will be back up and in the rotation at some point this year.
Personally, I like the idea of giving Jurrjens a few starts in the rotation until James is ready to come back. Then probably send him down for a bit to work on whatever he wasn’t doing completely awesome at the ML level. Then make Jurrjens the first guy back up when Hampton (or whoever) gets hurt.
Heh. If Jurrjens looks really good, maybe we even trade Chucky away mid-season. You know someone’s gonna want pitching. Heck, maybe Seattle will be wallowing in mediocrity and will want another Braves lefty to “save” them. ^_^
Man, Rob is on the top 10 twice, and I’m not even up there once. That just ain’t fair.
Y’know, Seattle may not be so bad this year.
I also think Jurrjens is looking like a definite SP. Just give us innings, a .500 team record in games you start & don’t get your brains beat in, please.
Our rotation isn’t exactly held together with chewing gum (like last year), but 4 & 5 again look like relative question marks.
I also think Jurrjens is looking like a definite SP.
Agree. If Smoltz and Glavine can be close to last year, the Smoltz-Hudson-Glavine-Jurrjens front four should be more than adequate with the runs we should score. The fifth spot will be a crapshoot but that’s true for most teams.
Seattle won’t be terrible this year, with King Felix and Dauphin Bedard, but they won’t be great, either. Beltre and Sexson simply aren’t a fearsome middle of the order.
The top of Seattle’s rotation is stellar. I don’t think they can keep up with the the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim who were formerly the California Angels.
There’s just not enough offense in Seattle. Their only real plus hitter is Ichiro. Well, Johjima was a good hitter for a catcher. Last year, Beltre was mediocre, Sexson was awful, and Jose Vidro was (and still is) the DH for some reason. Jose Guillen was at least serviceable in right, so they replaced him with Brad Wilkerson. They might lead the league in ERA and still finish below .500.
Close the books on Chuck’s first start: two innings, one hit, no strikeouts, no walks. Not bad.
seattle was extremely lucky to win 88 games last year, extremely as in 9 wins better than expected. adam jones would have been huge for them in rf this year, and they pretty much have to hope for repeat performance from an entire team of giants-type players, plus get the same luck, plus have bedard bring them 5-6 extra wins, just to approach the angels who should be in the mid-90’s in wins, again.
oh, and i think the loss of sherrill will hurt the bullpen more than they expect too. although putz is outstanding.
THere are lots of guys with good minor league numbers that can’t cut it in the pros. I am sure Bobby Cox is a much better evauluater of talent than any of us are.
The Braves’ rotation definitely looks like it could be better than it has for 3 or 4 years. Glavine could be similar to last year – this would be an upgrade, but I’m concerned that his performance will continue to drop. I don’t expect much/ anything from Hampton, but even without him, James and Jurrjjens in the 4th/5th spots look a LOT better than last year. The health/age of our SPs has got to be our biggest concern.
Duncan continues to insist that he was just playing hard. I think the pic in this article shows otherwise. I think you can expect to get a reaction with a slide like that.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/spring2008/news/story?id=3291224
Any thoughts on Mike Cameron applying for a therapeutic exemption to use amphetamines?
Wouldn’t this sort of thing open a can of worms that MLB probably doesn’t want to deal with?
I’m just guessing that it couldn’t be too hard to come up with an excuse to use them and a doctor to confirm that excuse.
Would we even want a long-term rotation consisting of 3 lefties (Glavine, Hampton, James), assuming they are all healthy of course? Hopefully, it won’t be an issue and Jurrgens will be a serviceable 5 starter even if he isn’t entirely ready, get.
Given James’ inability to go late into games, is there any chance of him fulfilling the role of spot-starter/long relief for a year, maybe two, until Glavine and/or Hampton are gone and that Jo-Jo Reyes never comes around. I can’t think of any other LHP pitchers near major-league within our organization, with Matt Harrison being the closest, assuming he ever makes it that is.
bamachum,
I agree, three soft tossing lefties?
Along those lines…is Bobby considering sandwiching Glavine or a healthy Hampton between Hudson & Smoltz as to give teams a different look each day within series’?
a la
Hudson
Glavine
Smoltz
Hampton*
Jurrgens
*James
Bamachum, we traded Harrison to Texas in the Tex deal. So no LH starters anywhere near ML ready other than the ones you mentioned.
Jo-Jo Reyes today: 3 innings, 7 hits, 5 runs, 2 walks, 2 strikeouts. I think he may not be our fifth starter.
Pete van Wieren just now:
“Jake Cook, our producer: do you see that couple down there? They’re both wearing white t-shirts. I don’t know how much they’ve seen of the game, but they have consumed a beverage or two…
They’ve got how many bottles lined up down there. Some of them are still full. How many? 7 or 8. There’s been just a constant flow. No conversation, very little attention being paid to the ballgame.”
Wow Bamachum welcome to 2008 Harrison is with the Rangers and Hampton and Glavine are only signed through the end of this season. But otherwise good job.
I had read somewhere (I can’t find the link anyway) that Cox had indeed been thinking about splitting up the righties and th e lefties and I would imagine that they wouldn’t want to slot Hampton as #5 to keep him on regular rotation, so I would think it would look:
Smoltz/Hudson
Glavine
Hudson/Smoltz
Hampton
Jurrjens/Reyes/Bennett/James/Carlyle
Shelley Duncan is either a deluded individual or a complete asshole. I would rather he came out and said yeah I took a shot at the guy, instead of this crap about playing hard. It doesn’t surprise me that his father is associated with Lalussa.
as long as we dont have 3 lefties in the rotation there is no need to split up Hudson and Smoltz. I would think they would want to put Hampton in the #5 slot just to give him a little extra rest if he needs to miss a start due to fatigue, injuries, etc. I think you’ll see Jurrjens in the #4 slot.
#35 – yeah just like Guillen was playing hard when he spiked Chipper. There is a difference in making a hard slide and raising your foot and trying to spike someone. I’ve made plenty of hard slides in my life, even tried using my feet to knock a ball out of a glove, but never tried spiking or taking someone out with a slide. Guillen should’ve been suspended and Duncan should be as well
Bottom of ninth, 6-6 tie, and our friend Colter Bean is up.
After the first week or so, it doesn’t really matter how the rotation is arranged because the schedule will take care of splitting guys up, what with days off and so forth.
As for Jo Jo, it’s probably just as well that he is struggling because he needs to put in some time in the minors. But I can’t help thinking, perhaps unfairly, that here is another product of the Braves crappy pitcher development system.
Again, the Duncan thing was precipitated by the collision at home plate the other day. This was payback.
The Rays kid was trying to make the team & he ran over the Yankees catcher, breaking his wrist & pissing off the universe. The Rays kid was denounced all over the place.
The Yanks throwing at the Jays & the Duncan thing was payback for that. It’s stupid, but that’s what it’s about.
*Rays, Jays, Willie Mays, whatever.
Sorry, ububba, I am already abord the Shelly Duncan-is-an-ahole-because-his-dad-is-connected-with-lalussa express.
Seattle’s top 2 starters will keep them in the mix until say July. At best. But they don’t have an offense even CLOSE to the Angels.
re: James and Jurggjens
A best case scenario is both pitchers have a good to great season and if God forbid, Texeira is too Boras to be reasoned with, maybe we parlay Chuck James & other folks into a first baseman?
@ 42,
Maybe we can trade him to Pittsburgh for Adam LaRoche. 🙂
Stu’s boy Shan Foster is having a monster first half!
@30 Wow, I’m an idiot totally forgot about Harrison being traded, Beau Jones got thrown in that deal too, right?
Yep, Beau Jones too.
Brayan Pena just threw out Mike Hessman on a failed hit-and-run.
Smitty,
If we shoot 76% in every half we play from here on out, I like our chances to make a little noise. (Ogilvy’s having a heckuva game, too, with 14 points on 7-7 shooting.)
Ububba,
I understand all the details and I understand playing hard. Wiping out the second basemen on a doubleplay, sliding in to a fielders glove to knock the ball loose, or running over a catcher. All those are exceptable, but a waist high flying dropkick with spikes showing, thats dirty. Just be a man and say I wanted to be dirty and pay it back.
Sorry meant acceptable.
Justin,
And I’m saying that it’s all just stupid.
Duncan saying that is like Bob Gibson saying, “I wasn’t throwing at his head.”
agreed
Smitty,
If we shoot 76% in every half we play from here on out, I like our chances to make a little noise. (Ogilvy’s having a heckuva game, too, with 14 points on 7-7 shooting.)
I’d like to see USC and Vandy in each other’s bracket. Vandy is a fun team and I’d like to see how we’d deal with him. Step 1: Mayo on Foster.
SC won their first round game today too. And in typical Pac 10 fashion, the game was essentially ended by an absolutely ridiculous over-the-back call against ASU. I’m not sure he even brushed the SC player. They must have thought we were UCLA. I wanted to win and everything but I could do without the charity.