From Pravda:
When Freeman exited Friday’s game, there was immediate reaction that he had aggravated the wrist injury that limited him for last season’s final four months and throughout this past offseason. But it has since been learned the discomfort was located in his hand and that it was likely a product of scar tissue that developed after he received multiple cortisone injections last year.
Freeman plans to compile four plate appearances during Monday’s home game against the Rays. He will rest on Tuesday and then attempt to play in each of the home games scheduled for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
“It was the wrist last year and that’s the big part because I’m very violent with my wrist with my follow through,” Freeman said. “I knew right away [Friday’s discomfort] wasn’t my wrist. Talking the past couple days, I think it was just some scar tissue that will get worked out because I’ve had a lot of needles in my hand and wrist over the past [nine] months. Once we get that all broken up, I don’t think we’ll have to worry about this any more.”
Cortisone injections are no joke: corticosteroids are serious stuff and you really don’t want to get them too often, and this raises more questions about the way the Braves handled Freeman last year. Still, the most important thing is that the wrist’s okay. For now, as far as we know, it is.
anyone for tennis?
Ozhaino Albies
merits my attentions, ‘cos i know i’ll be his
adulation as proffered
and so much hair, most mysteriously coiffered.
I agree Alex. Mac was always big on calling out the training staff and little has changed on that front in 25 years.
Chris Withrow sent down. Surprising.
It’s incredible that Albies was literally born after Andruw Jones’s debut. I still remember being astonished by the fact that Andruw Jones was so young that his favorite player growing up was Ken Griffey, Jr.
A lot of times there’s nothing you can do about a wrist injury. Surgery doesn’t guarantee the greatest of outcomes either. I think the best hitter on the team probably has a wide array of medical options – even outside of the Braves staff. Hopefully those cortisone shots work.
I know an ex nfl player (not well, but famous and long career) that lives 50 miles or so from me. He reached the point that he had 10 steroid injections after each game in his knuckles to keep playing. Well, he had hip replacement from asceptic necrosis brought on by that.
I am sure the medical staffs are more careful now, but it sure sounded like a way too extreme usage of corticosteroids.
I had a weird joint problem and my doctor at Emory told me that he could cure every patient he saw with steroids if he could just prevent the side effects.
I wonder if Freeman’s wrist was a factor in him not being traded.
According to DOB, Withrow being sent down was to allow him more time to recover from TJ.
As it stands on 3/14, this is my prediction for the Opening Day rotation and bullpen: Teheran/Norris/Wisler/Chacin/Banuelos, Vizcaino/Johnson/Ogando/Torres/Perez/Rutckyz/Ramirez with Ramirez or Rutckyz getting sent down when Grilli is available. And while you can never have enough good relievers (last year being case in point), I honestly wonder what the Braves will do with all of these righty relievers if/when Simmons and Withrow are healthy. You can’t send Johnson/Ogando down, but they don’t have much trade value if they’re producing, so that’s tough. Then you have Folty, and you want a lefty in the rotation in Banuelos, an innings eater in Norris, and Teheran/Wisler/Chacin have most likely earned a spot, so I don’t know what you do there. I think all of this definitely points to Perez being sent down at some point.
Rutzcki (spelling?) is Rule 5 and can’t be sent down.
M.’Goosed’Gossàge
has critiqued the Harper much juiced dressàge
his call for decorum
likely now finding a sycophantic quorum.
@8. Seems like the Braves are getting more cautious with TJ patients (from AJC):
“Instead of aiming to have Simmons back pitching on a rehab stint in about 12 months and back in the big leagues in 13-14 months, as they would have in the past, the Braves are aiming to have him back in the majors in May or June. That would be 15-16 months after his February 2015 surgery.
“I guess technically I’m healthy,” said Simmons, who has thrown a few times off the bullpen mound recently. “But they want to take me a little slower. They’re doing the new protocol that they’re going by, so we’re looking at about 14 months (before beginning a rehab assignment). I guess they just want to test it and see the success rates compared to the past.”
Finally. How many TJ-two-timers do we have to have before we re-examine the process? In the past 3 years, how many is it? Medley, Beachy, Moylan, McKirahan. There’s gotta be more.
Plus Venters, who had three.
That poor elbow.
Persian Julius
For a season there, you were fooling us
We thought you an ace or better
Your once-bargain contract now solely a fetter
Two years of an ERA+ of 120+. He might have been down last year, but he’s still only 25. Let’s have faith.
I’m in your camp–just felt like rhyming
Lots of gondeee talk about Bourn and Swisher as trade candidates. I’m trying hard and can’t imagine being in a position where I looked at either player and wanted to a) take on any portion of their contracts and b) give up something of value for the privilege. I still think the only way they become tradable is with a very good first half performance.
“Trade candidates” is just a nice euphemism for “unpersons.”
They won’t play enough to have meaningfully good first-half performances. At least I hope not.
There is no room for Swisher with Bonifacio and Johnson. We need to trade Bourn so we can make room for Francoeur. 🙁
“from Pravda”… truly a spit-take worthy lead in.
Ozhaino Albies
Control of the game he will seize
In a match made in heaven
Tied at Love with Janet Evans
So where are people at with Olivera right now? 32 ABs in, he’s 14-32, .438/.441/.500. He’s not walking, hasn’t hit any home runs, but he’s got a .941 OPS and he seems to be playing a half-way decent left. I can’t imagine he’s going to hit an empty .280 and be a net-loss offensively, but with no walks and no power, that’s concerning.
And Swisher and Bourn are only here because Wren signed Chris Johnson. They are both absolute sunk costs, have no value whatsoever (or, really, negative value), and if Francoeur/KJ/Mallex/Beckham/Bonifacio/Johnson are better fits for the roster, then so be it. It annoys me that Swisher is the focus of articles on AtlantaBraves.com. Why does anyone care about the 35th best player on the roster?
the rain delay
we best put everything away
we musn’t harp
the World According to Tarp.
@24, I am pleased with Olivera’s performance so far, but not reading much into it due to sample and springiness. Still mildly pessimistic but hopeful that he outperforms my modest expectations.
re: Swisher; Pravda is enlightening baseball folks with the current truth about Swisher’s value. We’d hate to lose him in a trade, but if it makes baseball sense, we might have to go that way…
@23
welcome, snowshine
there’s very little need to refine
somewhat, made in the heavenS
might have helped a little bit with Janet Evans!
please keep ’em coming.
@24
I think the power will come once he adjusts to his new swing in game situations.
Yeah, I wouldn’t spend much time looking at spring components. A lot of the pitchers he’s facing are working on various things: getting feel for their breaking ball, regaining command of their fastball, and so on.
Still, the fact that he’s getting hits when he’s swinging the ball is good to see, particularly since — with the possible exception of 25 plate appearances in Double-A Tulsa right before the trade last year — this is essentially the first time he’s had any success in a major league uniform. Here’s hoping he can still swing when the games start to count, and actually stay on the field. He has a long butcher’s bill of medical problems behind him.
PSA – Today’s game is supposed to be on FSSE and MLB.TV I think. Braves 2106 Spring Training Broadcast Schedule
Hitless through 3. Nice to see the local club hitting their mid-season stride early.
The Braves’ starter today (and putative #2 or #3 in the MLB rotation, I think) Bud Norris is also getting hit hard by the Tigers – no great shame in that, they have a good offense. I don’t think I’ve watched Norris pitch before; my first impression is “power pitcher who lacks power”. Powerless Pitcher?
You know I think I would rather have Francouer on this team than Beckham. I just don’t see a lot that Beckham offers that Castro doesn’t. We also have KJ and Bonifacio, so it’s not like we aren’t two deep in the infield. At least Francouer has some power and could be a decent defensive replacement in late innings.
Bud Norris can throw the ball all the way to the catcher, but frequently the bat gets in the way.
Bud Norris
Ace pitchers used to bore us
He’s our putative #2
Sadly, my MLBTV subscription is stuck on auto-renew
Painful, 6-0 in the 5th…miscellany
Nick Swisher – Le Carre had a memorable turn of phrase for racehorses way past their best – ‘never wozzers’..they weren’t ever any good though, Nick presumably was thus the 15M..at least a horse you can have put down.
Bud Norris… NO
Frankie Rodriguez…who remembers the public intra-family punch up at Shea(?) when he did a pretty good hit job on his father in law, or someone of that ilk..he was a nasty boy back then, angelic now? Nah.
Salty…has there ever been a Brave who won a WS ring with his adopted team who then couldn’t get rid of him quickly enough? Throughout the series he got plenty of playing time while the talking heads all pointed out how poorly he was performing..strange
Verlander,5 K’s…has apparently got his act well back together – or was it just us?
WE SCORE! WILD PITCH, NATURALLY… 6-1 6th, 2 on, no outs, Rondon pitching
6-2, Enciarte Sac Fly
Swisher appropriately flies out to close this run outburst in the 6th…adios
Norris is probably working on a couple of pitches.
And you don’t want to show your best sequences to hitters you might see in the World Series this year…
I have been liking what I’ve seen from Reid Brignac. I thought he was one of those prospects who was not on the radar but had potential one day. Now that I find out he’s a 29 year old utilityman with a career batting average of .219 and a .576 career OPS over 8 seasons and 5 teams, I don’t see a whole lot of potential there. This gives me a whole new appreciation for the worthlessness of spring stats given his .412 BA and 1.161 OPS so far this spring.
It looks like Adam LaRoche is retiring.
Somewhere, Landogarner has lost his identity.
Fare thee well, Huckleberry.
Adam La Roche
has not received an invitation to coach
his swing, in the vertical
has never remotely approached the symmurtical.
Reid Brignac
at .421 he will likely be dropping back
though hope springs eternal
genetically the greater influence might well be maternal.
Kay Sedilla
we have recently signed from Manila
a friend of Imelda
cooks well but lefties historically shelled her.
Adam LaRoche
Quite the opposite of Bruce Bochy
A better player than coach
His second half torrents beyond reproach
Adam LaRoche
With a swing never gauche
In Augusts, en fuego
Now retired from lumbago
It is exciting to see that Bud Norris is fitting into Braves culture and learning their customs early. Below is quote that says it all.
“The pitch to Martinez was definitely a mistake and he put a good swing on it. You tip the cap.”
Tip. That. Cap.
I thought you tipped the cap when a guy just flat out beat you, not when he took advantage of your mistake. For example,
“The pitch Martinez hit was a pretty good one. Sometimes you just have to tip your cap.”
Then again, why limit yourself and miss all these chances to tip the cap?
I have caught myself wondering this morning – exactly what it must be like to walk away from 13 million dollars. It’s not that a great deal was expected from you in your last year. Miggy and a few others would do what they have always done and carry the load. You might have started 40, 50 games. And it bears no relation to your contemporary in the NFL who must weigh the money against further damage to his addled brain. Anyway, good for Adam, nice guy.
To finish with a question on this topic(no looking up pse, memory only)…
who was the first Baseball player to walk away from the last year of a guaranteed contract that would have paid him a 7 figure sum? How long ago?
Gil Meche walked away from something like 11 million about 4 years ago, I think.
this was exactly one million, and 33 years ago..
I personally sell my time and happiness for far less, but when you have already earned $58 million, there are certainly diminishing returns. Missing another year of your kids’ lives, enduring back pain, being plain lousy on a national stage despite being one of the best 100 or so best hitters in the world just a couple years ago. Those are costs that might outweigh a few more million for someone who is extravagantly wealthy.
Beckham, Gordon
Injury with insult poured on
As if we weren’t enough of a disgrace
Without the likes of him starting at third base
@ 49 Johnny Bench (my understanding, not set in stone)
@51 could not agree more…but here and elsewhere you can get shot down if you take that position on a Brave…McCann’s the one who got to me, what did that additional Yankee 10 or 12 million mean to him in the context of his Georgia family and club roots…do you really think he now believes he made the right decision? A million here, a million there – as someone did not once say it’s not real money. For them.
…now TC is saying ALR quit because Kenny Williams wouldn’t let him take his 14 year old son into the clubhouse any more..
if that is indeed the case that makes Adam’s decision all the more principled…or stupid as some would have it.
According to MLBTR, Kenny Williams says that Adam LaRoche was bringing his son into the clubhouse every day, and so Williams asked him to “dial it back” — i.e., not never, but certainly not every day.
It also seems that LaRoche hasn’t filed formal retirement paperwork here, so the Furcal Rule applies with regard to the formal writeup on this blog. If/when he hangs them up, I’ll write him up.
Why don’t we change our name for only this year to the Atlanta Cap Tippers? This way this year’s record wouldn’t count against the Braves franchise. Instead of the tomahawk chop for our rally cry we could have the cap tip. Same motion and same music as the chop, just with a cap in our hand.
Greetings from Barcelona. Just returning from Camp Nuo stadium watching Barca beat Arsenal 3-1. Entertaining game. Crazy LaRoche story…
@56, Good suggestion. Could have been even better if you’d written it in all caps.
@58 – I tip my caps lock to you.
You’re not alone if you acted out the Tomahawk Tip at your desk.
@57
timo..i would have given a few bob for the seat next to you…not a bad game but the Wenger watch is now well under way.
tipping the cap
a custom to honor, there’s a good chap
grace in defeat
deflecting attention, ain’t it all rather sweet.
@58
Edward, your puns are masterly and do not go unnoticed…i wish i could say the same for mine…
may i shamelessly redraw your attention to the Yade Molina one a thread or two back…
‘is this the face that staunched a thousand tips’
i can do no better…hah!
@63
tally not on what you post
correct too much and you are toast.
undefined, anonymous
as omens go it’s ominous.
ps…since i wrote and posted this the prior post above has changed its heading from undefined to blazon…amazin’..i took more than the allotted 5 minutes to correct it
Hasongou
comes down to earth, gives up a hit or two.
Deliberate.
to fool the next opponent
he’ll frequently resort to hide his best component.
Kyle Lewis or Buddy Reed, who ya got?
Sorry, but I am completely on board the White Sox position in the LaRoche contretemps. LaRoche did this to a lesser extent as a Nat, and I was truly puzzled by it. It has nothing to do with “supporting family,” or how everyone agrees how wonderful his kid is. It’s about the business purpose of the team.
1) The clubhouse is the actual workplace of the team. Non-employees shouldn’t be there. They certainly don’t deserve to be there on a daily basis wearing a pretend uniform, no matter how wonderful they are.
2) Part of being a team is — everybody is treated the same. One player who gets special privileges — be it RGIII’s special parking spot, or Barry Bonds entourage, or yes, even LaRoche’s super great kid — undermines the concept. I’m sure that tons of players would like to do this — it’s cool to have your kid be the clubbie. Only LaRoche’s kid gets this privilege?
LaRoche’s response (I’ll take my ball and my kid and go home) strikes me as immature pouting, not “putting family first.”
Mayfly Brave and current National Bronson Arroyo has a torn labrum. Does this make the Touki trade look better or worse? Inquiring minds….
Neither, I think. Same old good trade it always was, but seasoned with a pinch of schadenfreude now.
Good take on LaRoche.
66—Definitely not Reed. I like Lewis, but I’d probably lean toward Corey Ray if he’s there at #3.
Well-coiffed new thread is up.
@67, I agree. I think it’s laudable to put family above millions, but as the details have unfolded, it sounds more like a petulant tantrum. Life has taught me that human interactions are complicated, and there is rarely a villain and a saint in any conflict.
…see a list like this – SI’s top ten hitters percentage of home runs per swings taken- and the stats guys eyes will light up…
1. Jarrett Parker: 5.71
2. Giancarlo Stanton: 4.99
3. Curt Casali: 4.90
4. Franklin Gutierrez: 4.21
5. Mark Teixeira: 3.99
6. Mikie Mahtook: 3.98
7. J.P. Arencibia: 3.85
8. Adam Duvall: 3.76
9. Jose Bautista: 3.73
10: Mike Trout: 3.68
so will the poet’s…for 2 distinct reasons…numbers 6 and 3, their names…the muse has called.
Miki Mahtook
unless we are sorely mistook
now hits with real power
which SI records at the top of each hour.
Curt Casali
recently purchased a top of the line dirt Denali
at eighty nine five
it’s fortunate he can still hit the occasional line drive.