Doom, doom, go away.
For 8 2/3 innings, Sean Newcomb put the “0” in “hope,” before Chris Taylor broke up his no-hit bid with a 2 strike single past a diving Johan Camargo. Defensive indifference and a Manny Machado single off Dan Winkler led to Newcomb being charged with the Dodgers’ run. Sean was allowed to go 134 pitches in chasing the no-no, but he was in complete command all the way. He struck out 8, and allowed only one walk, to Yasiel Puig in the 6th.
Freddie Freeman started a 2 out rally in the 1st with a single, and back to back doubles by Nick Markakis and Kurt Suzuki staked the Braves to a 2 – 0 lead. Markakis sealed the deal with a 2 run homer in the 3rd, and finished with 3 hits.
The Braves salvage a game from the 4 game set, and move to 3 – 5 post All-Star break, and 55 – 47 overall. The Phillies and Nationals both lost, and the Braves now stand 1.5 games behind the Phillies with a little over 2 months to go.
After the game, the Braves added reliever Brad Brach from the Orioles for international slot money. Brach brought a career line of 393 IP, 308 hits, and 422 strikeouts into this season, but the 32 year old right-hander has been pretty bad in his 39 innings this year, posting a 4.85 ERA and 1.77 WHIP. No corresponding move at this time.
What else? Chipper Jones went into the Hall of Fame. That was cool.
The Marlins come to town on Monday.
I’m feeling a little bit better about the Braves and what AA is doing regarding this season. We’ve made a couple of low cost, low risk moves so far. At best, they seem very calculated and at worst the front office has done the minimal. I also don’t think we’re doing trading, but it will obviously have to come at the cost AA is willing to pay.
I also can’t believe, for better or worse, that we just let Newcomb make 134 pitches. Great game. Just shocked.
The Brach move is a nice one.
Some talk and rumors that Allard was scratched today to showcase Gohara for a last minute trade.
At this point, Gohara is the young arm I’d least worry about losing.
Either one of these deals wouldn’t mean much by themselves (especially the Venters one). The fact, though, that we did both of these deals and, in Brach’s care, were willing to pick up a couple million bucks in salary, is somewhat heartening. I’d like more, but I can no longer say we’ve done virtually nothing.
Damn, Newk now needs to be rest for a week. Nothing good ever happens with a high pitch count outing.
@4 agreed
Chip Caray deleted his Twitter account. The world will never be the same.
Great recap, Rusty.
Thanks, Rusty. What a game!
But Allard scratched so he can start against the Marlins on Tuesday. Exactly the move that needs to be made next.
We had at least 4 pitchers to ditch – Freeman, Moylan, Jackson, and Phillips. Venters upgrades over Phillips. Brach will get either Moylan or Jackson out. Allard is likely to replace the other of Moylan or Jackson. That leaves us with six starters and seven relievers which I think is where we should be. Either Teheran or Sanchez can be a long man (or get traded).
I could live with a rotation of Folty, Newk, Fried, Teheran/Sanchez, and Allard. That still leaves one more spot in the bullpen to fill or maybe a slot to add an outside SP or RP to yet be traded for.
I am still hoping for a Gausman/Schoop or Kela/Profar or Iglesias/Gennett. I might have interest in a Ross/Yates kinda deal, too, maybe. We need a bat. A good one.
Eventually nobody will ever do twitter again because of the reputational risk associated with it.
…and I just realized that we are tied with the Phillies on the loss column despite the current slump. How amazing is that?
Hope AA can pull off couple more trades. We do indeed need one more bat and one more SP/RP.
@10 Actually, we are tied for second least losses in the league with several teams. All we have to do is win. We don’t really need anyone else to lose – just take care of our business.
And. yes, it’s pretty nice considering the month long slump we’ve been in. Marlins are playing well and we split in MIA but maybe we’ll have better luck with them at STP and generate some momentum while PHL is at Fenway.
Other than the Red Sox, Rockies, and Pirates, everyone else in both leagues is playing about .500 over their last ten. We’re not the only team in malaise.
Please release Sam Freeman. Over the last 2 months when he hasn’t given up earned runs he has either a) allowed inherited runs to score, b) left multiple runners on base and has often been bailed out by a good defensive play, or c) been pulled and his replacement has bailed him out.
I propose that from henceforth we refer to Sam Freeman exclusively as “Lance Cormier.”
Jorge Sosa was Kim Jong Il. Maybe Freeman can be Kim Jong Un.
@9 I did not consider Viz coming off the 10-day.
Also, TC has a nice list of Rule 5 eligibles. Based upon that list we should be and our roster, we should be using guys like Teheran, Weigel, R. Sanchez, McCreery, Peterson, Ruiz, Demeritte, Sims, Wisler, Ynoa, Tucker in trades for either younger prospects or upgrades. A few have value; others minimal value but all may have their place in other organizations. At least 5 appear in our top 30. Packaging any of those (even if other more valuable assets are included too) for the mythical controllable SP and bat should be enough for some organization to bite.
Look. You can either believe Julio Teheran is a washed up, washed out, useless carcass of a former starting prospect, or you can believe he could be traded for something useful. You can not believe both of these things at the same time.
Sorry for a mini rant, but the whole Twitter controversy garbage that has now hit Newcomb is a load of crap. I can guarantee you that I never made any offensive tweets in high school. This is mostly because there was no Twitter or Internet when I was in high school. Otherwise, 90 percent of us would be in trouble – most wouldn’t have to go back to hs.
There are people who try to destroy athletes and wait for a career high point to do it. I feel sorry for those who think less of Newcomb because of something he tweeted 7 years ago. I think some would find it easier to forgive a DUI than a stupid tweet or two from a teenager.
“Testosterone drenched meathead jock whose athletic abilities allowed him to coast through life in a pampered, consequence free shell was a jackass and a bully when he was a teenager” is hardly news worth reporting.
“The internet never forgets or forgives” is hardly news worth reporting.
The guy from Milwaukee, whose apologies and mea culpas were 100% authentic and believable, should be commended. One has no idea of Newk is that guy, or if he’s still the same self-centered, insensitive jackass. Not that it will matter one way or another. His future is solely dependent on his ability to throw a baseball very hard, and with some slight modicum of control.
All of *that* said, there are better causes to fight for than whether or not Sean Newcomb is going to have to delete his Twitter account.
I don’t care if Newcomb deletes his Twitter account or not. I’m just angry that the national sports media in their self righteous smugness makes an issue of this. Sorry, it was my mistake. I have a late morning flight and have some extra time. I was dumb to turn on ESPN.
The sports media, generally speaking, are underpaid (the newspapers who once paid their salaries are going bankrupt) and generally run through the days like tweens on rumor binges. It’s the Twitter-fication of the job. The best bet, if you you’re really unhappy with that sort of “coverage”, would be to delete YOUR Twitter account and move out of the maw of that constant noise machine.
I’m sure nobody disagrees. What was once a not-particularly-helpful strategy to create social change has become a rote exercise in trolling and corporate risk aversion.
It would actually be better if we could all just get it over with and get fired because of bad tweets and posts. Let everybody start over. Take me now, internet hordes.
There’s about a 10 defensive runs saved per position swing between Baltimore and Atlanta’s defense that should make a big impact on Brach.
End of my rant. I don’t have Twitter or Facebook due to cybersecurity concerns. Lesson learned on watching ESPN and expecting sports coverage.
You know what I have to say about those tweets?
.
I have a lot of hope for Brach as a Brave. I think those 10 defensive runs saved are obviously going to make a difference, as will some familiar faces coaching him. If the Braves can make one more trade involving maybe Gohara, we have potentially upgraded 4 arms in our bullpen very suddenly. It’s hard to stay mad at that, should it come to pass.
@23 I loathe Facebook, but I’ve got to grow and maintain a social media presence.
The one guiding rule I live by on the social web? Never say anything bad about anyone or anything. You can criticize or disagree, but you have to consider your audience and weigh the benefits of what you’re about to do (of course).
Sam is a classic case of one who is either always extremely calculated with his super charged political rants on his facebook, or he’s just very drunk by the time he hits the post button. I haven’t decided yet. However, he has very high engagement with his peeps, so whatever it is, it’s working!
Who is getting the axe now that we have Brach?
I get the defense will help his numbers, but also not being in the AL East will be a boost too.
Let’s get a starter and a lefty masher!
Get that boy some sensitivity training and we’ll be square.
Roberto Osuna anyone?
It’s one of the most colossal own-goals I’ve ever seen, referring to Newcomb’s tweets. Sensitivity training is a given, but a follow-up on how not to be a complete imbecile on social media might also be in order. I’m sure the Braves or MLB have already run their young players through something, but whatever it was didn’t work well enough for it to occur to him to go delete the complete trash he posted when he was 18.
The social media thing is only going to get worse as the years go on. These guys were like 16 or 17 in 2011. Few more years and we’ll be finding out what some major leaguer said at age 12 on Twitter.
That’s just with sports too.
If you have an Athletic subscription, this article on strikes looking vs strikes swinging, and pitcher longevity might be of interest.
No Braves make the list of “command” guys who get calls rather than miss bats, though I suspect Mike Soroka would find his way onto the list if he’s healthy.
Maybe I stand alone on this, but the act of sending these guys to sensitivity training seems more like a public gesture than anything with a tangible benefit considering these tweets are half a dozen years old…
When time travel becomes a thing, I’m going to be in deep #$%* for the things I said throughout junior high. I’ll start prepping my savings for my eventual firing and total inability to find gainful employment again. You know, because that’s what some people really want to see happen, yes?
@31 Can we get some names from that command list? I’d be interested to know who among NL contenders have these command guys. I kinda wish we had more command guys.
The majority of pro baseball players are giant douches. This should surprise exactly nobody. The less we know about them, the better, imo.
No, Donny. What “some people really want to see happen” is the culture of jocks and meatheads being dicks to less popular kids, in real life or on the internet, fade into history as something that used to be normal but isn’t any more. You’re not the victim, snowflake.
“You know, because that’s what some people really want to see happen, yes?”
To public figures such as celebrities, athletes and politicians, yes, it really is what some want.
I think it’s a genuinely good thing that there is a norm that people who say crappy things apologize for them, in that I believe that courtesy and civility are genuinely valuable social constructs. In order for that to happen, the apology doesn’t necessarily even have to be sincere, though it’s always nice when it is.
I also genuinely believe that there should be a bias towards proportionality and toward forgiveness for people who said crappy things when they were very young, as long as they apologize appropriately.
Without copy/pasting too much (I really do suggest the $4 per months it takes to subscribe to The Athletic), the top three were:
Aaron Nola, Tyler Mahle, and Zach Eflin. Nick Pivetta was in the top 20 as well. That Phillies rotation seems to be stacked with a lot of projectable long term starters. Our two top guys – Newcomb and Folty – are the precise opposite of this model.
(EDIT: In my brain, I distinguish these two types of high end starters as “Madduxes” vs “Smoltzes.” We have two Smoltzes. The Phils have three Madduxes.)
@35 That maybe what “some people really want to see happen” but that doesn’t appear to be the case with these guys tweets from when they were in high school, does it?
Also, I’m not a snowflake, you pigeon.
EDIT: I had to search “pigeon” after I posted it, and sure enough there is some additional meaning to calling someone a pigeon. Figures. 🙂
The sensitivity training part of the deal strikes me as questionable. For whatever that’s worth. I’m certainly not an expert. I’ve seen the same articles calling it into question that you have.
But if we’re starting from the premise that guys like Newcomb mature and either reject their old views or don’t feel the need to bully people any longer — and as a result, no longer pose an active threat to anyone — then maybe a more fitting “punishment” would be for Newcomb to learn a little about what the communities he invoked are going through now and figure out what he can do, with his time or money, to help make some kind of tangible improvement in their lives today. You’d figure he’d get some meaningful sensitivity training along the way as a bonus.
@38 I was afraid of that (the being the exact opposite). I’ve yet to see any pitching prospect in our system, apart from maybe Soroka, who can retire batters efficiently.
Look, I’m as skeptical of this whole “let’s burn down the internet because pampered teenaged jocks acted in a way identical to pampered teenaged jocks for decades and decades onward, nigh unto eternity” thing as much as anyone. But what you’ve just said here? That’s more or less literally the definition of the “sensitivity training” you just said you thought was “questionable.”
Keep reading the rest of the sentence… I’m saying Newcomb should get involved in actual LGBTQ advocacy and organizing. He should go out and canvass, or do a phonebank, maybe co-write an op-ed with someone victimized by bullying. Or he could give money to groups that do that work so they can have more to work with.
I’d be satisfied if the team just had Will Wheaton follow him around for a few months repeating his “don’t be a dick” schtick at appropriate moments.
Or he could just delete Twitter and STFU. The less we hear from guys with marginal high-school educations, the better we’ll be.
I like Zach Wheeler. I would take Zach Wheeler.
https://tinyurl.com/y8zst2o6
I like him too, assuming the Mets medical staff hasn’t permanently wrecked him.
Fortunately, I have never had a Twitter account. Don’t see the advantage or usefulness.
@16 I don’t think I ever said that Teheran was a washed up, useless carcass. Far from it. I think he is a reasonable facsimile of a decent 4th/5th SP. That’s why I think it’s not such a bad idea to package him with a highly rated prospect for a better 2nd/3rd SP. Especially if each has similar control and cost. Every time we acquire someone, some else has to be removed from either or both of the 40-man and active roster. Eventually, our upgrades are going to have to come at a cost of useful players. If the O’s and Braves are going to deal and want to keep money fairly even then swapping Teheran and Gohara (for example) would keep the dollars about the same, give the Braves an instant upgrade, and give the O’s a controllable useful SP while potentially developing one better than either of the other two.
@22 Rob, that’s not just a 10 DRS difference; that’s nearly a 50 DRS difference. And the point is well taken. A couple of years ago, with Machado at 3B and Hardy at SS, the O’s had a really outstanding IF defense. So the effect is already demonstrable – I have seen it. It just takes one misplay (even one credited as a hit) and then things for a guy like Brach go downhill fast. Much the same is true of the OF defense. The O’s OF defense has been less than stellar for a few years now. The last time they had decent OF defense was with Neck in the OF, a younger Jones in CF, and guys like McLouth in LF.
On the other hand, what does that say about Moylan and Freeman about the numbers they’re putting up with the Braves’ defense. Yeesh.
Twitter is actually pretty useless.
@48 10 per position. So, yes, total infield, we have a big improvement. We’re 4th in baseball in dWAR, which is an under-discussed reason for why we are where we are. It also illustrates why walks and lack of strike outs have been so damning for our relievers.
Twitter is great for news. If you know who to follow and who to believe (which is difficult, I recognize), then it’s great to hear some key facts and good opinions on subjects. I don’t follow most athletes because I couldn’t care less what they think about anything other than how they play between the lines. People loooooooove Brandon McCarthy’s Twitter because he 1) talks to fans (uhh, sweet) and 2) he tries to be funny a lot. He’s not funny, and I don’t follow him anymore.
@50 I don’t mind twitter for information exchange, but it’s become totally overrun with 2 things I really don’t have an appetite for: 1) bots, 2) product shills. I’m expected to share my love for the sport of bass fishing and along the way show off my sponsors’ products in a way that proves their value. Consequently, the real humans I have accrued as an audience are so blatant in their product sponsorship — what I have come to recognize is we’re all basically advertising to each other. No one with half a brain would stick around to see a bunch of product tweets. Literally, the only reason I’m there is because I need to be (unfortunately).
I like Wheeler. I would give them a lot for deGrom
I used to use Twitter ALL THE TIME. I eventually had to stop when I zoomed out and realized it’s kind of a toxic time suck.
DeGrom is so insanely freaking good.
@50, Amanda is MUCH funnier than Brandon and I can tell that he hates that.
She has been demonstrably less funny in the last month and I can kind of read between the lines that there seems to be some ‘guff’ between BMc and the Braves.
Yeah, I agree that there is probably something negative going on between the Braves and McCarthy. Good. The Braves won’t be the first nor probably the last time to pay McCarthy to not pitch, and it’s only natural for there to be exceptions where maybe it’s the player. It may not be McCarthy, but if there is a riff, one would have to think it’s about that.
The Newcombe post-Twitter ramifications and how they were espoused here speak well for this board. A rara avis I suspect but all the better for us and our collective future.
On to the business of the day. I am alarmed by the sea change I see in the perceived value to us of Luiz Gohara as quantified here recently on an almost daily basis.
Almost a throw-in it seems, sweeten the deal. Was it just a year or so ago we were all very excited by his early starts in the show and there was serious hope expressed of his TOR potential? Our rotation, not somebody elses.
What has happened to him since you could ascribe, were you so inclined, to the awful family situation he found himself in. Or, apparently more likely, to his weight which is termed irredeemable. Is this what we see? Que pasa?
I would imagine the Braves, at this stage of the rebuild, would prefer a bit more stability in their rotation. Gohara, while still undoubtedly having TOR potential, is unstable… literally. But because of that potential, he would be very attractive to another team. So he would be a good match-up in that the Braves can sell out of what they don’t want (instability) and the other team can buy into what they want (TOR potential).
The Braves have plenty of pitchers with unrealized TOR potential at varying stages of development. At the ML level, Folty and Newcomb. In the high minors, Wright, Gohara, and Soroka. At the lower levels, Anderson, Wentz, Muller. And they have a glut of MOR and BOR candidates. Of the TOR candidates, Gohara is by far the one you could sell for almost just as much as the other candidates but has more risk. If Gohara is the pitcher you trade to improve the team, then I’m for it. If he has another couple months of being overweight (not that he won’t ever not be), pitching poorly, and turns a year older, his value will go down a lot.
I think Goharas value is at the lowest point since last summer. I’d wait or give him a shot. Trade Allard now if you need to trade one of the young guys who are close. His perceived value might be high.
If Gohara doesn’t pitch well in the second half for the big league club or at the very least for AAA, his value will undoubtedly go down. The FO has to feel like they are selling while his value is as high as it will be in the foreseeable future. Whether he had more value at the beginning of last season doesn’t really matter at this point. And that’s the case for every prospect they have.
You could look at it like Gohara is the pitcher he was last year with some understandable issues. Or like Gohara has regressed to the pitcher he was before 2016, or something like that. In other words, because of injury or weight or some combination of the two or whatever, he can’t repeat the things that made his fastball velocity spike, etc.
The Braves are acting like they either know the answer or they don’t want to wait around long enough to find out.
@ 57… thanks…dangerous game though.
@37…
Alex, finely said, please run for office! Before you do though, modify the ‘music I like’ part of your CV so that old farts like me don’t have to jump off the ship.
Beltre ??? NO …. I wouldnt give up a top 30 prospect at all .. the guy is done and for 2 month rental .. no way ……… Braves are crazy if they do that ….
@56 I don’t think of it that way. I am behind Gohara as much as ever. What My main motivation is is to make the big league club better. If we are so insistent upon getting controllable assets then we will have to give up more of value. In my opinion, Allard and Riley and Touki are the most untouchable only because they have the most potential for making this year’s club better. I think what I’d give up changes on a regular basis depending upon the “now”. I would never trade a Gohara for a rental of any sort. But if it came to a deGrom, obviously, my opinion is different.
So, really, a prospect has three values – what can he do now, what can he do for the long haul, and what does the other guy think he is worth.
Kyle Wright promoted to AAA. Gwinnett, at the moment, has Touki, Wright, Allard, Gohara, Sims, Wisler, and Parsons. So that’s 7. MLB has Folty, Newk, Anibal, Teheran, and Fried. So, 12 pitchers for 10 spots. Teheran to pen? Someone traded? Two of Sims/Wisler/Parsons to AAA pen?
@65 Add Wright to the untouchable because he might help this year….
Categories:
Touki: Very high ceiling, very low floor
Wright: Medium/high ceiling, medium floor
Allard: Medium ceiling, medium/low floor
Gohara: Highest ceiling, lowest floor possible (basement)
Sims: VERY low ceiling, out of baseball floor
Wisler: Low ceiling, low floor
Parsons: Very low ceiling, out of baseball floor
Starter highest role (future)
Touki- 2 to bullpen
Wright- 1.5 don’t think he’s ever a true 1 on a playoff team
Allard- 3-5
Gohara- COULD be a 1 but most likely a 3-5
Sims- 5 on a BAD team
Wisler- 4-5 on a bad team
Parsons- probably not ever starter material in MLB
Folty- 1 to 1.5. Most likely a 2 on a playoff team
Newcomb- possible 1 (seriously)
Fried- 2-5 most likely a 3-4 on a playoff team.
Hey guys! Look! I don’t think Chief likes our pitching prospects!
@62 What spurred this comment? I’ve not seen Beltre mentioned recently in either these discussions or among the rumors today.
@67 I thought that was a pretty fair assessment.
@67 Hey guys! Look! Sam’s acting like he’s smarter than all those he disagrees with!
I had to reread the comment @66 to make sure it was Chief. Very fair appraisal, if not on the optimistic side.
I can’t find much fault, if any, in the assessment. I would cribble a tiny bit on the floor of Touki and both floor and ceiling of Gohara (little higher floor, little lower ceiling), but otherwise a very solid assessment. I think someone else has assumed his alias. 🙂
I thought so too. I was surprised that Chief considered Folty and Wright potential aces but probably very good #2’s, Newcomb and Gohara with ace ceilings, and Touki with ace potential. That post is beaming with bright sunshine (relative to Chief’s usual posts)!
From my amateur perspective, I would be surprised if the Braves traded Gohara for a reliever or two. He’s worth more than that. I could see it if he was packaged with some low-level prospects for a guy like Stroman. Very interesting deadline for sure.
@68
I had a fascination with Beltre as a bench bat and play 3B against lefties. He hits lefties about 150 OPS points higher than Dansby. But you’d get hurt on defense a little bit, so it probably wouldn’t be worth it.
Hmmm Allard got the call.
@74 If a deal happens, I suspect it would be a deal that meets multiple needs at the same time, and likely the reliever(s) would be retained beyond this year (thus solving bullpen issues going into next season).
When AA started as GM, one of his first comments was his disagreement with pushing players through the minors. This led me to believe we would see more of a season by season progression. This hasn’t been the case, as the promotions seem to be coming as fast or faster.
That’s not an act. You left out the proceeding “f”.
Peanut speculates Touki to pen this week:
The bullpen is going to be a lot better in 2 weeks.
The Braves have the 4th most defensive runs saved and the Orioles have the 2nd least. That will indeed help Brach.
Can’t help but wonder if the Braves picked this timing to soften the FOMO.
I agree with Chief’s assessment.
I wonder if we could get deGrom for Gohara, Simms, Derian Cruz and Ian Anderson
FOMO?
@85 Fear Of Missing Out.
I think most people tend to overrate how many actually good healthy starting pitchers there are in the league at any given time, and proportionally to underrate the value of warm bodies. I’m okay with Chief’s ranking above provided that the definition of “#1 on a playoff team” is understood to basically mean “the five best pitchers in the major leagues.”
It feels too soon for Teheran to have another turn in the rotation.
@68 .. The AJC
Now this is the face of a punk kid who’s been told to get off Joe Simpson’s lawn. Hope you scoured your social media, Kolby.
LOL https://twitter.com/JeffPassan/status/1024019497999642626
@66 The only quibble I have is with Fried. I think he’s being consistently and constantly undersold. Every time he’s been healthy and given a chance to be a regular starter, he’s performed at nearly an ace level. Watching him pitch in his last start made me think he’s already a #3 on this team. He has the potential to be every bit as good as Folty or Newk.
@92…sold
and…
On my second Margarita so have forgotten who Osuna is currently playing for. Regardless, he apparently might be available. Get him, Fred McGriff redux.
Is Osuna past the whole “arrested for assault” problem?
Chief…
you have won largely overall acceptance for a very long and detailed power point which normally would have brought the heavens down upon you.
Don’t let the enormity of this occasion be lost upon you. Go Latics!
91—LOL!
It’s at times such as these, as you mentioned the other day, that thinking on Marc Schneider is most enjoyable.
The Latics
yellowed old programmes boxed in some attics
Orwell knew better
blue collar, the working man, slide off his fetter.
George Orwell..The Road to Wigan Pier.
4/10’s and all that.
Passan isn’t the only one saying the Natspos should trade Hryce Barper!
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fancy-stats/wp/2018/07/30/now-is-the-time-for-the-nationals-to-trade-bryce-harper/
The Nationals are Ray Jackson, knocking Chong Li to the mat and then immediately turning their back to him while raising their arms in the air, looking at the crowd, and yelling their own name in the air.
Someone has to get off the 40-man for Allard to get on it. Freeman was only DL’ed for left arm terribleness.
Osuna is now an Astro, so the world champions obviously feel like his legal troubles are behind him. He’s not eligible to return until 8/5.
Osuna eligible to play Sunday. The phones are ringing.
In the “Relievers Are Fungible” department, Ken Giles is going to the Blue Jays in the Osuna deal.
Bryce Harper
take him now while skeptics scarper
260/10
Mendoza beckons, goodness know when.
There now seem to be two Osunas.
Most confusing.
I can’t imagine now is a great time to start trying to offload Harper with <24 hours remaining.
I agree with Alex that it would be a bad, bad message to your fans to unload Harper.
99—Here’s hoping Philly is Chong Li and Atlanta is Frank Dux.
@100, line o’ the day from TC is “sprained success gland”.
Hopefully we’ll have to make room for Touki and maybe one other arm in the coming week. Long overdue. The 40-man is still filled with guys that not even a super-fan could name.
100 — My guess is McCarthy goes to the 60 day DL to clear a spot on the 40 man.
@108:
OK, USA!
@109 You’re telling me you couldn’t tell me Chad Bell’s life story?
@110 I suspect that McCarthy has thrown his last pitch as an Atlanta Brave.
Newcomb seems to have deleted his Twitter account.
Bonus points to Dayton from Nebraska
I want to give fair warning that with Freeman off the roster and Moylan not far behind, Julio Teheran may become the whipping boy.
@116 Easy to avoid. Beat the Marlins.
I’d have a rule for every draft pick that gets over a 500k signing bonus that they had to delete their Twitter accounts on condition of signing a professional contract.
@118 – Agree, but deleting their account may not be sufficient. There are always ways to get the information.
No MLB.Com tonight because we play the Marlins, so I’m watching the Fish pre-game on J. T. Realmuto. GET HIM AT ALL COSTS, AA. He is a special kid.
One assumes trading for Realmuto would make Harper more likely to sign here next year.
All reasonable costs, that is; Moylan, Sam Freeman, Lucas Sims, all our garbage.
Harper will only negotiate with teams who have a Realmuto on the roster — Sources say.
Walks. Suck.
Great start.
Pretty clear already which Julio we get tonight.
Why is this clown still allowed to start? Unbelievable…
In the last 298 IP (last 2 years), JT has a 5.07 FIP. He will receive $11.6M next year with a $12M team option for 2020 with a $1M buyout. There’s something to be said for a 27-year old who has pitched an average of 196 IP the last 5 years, but man, he’s been traveling in the wrong direction for a few miles now.
296 IP of 5th starter play is enough for me to say that Julio Teheran is a 5th starter.
@126 I think the simple answer is that he’s one of the 5 best starting pitchers in the organization right now. Not sure how long that will be though.
Yeah, I think he was safe, but Ozzie did his best Javy Baez impression.
Bad Julio tonight. I’m just stunned that – all of a sudden – we decided we just couldn’t hit a lefty to save our lives. Damnedest thing. 5th lefty in last six games.
Better. Now get some runs.
McCarthy was in fact transferred to the 60 day DL.
Julio suuuuuuuuuucks.
Can we just skip ahead to the inevitable future where he is DFA, the Cardinals pick him up and turn him into a sinkerballing Cy Young candidate?
Woohoo!
Julio is the only pitcher on the team that can hit. He’s proved it before. Also, he is the best fielding pitcher on the team (7 DRS). If only he could….. like…. pitch.
So Julio has made up for one of the two runs he gave up. Maybe he’ll have a “Kershaw night” at the plate.
Hey, if Braves get Archer, maybe they could get a bat to go with him…… Ramos, anyone? Another good possibility – Daniel Robertson (IF), .381 OBP, and good fielder.
Although Bad Julio got the start tonight, it looks like Good Julio may have replaced him after the first 4 batters in the first.
Watching Phils at Fenway. Herrera makes horrible misplay in CF – overruns the ball and it goes over his head. Hilarious. LOL, and they gave him a triple…… feel bad for Nola.
I wish the substitution rules applied to Bad Julio. It would be nice if he is out of the game after being replaced. But we all know that Bad Julio could take the mound at any moment.
Fred!
Freddie!!!
Johan Camargo can rake. Johan can pick it. Run, not so much.
Camargo!!!
Here we go again……
Strikes, Julio. Throw strikes.
I’m so old I remember when B.J. Surhoff and Rey Sanchez were token acquisitions as we cruised to a division title.
Crap call cost us a run…smh
Markakis played that well.
I hope Castro is his last batter.
@145, If Teheran did throw strikes, they’d hit them. That’s the whole problem. He has to live on the edge.
Marlins announcers so salty: “If you need a strike called, call 1-800-FLOWERS.”
Acuna Matata
Nice escape
Hell Albies take a pitch…….
Houdini redux
Good win. Julio recovered well from his awful beginning.
Surprise us, AA.
Mat’s are willing to trade Hooper:
You’d have to imagine it would take quite a haul for the Nats to part with BHarp.
I’m pretty sure Stu is the source saying Harper is available.
Ender, Gohara, and Anderson for 2 months of Bruce Hooper.
Uh Braves got Adam Duvall for sims, wisler and Preston tucker.
Where does Duvall play for atl?
Ooooooh big trade
Adam Duvall for Sims, Wisler, and Tucker.
Braves get Adam Duvall for Wisler, SIms, and Tucker. Nice.
Duvall becomes Tucker, and can platoon with Ender, move Acuna to center.
Duvall…I like it
Matt Wisler and Lucas Sims in Cincy’s ballpark? Well, I hope they weren’t looking to have careers.
WE ARE FINALLY FREE OF WISLER AND SIMS!!!
Great trade. Got a power hitter for basically nothing.
Adam who?
I think this certainly implies Ender may lose some playing time in the second half.
Great trade!!!
I think he fits quite nicely. Tucker may become the best part of the return for the Reds.
BidBrachMint in for the 7-8-9. Nice.
I had Adam Duvall on my fantasy team last year. He was pretty good. Here’s hoping he blossoms in STP. Best of luck to Wisler, Sims and the other guy.
I think we all know how I feel about losing the 2020 Cy Young winner.
Good trade…Sims and Wisler not in plans …. Duval gives the option to play against lefties… and sit Ender some …. loose defense but add pop .. I liked Tucker .. just wasn’t getting PT..
Wonderful trade!!!
Duvall’s got pop. Is he Juan Francisco, or is he Brooks Conrad? But I like him as a bench bat and a platoon bat, and if he lights a fire under Inciarte’s butt, so much the better.
Thoppy is very good at this.
Anymore talks about AA not doing anything?
Good trade.
Adam Duvall…has he been hurt this year? He looks like an honest-to-god BABIP fluke. More hard contact this year. More line drives.
We keep him through 2021, if we want.
I guess if used appropriately this could be a helpful move. I’m not exactly exuberant over this move, but it’s something. There’s more room now on the 40-man, which is not something I want to be typing about at the trade deadline when my team is in contention.
Also agree with @177 — there was not a whisper about this. Not even the position! The “rumors” connected Atlanta to starters, relievers, and infielders.
Sorry for too much excitement on the trade but I have no clue when my comments will be posted or not. Sometimes they never appear, sometimes they are delayed and sometimes they go straight through.
Chief will be heartbroken to see us lose Sims and Wisler. I stil don’t know why Snit doesn’t like Reed. Duvall has some power, but he’s had a really bad year so far.
This moves 3 guys off the 40 man also while adding only one.
I do find it ironic that after a couple years of referring to Wisler and Sims together and almost interchangeably, they’re traded together.
We control Duvall to 2021 and next season will be the first time he is eligible for arbitration. Solid bat to have on the bench.
@178 Nope. I’m all quiet now. I’m fairly pleased with AA’s moves.
That’s so funny. They turned our AAAA players into a potential Major Leaguer. Duvall is having a pretty down year but he has obviously done better. He costs not much more than the league minimum and has three years of control. I haven’t checked but I bet he has an option left (he’s only been in the majors and minors in two different years). We could send him to Gwinnett. And we get two open 40-man slots in return, too. All without giving up a single rated prospect.
There’s your controllable RH power bat, though. A plus version of Dustin Peterson. And he’s a good defender, too. And, guess what, he’s played a little 1B and 3B here and there. Depth piece.
This is exactly the kind of move I thought we ought to be making to help clear the roster for the future. It may not be our last move before the deadline.
That’s three legitimate major league players without giving up one prospect. I am now on the AA bandwagon.
And the Phillies just lost in the 13th. Things are looking up.
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Phillies lose.
Two less nopespects…
Adam Duvall might have helped win one of these games we have had against all these LHPs.
The only issue is that now we need a lefty bat on the bench. All our bench is RH except Flaherty. I wonder if the Braves tried to offer Dustin Peterson instead of Tucker.
Everyone had an idea to getting Duvall last offseason. He would have been better than Tucker or Culberson in LF before Acuna was promoted and when he was on the DL. He has rated as a better defender than anyone we’re playing in the OF except Ender.
I just hope this doesn’t put a damper on the possibility of getting Harper in the offseason. Not sure I want to roll with him as Neck’s replacement.
And it certainly seems to make both Reed and Lane Adams redundant along with Dustin Peterson.
A really nice move that has lots of positives. More if Duvall hits more like last two years instead of this.
@193, I doubt AA sees Duvall as a Markakis replacement. Notwithstanding a bout of All-Star caliber play the rest of the season, of course. But even then, if the team has designs on Harper (or a player like that in the OF), a 30-year-old Duvall won’t change that.
Duvall will be utilized like Matt Diaz was.
Duvall has had a good last week. Might be on an upswing.
Just checked. Duvall does indeed have an option remaining.
I’m guessing Michael Reed will go back to Gwinnett as a corresponding move.
A pitcher will have to be moved off of the 25 man roster as well to make room for Allard. I’m guessing Moylan or Jackson will be DL’ed or DFA’d.
It’s kind of the perfect trade to placate Braves Journal.
There’s a set of people who will praise AA for not breaking the bank, holding onto prospects, etc.
And the people who’d be most likely to criticize the team for not going hard and doing what it takes to vault us past the Phillies are also mostly the people who will be tantalized by the promise of homers.
Braves reported to start using an equivalent 6-man rotation because of the concentration of games coming up. We have played anywhere from 3 to 6 fewer games than any other team up to this point so there have to be doubleheaders and a lack of off days coming up.
Probably will have our current five – Folty, Newk, Fried, Teheran, Sanchez and a rotational spot for Allard, Gohara, Touki, etc…. Unless we trade for another SP. And it’s good not to have Wisler and Sims in that mix.
@198 Maybe Braves Journal is full of kinda smart people who have their fingers on the pulse of the team and have reasonable insight into what might be done as well as what should be done.
@198, that’s not entirely fair! The deck chairs have way more Feng shui now.
So far, we have traded away 3 40-man players of some merit but little success and some international money for 3 40-man players each of which has been to the All Star Game once. And I’ll bet Duvall’s future value will be equal to or more than the sum of the future value of the three players he was traded for. If Venters survives the season, he will be easy to sign. There is also no reason Brach wouldn’t re-sign if he performs well. None are “merely” rentals who are sure to bolt.
This is a pleasant morning to wake up to. Nice win, nice Phillies-Nola loss, nice trade and finally no more Wisler-Sims talk.
@185 Ha, spot on, Rob.
Now go get Wheeler and Harper, AA.
Go Braves.
He’s probably excited to have the Braves infield behind him now:
Of the five batters Brach faced, he induced five ground balls.
This is a great trade. We now have a platoon partner for Inciarte. I think platoons make for a better bench.
Let’s get a starter and a LH bench bat and we will win the east
No, it was the other low batting average, power-hitting Adam D. from the Cincinnati Reds I once wanted.
I’m not overly thrilled about Duvall based on personal bias. He seems to be the kind of low batting average guy who will drive me crazy with long periods of uselessness interspersed with streaks that showcase great potential. Nice thing is we didn’t give up anything for him, so I’m on board. Just a little concerned.
It would be nice to get a starting pitcher before the deadline. Of those already mentioned, Sonny Gray seems to make the most sense. Otoh, we’ve made 3 deals so far and the 3 players have been on no one’s radar screen. I’ll be okay if this is it, but trading for an SP would be great to top things off.
recapped.