Guys and gals, I cannot emphasize enough how excited I am that Braves Journal now has its own podcast. Three Flags Flying is a podcast that represents the unity of 3 Braves blogs: Braves Journal, Outfield Fly Rule, and Talking Chop.
Kris Willis is the site manager from Talking Chop and has a long history in providing solid content through TC and Peachtree Hoops.
Brent Blackwell is the co-founder of Outfield Fly Rule and is a deeply researched analyst in anything he does, and has been providing quality pieces over at OFR for years.
Mission of 3 Flags Flying
Our mission for the podcast is to create a 30-45 minute podcast that comes equipped with 3 segments each week:
- Focus on the Braves MLB team
- Focus on the Braves MiLB team
- Focus on Braves History
Our 1st episode was merely an introductory to get registered on the various podcast sites. However, episode 2 is up and running and is a reflection of what the podcast will feature going forward.
How can you help?
First off, Braves Journal has some of the most knowledgeable fans found on any site and in tackling Braves history each week, we are going to need help in providing our listeners with quality segments. This first week, I was able to pull from a piece told by my father-in-law and it’s one of my favorite baseball stories of all-time. However, I’m not going to be as fortunate each week, so if you’d be interested in writing a piece that we could share on the podcast, please send me an email.
Lastly, the best way you could support the podcast is to give it a listen (and a good review:). We are available on many outlets (Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, etc.), but here’s a link that will make it easy this go-around:
https://soundcloud.com/user-390080810
Thanks for reading…and listening.
Really, really liked the spot about Udell Chambers. Had never heard that story. The offseason is long, and there’s only so much rosterbation and news-reporting to do, so I really like the idea of having some Braves history in there. I’m younger than all 3 of the guys on the pod and many of the board, so taking people like me through Braves history is much appreciated.
One squabble: Nick Markakis, by almost all metrics, was not a very good baseball player last year, and at age 36, is probably not going to be a very good baseball player next year. I think he’s a good bet to not be replacement level, but I don’t think the bar ought to be much higher. 0.8 bWAR, 0.4 fWAR across 469 PAs last year. I truly hope he grades out better in LF across a full sample, but as Ryan noted, a platoon with Nick against RHP means he’ll get 130 starts next year, and I doubt he’s more than a 1 WAR player. Is that fair for the price? Sure, but I think we need more than that from every position on the field.
I’d almost not bring Nick back at all, play Ender in CF, Acuna in RF, and go get a real LF. Now you have Nick in LF and Ender under contract, and those two should not be in the same outfield for 130 games against RHP.
From last thread, I will be tickled pink if we break camp with a $135M payroll, and I do agree with Ryan that I think AA divided the season into thirds and made weighted determinations based on where we were after each third. And I don’t necessarily think that he’ll do that again this year, thus he’ll break camp with a higher payroll than last year with less splashes throughout the year.
I like trading Ender for Mallex for the salary reduction and for the fact that Ender ought to be a 4th OFer at this point, and Mallex is probably a better 4th OFer. With a 4th OFer, I think you either want elite speed or a solid bat off the bench, and Ender has neither. You at least have elite speed with Mallex, and the bat might be close to Ender as well. I think Mallex can split the difference between his 2018 and 2019 hitting, and be a .700 OPS hitter, which is what Ender is. But because of his speed, I think Mallex’s wRC+ would be higher than Ender’s.
My only issue with Calhoun is that we just need a better bat in a corner spot. The idea of two platoons in the corner spots is a great money move, but I just think that’s too much risk for a team looking to win a World Series. Do you not trade for Boyd ($6M) and use that money along with the money for Calhoun ($6M) and try to trade for an outfielder making $12M that has tremendous surplus value. The exact example of that would be Starling Marte, making $11.5M this year and $12M next year. And then keep all of the other moves and have:
Acuna
Albies
Freeman
Grandal
Marte
Moustakas
Markakis
Dansby
Soroka
Fried
Pineda
Folty
Anderson/Wright/Touki/Wilson
Melancon
Greene
Pomeranz
Newk
O’Day
Jackson
2020 Version of Tomlin
2020 Version of Blevins
Triple post: really cool that Brent pointed out on the pod that Markakis’ sprint speed increased last year. Would have never guessed.
Also didn’t know that Flowers’ passed balls didn’t happen exclusively on framing pitches, that they happened on just good ole fashioned balls that he dropped. I think the narrative was that we sacrificed a few passed balls in return for better pitch framing, and that proved to not necessarily be the case, at least exclusively.
@Rob
I think the Braves can get by with OF platoons, and can make it in the playoffs with platoons as long as there aren’t giant holes in the rest of the lineup. In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better OFer that would match the production of a Calhoun/Duvall platoon at an affordable price, whether it be via free agency or trade.
If Braves grabbed Donaldson (or Moose) and also signed Grandal, something has got to give in the OF and platoons are incredibly cost-efficient.
@4 Would make a pretty strong bench as well with the off platoon guys in a pinch hitting role along with Culberson and Johan
If you’re going to do a platoon, then Calhoun is a great option.
What would have to give is that you wouldn’t add s much payroll to the rotation. Soroka, Fried, Pineda, Folty, and one of the prospects in the 5th spot would be good enough to win the division. I do agree, though, that Boyd, or someone like Boyd, really puts the Braves over the top to win big.
If the Braves lost Donaldson to, say, the Nationals, but then signed Madison Bumgarner, then the Braves would lose their 3rd-round pick and gain the Nationals’ 2nd-round pick. So there will be some extra slot money gained, if I’m not mistaken, in the loss of Donaldson to teams like the Nationals who have a higher payroll.
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2019/11/draft-compensation-for-8-teams-that-could-lose-qualified-free-agents.html
I couldn’t find it earlier, but here’s the article where I found such info.
Ruh-roh.
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28066522/ex-astros-pitcher-mike-fiers-team-stole-signs-camera
Color me surprised by the Astros news. Douche Bros gonna douche.
I’m starting to think the Astros might be a shady org.
For real, though, if Coppy was executed at dawn and we basically got the “Southern Miss” treatment when it comes to international signing sanctions, there needs to be a HUGE punishment for the Astros.
I thought the Astros were a lovable, easy-to-root-for bunch with the likes of Altuve and Springer, the organization that went through hell to reach the top of the mountain. Now we’ve got many pieces of evidence (the Taubman fiasco, insider rumblings of a bad culture for employees, over-the-top sign-stealing, etc.) to suggest quite the opposite.
From Bruce Bochy to Gabe Kapler. The Giants downgraded in manager.
Don’t forget the corporate espionage.
https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/we-now-know-extent-of-cardinals-hack-and-the-unprecedented-penalties-from-mlb/
The Astros are dirty as all hell.
I really detest the use of the word “hacking” in reference to whenever someone unlawfully gains access to some data. No hacking took place in @14’s story. He had full access to their Ground Control database through his old boss’s account. Maybe change the password once in 10 years, you bum!
14 – Do I have it wrong? Weren’t the hated Cardinals the guilty party and the Astros the victim in that fiasco?
Actually, y’know, Dusty, you’re absolutely right. I could make something up about “corporate culture” but I think I’m being unfair here.
Donny @15 I generally agree with you; the use of the term “hacking” to refer to “unauthorized access” is a little muddy, especially since nearly all unauthorized access results from human error, whether it’s a password that was never changed or a socially engineered phishing attempt, rather than an actual attack on a software systems vulnerability.
Plus, I think “corporate espionage” actually gets at the nature of the crime.
Eh. The vast majority of ‘hacking’ as it’s popularly portrayed is in the end mostly a function of social engineering anyway. l don’t think it’s wrong to say that’s ‘hacking’ because if it’s wrong to say that’s ‘hacking’ then virtually all uses of that word have been wrong over the last three decades.
Note that my claims here are totally consistent with 17, just another take on the issue.
@13 For sure. Tough to really give them an F though, since Bochy left by his choice. I think they’re headed for a rebuild/retooling anyway, so he’s probably just eating some L’s on his record until they get to where they want to be. Then he’ll probably be fired.
Exciting stuff about the podcast! Awesome work putting that together to all involved!!
https://friarsonbase.com/2019/11/13/padres-division-division-trade-targets-nl-east/
Padres fan blog throwing out trade ideas involving the Braves. It’s always interesting to see what other teams say about our players. For instance, in regards to Folty, they’re saying, “He had an up-and-down season in 2019 but has the stuff to be a staff leader. Folty is under team control for two more seasons through arbitration.”
@18 Having a hard time following what you’re saying. You say the “vast majority” of hacking cases are social engineering, and then go on to say that if that’s not true hacking then “virtually all uses of the word” have been wrong for the past three decades.
There’s a certain technical aspect that is required for hacking to have occurred. Hacking is not just gaining a password. In the case above in @14, he had permission to use his boss’s account at one time. It’s understood, however, that that permission stopped as soon as they were on different teams. One could, however, argue that he did some hacking via his boss’s email account to gain access to other accounts, but whatever that’s just using the software the way it’s intended to be used.
There are numerous popular hacking cases that involve exploiting software flaws (real hacking) to gain access to data or machines. That’s the required technical aspect that I mentioned above.
See, I have a very strict understanding of the legal term to the point that I don’t even give a F what the law thinks the word means. I’ve seen youth tried for hacking in other western countries for such harmless behavior as modifying the url to go to another page on a site because the url made it obvious there were other pages. When the site divulged classified data without any authorization requirements, the kid took the full blame and not the site operators or the developers. It’s dangerous to apply the label of hacking to things that are common use of the software, because in the legal sense it carries a much stiffer penalty, such as rotting in prison for corporate espionage. lol
Sounds like you know more about the technical aspects than I do, Donny.
All I meant to be saying was that the things that popularly have been referred to as ‘hacking’ were really social engineering, and so I was saying that it’s not surprising to hear that in this case too, the thing that people said was ‘hacking’ was in fact social engineering.
I am definitely only talking about popular usages of the term, and it sounds like you have more knowledge than me, so I’m happy to cede the ground. Sounds like I’m wrong on the merits as far as what popular cases have in fact involved.
@23 And you are correct. Those are cases of social engineering. They are often baked into our cyber security training courses that we have to take every year (at my office, anyway).
Don’t mind me (too much) Nathan. I’m a software developer who just gets cranky when I see the media or people at large giving words meaning that they shouldn’t have. And of course, it’s even worse when the law subscribes to the popular meaning for lack of better expertise on the matter.
Jomboy posted to Twitter a breakdown of what clearly looks like sign stealing.
https://twitter.com/Jomboy_/status/1194348775965437952?s=20
Our boy Evan Gattis seemingly being complicit in the process.
By the way, there are not many of them, but Jomboy is definitely a Twitter gem. He’s also the one who isolated the audio to catch Aaron Boone’s “savages” umpire tirade.
@25 That’s crazy. It looks pretty concrete though. I’m just a little amazed MLB is letting the Astros play a part in this investigation. The same hammer that crushed the Braves after the IFA fiasco should be brought down equally on Houston, if found guilty. Suspensions for managers and execs, loss of draft picks, etc…
@27 Totally agree. Let’s not act like this isn’t rampant across all of baseball, just like what the Braves were engaged in with the IFA. It’s time to make an example, though. Bring the hammer.
If it’s rampant across baseball, as I’m sure it is, then throw the book at someone to deter the behavior. That’s exactly what MLB did with the IFA fiasco. Atlanta and its fans uniquely want the hammer to drop on the Astros. I would also think the Cardinals have strong opinions.
We’ll find out just how big of a dud the MLB commissioner is if nothing happens to the Astros for this.
@28 & 29 I’d also imagine the Astros aren’t the only team that does this, same as the Braves weren’t the only team playing IFA games. This’ll be very telling though as to if the Braves were made an example of to set things right, or simply because Coppy was disliked.
I find it interesting that so many fans are troubled to see Donaldson being coveted by the powerhouse teams. Uhhh, he’s one of the best third basemen in baseball. Of course he’s going to be a hot commodity.
People are just afraid that Atlanta’s FO will be scared off by the amount of interest. We’ve been conditioned with a “poverty mentality” so I can’t really blame them for their reactions.
@32: come home, JD.
I’m not troubled by his appeal. I’m troubled because I know the Braves won’t open up the checkbook to keep him and we’ll have some leftover stew of Riley and Camargo at 3B next year.
Totally understandable that there’s a lot of interest in JD, and totally understandable that there is anxiety that the Braves won’t be competitive in trying to retain his services. But if the Nats get him, I might have to take a few years off (4?) from baseball.
@35 I truly want to believe that you, and others of similar opinion, are underestimating Mr. Alex Anthopolous. May ye all be hustled by the extraordinary poker player sitting behind the Braves’ GM’s desk.
A weird thing about the etymology of “hack” is that, like “cleave,” historically, it’s its own antonym.
If you go back to ’60s usages (like the MIT pranks), a “hack” referred to something cleverly done, an unexpected solution to a problem, even an elegant one. After all, in those days, the true measure of your worth as a coder was the parsimony of your code (not the readability). This is the meaning in the book “Hackers” by Steven Levy, which is about some of the earliest successful software developers going back to the MIT Model Railroad Club.
In parallel, “hack” evolved to mean a kludge, a sloppy solution, a crappy workaround.
At the same time, “hacking” came to refer to one corner of the two-by-two grid of hacking/cracking/phreaking/phracking, referring to unauthorized access or unauthorized changes made either to software systems or phone systems. Of course, almost no one uses the other three, and if anything “hacking” has grown to subsume them.
(The News of the World scandal was commonly described as “phone hacking,” which illustrated the utter death of the “ph”- suffix in front of “hacking.”)
(Oh, and “hack” also refers to a taxicab and also a taxicab driver, as in Melissa Plaut’s book “Hack” — it comes from “hackney,” which itself is probably derived from the neighborhood in London. But that’s neither here nor there.)
Alex is wicked smart.
I’m old so where I come from hacking is a noble pursuit and cracking is what the criminals do. See correct definition here.
Yeahhh… see, I think Eric Raymond goes a little too far in smudging the definition of hacking as “excellent knowledge of system architecture” with “getting somewhere you’re not supposed to.” Not all trespassing is white hat, obviously, and I don’t think it helps to say that someone who isn’t a white hat isn’t a “hacker.”
Bring the convo over to the new thread!