Sunday, January 27, 2008

Shanks talks, I listen

Don't ask me why so many people with ties to the Braves are on my shitlist. Bowman, DOB, Terrence, and also, Bill Shanks. He writes for The Braves Show and asks users to pay for a lot of their material. I hate that on principal. He also wrote a book blasting moneyball philosophy despite the fact that he knew about as much about moneyball as I know about Harry Potter books. It's about a kid who does magic and has a ring that others want, right? Or am I mixing them up?

Anyway, surprisingly free, here is Bilbo's Could 'Mike & Mike' be the keys this season?

This article has nothing to do with Greenie or Golic, nor even a drunken Dana Jacobson. Any of the three would have been an improvement.

Baseball fans all over the country are talking about what their favorite team must do to win this season. There are a lot of sentences that start with 'if,'and every team has a lot of ifs three weeks before spring training starts.

I especially like the "If the Braves were a kind of tree, what kind of tree would they be?"

Skipping down...

Hampton hasn’t pitched in a big league game since August of 2005. He was really good that season, perhaps the best since he had joined the Braves two years earlier. Atlanta finally had the Mike Hampton that had been such a big winner in Houston and New York, but then things spiraled out of control.

Define "really good." Hampton was...decent. Over a dozen games, that is. I, like many others, remember than thumping the Braves gave the Astros where Hampton tossed shutout ball and homered, but if you are going to call a guy "really good," the numbers must support it.

They don't, by the way. A 3.50 ERA which is close to the way he pitched (3.88 DERA) and a -2 stuff rating. Meaning...he wasn't that good. He was just there.

Hampton had to have Tommy John Surgery in September of 2005, which killed his 2006 season. Then when he was coming back last spring, Hampton tore his oblique muscle in his side, which would have kept him out until May. But as he was rehabbing that injury, Hampton started to have additional elbow discomfort. It was then learned Hampton had a torn flexor tendon in his elbow, and surgery in April knocked out his 2007 season.

Yay, insurance money on his contract. Boo getting him in the first place.

Fans were ready to see how Hampton would do in his latest comeback, but then on Thanksgiving Day two months ago Hampton strained his hamstring. The sad thing was he actually looked good on the mound before the injury. His delivery looked great for someone that had missed so much time, and his pitches looked surprisingly crisp for his first ‘official’ time on the mound.

Why wouldn't the fans be ready?

I think what you meant to say is that fans were excited to see how Hampton would do...

But that's not true either.

You wonder how much better the Braves would have been if Hampton had been able to pitch in 2007. They had so much trouble in the rotation after John Smoltz and Tim Hudson that we can only imagine how many more games they might have won last season if Hampton had been healthy. The Braves painfully learned the importance of a middle-of-the-rotation starting pitcher, a role Hampton might have thrived in if he had been able to pitch.

What would Hampton had been worth to the Braves? Let's say he pitched like he did in 2004. He would have been worth about two more wins above a replacement player (WARP) than Chuck James and James was worth about two more than Buddy Carlyle. In this best case scenario, a healthy Hampton would have been worth three-to-four wins. Not enough to get the Braves in the playoffs.

But a healthy Hampton, behind Smoltz, Hudson, and Glavine, could make the rotation very strong. Before you laugh, remember how well Hampton pitched right before he got hurt. If he’s anywhere near that level, as a number four starter, the Braves would be in great shape.

That was laughable, Bilbo. The chances are minimal that Hampton will provide much more than James could. Now, having James and Hampton healthy and taking their turns in the rotation DOES make it better. But again, you use a phrase like "very strong." If that rotation is very strong, just what is the DBacks staff of Webb, Haren, and Co?

What if Hampton could at least come back and make 15-20 starts? Forget about him being ready on Opening Day for a moment. What if he could at least come back sometime in June and then contribute to the rotation for the rest of the season? That would be like adding a front-line starter in a trade on Deadline Day. It could make a huge difference in the Braves’ chances to get back to the postseason.

Now, Hampton's a front-line starter?

In Bilbo's world, words are just things with no meaning.

He goes on to talk about Gonzo, but the Hampton stuff just bothers me too much to continue.

Saturday, January 26, 2008

The most boring time of the year...

...at least, for baseball, is upon us. All the free agents that matter have new homes. Even Octavio Dotel finally signed. Catchers and pitchers haven't reported yet, spring training games are still over a month away, and the Super Bowl seems boring yet again. Dammit.

-Marky ol' boy did his little mailbag shindig. Teix...probably not a likely member of the Braves even in Bowman's POV. That's pretty telling. Other than that, the whole article provided little knowledge. But then...that's the official Braves site for you.

-Some chap named Buck Belue for the Savannah Morning News said the Braves should at least reach the 90 win plateau. The obvious needs to be said. Buck Belue is not a real name. The guy's "paragraphs" are a sentence or two at best. Journalism school must have been optional for this rag.

The boys of summer are heading south soon, and this dude won't be far behind. Major League Baseball's spring training is one of my favorite times of the year, despite the uneasiness of wearing shorts and showing off the pasty white legs. Hey, you've got to start somewhere, right?

Dude? If Buck Belue is your real name, you're probably a drag queen. But then, a penis is a penis, I guess.

Tom Glavine's back in a Braves uniform and is penciled in as the third starter behind John Smoltz and Tim Hudson. The goal: give the Braves 200 innings. Tom reached that magic number last year as a 41-year-old. The Braves are betting he'll do it at 42.

The bullpen would love that.


The bullpen may also love long walks on the beach. The simple fact is that 200 innings is nice, but the Braves need QUALITY, not quantity, because essentially - Glav is about it. If he puts up a 4.50 ERA over 200 innings, the Braves don't win 90 games.

The days of Andruw Jones roaming centerfield for the Braves have ended. Why? Well, the Braves didn't feel like over-paying for his services.

So, Wren swung a great deal to bring in veteran Mark Kotsay from the A's. It makes sense. Kotsay is a pro's pro. He plays a solid outfield, can hit and is a team guy.

What makes this deal so wonderful is this: Wren got the A's to pick up close to $5 million of his $7 million salary.


"Wren swung a great deal?" Are you applying for Mark Bowman's job? Are you Mark Bowman? What the hell? Anyway, know how Wren got the A's to pick up that much salary? By sacrificing two of my top ten prospects for the system. Screw that.

Kotsay can hit high in the lineup or down at the bottom. No problem. Just glad to be here playing for Bobby Cox. Here's a guy who knows what it takes to be successful at the plate.

He told me recently that if Cox hits him 1 or 2, the focus is to get on base. If Bobby has him hitting 7 or 8, the goal is to drive in runs.

Keep your fingers crossed that his back holds up. If so, you won't miss Andruw so much.


Yeah, because he's going to be a super get on base guy with his .330ish OBP or a great run producer with his .390ish SLG. Jesus, this kind of crap really kills me.

The bullpen looks pretty settled heading the camp. Rafael Soriano, Peter Moylan and Tyler Yates get the ball late. Wren went out and got three lefthanders: Royce Ring, Will Ohman and Jeff Ridgway. Look for two to stick with the big league club leaving spring training.

Yay...Tyler Yates. And Wren didn't get Ring. Schuerholz did. You may have missed it while you were pressing enter after needlessly beginning yet another paragraph/sentence.

Jeff Bennett is this year's long-relief guy. Manny Acosta, Jair Jurrjens and Blaine Boyer battle it out for a spot. And Mike Gonzalez is hoping to be back in the summer to provide a big boost down the stretch.

Bennett is this year's long reliever, but Manny Acosta has to battle for a spot? My brain is leaking.

The batting lineup is something that Bobby Cox likes to keep under wraps, but here is my best guess of what the card will look like come opening day: 1-Yunel Escobar, 2-Kotsay, 3-Chipper Jones, 4-Mark Teixeira, 5-Jeff Francoeur, 6-Brian McCann, 7-Matt Diaz, 8-Kelly Johnson.

You're best guess is probably right. Why does that make me sick?

-Elsewhere, Raffy Soriano agreed to a contract to avoid arbitration. The Braves also bought a year of free agency by getting a two year pact. Terms are $2.4M this year, $6.1 next, $500K signing bonus. The huge drop in salary is a bit worrisome, but not a bad deal in this market.

-Baseball Musings did a projection of the Braves offense this year.

* Best: 5.37 runs per game
* Given: 5.18 runs per game
* Worst: 4.77 runs per game

Braves will be fortunate to improve on the 5.00 average from last year, but it's possible, especially if KJ is used in the upper part of the lineup.

-Finally, another rag says Julio Franco is still a Braves player. Why do you hurt me so, Braves?

-I am a lot more bothered after writing this than I was before I started...

Saturday, January 19, 2008

O noes~!

Mac has already commented on this masterpiece of vomit-inducing literature, but I must comment as well.

Kotsay has spent a majority of his career hitting in either of the top two spots of the batting order, and this year should be no different.

Last year with a fairly bad A's offense, Kotsay started 21 games in the first two spots, 32 in the final three spots. I guess they knew not to just put Kotsay up there and hope for the best. Maybe Kotsay was hitting that high because he was producing. Maybe he should produce before he hits that high again. Or...ya know, whatever.

My early guess is that he'll man one of those two spots with Yunel Escobar and that Kelly Johnson will bat seventh or eighth.

I have a feeling I can beat Marky Mark in baseball strategy. I don't know why...

Some believe Escobar would be a solid run producer in the middle of the lineup. You can't argue that.

Who are these people? IsoP in the majors of .125, IsoP in the minors of .118. There, I just argued it.

But at the same time, you can't dispute the value he brought while hitting .351 with a .400 on-base percentage in 34 games as the leadoff hitter last year.

The Braves don't have the speed demon that teams like to put at the top of their lineup. But with Escobar and Kotsay, who owns a .337 career on-base percentage, they have two guys who can provide regular run-producing opportunities for Chipper Jones and Mark Teixeira.

In the time that Kotsay has posted that .337 OBP, the leagues that he had played in posted a .333 OBP. So, essentially, you could put Mr. Dynamic and Joe Average ahead of Jones and Teix and they will have regular run-producing opportunities. Maybe by hitting a lot of solo homeruns...

Johnson produced a .372 on-base percentage in 76 games as the leadoff hitter last year and might have at least shared that role with Escobar if Kotsay hadn't arrived. But my guess is that the Braves will put him in the eighth spot with the hope that he'll get on base consistently and give pitchers numerous sacrifice opportunities.

Oh jeez, I can already see the Bobby Coxian slant in this. Hmm...we could score more runs by having people on for Jones and Teix OR we can hope that a pitcher sacrifices KJ to second with one or two outs to maximize scoring chances for Mr. Dynamic and Kotsay. Hmm, what should we do?

By the way, you put the guys in the top of the lineup who are the best at getting on because that means they will get more chances.

As long as his back remains healthy, I think Kotsay will bat second and Escobar will once again be given the chance to be the consistent catalyst that he was down the stretch last year.

And the Braves will be a middle-of-the-pack offensive team.

Let's Meet...Jeff Ridgway

Hi Jeff. Welcome to the organization. Unfortunately, I can show no enthusiasm for your arrival as it cost two players when you, well, kinda suck. No biggie. I mean, not everybody is going to be good at baseball. Hell, I suck. But I'm not costing any team two players, no matter what intangibles I have and could bring to a new team. Though...they are many. I can eat a lot of starburst sours for instance. Not everyone can, but me? I rock at it.

Jeff - who for some reason, I keep wanting to call Larry - is a veteran of three major league games and 201 minor league outings. When the Rays drafted him, they tried him as a starter. After three nondescript years (plus a year in the middle that was gone because of injury), they moved him to the pen in 2004, subscribing to the baseball edict that if you are a lefthand reliever, you are worth, at the very least, two middle infield players.

Ridgway seemed to battle injuries in '04 and '05 before making some headway with a fairly solid '06 campaign. In a career best 50 games between Montgomery (AA) and Durham (AAA), Ridgway posted a 2.79 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP. He added more K's than innings pitched as well. After he failed to break camp with the Rays last year, he attempted to repeat his numbers at Durham and while he was not _as_ good, he wasn't too horrible either, posting more K's than innings again, a 3.06 ERA, and a 1.30 WHIP. Control was a bit of a problem as he walked 4.2 men per nine innings.

In September, he made his major league debut. Against the Angels, he entered in the sixth with a runner on third and one out. After a single and a triple, he was out of the game with the line - O ING, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO. Only a stupidass bunt attempt by the Angels with the runner on third (leading to a double play after the bunt was caught) kept the other run from scoring.

Four days later on the 21st, he faced Boston. It did not...go well. After entering in the ninth with the Rays down by three, he gave up a walk and hit a batter. In stepped Big Papa, there went the ball. Three-run homer and he was removed. Second game gave him the line of O ING, 1 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 0 SO, 1 HBP, 1 HR. Not good.

Five days later, he got the Yankees. That's just mean. With the Yanks already up 9-2 in the sixth he entered to face the top of the lineup. A pair of infield singles by Damon and Jeter preceded a single by Abreu to bring in Damon. Finally, Ridgway got his first out as AL MVP A-Rod popped up, but another single by Posada brought in Jeter. Ridgway was replaced, but Robinson Cano singled in Abreu against Juan Sales to add to the troubles. Third game gave him the line of 0.1 ING, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO

So...we have 0.1 ING, 7 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 1 BB, 0 SO, 1 HBP, 1 HR. He faced a grand total of ten people, got one out and that, strangely enough, was Alex Rodriguez.

Welcome to the Braves...I guess.

Yikes

-Joey Devine was bad enough. A tough price to pay for a guy like Mark Kotsay, who may not even give you 130 games. But you know, to pay $2M for Kotsay, it wasn't that bad. But to add Jamie Richmond, my tenth ranked prospect, is just a horrible situation. It just makes me sad.

-Elsewhere, the Richmond Braves will be no more. A sad day for Virginia sports, but Richmond's inability to get something done was the main problem here. There was no reason that Richmond couldn't have put together a plan for a new stadium that, while used primarily for the R-Braves, could also host college baseball tournaments and state high school baseball games. In addition, it would have clearly attracted a AAA All-Star game. But no...dumbass Richmond at its finest.

-The Braves have signed all but one of their arbitration-eligible players and only one of those signed got more than I suggested, which kind of surprises me. Teix got $12.5M, Gonzo accepted a slight raise after his injury ($2,362,500), Infante signed for $1.4M, and Yatesy settled for $800K. Not in the article, but Matt Diaz also signed for $1.225M. That leaves Rafael Soriano, who wants $3.4M and the Braves basically lowballed him with a $2.4M offer. Will likely settle in the middle ($2.9M).

-Wren made another curious move, sending Willy Aybar _and_ Chase Fontaine for Jeff Ridgway. I won't miss Aybar. I think he has a lot of potential, but after last season, a new city and new team could be of great use for him. But why now? Why include another guy who I included in my Top 30? And why settle for a non-prospect? Ridgway is a 27 year-old southpaw with three games of major league experience - all last year - in which he recorded one out and was charged with seven runs. For the math impaired, that's a 189.00 ERA. Yay.

This is the guy that cost two players? Ridgway might be a serviceable LOOGY, but wouldn't it have made more sense to, um, wait till spring training, see what Aybar could do, and then trade him? And why the hell did it also take Fontaine, who while a problem in the field with the glove, is a hitter? Seriously, I just don't understand this. Most will tell you...it's not a big deal. Losing these two have a minimal chance to hurt the Braves. But why sell low at any time?

-Finally, the trade of Aybar and the news that Omar Infante was hit by a pitch and might miss most, if not all of spring training, may open a spot on the bench for Brent Lillibridge. The way it's looking, if the Braves keep Thorman, something is really messed up since they couldn't have been bothered to find a spot for Aybar.

-Oh wells. Time to start a meet and greet with Ridgway.

Sunday, January 13, 2008

Financial Update

Since I went over a preview of the roster, here is an update on the money situation.

My first table goes over the eight players signed to a contract for next year. By and large, this is the big eight the Braves have to cover.









































PlayerSalary
Glavine, Tom8.0M
Hampton, Mike8.0M
Hudson, Tim13.0M
Jones, Chipper11.0M
Kotsay, Mark2.0M
McCann, Brian0.8M
Ohman, Will1.6M
Smoltz, John14.0M
Total58.4M


Alright, so $58.4 million already needs to be covered. Now, arbitration is where this becomes fun. Here are my estimates. My arbitration list is based on Marky Mark's column here. I'm leaving Kelly Johnson off because I do not feel he will gain Super 2 status, but including Omar Infante, who is arbitration eligible.


































PlayerSalary
Diaz, Matt1.4M
Gonzalez, Mike2.7M
Infante, Omar2.0M
Soriano, Rafael2.8M
Teixeira, Mark11.5M
Yates, Tyler0.8M
Total21.2


With the eight guaranteed contracts and the six arbitration estimates, the Braves are sitting at $79.6M. That number could easily rise if my estimates are conservative, which they likely are. It could get up closer to $85M, largely depending on Teix's contract for next season. The Braves still have to fill out the roster with 11 players. If we average $425,000 (slightly more than the minimum), we get $4.675M.

So, according to my best guess, the Braves are currently sitting on $84.275M with it possibly climbing toward $90M. Before the offseason, that $90M threshold was looked at as a possible destination. Looks like the Braves may reach it after all.

25 man roster...

Just spitballing here, but here is a preview of what is looking like a tight fit for next year's roster. Locks are in bold.

Rotation (5)
-John Smoltz, Tim Hudson, Tom Glavine, Chuck James, Jair Jurrjens, Jo-Jo Reyes, Mike Hampton

Bullpen (7)
- Rafael Soriano, Peter Moylan, Royce Ring, Will Ohman, Chris Resop, Tyler Yates, Phil Stockman, Blaine Boyer, Manny Acosta, Zach Schreiber, Jorge Campillo

Catchers (2)
- Brian McCann, Javy Lopez, Corky Miller, Brayan Pena

Infield (6)
- Mark Teixeria, Kelly Johnson, Yunel Escobar, Chipper Jones, Martin Prado, Willy Aybar, Scott Thorman, Brent Lillibridge, Wes Timmons

Outfield (4)
- Jeff Francoeur, Mark Kotsay, Matt Diaz, Brandon Jones, Josh Anderson, Gregor Blanco, Joe Borchard

IF/OF (1)
- Aybar, Thorman, Lillibridge, B. Jones, Anderson

I have 18 of 25 spots pretty clinched. I think Aybar, if healthy, is in and Thorman has a good shot of getting a spot because there is no true 1B after Teix on this team, though I think a 1B-only backup is really kind of dumb. I also think Brandon Jones has a damn good shot and of course, there is Josh Anderson. Would the Braves have five outfielders? Maybe if Diaz is the backup 1B, a position he has played in the past. It's what I think they should do, anyway. Anderson, Jones, and Aybar/Lillibridge. Oh, and I nearly added Javy, but I'll go along with this faux catching competition.

The Braves NEED some help in the bullpen. There ain't much out there, though. Looks like Wren can't think he's done yet.

Saturday, January 12, 2008

Ohhhhh, shitsticks!

According to...well, a multitude of sources, but let's just say...according to ESPN, the Braves are going to deal Joey Devine to the Oakland A's for Mark Kotsay and $5.325 million of the $8 million Kotsay is owed next year.

Now, here's the thing.

Mark Kotsay isn't that bad. He's not that good, but he's not that bad. He's so-so. In a Family Guy nutshell, Kotsay is best compared to purgatory. He could put some league average numbers, lately he hasn't. He used to be a solid defender, lately he hasn't been.

Kotsay is not wanted by other teams. Why would they bother, ya know? Most teams have center fielders by now.

So why the, and forgive me for saying, why the fuck would the Braves trade Joey Devine for Mark Kotsay?

Oh, the money yes. And maybe the Braves think Devine won't be ready to a major league contributor this season and he's out of options. But still...that's pretty weak reasoning.

Thanks Atlanta.

Now I gotta wish Jordan Schaffer gets good real quick.

Strangest Stat Ever

This from the TorontoSun.com -
Cambridge's Scott Thorman hit 11 homers for the Atlanta Braves this season and had the longest average homer in the NL at 409 feet

Ohhhh, the LAH. How the hell didn't that make it to the back of his baseball card?

Blaine Boyer Speaks!

Choptalk got Blaine Boyer to write a column for them. Apparently, they needed some filler. The column was then put up at the Braves site.

In general, a simple look at what Boyer went through injury-wise and how he is feeling right now. He says he'd be okay with starting or relieving. Actually, I think he wouldn't mind being the bullpen catcher the way his last couple of years went.

Friday, January 11, 2008

Mark Kotsay More and More Likely

According to DOB, it's nearly a done deal. DOB says he just talked to Kotsay and there will be an MRI and all that, but it looks like a mid-level prospect and the A's picking up a bunch of the check.

Liking it, Frank. Liking it.

(hattip to Bravestud at Chopnation for the link)

1:10 AM Update: The Braves official forum seems concerned it will be Joey Devine. I personally doubt it. I am thinking more along the lines of the players I included in the 21-30 top prospects. Gregor Blanco could be interesting to Billy Beane, but I think it will be J.C. Cuevas or Charlie Morton. Possibly Zach Schreiber or Moises Hernandez.

Another name I've read...Brent Lillibridge.

Ha.

By the way...

Mac at the uberly good BravesJournal.com has started his yearly player analysis. If you missed it, he started with McCann and is moving his way over the infield now.

Elsewhere, my second part of my prospect list is up here.

CF and other stuff

-Happy Friday to ya. Since Andruw Jones left, center field has remained a big question mark. Well, according to DOB, the Braves are possibly considering Mark Kotsay and Corey Patterson. I have spoke on Patterson often because I can't possibly fathom why people continue to talk him up when his career OBP is under .300. Not a typo, kids. Kotsay, on the other hand, is a perfect addition on paper. You look at what he brings to the table and while it won't aw you, it certainly will be productive.

.282/.337/.415 career, .264 career EQA, formally an above average CF.

The last three years have been trying for Kotsay, but he is obviously the best player for what he brings, for how long the Braves need to commit, and money invested (surely Oaktown would pick up half of the check or sent a grade B prospect to give the Braves some kind of compensation for Kotsay's salary). I am not saying I would do it...but dammit, I'm considering it.

-MLB Trade Rumors talks up Mike Cameron to the Braves. As I have said, I am back-and-forth on Cameron. He's not as bad as some make him, not as good as others make him. But he truly is a poor man's Andruw who is faster on the basepaths. Not a terrible direction to go. He also as a suspension over his head. Eiii...

-A couple of 2006 Braves signed new contracts. Marcus Giles, who spent last year with the Pads, signed with the Rockies for a measly minor league contract and spring training invite. Braves fans have spoke of Giles often with the steroid label. I think it is probably accurate, though he was one of my favorite Braves. It's pretty sad how his career has tapered off despite the fact he is just 29. Elsewhere, Chris Reitsma reups with the Mariners. Here's hoping he has success.

-Sean Livingstone of the USA Today penned a organizational report. There is literally nothing in this report that is all that interesting. But read it if you want a cheat sheet on everything you already know.

Saturday, January 5, 2008

Links A'Hoy!

Lots of random links since the beginning of the new year.

-The Herald Sun out of Australia has an article on Peter Moylan out. Your basic "God, this Aussie is ever so cool" article with movie references. Sorry Lauren, not much new info here.

-DOB talks about Braves FanFest and the players that will be, but also touches on Jeff Francoeur. Nothing really amazing, just a look back at Francoeur and nothing on a possible contract. I wonder if this season is the season Francoeur signs or drags it through arbitration first.

-Ohhh, a DOB reference _AND_ a Bowman one. Marky boy is out with a look at the Braves catchers. If Bowman is the propaganda specialist for the Braves, Javy Lopez is the backup catcher as I said. Some have commented that Javy's going to have to *earn* his shot, but even if he's outplayed, I believe he has it clinched.

While McCann is certainly an adept offensive catcher, he has room for improvement from a defensive perspective. His .987 fielding percentage ranked second-worst among NL catchers. In addition, only Milwaukee's Johnny Estrada and Colorado's Yorvit Torrealba had a worse caught-stealing percentage.

While I agree he badly needs to improve, what the hell does fielding percentage tell you about a catcher? I don't mind people not using stats or hating stats all together. But if you choose to use them, at least use reasonable ones. Caught-stealing percentage is decent, though you can't ignore the pitchers' impact on things.

Still, McCann's knowledge of pitchers allowed Braves pitchers to produce a 3.90 ERA when he was behind the plate. That figure ranked first among all NL catchers.

Ahjesus, not catcher's ERA. Pick a stat that tells you something ABOUT the catcher's ability, Mark.

-Scott Proctor's Arm, a blog on the Yankees, has this tidbit. "Matt DeSalvo also signed a minor-league contract with the Atlanta Braves." Baseball America confirms it. I'd do a Meet and Greet, but not a lot to meet. He had a couple of decent games with the Yanks last year, but is all guts no talent, it seems.

-Oh, my first ten prospects of my Top 30 prospect list is finally up at chopnation.

-And buh bye.

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

Congrats FJM

The great folks at FireJoeMorgan.com have won Busted Coverage's 2007 Sports Blog of the Year. Presidential elections never elect the right guys, but Busted Coverage got it right with this one. They beat the very solid Metsblog.com. I like to both of them...so...um, I am super smart.