While it hovers over 30 here, people are playing baseball there

-Been a cold week at times for us Virginians, but alas, no one cares. Not even the weather Gods, who chose to surround Virginia with wintery mix, but never actually enter Virginia to give us some. Bastards.

-The Hattisburg American out of Hattisburg, Miss. is ready to call the NL East for the Braves. Jason Munz writes, "Braves over the Detroit Tigers in the 2008 World Series in six games." This is problematic because Munz, while he does write about the Braves to some degree, doesn't actually indicate the x-factor, the je ne sais quo that gets them over the hump. Just says there are reasons to be optimistic because the Braves have brought older people back. He does talk up Glav, but man, when did the quality start ever become some big number? This is monster cherrypicking in my opinion. A quality start is defined as six innings and three or less earned runs. This is nice, but it's hardly that noteworthy.

-McCann gets the DOB treatment with an article that while promising, seems to be regurgitated from last year. A year ago, the buzz was that despite such a huge year in 2006, McCann wanted to be a more complete player in 2007. I hope to see it this year and focusing on his diet/exercising might be a first step to getting better. To me, he just needs to work on his footwork.

-Speaking of Braves catchers, here is DOB again with an article on the faux battle for the backup catcher. This idea is to use Javy as a pinch hitter and Diaz as the emergency catcher. Now...that's going to be fun. I think as long as Javy stays healthy and doesn't completely suckass, he has the job. That's not a competition, though.

-THE MOST PROMISING part of the article was that Bobby said this. "Either way you go with the first two guys, it doesn't matter, with Kelly and Escobar." Aww, I love you again, Bobby. And shut up, Chipper. Mark Kotsay shouldn't be hitting second. You are a terrible manager!

-By the way, Chipper's mouth was yapping about the proposed two-horse race in the NL East. However, according to Chipper, the problem the last two years hasn't been pitching, Andruw Jones, or anything close. It's the fact that the Braves young guys don't have a "killer instinct." See, whereas Chipper's KI is worthy of a Hall of Fame induction, Francoeur and McCann just don't have enough KI to get the team to the next plateau. Kelly does, but he's Texan and its expected. Moylan doesn't because Aussies are not a war-loving people. Maybe Chipper should strap them down like they did that monkey in 28 Days Later and show footage of teams with lots of killer instinct until they are infected with enough KI to start a dynasty.

-Elsewhere, it seems the Braves are becoming the critics choice to be the NL East spoiler. In Macon, they also talk up how forgotten the Braves are, despite the fact they have been there the last two years and still retain beaucoups of hitting talent, not to mention a good pitching core that can compete with the better staffs in the NL.

-Speaking of pitchers...Matt DeSalvo is already impressing Bobby. You know Bobby...he absolutely loves those all-guts, no stuff pitchers. Jair Jurrjens is also getting a bit of play. First, the fantasy sports blog SportsJudge has a bit on Jurrjens being a bigger prospect than many might believe. I think that's accurate. His minor league numbers seem to give me the idea that he'll be a productive pitcher over the next dozen or so years. I don't think he will be dominating, but much like good pitchers, he'll be productive. Also on Jurrjens, here is a bit on him getting a shot with his favorite team. I didn't know he was from Curacao.

-If you need yet more info on Jordan Schafer, here you go. I really think he's getting blown up a bit too much, but maybe that's me desperately trying to keep my expectations low.

-Oh, the Braves East (Nats) signed Odalis Perez, who I believe becomes the first to complete the triangle with playing with the Braves, Braves West (Dodgers), and now Braves East. Congrats Odalis.

Busy week, ya know?

Baseball is finally getting fun again.

-Spring training previews are up and running. The Sports Network actually considers Chris Resop an addition to talk about. That's scary. Basic premise - Braves will improve this year because of the acquisitions of old Braves. Not that abnormal, I suppose.

-Elsewhere, Dugout Central has their very own preview. Much more informative and includes the very fun "The aforementioned Jurrjens could be getting starts as early as May, or whenever the annual Mike Hampton injury occurs." I'm glad we got such a joke as a starter. I think it's very fair to say that the Braves are, yes, headed in the right direction, but this might not be their year. Still not convinced that this staff is as deep and talented as people might think.

-Spring Training 08 has a theory that Matt DeSalvo is the best non-roster invitee to make an impact on the Braves. Consider the lists of NRI includes Javy Lopez, Jordan Schafer, and Brent Lillibridge, the choice of DeSalvo is a interesting one. I doubt he will get more than five innings myself.

-Here's a little didy about Josh Anderson. Is "didy" even a word? Not according to my spell check, but if it's not a word, than just what the fuck was John Cougar Mellencamp singing about? Didy isn't a word...ditty is, however. Learn something new every day.

-There's been a slew of Bobby Cox articles, mostly about his proposed retirement. Bowman and DOB both touch on it, so really, it's just one brain. I frankly think this is it and everyone is kinda in on it. There's that, "win one more for the Coxer" feeling to this season with Glav and Javy back in the fold. My sources tell me Sid Bream is coming out of retirement to compete with Thor for the backup first base job.

-DOB's article also said the Braves have brought back Damian Moss. You know he just wants to attach himself to Glav's hand again.

-Jayson Stark gave Glav his own article, too. A lot of people can't stand Stark, but I think he's merely a pompous ass and as one myself, I see a lot of pluses in that. But what the hell is up with that pic? It scares me.

Thing is...all the words in the world are worthless if Glav can't turn a few things on its head. He needs to prove that he do basically what he did two years ago. Drastically improve his K/9. Last year, it was 3.9. There is no amount of "well, take out those last few starts" arguments that avoid one truth. Glav was lucky to be having a "good" year until September. His defensive ERA also ballooned.

His projections are not promising. The Bill James ones are always the most positive, but his Marcel is just not good enough. 4.50 ERA, less than 100 K's, less than 200 innings. These things will keep Glav from being significantly helpful to the Braves, especially in the way Stark projects.

-DOB also talks up the Glavine subject, but he provides some other nuggets on Jeff Bennett, Mark Kotsay, and Jeff Francoeur. Bennett must have Bobby's support because he keeps getting mentioned. I'm dieting too so maybe I can be the fifth or "sixth" starter as well. Francoeur is blowing up and Kotsay has a beard. Thanks for the big time insight, DOB.

-Um...go Braves?

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.

Let's Meet (Again)...Javy Lopez!

OMG! It's Javy! Look at that butt! That's a tight butt.

Ugh.

Anyway, in case you were living under a rock with Jimmy Hoffa (tell the bitch he still owes $20 on the Cowboys/Giants game), Javier Torres Lopez signed with the Braves on a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training that was essentially the same kind of deals the Braves have given Julio Franco in the past. Here's an invite but you made the team before you even came to spring training. Shhh, it's a secret.

Javy spent last year sitting on his ass. Well, no, he was working out. Getting slender! Pilates, I bet. Maybe he has an eating disorder. Or maybe the steroids were wearing off. Who knows these things?

Javy had gone to the Rockies spring training, but they saw all they needed of their young one, Chris Ianetta. I think the spelling is right cause I ain't looking it up. They cut Javy, who was not so much in demand. Fancy that. What a fall from grace.

In 2003, Javy's last season with the Braves, he was voted fifth in the MVP running for one of the best offenses the Braves have ever had. He would have ranked in the top five in OPS had he had enough at-bats. He received a start at catcher for the All-Star game and his 43 homers are the best total by a catcher in franchise history.

He parlayed this into a three-year deal with the Orioles and posted a solid 127 OPS+ in his first year with the O's, but slumped the following year to 15 homers with injuries. The Orioles made a move for Ramon Hernandez and Javy spent most of his 2006 time with the Orioles as their DH. After a trade to the Red Sox, he was horrible as he tried to help them replace Jason Varitek, who had been hurt.

There was once a time where Javy was a poor man's Mike Piazza in the NL. But the shelf life of catchers is small and Javy is now in a position where he could backup the current franchise catcher for the Braves, Brian McCann. The chances are good provided he stays healthy because right now his competition is not much to write home about.

Corky Miller did a solid job, but has always and will always be a fringe player. Clint Sammons could use more time and Brayan Pena is a horrible defensive catcher.

Then again, so is Javy. He was never that good of a catcher and knee injuries really took him down. His steroid years saw him gain a little bounce back (kinda expect that), but once he got his contract and MLB testing became more prevalent, we saw his catching detoriate once again. Can't blame the O's for going for a catcher who can actually catch.

Now, where he is now is unknown. He could be a better defensive catcher simply because he is off the roids and has had a year to build up natural strength and agility. However, I don't expect much.

Another week in...

-The Mitchell Report still garners some attention. The House is planning more hearings and reporters are stealing my shtick. Gene Sapakoff of the The Post and Courier had this to say about the Braves.

Base On Balls: The Atlanta Braves. They received a free pass, with no current organization members named. But think of the Mitchell Report as a highway patrolman. Not every speeder on I-26 gets stopped, just the ones who zoom by active radar guns. Braves fans should be glad baseball's radar gun was pointed at the New York Mets clubhouse and not the one at 755 Hank Aaron Drive.

-As I said in my previous post, the lack of proof on the current Braves may have more to do with their location than anything.

-On the other side, a player not mentioned in the Mitchell Report suddenly got a deal after it. Javy Lopez, who we all suspected, signed a minor league deal with the Braves with an invitation to camp. And man, Marky Bowman skates around the suspected steroid usage, too.

The initial glance at the current Lopez could cause some to feel like they've ventured into the past. Gone is that bulky, muscular frame that he carried during his final years in Atlanta.

It has been replaced by that slender, athletic build that he possessed when he first introduced himself to Braves fans nearly 15 years ago.

-Gee Marky, I wonder why. You mean now that he isn't doing steroids, he suddenly looks more like a man and not like he was chisled out of granite? Wowzors, that's a new one there. How come writers have to do this? "Oh, he looks more slender and athletic than he did." That happens when you depend on more natural ways of playing a game that used to have a 35 years-of-age ceiling.

-A couple of former Braves caught on with new teams. Ron Mahay picked up $8 million over the next two seasons from the Royals. This one did not make a whole lot of sense, I gotta say. A one year deal for a reliever when you benefit more with trading him is sensible, but the Royals aren't going to be a frontrunner this year. Grabbing Mahay at that salary and committment is a bit much, Dayton. Elsewhere, The Supreme Nacho Burrito signed with Houston. Paronto never got a second chance in Atlanta after his demotion, which probably says something about his attitude.

-The Braves also picked up OF Joe Borchard on a minor league deal with an invite. I like this despite Borchard hitting .205/.284/.352 over 301 major league games. Always give a former major prospect under the age of 30 a chance if you are investing so little.

-Mark Teixeira had knee surgery. Nothing to see here.

-Finally, SI.com's Jon Weisman went over the best staffs in the NL and placed the Braves fourth behind the D'Backs, Dodgers, and Brewers.

• Above-average (6 points): John Smoltz, Tim Hudson
• Average to above-average (4): Tom Glavine, Chuck James
• Mystery (1): Mike Hampton
• Up-and-coming (2): Jair Jurrjens, Jo-Jo Reyes
• Below-average (0): Dan Smith, Jeff Bennett

Comment: Two keys to Atlanta's rotation, Smoltz and prodigal son Glavine, are each more than 40 years old, and Hampton hasn't pitched in a regular season game in more than two seasons. Jurrjens and Reyes are up-and-coming but unproven. And yet, as you'll see, this group qualifies as the best group of starters in the NL East.

-I'd say it's a fairly good study. I give him a lot of credit for not overranking Glavine and really lumping him with James, which makes sense. I still think we need a pitcher, but there is some depth here and that is a plus. Weisman ranks the rest of the NL East as such: Mets (8th), Phillies (10th), Marlins (15th), Nats (16th), I think the Mets and Phillies could both be pushed up 2-3 spots.