McCarroll21
12-03-2007, 10:51 AM
Where do the Braves stand heading into Winter Meetings?
By: Josh McCarroll (http://www.braves-nation.com/forums/member.php?u=1) | Braves-Nation.com
For the last of our 17 off-season articles, we’re going to look at where the Braves stand heading into baseball’s Winter Meetings, which start today, December 3, 2007 in Nashville, Tennessee. This is the time of the year when your team should start coming together. Not saying that this is when a team will finish all their moves, but it’s the time to decide what you need to address and what is out there to help you do that.
Going into the off-season, I thought the Braves needed two starting pitchers, take a long look at the center field situation and strengthen the team’s bench.
One of those pitchers was set to be Tom Glavine, as it was very obvious that if he was going to pitch in 2008, it was going to be with the Braves. Frank Wren got Glavine and made another move to get Jair Jurrjens from the Tigers. Is that enough? I say no. I thought that Jurrjens was just going to strengthen the competition for the final spot in the rotation and the team would find one more guy to stabilize the rest of the rotation.
As it stands right now, the Braves are looking at Tim Hudson, John Smoltz and Glavine to head the rotation, followed by ... Chuck James and Jurrjens or Jo-Jo Reyes? With Hampton already suffering a setback in Winter League, do the Braves really want to throw their eggs all in his basket again?
So, what does Wren do to address the rotation? I have a few names in mind that may be good free agent candidates, and there’s always the trade market with Erik Bedard, Joe Blanton and Dan Haren ... but that’s too complicated to predict. My four possible solutions for the Braves are that of Bartolo Colon, Jason Jennings, Steve Trachsel and Jaret Wright.
Colon and Jennings are in the same boat, though Jennings may cost a little more because of his youth. Both of these pitchers are very talented, and before Jennings injury plagued 2007 season, he was probably looking to be the premier starting pitcher on the market this off-season. Both of these guys would be fairly cheap and an incentive laden deal may work out well for both parties. For Jennings, you may be able to attach an option at the end of the deal that vests if he meets certain innings pitched or games started requirements.
Trachsel is a name that I threw out there at the trade deadline and got blasted for it, but I’m willing to do it again. Steve Trachsel made $3.1 million in 2007 and could likely be had for $4 to 4.5 million on the open market. Trachsel is nothing spectacular, but he will give a team 160-170 innings out of the back end of the rotation and he is a veteran arm that a team could rely on. Like Tom Glavine, he’s moved back a few spots in the rotation over the past few years. Glavine was once a number one, now he’s a number three. Trachsel was once a number two or three, now he’s a number four or five. But all in all, you know what you’re going to get out of him and what more could a team want out of their number five than that?
Jaret Wright. Oh, the Jaret Wright saga. The Braves picked Wright up off the scraps and turned him into many million dollars worth of mistakes for the Yankees. Could history repeat itself? Could the Braves pick up Jaret Wright as a minor league free agent, invite him to major league camp and see him pick up enough stock to turn into a draft pick or two a year later? It’s worth the thought.
Now onto the center field situation. All the Braves need to know right now to answer the void in center is this: Is Jordan Schafer the answer? If Schafer is the answer, the Braves could conceivably use Josh Anderson in center for a month or two if it is deemed Schafer needs more time in the minors. If Schafer is still a full year away, they have to go get somebody. It’s not likely that they’ll be after one of the big free agents, but what about Bobby Kielty?
Kielty was on Eric Byrnes radio show over the weekend saying that all Kielty wanted was to go somewhere that he was going to be able to compete for an every day job and if he doesn’t get it, its fine and he will go to the bench. If there is a team out there with more open jobs in the outfield than the Braves, I’d feel sorry for them. If center field isn’t an option, but he performs well enough in Spring Training, he may be able to earn a platoon spot in one of the outfield spots and he is a switch hitter so Bobby would love him on the bench. If they decide that they need another outfielder but can’t get Kielty, or choose to not go in that direction, look for a trade coming up with Coco Crisp and David DeJesus at the center of the talks.
The Braves also need to go to Winter Meetings in search of a shortstop. They don’t want to go into the season with Lillibridge on the bench, Lillibridge needs to get at-bats somewhere so he can step in for Escobar should he struggle. Looking over the free agents, two names pop out to me; Alex Cintron and Mark Loretta.
Loretta is a player that I really like. I was hoping the Braves would sign him last year to battle Kelly Johnson for the second base job and backup the entire infield. Loretta’s versatility would also give the team a backup first baseman with the same stone as a backup shortstop and second baseman.
Cintron was released by the White Sox because they have a host of shortstops and infield type players and didn’t really need to pay him. He has a good bat, one good enough to step in and play for a middle infielder and play for limited time without much drop off, but not good enough to get 500 at bats. His glove is fairly decent, somewhat limited at shortstop, but he has played some second base and third base, as well. He would bring some versatility and another switch hitter on the bench should the Braves get him.
As we close up the off-season articles, I have to question whether Clint Sammons is mature enough to handle the backup catching job at the major league level right now. There’s no question that his defense is good enough to handle the job, but is his mind ready to only play 30-40 games? BGarrett7 has gotten me on the idea bringing in Michael Barrett. He’s a local kid, born and raised in Atlanta and with Paul Lo Duca, Johnny Estrada and Miguel Olivo likely to hit the free agent market, you have to wonder where Barrett fits in. Would he be willing to accept a backup job? That’s obviously something I can’t answer, but I can answer this question: What is a better situation? Michael Barrett sitting on the bench behind McCann or Clint Sammons? Which one would you trust more with a young pitcher like Chuck James or Jair Jurrjens?
By: Josh McCarroll (http://www.braves-nation.com/forums/member.php?u=1) | Braves-Nation.com
For the last of our 17 off-season articles, we’re going to look at where the Braves stand heading into baseball’s Winter Meetings, which start today, December 3, 2007 in Nashville, Tennessee. This is the time of the year when your team should start coming together. Not saying that this is when a team will finish all their moves, but it’s the time to decide what you need to address and what is out there to help you do that.
Going into the off-season, I thought the Braves needed two starting pitchers, take a long look at the center field situation and strengthen the team’s bench.
One of those pitchers was set to be Tom Glavine, as it was very obvious that if he was going to pitch in 2008, it was going to be with the Braves. Frank Wren got Glavine and made another move to get Jair Jurrjens from the Tigers. Is that enough? I say no. I thought that Jurrjens was just going to strengthen the competition for the final spot in the rotation and the team would find one more guy to stabilize the rest of the rotation.
As it stands right now, the Braves are looking at Tim Hudson, John Smoltz and Glavine to head the rotation, followed by ... Chuck James and Jurrjens or Jo-Jo Reyes? With Hampton already suffering a setback in Winter League, do the Braves really want to throw their eggs all in his basket again?
So, what does Wren do to address the rotation? I have a few names in mind that may be good free agent candidates, and there’s always the trade market with Erik Bedard, Joe Blanton and Dan Haren ... but that’s too complicated to predict. My four possible solutions for the Braves are that of Bartolo Colon, Jason Jennings, Steve Trachsel and Jaret Wright.
Colon and Jennings are in the same boat, though Jennings may cost a little more because of his youth. Both of these pitchers are very talented, and before Jennings injury plagued 2007 season, he was probably looking to be the premier starting pitcher on the market this off-season. Both of these guys would be fairly cheap and an incentive laden deal may work out well for both parties. For Jennings, you may be able to attach an option at the end of the deal that vests if he meets certain innings pitched or games started requirements.
Trachsel is a name that I threw out there at the trade deadline and got blasted for it, but I’m willing to do it again. Steve Trachsel made $3.1 million in 2007 and could likely be had for $4 to 4.5 million on the open market. Trachsel is nothing spectacular, but he will give a team 160-170 innings out of the back end of the rotation and he is a veteran arm that a team could rely on. Like Tom Glavine, he’s moved back a few spots in the rotation over the past few years. Glavine was once a number one, now he’s a number three. Trachsel was once a number two or three, now he’s a number four or five. But all in all, you know what you’re going to get out of him and what more could a team want out of their number five than that?
Jaret Wright. Oh, the Jaret Wright saga. The Braves picked Wright up off the scraps and turned him into many million dollars worth of mistakes for the Yankees. Could history repeat itself? Could the Braves pick up Jaret Wright as a minor league free agent, invite him to major league camp and see him pick up enough stock to turn into a draft pick or two a year later? It’s worth the thought.
Now onto the center field situation. All the Braves need to know right now to answer the void in center is this: Is Jordan Schafer the answer? If Schafer is the answer, the Braves could conceivably use Josh Anderson in center for a month or two if it is deemed Schafer needs more time in the minors. If Schafer is still a full year away, they have to go get somebody. It’s not likely that they’ll be after one of the big free agents, but what about Bobby Kielty?
Kielty was on Eric Byrnes radio show over the weekend saying that all Kielty wanted was to go somewhere that he was going to be able to compete for an every day job and if he doesn’t get it, its fine and he will go to the bench. If there is a team out there with more open jobs in the outfield than the Braves, I’d feel sorry for them. If center field isn’t an option, but he performs well enough in Spring Training, he may be able to earn a platoon spot in one of the outfield spots and he is a switch hitter so Bobby would love him on the bench. If they decide that they need another outfielder but can’t get Kielty, or choose to not go in that direction, look for a trade coming up with Coco Crisp and David DeJesus at the center of the talks.
The Braves also need to go to Winter Meetings in search of a shortstop. They don’t want to go into the season with Lillibridge on the bench, Lillibridge needs to get at-bats somewhere so he can step in for Escobar should he struggle. Looking over the free agents, two names pop out to me; Alex Cintron and Mark Loretta.
Loretta is a player that I really like. I was hoping the Braves would sign him last year to battle Kelly Johnson for the second base job and backup the entire infield. Loretta’s versatility would also give the team a backup first baseman with the same stone as a backup shortstop and second baseman.
Cintron was released by the White Sox because they have a host of shortstops and infield type players and didn’t really need to pay him. He has a good bat, one good enough to step in and play for a middle infielder and play for limited time without much drop off, but not good enough to get 500 at bats. His glove is fairly decent, somewhat limited at shortstop, but he has played some second base and third base, as well. He would bring some versatility and another switch hitter on the bench should the Braves get him.
As we close up the off-season articles, I have to question whether Clint Sammons is mature enough to handle the backup catching job at the major league level right now. There’s no question that his defense is good enough to handle the job, but is his mind ready to only play 30-40 games? BGarrett7 has gotten me on the idea bringing in Michael Barrett. He’s a local kid, born and raised in Atlanta and with Paul Lo Duca, Johnny Estrada and Miguel Olivo likely to hit the free agent market, you have to wonder where Barrett fits in. Would he be willing to accept a backup job? That’s obviously something I can’t answer, but I can answer this question: What is a better situation? Michael Barrett sitting on the bench behind McCann or Clint Sammons? Which one would you trust more with a young pitcher like Chuck James or Jair Jurrjens?