The Braves are headed to the post season, they will face the Giants on Thursday in a match up that is probably the most favorable they could have drawn. They scrapped, clawed and bled for Bobby Cox and will send him off in the post season.
In all statistical likelihood they never should have made it, Nate McLouth was a central offensive piece they were counting on and he was of little value to the team this season.
Kenshin Kawakami their solid number five starter from 2009 managed to only win one game, and has been relegated to bullpen duty.
Kris Medlin who was probably one of the most important pieces of the Braves first half is down for the season with a torn ulnar collateral tendon.
Chipper Jones their clubhouse leader and suddenly productive third baseman, torn ACL out for the year.
Martin Prado, arguably the most productive Brave this season is hampered by a broken finger and then a torn oblique/ hip pointer.
They probably shouldn't have made it this far, but they did. They are the resilient fighters of the NL East that refused to give up. They had surprise hero's in final at bats all year, they had rookies come through in the clutch, and refused to lose when it mattered most. Congratulations Braves, you earned it.
Expect a though fought series against the Giants, both teams are ready to prove themselves in the post season. Both have outstanding pitching staffs that will make every game tough on the offences, both have Rookie of the Year candidates and both have trouble scoring a lot of runs. My guess is it comes down to the final nine outs of game five and neither team scores more than five runs in any game.
On another note, I told a lot of people that I didn't know where I would stand on all of Frank Wren's acquisitions in the past year until the season was over. Now it's over, so I can safely give an opinion.
Resigning Tim Hudson for three years, good move I think he's a big reason they made the post season, and shows no signs of slowing in 2011.
Signing Billy Wagner to a one year contract, he's been the anchor of a dominate bullpen in a resurgent 2010 campaign two thumbs up.
One year deal for Takashi Saito, overall a good move. Wren didn't know what he had in Kimbrell or Venters at the time and Saito has been a great stabilizer for the team.
Troy Glaus get's a one year deal, I'll give Frank seven out of ten for creativity. He fulfilled a need and didn't pay much for 70+ RBI, Glaus's health issues were unfortunate, but given the price it wasn't a bad move.
One year deal for Eric Hinske, another shrewd move, his numbers aren't gaudy but he's a versatile player who knows how to win. Hinske's good luck charm effect may or may not have had an effect on getting Atlanta into the post season, either way he has helped win games.
Trading Javier Vasquez and Boone Logan for Melky Cabrera, Mike Dunn, and Arodys Viscaino. Wait and see, but okay so far. Vasquez has been abysmal for the Yanks, but the Melk man hasn't been all that great for the Braves either even costing them a couple of games with mental errors on defense. Mike Dunn has been fantastic since his call up and should factor into the Braves playoff plans. Boone Logan is also doing well for his new team so it's hard to say that the lefty reliever on either end was the big factor in this deal. The future of Viscaino is what will decide if this is a good move or a wash, he's been good when healthy and if he can remain so may factor into the Braves 2012 plans.
Claiming Christian Martinez off waivers, turned out to be a good move. He's been an effective long man out of the pen and has come up big down the stretch.
Trading Yunel Escobar for Alex Gonzalez, probably a good move for the team to make, Escobar had made it clear that despite his talent the Braves had no space for him in their future plans. Gonzalez has been good for the Braves and has further stabilized the clubhouse.
Trading three minor league pitchers for Derk Lee, Chipper Jones going down for the year made this acquisition necessary. The players the Braves gave up to get Lee are probably not going to be impact players, though they are intriguing prospects. How far the Braves go into the post season, and the future of the prospects are going to determine how good this deal was for Atlanta.
So those are my thoughts, take from them what you will. Make sure to tune in to the Braves, Giants game on Thursday at 9:30 ET on TBS.
No comments:
Post a Comment