Uggla Time : Atlanta Brave Preview
by Phil Gurnee on Sep 1, 2011 5:07 PM PDT
in Team Previews
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PrintWhile the Braves don't appear to have a chance to catch the Phillies, they are firmly entrenched in the drivers seat for the Wild Card, so a postseason berth in 2011 looks like a given. A few story lines to the Brave 2011 season.
- Dan Uggla was one of the worst hitters in baseball in the 1st half and one of the best in the 2nd half
- Heralded Jason Heyward was supposed to put his stamp on being on being one of the best young hitters in the game, instead he enters this series with more question marks then answers about his future.
- Rookie 1st baseman Freddie Freeman is fighting his teammate for ROY honors, and has been the best young hitter on the team, not Jason Heyward.
- Speaking of ROY honors Craig Kimbrel would seem to have this nailed down with his 41 saves and he might not even be the best pitcher in the bullpen, that honor might go to Jonny Venters, his outstanding setup man.
- The Braves have four full time pitchers in the rotation 25 years of younger and they are still loaded in AAA/AA with more pitching. I cannot recall any team having this much good young pitching in a long time.
1st Base - 21 year old Freddie Freeman is doing it all, mixing in decent plate discipline with some power. His .819 OPS may not overwhelm anyone but his offense is good for sixth place among full time NL 1st baseman.
2nd Base - Dan Uggla has been the best hitting NL 2nd baseman for the last two months with 18 home runs. A July wRC of 162 and August 191 punctuate this point. . His hitting streak was not some single a game but a plethora of extra base hits. From July 5th - Aug 13th Uggla belted out 20 XBH, including 15 long balls on his way to a triple stat line of .377 / .438 / .762 / 1.200 OPS. He increased his OPS from a dismal .568 to .763 which is hard to do when you already have 318 at bats under your belt. Must have been some sort of fireworks that he watched on July 4th, to set him off on July 5th. While he has slowed down once the streak was over, he did not go Andre on the league, he's still posting a plus .800 OPS since the streak.
SS - The Braves are not infallible, they did trade a good young SS with attitude problems for the worst full time hitting shortstop in the NL. Last year Gonzalez hit some home runs and this year has hit 12 but that does not make up for a .256 OB%.
3rd - Future HOF Chipper Larry Jones can still hit but he's in and out of the lineup so much it is hard to call him the full time 3rd baseman. If he does not play then Prado will take his spot.
C- Brian McCann is the best offensive catcher in the NL. You knew that.
RF - Jason Heyward has shown he can take a walk, he has shown nothing else in 2011. The future star is going to have to regroup next year and hope he shakes off his multitude of minor injuries to get reach the potential he showed in 2010.
CF - The Braves acquired Michael Bourn at the trading deadline from the Astro's and he's done what he does. Steal some bases, play great CF, not hit too much.
LF - When Chipper can play 3rd base, Martin Prado handles LF, when Prado has to play 3rd, then 27 year old rookie Jose Constanza plays LF. Prado does not hit much for a LF or 3rd baseman, at least not this year. Constanza has a .822 OPS in the major leagues which blatantly contradicts his career minor league OPS of .720.
Bench - Eric Hinske leads a solid bench that just acquired Matt Diaz to face some LHP. David Ross is still here as the backup catcher.
Starting Pitching - We will see the kids this series with 24 year old Brandon Beachy, 23 year old Mike Minor, and the old veteran 25 year old Jair Jurrjens. Jurrjens has had a rough August giving up over five runs in three of his four August starts. If you want to look at peripherals the kids are doing extremely well, Jair, not so much.
August Numbers:
| Name | ERA | xFIP | tERA | Siera |
| Brandon Beachy | 3.41 | 2.16 | 2.48 | 2.06 |
| Mike Minor | 4.03 | 2.62 | 3.62 | 2.54 |
| Jair Jurrjens | 6.17 | 5.76 | 6.85 | 5.93 |
Bullpen is outstanding with Kimbrel closing out any lead that Jonny Venters gives to him. Right handers Christian Martinez and Eric O'Flaherty get the ball to Venters. They even added 20 year old Arodys Vizcaino to make things even harder. I'm sure we will see George Sherrill pitch to Andre and Loney at some point. Andre and Loney are going to have a very hard time getting a hit against Sherrill and Venters in the 7th or 8th innings.
This is a good team, a team that is going to get better, a team that you will not come back from if the bullpen is given a lead. The offense could use some work and if Uggla hits the skids again they will have trouble scoring runs. I could see the Dodgers winning two of three if they can score early and ride the pitching of Kershaw to one victory on Sunday, and battle to a victory on either Friday / Saturday.
I guarantee one thing, they will not be swept by the Braves.
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Comments
Jair Jurrjens appears to have been scratched
I do not know at this time who is replacing him.
Patience is for those who die waiting for something to happen
They really don't have anyone that stands out to replace him
and Hanson is on the shelf for a little while longer.
Okay then, you have shot down my possible choices.
Patience is for those who die waiting for something to happen
Actually
Delgado seems to be the one, he started last weekend in AAA, he did not pitch yesterday on his regular turn so your choice of him seems to be a good one.
Vizcaino
just pitched yesterday for an inning, no way he is stretched out since he’s been in their pen for the last 3 weeks and only pitched 10.2 innings.
Delgado seems more likely, he has only made 2 appearances, 2 starts, the last one against the Giants a few weeks ago.
So basically this is good news for the Dodgers eh?
There's no need to fear, Underdog is here! / Broncos/Dodgers/Lakers fan in Niners/Raiders/Giants/Warriors country, and damned proud of it.
But what about all the folks who are aware* of the fact that Loney’s 1B defense makes up for his bat!?
*read “convinced”
by Taylor Maricle on Sep 1, 2011 5:16 PM PDT up reply actions
this is the best answer to Nolander’s query
by Hollywood Joe on Sep 1, 2011 5:19 PM PDT up reply actions
this is only the second best answer to Nolander’s query
by Hollywood Joe on Sep 1, 2011 5:19 PM PDT up reply actions
pretty good Phil, but the judgement window has closed
by Hollywood Joe on Sep 1, 2011 5:21 PM PDT up reply actions
I can give you this….
top notch work here, Phil. Quick, cruel, and current. nice
by Hollywood Joe on Sep 1, 2011 5:24 PM PDT up reply actions
Scoreboards
It's not what you look like, when you're doin' what you're doin'
It's what you're doin' when you're doin' what you look like you're doin'!
Because he can't pitch from that far away.
There's no need to fear, Underdog is here! / Broncos/Dodgers/Lakers fan in Niners/Raiders/Giants/Warriors country, and damned proud of it.
Has this been posted yet?
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-dodgers-mccourt-sale-20110902,0,3026247.story
Frank McCourt is offered $1.2 billion for Dodgers
The all-cash bid comes from Bill Burke, founder of the L.A. Marathon, plus Chinese investors and others, a letter sent to Frank McCourt says. Burke and a spokesman for McCourt have no comment.
McCourt can GFH, btw.
The bid terms proposed by the Burke group call for an all-cash payment to buy the Dodgers, all real estate related to the team and the team’s media rights, according to the letter. Attorneys for McCourt have said he could try to keep Dodger Stadium and the surrounding parking lots even if he sold the team.
by Taylor Maricle on Sep 1, 2011 5:20 PM PDT up reply actions
we are infected, it will not be easy to clean the virus
this might be the argument that allows me to hear the call of a downtown stadium, something up until this moment I have vehemently opposed
by Hollywood Joe on Sep 1, 2011 5:23 PM PDT up reply actions
Frank
needs to get hit with a bowling ball
by The Dude Abides on Sep 1, 2011 5:24 PM PDT up reply actions
I would pay a dollar to watch that
I would pay 5 dollars to bowl that
by Hollywood Joe on Sep 1, 2011 5:25 PM PDT up reply actions
What if the basic architecture of DS was retained, and of course NBH is still playing the new-DS organ?
cal. lakers. dodgers. packers. chelsea.
vols. rangers. galaxy.
ESPN
was worried about MLB Network more than NFL because of the day to day content and how MLB Network had no rights issues to games.
I remember once
someone writing that ESPN was providing a service the big sports could have provided themselves, and it was only a matter of time until the leagues realized this
espn also decided to start sucking major donkey juevos
by nolander on Sep 1, 2011 5:59 PM PDT up reply actions 2 recs
and once upon a time(not that long ago)
they sucked less
by nolander on Sep 1, 2011 6:02 PM PDT up reply actions 2 recs
IMO
NFL Network and MLB Network are much better products than ESPN. It’s almost non-stop highlights. During baseball season and football season, it’s my morning television watching.
NBATV is bad. They have some catching up to do.
by Michael White on Sep 1, 2011 7:45 PM PDT up reply actions
Bruce Feldman also left ESPN
He killed ESPN’s credibility on the Dan Patrick show today, basically saying ESPN is all business, less journalism.
I do want to see how Ren and Stimpy fare vs Cliff Lee.
There's no need to fear, Underdog is here! / Broncos/Dodgers/Lakers fan in Niners/Raiders/Giants/Warriors country, and damned proud of it.
by underdog on Sep 1, 2011 5:55 PM PDT up reply actions 2 recs
right? I always suspected Spongebob couldn’t hit a lefty, but now I’ll know this and if Matt Kemp can hit a Patty Mayonaise curveball
by Josie Becker on Sep 1, 2011 5:57 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
that is seriously hilarious.
also,i’m going to choose that that CGI Matt Holliday is getting hit in the balls.
At least Ren has the lefty-righty thing going for him:
Zim is the one who should be worried.
I played it a little bit at FanFest. It’s more complicated than some of the other baseball games on the market and I have no clue who 80% of the nowadays Nick characters are. I was playing against the “Diamondbacks,” which featured all cartoons except for, for some reason, Juan Miranda.
"It's supposed to be hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard... is what makes it great."
Thank God Dodgers were too broke to sign him.
There's no need to fear, Underdog is here! / Broncos/Dodgers/Lakers fan in Niners/Raiders/Giants/Warriors country, and damned proud of it.
Of our four “we know the Dodgers won’t sign these guys, but here is the case for signing them” guys this offseason, the results have been so bad. Crawford, Dunn, Werth. Beltre has been good but injury prone. Still, horrible first years for all of them.
Yeah for sure. Not to toot my own horn (because most of us thought this) but I remember thinking
Crawford is gonna be way overpaid, he’s mostly only reliable defensively, Dunn (I had NO idea he’d be nearly this bad but didn’t think he’d be worth it either, worried about his defense more than this bat though haha) and Werth I had a soft spot for but knew Dodgers wouldn’t afford him and he’d also be way, way overpaid. (Way? Way.)
Beltre, though, I always wanted to come back. Knew Dodgers couldn’t afford him either but sure did want him. Didn’t think about injury issues either.
But overall I still had no idea that group would be quite as terrible as they’ve been, it’s been drastic.
There's no need to fear, Underdog is here! / Broncos/Dodgers/Lakers fan in Niners/Raiders/Giants/Warriors country, and damned proud of it.
FWIW he’s been Carl Crawford minus 20 points of average since April.
Minor League Central @mlcentral @andrewngrant
Yeah I just kind of forgot about him, then saw him strikeout tonight and was shocked his numbers were still so low.
Carlos Beltran deal
Giants are 12-21 since he arrived.
To be fair, the Dodgers didn’t explode out the gate when Manny arrived, the Dodgers went 13-16 in August. But then a 16-5 run clinched the division in September.
Tuesday's losing pitcher, in his final warmup
Per Nathan Fenno:
That’s a night for #Strasburg. Final line: 6 IP, 1 H, O R, 4 K. Threw 71 pitches, 55 strikes. Topped out at 99 mph.
Dave Hansen - Super Genius for Dodger offensive woes
Through July 19th – 97 games 3.62 runs per game
Since July 29th – 39 games 4.8 runs per game
The Giants
have scored 99 runs in 39 games since July 19th. The next closest team to that number is still averaging a run better than the Giants.
If Dodgers fired Jeff Pentland, when will Giants fire (is it Bam Bam Meulens still?)
Note: Not necessarily endorsing idea that hitting coaches are that hugely important, but given how much worse the Giants have been even when compared to Dodgers…
There's no need to fear, Underdog is here! / Broncos/Dodgers/Lakers fan in Niners/Raiders/Giants/Warriors country, and damned proud of it.
The proposed $1.2 billion bid for the Dodgers was received with skepticism within Major League Baseball, where executives wondered whether the proposal might be used by owner Frank McCourt to stir negotiations with other potential buyers or to persuade a Bankruptcy Court judge to keep McCourt in charge of the team.
“There are questions within the sports industry about whether this is a genuine offer,” said one industry consultant who works extensively with MLB and other professional sports leagues.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/dodgers/2011/09/mlb-skeptical-of-12-billion-dodgers-bid.html
There is speculation within the Kavula community that it is complete BS, with a cherry on top.
magnae clunes mihi placent, nec possum de hac re mentiri.
quis enim, consortes mei, non fateatur
by Humma Kavula on Sep 1, 2011 10:02 PM PDT up reply actions
These Braves may look good
But on the other hand had they have not played the August august Dodgers! Then again——it is September—-never mind.
Regarding the 4 big free agent disappointments discussed above..
I’m sure I’m in the minority here, but I would be hesitant to sign Prince Fielder for the boatload of money he’ll get. Dude is fat.
by Freddy V on Sep 1, 2011 7:23 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs
Look at it this way, even if he dies when Mo Vaughn did you’re still getting five good years out of him.
Minor League Central @mlcentral @andrewngrant
For his size he still shows an insane amount of athleticism.
I’m not a fan of giving anyone a 7 or 8 year deal like he’ll get simply because one frak accident can destroy even the brightest of careers and in turn destroy a team because they’ll still owe that money going forward. That said, I think he’s more of a “sure thing” than any recent free agents. I see the 40 year old Albert Pujols falling off before Prince does.
Fielder, Pujols — in my book, you can’t go wrong either way. The way I look at it is… when Jayson Werth gets what he got, Pujols at $30 million a year is a bargain, and Fielder at whatever he’s going to get is an absolute steal.
magnae clunes mihi placent, nec possum de hac re mentiri.
quis enim, consortes mei, non fateatur
by Humma Kavula on Sep 1, 2011 10:04 PM PDT up reply actions
Not a bad consideration at all.
As big corners-First basemen age weight catches up fast. I remember George Scott. Of course Fielder is fairly young and used to being heavy. The worst thing is new found GOO—see Andruw and Uribe. Still I think you are right to be leery of any contract over 4 years for Fielder!
Even then those guys were productive at least until 32 or 33.
This isn’t as bad as the same freaking out when Miguel Cabrera was getting traded, but it’s the same principle, yeah he’s the size of a house, but he’s still well below the age where it starts catching up to people.
Minor League Central @mlcentral @andrewngrant
Two words
Fannies in seats.
Kemp/Fielder/Ethier would be a legitimately great middle of the lineup (cue someone telling me we’d have to trade Ethier to afford Fielder).
Even if the Dodgers trade Ethier, they can’t afford Fielder.
I have no idea if this is true, but if I say it like I mean it, it sounds true, doesn’t it?
magnae clunes mihi placent, nec possum de hac re mentiri.
quis enim, consortes mei, non fateatur
by Humma Kavula on Sep 1, 2011 10:06 PM PDT up reply actions
Well, $30 million/year is 3 Ethiers, isn’t it? why not spend that on something the Dodgers can afford? I’m not sold on Fielder being a savior. The team as it sits right now, minus our San Francisco savior, Uribe, is doing what I thought it could at the beginning of the year. If not for al the injuries and under-performance of some players, this wouold be the leader of this division.
Baseball is a game, and games are supposed to be fun.
I know people don't care about other people's fantasy leagues
But on the waiver wire of my league I see that somebody just dropped Jeff Francouer and added Juan Pierre.
Winning strategy.
Amazing
I mentioned during the game thread that Wisconsin was 35 point favorites tonight against UNLV. Final score: Wisconsin 51 UNLV 17. UNLV covers!!!
Chris (Los Angeles)
Still have hope in Chris Withrow? I’ve always had a man crush on him…
Klaw
(1:16 PM)
Still throws hard, but he’s not starting in the big leagues for anyone with grade 35 control. Might be a pen guy where you see if he can throw enough strikes when he’s just going all out for 20-25 pitches – or just get close enough that hitters chase.
Trayvon Robinson in the angels series
8 AB, 7 K’s
"Losing feels worse than winning feels good." -Vin Scully
They will have to get past Philadelphia (Fuck you, Ruiz) first.
Normally, I root for the underdogs, so I suppose some part of me will smile if Arizona beats Philly (Fuck you, Ruiz) or Atlanta beats Milwaukee, but really, Phillies (Fuck you, Ruiz) -Brewers will be a really fun series and I’ll be rooting hard for the Brewers and listening to Bob Uecker while I do it.
Oh, and by the way, Fuck you, Ruiz.
magnae clunes mihi placent, nec possum de hac re mentiri.
quis enim, consortes mei, non fateatur
by Humma Kavula on Sep 1, 2011 10:11 PM PDT up reply actions 3 recs
Stealing bases is useful
Bunting is not
by Taylor Maricle on Sep 1, 2011 10:28 PM PDT up reply actions
Short changing Bourn a little are we not?
I would change
“Steal some bases, play great CF, not hit to much.”
to
One of the best center fielders in baseball, Bourn Comfortably leads all MLB in stolen bases, provides strong center field defense, and gets on base at a high rate.
What the Hell?
I’m totally offended that plaschke wrote a column that makes sense and has whip in it. That really makes me sick.
And the two hottest teams in baseball are....?
;-)
(hint: Both are in the NL West! Okay, this is a gimme.)
There's no need to fear, Underdog is here! / Broncos/Dodgers/Lakers fan in Niners/Raiders/Giants/Warriors country, and damned proud of it.
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