Time once again to beware the Braves?
Posted: Thursday, February 28, 2008 3:38 PM
The Atlanta Braves a darkhorse? A team that won 14 division titles in 15 years -- the second-best run (which ended in 2005) in modern baseball history -- can’t be a darkhorse. But that is the word attached to the Braves this spring.
Yes, for the last two seasons they have finished third in their division, but in the balanced or mediocre – depending on your point of view – National League, they wound up only five games behind the NL-East-winning Phillies.
While Jimmy Rollins and Carlos Beltran engage in this spring’s verbal jousting about whether the Phillies or the Mets are the team to beat in the NL East, and Johan Santana becomes the most newsworthy addition to the divisional wars, the Braves are doing what they have always done -- going about their business quietly and professionally.
The Braves never talked. In my 22 years traveling around major league baseball, their clubhouse was generally the quietest I ever entered. It used to puzzle me until I got to know Tom Glavine during his years in New York. Glavine often related stories of how order was maintained in Atlanta, how veterans corralled Chipper Jones in his early years and then watched Chipper become the leader himself, how Bobby Cox missed nothing but always handled matters in private quarters. Thus the players knew what the press never heard or saw first-hand -- the strong hand of Cox.
So fast-forward to 2008 and the Braves have brought Glavine back to team with John Smoltz, resurrecting two-thirds of the 1990s best rotation. Mike Hampton is drawing rave reviews for his early throwing sessions. Now it’s hard to count on a 30-start healthy season from Hampton, but this is spring after all. It’s time to dream and if the Braves can field a Smoltz-Tim Hudson-Glavine-Hampton-Jair Juurjens rotation for the season, they will have depth unmatched by their main rivals. And remember health worries aren’t just in Atlanta -- the Mets are holding their breath about Pedro Martinez as are the Phillies about Brad Lidge.
Looking at center field for Atlanta will be strange with no Andruw Jones. But Mark Kotsay, while not matching Jones’ defense, will add a different offensive dimension. If his back holds up, Kotsay provides a solid bat that makes consistent contact and he is a tough out in late-game spots.
But the Braves have continued their tradition of plugging most holes from within. Last season right fielder Jeff Francoeur’s bat kicked in and not only did he hit for power but he began to slightly curtail his free-swinging ways. Brian McCann also proved a legitimate cornerstone player behind the plate. Forget the offense (.270 BA, 18 HR and 92 RBI), McCann received the ultimate catcher’s blessing from Smoltz.
Atlanta’s latest system product is shortstop Yunel Escobar, whose development was advanced enough to allow the Braves to move Edgar Renteria in the deal for Juurjens. There was some buzz from the Braves camp that Escobar would be the bait to bring back a much-needed pitcher. So now the promising Cuban must prove general manager Frank Wren’s decision to hang on to him a sound one.
Mark Teixeira was sick as a Brave (.317 BA, 17 HR and 56 RBI in 54 games).
There will plenty of motivation for Teixeira in this his walk year.
So what are the keys for the Braves to prove out as the NL’s darkhorse?
HAMPTON AND JUURJENS: If the veteran is healthy and the young stud is everything Detroit thought he would be, then the Braves have the deepest rotation in the division.
A CLOSER: After throwing Bob Wickman out the door despite holding on to faint postseason hopes (no greater example of Cox’s grip on this team), Rafael Soriano closed to mixed reviews. He is really the Braves’ best hope this year although Aussie import Peter Moylan had a quietly terrific year -- 80 appearances as a setup man holding righties to a .184 average. Mike Gonzalez continues his rehab from Tommy John surgery and probably doesn’t factor in until after the first half of the season. Regardless, the Braves fixed their bullpen after a disastrous 2006. Now they need that bullpen to take another step forward in order for them to contend.
LEFT FIELD: Can Matt Diaz produce as an every-day player? Or do the Braves keep speedster Josh Anderson, an offseason acquisition from Houston in a platoon? Either way, can the team get production from that position?
KOTSAY’S BACK: He is a perfect fit for the Braves if his balky back, which severely limited him last year in Oakland, cooperates. Kotsay could truly deaden the pain of Andruw Jones’ departure.
CHIPPER’S FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH: Another quiet standout, Chipper Jones’ 2007 was good enough to place him sixth in the NL MVP vote. It was Jones’ best year in the last five and he vowed this spring to stay healthy enough to improve one key stat: games played. The hallmark of the Braves’ winning teams was their lineup’s every day presence. Rarely was a “nagging” injury tolerated in Atlanta. Well, Jones has fallen from that standard for the last two years. This spring he has reset his goal at 150 games. If he reaches that, the Braves could be right in the thick of a September race.
