Talking Chop

The View From Your Seat

2010-03-16T02:29:23Z

Space Coast Stadium, Braves vs. Nationals, 3/15/10, 7:05pm, top of the first

This was the view from My seat actually. I got a great scalped ticked in row 5 for $11. I didn't get too many other shots due to the screen being in the way and messing up my camera's focus. The only other one I want to share is this one of Nate McLouth and Terry Pendleton chatting by the screen after Nate made an out in the first inning. They're actually talking while Jason Heyward is batting; I'm not sure if they're talking about him and if TP is using Jay-Hey as an example for Nate -- that would be crazy -- or if it was just a coincidence that they were talking during his at-bat.

Nate did look better in his second at-bat, in which he drove the ball all the way to the center field wall. Still, he couldn't find a hit tonight. Martin Prado looked good with a line-drive homerun in the first, and Brian McCann took the hardest hit 0-fer on the night. Derek Lowe was the real champ, he was essentially perfect through four innings of work, and he had the strikeout working both called and missing bats. Now if only he can do that every time out...

My Latest FoxSportsSouth.com Post

2010-03-16T02:27:55Z

My Latest FoxSportsSouth.com Post

Just a reminder that I'm still posting regularly over at FoxSportsSouth.com. They will have the game tomorrow and I'll be in and around the clubhouse. We shot a promo today that they may use on the air tomorrow. It involves me talking to the FSS beat reporter this spring, Pete Williams, and the camera moving around us. I'm wearing the bright blue shirt (and filling it out quite nicely, thank you) with the sun glasses while trying to hide the lovely cold sore on my lip (great time for them to be putting me on TV, right!). Should be a fun game tomorrow, check in here often and on FSS for "insider" info.

Spring Training Open Thread: Braves at Nationals

2010-03-15T20:24:10Z

I'm about to pick myself up off the couch and make the drive to Viera to see the Braves take on the Nationals. I'm worn out from a full day in the Florida sun -- that stuff will drain you, and I tried my best to stay in the shade (being the pasty white boy that I am).

I'm excited to see Jason Heyward, who will be in the lineup tonight. I'm less excited to see Derek Lowe, who will be on the mound. I'll once again be sending some pithy updates via Twitter, so make sure you open up my twitter page and refresh often, or check the right sidebar of Talking Chop, where my Twitter feed auto-updates. Really, I won't have too many comments, just enough to make it interesting. I'll also try to once again take plenty of pictures and get back in time to post them suckas.

The Nationals, by the way, are win-less this spring -- 0-for-freaking-10. I know spring records usually don't mean anything, but that goose egg has to start gnawing at the Nats at some point. Let's hope the Braves don't help them out tonight.

Day at Braves Spring Camp and Peter Moylan is Awesome

2010-03-15T19:49:33Z

It was an early morning for me at Atlanta Braves spring training camp, as I got up early to watch some of the action on the minor league fields. I ran into TC regular rbravesfan as well as Bill Shanks and the G-Braves radio announcer Tony Schiavone. The players were in full drill mode, so there wasn't much standing around and idle chat time.

The minor leaugers got done early so I headed over to the major league fields. Below is a photo recap of my morning and afternoon, with a a lot of that crazy Peter Moylan.

A bunch of minor league pitchers huddle up before a workout. Van Pope is actually among them... yes, he is now a pitcher, and he will apparently start the year at Myrtle Beach.

Little Jonathan Schuerholz, who is now a coach with the Braves, talks with the elder Jon Schuerholz and Braves GM Frank Wren.

Kris Medlen and Peter Moylan arrive at the park... and already look like they're up to something.

Peter cracks up Med.

Med's like a little kid.

Matt Diaz apparently has not yet found a bat to his liking.

Billy Wagner prepares to talk with Hazel Mae from MLB.com's 30 Clubs in 30 Days, but of course Peter Moylan has to get a few words in.

Moylan popped out of the dugout when they needed someone to turn the DP at second when Chipper and Glaus were practicing.

Turning it like a pro.

Medlen was in good spirits throughout the afternoon.

Matt Diaz was also in good spirits.

Chipper Jones and Troy Glaus talked for a long time about making that throw to first on a ball that the third baseman has to come charging in on. The two of them hang out a lot together. They were paling around at yesterday's Astros-Braves game and they spent pretty much the entire practice time today working together.

Moylan cracks up Lee Hyde and some other player during workouts (of which Moylan didn't do much of).

Moylan still working out his mouth instead of his body.

That right there is Scott Proctor, who threw quite a few pitches off the mound, and looked good doing so.

A bunch of players, including Tommy Hanson, signed for the fans after the workout.

The game is tonight against the Nationals in Viera. I'll make the hour-long trek over there, though don't shoot me if I don't stay until the end. I've got a long day tomorrow, as I'll finally have press access and will hopefully have some solid information from the clubhouse.

Braves Make First Spring Training Roster Cuts

2010-03-15T18:31:21Z

Via a press release:

The Atlanta Braves trimmed their spring roster by 13 players today, optioning seven players and re-assigning six others. Right-handed pitchers Stephen Marek, James Parr and Todd Redmond were optioned to Gwinnett (AAA), along with left-handed pitcher Lee Hyde. Right-handed pitchers Juan Abreu and Kyle Cofield and left-handed pitcher Jose Ortegano were optioned to Mississippi (AA).

The six players who were re-assigned to minor league camp include right-handed pitchers Erik Cordier and Chris Resop, left-handed pitcher Mike Minor, catchers Braeden Schlehuber and Jesus Sucre and outfielder Cody Johnson.

Atlanta now has 44 active players remaining in its Major League camp.

No real surprises here. Cofield had opened some eyes, and Cordier was having a good spring, but I imagine for most of those guys they need to get working on preparing themselves for the rotation.

Noticeably absent from these cuts was Craig Kimbrel and Jeff Lyman.

Notes From Braves Minor League Camp - 3/14

2010-03-15T03:58:26Z

Today was my second and, unfortunately, final day at the Braves complex in Orlando and I was once again fortunate enough to spend my time at the most magical place in Florida; no, not Disneyland, the Braves Minor League facility. Today was the first full day of workouts, where every player who will be present in this year's Spring Training, was in uniform and working out. Unfortunately, it wasn't exactly a full workout because the dual road game split squad scenario with the Major League team led to around twenty-five of the Minor League players being taken on the road. Of course, that was fortunate for the guys who got to go and experience Big League Spring Training, most of them for the first time. Like yesterday, I was really just an extended session of BP and PFP, so there's only so much I could glean from things, but I'll share what I saw, and can remember.

One of the most interesting conversations I had all day was with the Braves' Director of International Scouting, Johnny Almaraz. He was incredibly friendly, as all the Braves front office folks are, and very proud, rightfully so, of the work he and his scouts have been doing at bringing top international talent to the Atlanta organization. Because so many of us here at TC have been curious about him, I asked Almaraz about left handed pitcher Andy Otero, who dominated the Dominican Summer League as a 17 year old last season. Otero wasn't in camp; Almaraz said that he and the rest of the international players who aren't in camp, and are likely to end up with a short season team, will arrive in Orlando April 9th to take part in Extended Spring Training. I asked what type of pitcher Otero is and Almaraz said, "he's a great pitcher" and "he has an unhittable curveball". I guessed that Otero was slight of frame, but Almaraz corrected me, calling him "stout" and adding, "he's going to end up being like Mike Hampton as far as his body goes." I know, I screamed inside my head when I heard him mention Hampton, but what he was really saying is the kid is a pretty solid athlete. So, I think it might be worth getting even more excited about Andy Otero.

The new batting helmets that the Minor Leaguers are now required to wear are ridiculous. I had this strange feeling the whole first day out there that the hitters all looked strange, but I couldn't put my finger on it until I got back to the hotel and looked at my pictures. The helmets are comically huge and they really do make everyone look like a bobble head. Ironically enough, a few of the players told me the helmets are actually a lot more snug than the old ones, maybe even too snug.

I'd never seen the players so split up before. All the infielders were on one field taking grounders, the catchers and outfielders were on another, running their drills at home and in the outfield respectively, and the pitchers were rotating between doing PFP on two different fields and running bunting drills in the cages. It takes a good amount of time to run so many drills with so many players and the Braves were incredibly thorough with each guy, taking balls straight on, to the left and right, and over their heads. One of the intersting things about the PFP was that if the coach hitting to the pitcher was able to get the pitcher to miss the play, the player had to run a lap around the field. What's more, he had to choose another player to run with him, which was a pretty good incentive for all the players to push each other to field well and not make dumb mistakes or lose focus. I'm sure there were other things like this going on, but that was the only one I was made aware of.

Today was the first day of throwing live BP for all the pitchers and everyone I saw looked pretty good. I got a great look at a few of the young foregin players, including lefty Carlos Perez and righty Robinson Lopez. It was very obvious that both of them were working on things, heck, they just got back into the country yesterday, and this was their first time throwing this Spring, but their talent was also very obvious. Anyway, I was able to get this great shot of Lopez:

Arodys Vizcaino is getting lessons in the Braves' way on and off the field. The Yankees organiztion doesn't exactly pride itself on being fan friendly and I had heard some talk that Vizcaino hadn't had the best relation with the fans so far in his career. What I'd seen of him sort of confirmed this, as he did sign a few things for the handful of folks who actually knew who he was, but didn't seem very happy about it. He's been spending all his time with Julio Teheran and it appears Teheran is taking it upon himself to make Arodys more like a Brave. At the end of the day the guy I'm traveling with asked Teheran to sign a small stack of cards (ok, it was a fairly sizeable stack of cards, my friend is a little nuts with the autographs), Teheran is one of the nicest and fan friendliest players you'd ever want to meet, so he had no problem doing it. But, before he started signing, he hollered at Vizcaino, who was slinking away when he saw my friend start talking to Teheran, to come over. They had a quick conversation in Spanish that amounted to Vizcaino saying, "All those? Crazy", with Teheran's response as "Shut up". Teheran proceeded to spend a good ten minutes slowly signing the cards while Vizcaino watched in silence with dumbstruck amazement. It was an impressive show of leadership on Teheran's part, particularly if you realize that if he's that willing to set a player straight for something as trivial as signing autographs he's going to go to unparalleled lengths to set them straight with on field issues.

I did spend a little bit of time over at the Major League field in the morning and was fortunate enough to meet Mike Minor. He seemed like a nice kid and actually a little bit awestruck of his whole situation. I'm really looking forward to getting a chance to see him pitch at some point in the Minors this year, because I believe he's a lot better than folks are giving him credit for. It was nice to see Tim Hudson spend about fifteen minutes giving an impromptu coaching session to Minor, Mike Dunn, and Erik Cordier. Huddy knows his stuff and has no problem helping anyone smart enough to listen to what he has to say. Fortunately, the Braves constantly go after high quality people and these guys were smart enough to pay attention:

When I tell people I'm going over to Minor League camp I get a lot of condescending looks and responses, and I always chalk that up to a huge amount of ignorance. Frankly, the Minor League side of the complex is a lot more fun and interesting than the Major League side, and it's not like you can't get some Major League flavor over there. The Braves have several coaches, including Leon Robers, Sixto Lezcano, and Lynn Jones, who had substantial Major League careers, and every now and then you see some special guest come over, such as Hall of Famer and Braves legend Phil Niekro:

I know he looks old and grumpy in this picture, but Nucksie was actually incredibly nice and was very friendly to the few fans who were back there. The card he signed for me instantly became one of my favorites in my entire collection. I wasn't sure if his nephew Lance was still attempting to pitch with the Braves, so I asked but apparently Lance wasn't asked back and won't be playing this year. Knucksie spent about thirty minutes talking with a large group of pitchers, all of whom were listening with rapt attention, rightfully giving the man the respect he deserves. Not only was the talk edifying, it was just plain neat for the players. As David Hale told me, "I'm going to call my dad right now!"

My Spring Training trip will continue for another nine days, but unfortunately I won't be around the Braves' complex any more. It's all downhill from here, because nobody can come close to beating the Braves. When I get all the way back home and get my pictures straight I'll make up a nice post with a lot of fun stuff.

CB Wilkins is the author of the baseball novel Four-A.

Braves at Astros 3/14: Photo Game Recap

2010-03-14T22:38:49Z

It was a delightful day at Osceola County Stadium as the Braves took on the Astros. If you liked offense, then this was the day for you as both teams pounded out a combined 30 hits, and Brian McCann had two homeruns. I'll try and re-tell the game story with the photos I took.

The first photo below is a batting practice photo showing some of the Minor League guys. From left to right are Eric Duncan, Robby Hefflinger, Mycal Jones, Matt Kennelly, some unknown player, and Donnell Linares. I love this shot because of all the high uniform numbers -- truly something you only see at spring training.

The unknown guy never got in the game, so I never found out who he was. Hefflinger was another guy without his name on the uniform, and I was remarking at who the big guy was when this older man sitting behind me said, "that's my son." I struck up a nice conversation throughout the game with Robby Hefflinger's father and girlfriend, who were both thrilled to watch their son get a hit.

Here is the "View From My Seat," Osceola County Stadium, Braves at Astros, 3/14/10, 1:05pm, top of the first

George H. W. Bush (#41) was in attendance watching the Astros. Barb is to his right.

Kenshin Kawakami looked good for a few innings, then looked like donkey in the fourth. Of course, that inning was helped along by a Donnell Linares Buckner-esque error on the first batter, then an infield single. He kind of unraveled after that, and couldn't get the final out. I still think it was a fairly good day for Kawakami.

Troy Glaus is a monster, and looked good at the plate.

Omar Infante hit everything in sight today, and looks to have pulled himself out of his spring training funk with a 3-for-3 day. I didn't take any pictures of Nate McLouth, but he looked downright awful in his at-bats, putting down a bad bunt and then striking out twice and looking totally over-matched.

Roger McDowell pulled KK in the fourth and brought on...

Manny Acosta, who promptly coughed up two back-to-back homeruns -- and they weren't cheap homeruns either, they were both crushed.

Brian McCann hits his second of two homeruns.

Jonny Venters got in the game and looked fantastic about 90% of the time -- the other 10% he looked pretty wild, but that's a big improvement for him.

Eric Duncan has an interesting swing. I believe he corkscrewed himself into the ground on this one, of course, he could have been in pain, as you can see the ball about to hit off his foot.

Mycal Jones looked fantastic in his two plate appearances, which both resulted in hits.

Robby Hefflinger scorched a hit in his only at-bat. He looks very comfortable at the plate. He also hit a mammoth batting practice homerun... I feel extra-good about him as a prospect after today.

Hefflinger at first base next to Glenn Hubbard. As you can see, Heff is a huge kid.

Chris Resop pitched a couple of innings and wiggled his way out of trouble in each.

Wes Timmons was hit by two pitches and struck out to end the game.

And the final pictures below are of Craig Kimbrel and his funky delivery.

I hope you enjoyed my photo game recap. I'll be at the minor league fields tomorrow morning, and then at the game in Viera tomorrow night.

Spring Training "Split Squad" Open Thread: Braves at Blue Jays and Astros

2010-03-14T15:03:36Z

Today is the only split squad game of the spring for the Braves. For the uninitiated, a split squad is where the team takes half of their players one place and half another place. Usually one of the games is a home game, but this is the rare away-away split squad.

I'll be taking the long and stop-lighted drive down Irlo Bronson to Osceola County Stadium to take in the Braves at the Astros. No, I did not want to drive two hours each way to the Gulf Coast; not after the 7 hour journey from Atlanta yesterday.

I'll be watching Kenshin Kawakami take the mound, followed by Manny Acosta, Michael Dunn, Jonny Venters, and Craig Kimbrel. Had I chosen to go to Dunedin and see the Braves take on the Blue Jays, I would be watching Kris Medlen, Stephen Marek, James Parr, Juan Abreu, Kyle Cofield, and Lee Hyde.

I'm gonna hit the road and hopefully get a good ticket. I may tweet some updates from the stadium, or I may try to mobile comment, we'll see.

Notes From Braves Minor League Camp

2010-03-14T04:32:42Z

The Braves newest prospect, shortstop Edward Salcedo, made his first appearance in a Braves uniform today.

View full size photo »

Today was my first of two days at the Braves Spring Training complex in Orlando and I spent the whole day at my favorite place in the world, the backfields that comprise the Minor League complex. It was kind of an odd day because the players were getting their physicals in the morning and didn't start their workout until around 1 pm, which is usually about when they're wrapping things up. Also, about half of the Minor Leaugers don't report until tomorrow, which is the first day of full squad workouts, so the fields were much more sparsely filled than I'm used to seeing them in Spring Training. The workout was pretty light, consisting of a few rounds of BP and some PFP, although apparently the pitchers got worked out pretty hard by the strength and conditioning coordinator, so there wasn't much to really comment on, but I'll pass along what was interesting. At least what I can remember of what was interesting.

Today was the first day that Edward Salcedo worked out with the team, possibly the first day he's been in the United States after signing the largest contract the Braves have ever given an international player. I was very surprised to find that Salcedo is fluent in English; you almost never meet a young man just over from the Domincan Republic who can speak more than a few words of English and I kind of embarrassed myself by greeting him in halting Spanglish. Fortunately Salcedo appears to be a Braves kind of player, otherwise known as an outstanding human being, and he didn't give me a hard time about it. He took all his grounders at shortstop, which is where he'll play, and looked very smooth out there in the little bit of infield practice I saw him take. It was hard to take too much out of his one round of BP, but he did have a bunt that would have been an easy single, seems to be able to smoke the ball up the middle, and has a fair amount of easy pop off his bat.

All the pitchers I talked to who were hurt and missed all of last season, including lefties Steve Kent, Brett DeVall, and Chad Rodgers and righty Dustin Evans, said they were 100 percent and throwing well. This could always be a bit of what royhobbs calls ITBSOHL, but I trust these guys enough to believe that they'll all be ready to go when the season starts, which is great news because each of those four is a legitimate prospect.

I actually got to talk to Jordan Schafer a little when he came over to visit the trainer's room. It doesn't sound like his wrist has healed in the way he'd hoped it would, but he's doing everything he can to help it get better, including making sure that he follows his doctors' advice to the letter. As always, Jordan's determination and positive attitude are blatantly impressive, so I'm really looking forward to seeing him healthy again.

As I said, there was only a bit of a workout and it wasn't that long, so there wasn't much else that really stood out. So, basically, nobody looked bad at routine drills, which is a good thing. Oh, and Kyle Rose is crazy fast. Like insanely fast. Hopefully I'll get to see some more in depth action tomorrow with the full squad workout. And since I know you all love pictures of our Braves, especially our new Braves, here's a shot of Arodys Vizcaino:

CB Wilkins is the author of the baseball novel Four-A.

The View From Your Seat

2010-03-14T01:25:00Z

Champion Stadium, Blue Jays vs. Braves, 3/13/10, 2:15pm, top of the fifth

Spring Training Open Thread: Blue Jays at Braves

2010-03-13T17:00:45Z

I'm en route to spring training today, making the long hard drive down I-75 to Orlando. It looks like the rain has left the Disney area for the upcoming week, so I'm excited for warm weather finally. Maybe I can bring it back to Atlanta in a week.

I'm too early to know the batting order, but I do know that Tim Hudson will be on the mound for the Braves.

Things Read in Other Moms' Basements - Around the NL East 03.13.10

2010-03-13T15:30:23Z

Spring training is in full swing, and with some regularity, we're seeing some actual baseball again. Box scores, game recaps, and player assessments are running afoul, and in less than a month now, we have real, meaningful baseball again. I'll be honest; ST trips don't intrigue me as much as regular, or dare I say it, post season trips do, which is why I've made such little effort to make my way down to Florida. But with all the excitement in the air, the stories and happenings all around the baseball world, and some of you folks having fun down in Florida, I have to admit that I'm enviously wishing I had the means to jet off to Orlando and just drive around and absorb as much baseball as I can, so that being said, maybe in future year I'll do such.

Now if it would just stop thunderstorming, I would say that this is a wonderful time of the year to be a baseball fan, but regardless, it's not going to stop Things Read in Other Moms' Basements, your look at links from the other teams in the National League East division, from happening every Saturday as we have it.

Jose Reyes does indeed have thyroid problem - MLB.com
This is unfortunate news for Reyes, the Mets, and their fans. Until further notice, Reyes is on the shelf until doctors can find out the best way to handle his overactive thyroid. It's one of those scenarios where he feels fine, and is itching to get back onto the field, but it's not until he exerts a lot of physical activity in which it could begin to hamper him. I was hoping that this wasn't the case, because regardless of whom he plays for, he's always a fun player to watch. But alas, since this is the Mets, it's never this simple - Jose Reyes claims he doesn't have a problem. Sigh. Admission is the first step to recovery. He'll be out anywhere from 2-8 weeks, and likely miss the opener.

Not a Rookie - Daniel Murphy - Minor League Ball
This is kind of why I like doing TRIOMB, because I'm genuinely learning more about other players. Based on pretty much my exposure to Murphy being only when the Braves play the Mets, I often just thought how overrated he was. He was often times an easy out, and his defense has led to at least two come-from-behind victories for Atlanta to my recent knowledge, but apparently, he's not bad when playing everyone else, according to John Sickels who points out his adequate career line, plus fielding, and positive UZR rating.

Goose Gossage calls K-Rod a clown - NY Daily News
Ahh, New York. In this link, is a brief mention of how HOF Goose Gossage calls K-Rod a clown for all his excessive celebration after he converts a save:

"I don't think there is any place for it in the game. You respect that other team."

How does K-Rod handle being criticized by a HOFer? By acting like he has no idea who he is:
(via Amazin Avenue)

"I have no idea who he is,"

K-Rod likely to go back to wearing glasses - MLB.com
Due to the pinkeye, contact lenses are currently not an option for Mr. Celebration. That being said, it looks like Rodriguez is going to have to go back to the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar glasses, like the ones he wore with the Anaheim Angels all those years ago.

Kyle Snyder signs with the Mets - Mack's Mets
(via Amazin Avenue)
Typical journeyman four-A pitcher (who has a ring) signs with the Mets to fill out potential arm space. He can start or relieve, and has done plenty of both throughout his tenures with the Royals, Red Sox, and most recently, the AAA Buffalo Bisons.

Sandy Koufax can't even help Oliver Perez - Metstradamus
Despite the advice given to him by the legend, and being ITBSOHL, Perez still gets shelled. Sure, it's just ST, but it's still amusing to cry foul so early, as it pertains to the Mets.

The Weakest Link - MetsBlog
All that off-season training out in Arizona, the ITBSOHL, and advice from Sandy Koufax, and people are still saying this kind of stuff. The sky is also blue, and human beings need oxygen to live.

Who's running the show? - FanGraphs
(via Amazin Avenue)
As it stands, nobody is necessarly sure where prospect Jenrry Mejia is going to start, whether it's going to be in Double-A as a starter, or on the big-league club, as a reliever. The decision is apparently Jerry Manual's, with Omar Minaya kind of nodding his head in the background, when it should kind of be the other way around, like most baseball clubs operate. Lots of comparisons to Neftali Feliz, David Price, and Joba Chamberlain as examples of ways to and not to bounce to and from the minors in different roles.

Double Standard? - Section 518
(via Amazin Avenue)
Mets fan gripes about the double standard of Jesus Sucre's walkoff blast and subsequently getting mugged at first base in a Spring Training game, compared to the excessive celebration flag that was thrown when Robin Ventura was mugged at first base after winning the 1999 NLCS in extras innings with a grand slam single. There's a pretty huge difference between pre- and post-season...

Spring Training BINGO - Lookout Landing
(via Amazin Avenue)
You see this? This has lasting power. This deserves to be published every spring training from now on.

Catcher Omir Santos hits inside-the-park grand slam against Nationals - MLB.com
I'm not sure who should be laughing at this more - the Nationals, laughing disgustedly, at Willy Taveras arguing with an umpire over a ball being a ground-rule double which allowed for this to happen, or the Mets, giddily giggling at the fact that a backup catcher just hit an inside-the-park slam.

Omir Santos drawing interest from Orioles and Rangers - Mets Blog
And speaking of Santos, two teams are reportedly interested in him. Likely for a backup role, since the Rangers have both Jarrod Saltalamacchia (remember him?) and Taylor Teagarden, and the O's have one of the many Jesuses in baseball, in Matt Wieters where is your god now.

One good outing prompts Jerry Manual to consider A-baller to 25-man roster - MLB.com
Sure, he got Hanley Ramirez and Dan Uggla retired in the process, and I'm pretty sure this is more one of those confidence-building power plays, but it doesn't change the fact that it's still just an ST game, and it sounds silly to us basement dwellers.

Are they really "Los" Mets anymore? - Mets360
(via Amazin Avenue)
When I made my veiled comment last week, I was aware of the ethnic tide gradually changing over in Flushing, but here's an article stating it officially.

Jesus only needs 27 pitches to complete two perfect innings in ST debut - MLB.com
Two hits, four groundballs, two strikeouts, one of which was Miguel Cabrera, for Stephen Strasburg's first encounter with live ML opposition. Set him up like a wind-up toy, with two off-speed pitches, followed by a heater he couldn't catch up to. Cabrera describe's Jesus's fastball:

"like an explosion."

I haven't seen this many cameras at a ST game since Daisuke Matsuzaka - Nats320
Naturally Jesus's debut was bound to garner a lot of attention, as pretty much anyone and every with a camera was around to try and snap a shot. Interestingly though, forgotten in the hype was the fact that Rick Porcello was quietly grounding everybody out for three scoreless innings.

Doesn't change the fact that he's going to pull a Tommy Hanson - MLB.com
Regardless of his holy performance, GM Mike Rizzo insinuates that his plans for Strasburg aren't going to change, which means, he's probably going to start the season in the Minors.

The differences between fastballs from 96-100mph - Red Reporter
(hat tip: Federal Baseball)
Nothing to do with any particular team, but since FB found it, it goes with them - RR shows us the differences between fastball ranging from 96mph to the rare 100mph pitch, and how drastic a 1mph difference between two speeds changes the numbers.

Hey-soos Flores, sent to Dr. James Andrews - Federal Baseball
Anyone who pays any attention to baseball knows what that name means, but the good news is that it's not for Tommy John, but there's no such thing as a trip to DJA without some extensive DL time. But very unfortunate for Flores, who was really blossoming into a good hitting catcher before all these shoulder woes kept popping up on him.

Desmond's ST case makes Guzman's future a little blurrier - MLBlogs
If Guzman starts the season in a bench role, Stanley King, his agent, will seek a trade. Which will be a little difficult, considering Guzman is owed $8M for the 2010 season.

"Everyday" Eddie Guadardo, among others, first round of Nats cuts - Federal Baseball
As we all know, cuts happen, and nobody is more surprised and disappointed by his release than long-time veteran, Eddie Guadardo, who was only given two innings, where he gave up four runs on seven hits, and threw only a total of twenty pitches, before being given the axe.

Nyjer Morgan having a tough time sliding - MLBlogs
Morgan once injured himself sliding head-first a long time ago, and Jim Riggleman wants him to start sliding feet first. It's hard to break old habits, and during ST, Morgan had a mental slip, and slid head-first again. But like a good employee, he quickly apologized to the skipper for the slip up.

Jim Riggleman "talks" about pitching - Fire Jim Bowden
(via Amazin Avenue)
I counted six "you know's" in the quote alone. This doesn't deter my opinion that the Nationals will be better than the last two years, and I'm going to chalk it up as Riggleman just not being a good speaker in general.

Nats fans talk about Tim Dierkes, Tim Dierkes shows up - Washington Nationals Fan Forum
FYI, Tim Dierkes is the guy that runs/maintains MLBTradeRumors.com - his opinions on the Nationals' offseason are being discussed, and naturally not everything is well received, and in the midst of the snowballing, Dierkes himself shows up to address the fans in person, and does so pretty tastefully, too.

Chien-Ming Wang schedule to have bullpen session next week - MLBlogs
The road to NL Comeback Player of the Year begins next week as Chien-Ming Wang is scheduled to be taking his first bullpen session off a mound. This will be the first time he has pitched off a mound since July 4th, 2009.

Next Jesus Watch - The Nats Blog
(via Federal Baseball)

"Harper is now batting a team-leading .408/.500/.831 with six homers and 20 RBI in a total of 20 games."

At the age of 17, no less.

Former Nationals closer trying to start-over with the Mariners - Examiner
My former drinking buddy, Chad Cordero, is trying to find a job again, currently working out in Mariners camp. Between 2005 and 2007 he converted 113 saves, made one all-star team, and won a DHL Delivery Man award, but in 2008, his right arm, for lack of a better term, fell off (torn side, labrum, bicep). But he's had surgery, and has been on the slow road to recovery, and I'm hoping he can find a spot out in Seattle, with Chris Woodward.

I know what I'm doing next time I go to Disney - Nats320
In Downtown Disney, there's apparently a Rawlings display where you can watch official employees hand-stitch together an official MLB baseball. Anyone down there for ST should check this out, I certainly would if I were down there.

Buzz Killington chimes in on the 2010 Phillies - The Good Phight
Every team has a Buzz Killington - the fan that points out every fault possible about their team, with the old adage "I'm only being realistic." Nah, it's all good, though. This story points out a lot of the factors why the Phillies might not be the juggernaut everyone expects them to be, from Rollins gradual slide since being MVP, the age gap between Polanco and Feliz, Howard's ineptitude against lefties, and so on, and so on, but as far as I'm concerned, they are still, the team to beat.

To Arms! Why Phillies Pitching Should Surge in 2010 - The Good Phight
I like this look at a baseball season - take out extra innings, and the bottom of the 9th on the road while losing, and there are 1458 innings in a season. A rational look at the probables and just how efficient the projected starting Phillies rotation should be at eating a giant chunk of all those innings, with obviously, the more innings eaten, the less the bullpen has to eat, and the more efficient a rotation should be in comparison to their opponents.

Make up your mind! Kendrick or Moyer? - MLB.com
Every week, Ruben Amaro, Rich Dubee, and Charlie Manuel contract one another about whom is going to be the 5th starter. Amaro says Moyer. Manuel says it's a toss. And now Dubee says it's Moyer's position to lose. The reality is that Kendrick is young, and has the potential to be better, but Moyer has experience, and a completely unrelated large salary. Screw 'em both - give it to Ryan Vogelsong.

J.C. Romero's delay gives Phillies a little breathing room on 5th starter - Beerleaguer
Romero's hit a little speedbump on the road to recovery, but that's not such a bad thing - it allows the Phils to hold off on the battle for the 5th starter, since whomever doesn't get it can be put in the bullpen until Romero returns. It's hard to say who will face that reality, but Kendrick has been pitching well this ST, having been obsessed with following in Roy Halladay's footsteps all March thusfar.

Moratoria - Clichés that need to go - Phillies Nation
The link is to part 2, which applies to mostly all baseball fans, but the first part is definitely geared more towards Phillies fans in general. But it's a pretty good list of some excessively overused terms, sayings and cliches that I honestly wouldn't mind seeing go away.

PSA to the Detroit Tigers - speak with your players - MLB.com
I'm not really complaining here, because I like Polanco at 3B instead of Feliz (for us) - but in hindsight, Polanco was allagedly likely to accept arbitration had it been offered to him in Detroit, but was allowed to leave instead, because the Tigers didn't want him to reject it and sign elsewhere, forfeitng the draft pick in the process.

Brian Schneider happy to be on the Phillies - MLB.com (video)
The former resident of Lehigh Valley, Schneider talks about how happy he is to bring his McCann-beating defense to the Phillies, and his bouncing around the NL East. I hope he faces the Braves often, because he's rocking some numbers against Atlanta, that McCann probably won't be able to achieve against Philadelphia: .197/.280/.289

Phillies sign another Hawaiian - Beerleaguer
Four-A caliber infielder, Keoni DeRenee, who spent 10 years in the minor leagues of the Braves, Yankees, Diamondbacks and Red Sox, before heading to the Independent Leagues signs with the Phillies. He's typically a light-hitting speedster, but given his likely age, he's gotta be grasping at straws. I wonder how much of this is in relation to Shane Victorino's Hawaiian roots?

Hank Blalock signs with the cross state Rays instead of Fish - Marlin Maniac
Considering Blalock would have likely gotten a ton more playing time in Miami as opposed to Tampa, one has to believe that Blalock's motivations were one of wanting to either stay in the American League, or thinking the Rays have a better shot than the Marlins, but bottom line, a little gravy train-ing has to be involved here.

Brett Carroll working with Chris Coghlan - Fish Stripes
Brett Carroll, a not very good hitter, has been working out with Chris Coghlan, a very good hitter this offseason. Coghlan now claims that Carroll's swing looks better, is more fluid, and could be a better hitter in 2010. I wonder if Carroll is now allowing the voices in his head tell him when to swing or not?

Groin injuries plaguing Marlin outfielders - MLB.com
Maybe it's the cold weather? Cameron Maybin and the Devil suffered "tweaks" in their groins this week; Maybin while running the bases, and Ross, while taking batting practice. Sure, both of them are acting as if nothing is wrong, but groin injuries are the ones that typically nag and nag and nag all throughout the season if proper rest is not given to them.

Burke Badenop likes to write screenplays - Fish Stripes
Good to see players with aspirations other than baseball, because as we all know, baseball careers sure don't last forever. But he's going to have a long way to go to get any film accolades, unlike his teammate, catcher John Baker's excellent rendition of Braveheart.

The View From Your Seat

2010-03-13T14:25:43Z

Champion Stadium, Pirates vs. Braves, 3/12/10, 4:32pm, top of the third

Bored? Need something to read?

2010-03-12T21:25:16Z

It's a slow lazy rainy Friday afternoon, why not use this time to finally order your copy of the Talking Chop 2010 Baseball Annual. Click the book to order:

Spring Training Open Thread: Pirates at Braves (maybe)

2010-03-12T17:58:06Z

Rain in Florida is putting the kybosh on many a spring training games today. The Braves-Pirates game has been pushed back to a 1:30 start time. Here is the lineup for Atlanta (notice the big change at the top):

Martin Prado, 2B
Nate McLouth, CF
Chipper Jones, 3B
Troy Glaus, 1B
Brian McCann, C
Yunel Escobar, SS
Jason Heyward, RF
Matt Diaz, LF
Jair Jurrjens, P

This is very likely the lineup we may see on opening day. It will be interesting to watch how long they keep Prado and McLouth switched, and if that works for both of them.

I'm Heading Down To Spring Training

2010-03-12T14:08:16Z

I'm super-excited, and not getting a lot of work done today, because I'm eagerly anticipating leaving for Florida and Braves spring training tomorrow. I'm hoping to follow the team to many of their stops over the next week, and I'll also have access during several games to the clubhouse where I'll be able to interview and talk to the players.

So stay tuned next week as I'll hopefully have some exclusive and exciting content.

Spring Training Open Thread: Braves at Yankees

2010-03-11T22:00:35Z

The Braves face the defending World Series Champions tonight. The biggest news will of course be that of the return of Jair Jurrjens to the mound. He has been slowed so far this spring with tightness in his shoulder, and this will be the first game-action he's seen this year.

Nate McLouth, CF
Martin Prado, 2B
Jason Heyward, RF
Troy Glaus, 1B
Brian McCann, C
Yunel Escobar, SS
Eric Hinske, DH
Matt Diaz, LF
Omar Infante, 3B

On the mound of course is Jurrjens, followed by James Parr, Jeff Lyman, Michael Dunn, Todd Redmond, and Stephen Marek.

Braves Making the Team Meter 2010: Hitters, Week 3

2010-03-11T13:22:43Z

Making the Team Meter for the Atlanta Braves hitters for week 3 of spring training shows us what the hitters have done the first two weeks of spring games. Go here for week 2 of the hitters MTM. I'll be taking some people off the list this week. I've removed Clint Sammons, Jordan Schafer, Freddie Freeman, and Cody Johnson, as they may still be on the spring roster, but barring injury they're not likely to make the team.

Player, Position	This Week's Trend	Last Week	Notes and Comments
Brooks Conrad, 2B			He is still swinging a hot bat and helping his cause by playing second and third. His main competition, Thurston, is also having a good spring. This battle could go down to the wire.
Gregor Blanco, OF			He has been largely unimpressive this spring. He's still way down there on the depth chart.
Brandon Hicks, SS			He doesn't have many hits, but he's impressed a lot of people in camp. He's probably nowhere near making the team, but he can certainly help his future prospects for making the Majors with a good showing this spring.
Joe Thurston, 2B			In the same boat with Conrad, and there's only room for one. Thurston is at a bit of a disadvantage because he's not on the 40-man, but he does have more experience as a pinch hitter and utility player than Conrad, and that could give him an edge.
Brent Clevlen, OF			He's getting a lot of playing time, but he's not doing much with it. We'll change him to going back down this week.
Jason Heyward, OF			Poser.
Mitch Jones, OF			He had a big homerun the other day, but that's his only hit this spring. He needs to show everyone that he's not a one-dimensional player.
Matt Young, OF			He's got as many hits as M. Jones and Blanco combined in far fewer at-bats. I'm still rooting for him, and we'll keep him here to see what happens.

Arrow Key:
= Chance of making the team is waffling or 50-50.
= Chance of making the team is trending down.
= Chance of making the team is trending up.

Jesus Wins Game for Braves

2010-03-10T21:49:43Z

That's right Jesus Sucre gets the walk-off hit for the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday afternoon, as they beat the Mets in the bottom of the 10th. That Jesus is of course pronounced "Hey Zeus," and not "Geez Us," like the resurrected son of God. Other than that the game was a mishmash of typical spring training veteran blowups, with Derek Lowe and Takashi Saito having rough outings. That headline, though, had to be posted.

The View From Your Seat

2010-03-10T20:28:38Z

Champion Stadium, Mets vs. Braves, 3/10/10, 2:30pm, bottom of the fourth