| Welcome to our second Chatter Up! of the day, busy weekend at NLEC! Today we bring back Rab of FishGuts for his second appearance representing the Fish and a newcomer from The Braves Baseball Blog, Connor Tapp to discuss their respective teams. Lets get to it. |
| DirtySanchez(TRDMB): Do the Marlins have any intention of bringing back Nick Johnson as he has definitely solidified that lineup? |
| Rab B(FG): I highly doubt it. Nick Johnson has obviously been incredible for the lineup but he’s been asking for a two-year deal and with our payroll, his injury history, and the expected arrivals of Logan Morrison next season and super-prospect Mike Stanton possibly next June, there might not be room for him. |
| DirtySanchez(TRDMB): Is it talent or Fredi Gonzalez that make this team work? |
| Rab B(FG):Well, it’s a mixture of the talent and the front office. Fredi is really just a hand of the FO. One big thing that was added last year was actually bench-bat Wes Helms. A big problem in 2007 was the lack of discipline. Coaches can only do so much, there’s a big difference when it’s a player. The younger players on the team, like Chris Coghlan and Brett Carroll, actually call him “Uncle Wes” and he’s reportedly been a huge influence on them. By adding things like that the FO is who makes this team work. |
| DirtySanchez(TRDMB): Do they plan on keeping Hanley at SS? |
| Rab B(FG): I’m going to start by saying that Hanley Ramirez is a good defensive shortstop. He actually made the turn for the better last year. He did lead all SS in errors but he was still went from -28 to +3 by The Fielding Bible’s +/- system, meaning he made 3 more plays than the league average shortstop. This year he’s had a huge cut down on errors as well, half as many as last season, and is rated +5. So I don’t think the Marlins have any thought of moving him for short, as that’s always been something discussed mostly from outside sources. Might he eventually have to make the Cal Ripken/Alex Rodriguez move to 3rd base? Possibly, but I don’t think that’s not going to happen any time soon. |
| DirtySanchez(TRDMB): Which players do they see still being there (besides Hanley) for their new stadium? |
| I really don’t know the answer to this. A few guys like 2B Chris Coghlan, CF Cameron Maybin are likely. SPs Sean West and Chris Volstad should probably also still be here. As for someone more established, I actually fully expect the Marlins to go against the grain and sign Josh Johnson to a long term deal. Ricky Nolasco has a shot at being here as well, so does John Baker. As for others, like Cody Ross, Dan Uggla, Jorge Cantu, Jeremy Hermida, Matt Lindstrom, et al, I don’t see there is any chance for them being here then. |
| Mark(CFG): The Marlins play hard, stay in contention, and build and rebuild. But no one in Miami seems to be paying attention. What happens if the Marlins’ attendance at their new ballpark stays at the same level as it is at Land Shark stadium? Are we talking Memphis Marlins? |
Rab B(FG): The Marlins signed a non-relocation agreement with the Marlins and Major League Baseball as part of the Ballpark Agreement with the City of Miami and Miami-Dade County that says they can’t leave for 35 years after the stadium opens, meaning they are the Miami Marlins until at least 2047. Will attendance get better? Maybe, maybe not, but relocation won’t be an option. And as far as no one noticing, it’s worth noting that the Marlins have always had good TV ratings, last year ending up with the 7th best in all of baseball according to SportsBusiness Journal. As someone who goes to a lot of Marlins games it’s easy for me to understand why not many people go in person. If it’s not burning in plastic seats at 100° it’s raining. This year alone there have been 3 rainouts (I was at two of them) and 27% of all home games this year have been affected by rain. A new ballpark should at least give people less reason’s to consider staying home and watching the game on FSFlorida instead of showing up.
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| Thanks Rab, Connor Tapp of The Braves Baseball Blog is next. |
| DirtySanchez(TRDMB): Does church fit into the braves mold? |
| Connor T(BBB): To answer that question, you’d first have to define what the Braves’ “mold” is, and I don’t know if I can quite do that. But hey, we’re all just so happy to have Jeff Francoeur gone that we’ve had little time to find fault with Church’s playing style or demeanor. And according to Baseball Prospectus’ calculation of Wins Above Replacement, Church has been about half a win better than Francoeur since the swap. That works for me. Is he a long-term fixture? Absolutely not. But he makes for a cheap, workable stop-gap to carry us to the Schafer/Heyward era. |
| DirtySanchez(TRDMB): Is it true that although bobby cox(i believe) holds the record for the most ejections, he is one of the most supportive managers in baseball? |
| Connor T(BBB): It’s true. Bobby Cox became the all-time ejections leader in June of 2007 and has spent the past two seasons padding his margin. This is often cited as a reason that he’s the immaculate “player’s coach”, always sticking up for his team – getting himself ejected, rather than letting his players get ejected. But in my opinion, Cox could stand to be a little more stern. For instance, it wouldn’t hurt to have someone stand up and explain to Chipper that the past five years of attempting to play through nagging injuries hasn’t exactly worked. |
| DirtySanchez(TRDMB): With the success of Tommy Hanson, where does he fit into the rotation next year? |
| Connor T(BBB): I don’t think there’s any question that Tommy Hanson is at least the third-best starter on the Braves’ staff right now, so I don’t see any reason he doesn’t begin 2010 as the number three, behind Vazquez and Jurrjens. If I were Bobby Cox, I might think about pairing Hanson with Kris Medlen, limiting Hanson to four or five innings every third or fourth start, and then bring in Kris Medlen for long relief. This would protect Hanson from overuse and allow Cox to get more work out of Medlen, who has been absolutely nasty over the last couple of months. |
| DirtySanchez(TRDMB): Do you think the braves have enough to make a run this year? |
| Connor T(BBB): Yes. But the season is getting shorter, and the Braves are still just as far back as they were a month ago despite being one of the hottest teams in the league since the All-Star Break. They’ll need to take some calculated gambles, such as letting Vazquez go on three days rest while skipping Kawakami and not letting right-handed relievers pitch to Ryan Howard with men on base (gah!), but anything is possible. |
| Mark(CFG): Nate McLouth was supposed to be the second coming, now he’s hobbled. It’s clear he’s not a Mantle, or Mays — or even Victorino. Who takes his place — and what are the long term prospects of the Braves filling their outfield holes? |
| Connor T(BBB): Anyone that thought Nate McLouth was or is going to be the “second coming” has, quite simply, overestimated the value of Nate McLouth. His acquisition was definitely a win-now move, but I don’t think it could be said with any certainty that the Braves will win the trade in the long run. If nothing else, Gorkys Hernandez is going to be a phenomenal defensive ceterfielder for the Pirates, while McLouth ought to be eventually moved to left, where the value of his bat will be significantly diminished. That said, McLouth’s performance with the Braves has been very similiar to what it was with the Pirates. I don’t think it’s reasonable to expect much more of McLouth than what he’s given so far. Besides, everybody knows Jason Heyward is the second coming. My 2011 outfield (heck, maybe even my 2010 outfield) would look like this: McLouth in left, Schafer in center, Heyward in right. |
