Hampton Injured

No, this isn’t a repeat article dug out of the archives from early 2007. Or from 2006. Or from 2005. Mike Hampton is (again) injured after making only one start for his Mexican Winter League team. Hampton lasted just one inning before having issues with his leg.

Hampton apparently may not even be back to pitch again this Winter. The Braves are still hoping he can recover enough to compete for a rotation slot this Spring, but aren’t counting on Hampton’s arm. Frank Wren used the phrase “cautiously optimistic” - which could mean anything, knowing Hampton’s health.

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Win a Brian McCann Autographed Baseball!

Ladies and Gentlemen - now you can enter to win a baseball autographed by all-star Braves catcher Brian McCann!

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Estrada to Mets

Well the Mets apparently are not bringing back Paul Lo Duca - they traded for former Brave Johnny Estrada yesterday from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for Guillermo Mota, a middle relief pitcher.

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Welcome To Atlanta (Again)

Tom Glavine is the newest addition to the 2008 rotation. The Braves struck a one year, $8 million deal with the lefty today, the AJC is reporting. The Braves and Glavine are going to hold a press conference Monday to announce the signing officially.

Now, let me apologize for not being quite as well-connected to the Braves as the AJC is, but I can’t help it. We were right alongside them in reporting on the rumors leading up to today, but are a little behind with the announcement. We’ll work on getting better.

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Roster Update

So comes the nearly daily update regarding Tom Glavine… Whether or not Glavine knew last night, the Braves made an official offer for Tom Glavine yesterday.  It apparently wasn’t too late in the day as Glavine’s agent was planning on submitting a counterproposal by the end of day today.  Best guess is that the Braves’ offer was between $6 and 8 million.  We’ll see what terms are eventually agreed on - there is little doubt in my mind that Glavine will be a Brave before this time next week.

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First Perjury, Now Tax Evasion

One of the problems (problem is probably a poor choice of words here) with the Braves during the off season is that they rarely find themselves in any sort of drama, legal or otherwise. Luckily for us, we have the rest of the league to keep us entertained. A day after Barry Bonds was indicted on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice, Yankee captain Derek Jeter has been told by the New York State Division of Taxation of Finance that they believe he was a New York resident between 2001-2003.

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Glavine Hiding Something?

Tonight I was at a charity event raising money for childhood cancer victims. At the front table were Tom Glavine and Chipper Jones, and other members of the audience included Chuck James, Brian McCann, and Leo Mazzone. Read more »

Barry Bonds Indicted On Perjury…

The long awaited, and probably widely anticipated, indictment of Barry Bonds came out today. Bonds has been indicted on perjury, and obstruction of justices charges that if convicted he could face a maximum of 30 years in prison. The investigation into Bonds and other elite athletes about their use of steroids has been ongoing for a few years and it appears as if it is finally coming to a head. Earlier this year Marion Jones plead guilty to similar charges in the same investigation and faces up to 6 months in prison.

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Heard The Latest Rumor?

According to a Boston television station, there are 4 teams that have topped the Red Sox’s offer for World Series MVP Mike Lowell. The teams are the Angels, Cardinals, Yankees, and somehow, the Atlanta Braves. All four teams have reportedly offered 4 years for a total of between $55 million and $60 million, which tops Boston’s three year offer. The other three teams all make sense here, but why the Braves? They obviously can’t put Chipper back in the outfield as his offense was abysmal during those years. And with Tex on first, that leaves Lowell without a position. It could just be a rumor started by Lowell’s agent to try and squeeze a forth year out of the Red Sox, which is where I believe Lowell would like to remain. Either way, it’s an interesting rumor that makes absolutely no sense if you ask me.

-Charles

The Evil Empire Rears Its Ugly Head Again

According to a report in the New York Post today, the Yankees are going to reverse their decision to not deal with A-Rod after he opted out of his contract and are going to offer him arbitration. This is probably just a move geared at getting the draft picks associated with losing a player that you offered arbitration to, since A-Rod is unlikely to ever accept a one-year deal with anyone. That doesn’t mean Scott Boras and A-Rod can’t turn it into another ridiculous spending spree somehow.  Where there’s a will, there’s a way, right?

-Charles

What I’d Give To Be A Fly On The Wall

Winter meetings started today in Orlando, FL and while the hottest item up for grabs is obviously A-Rod, he’s probably not the third baseman that will garner the most attention. The Marlins have stated in the past few days that they would like to move Miguel Cabrerra, and the White Sox are looking to trade Joe Crede. Both of these players will command salaries probably 3 or 4 times less than that of A-Rod, which will have many teams scrambling to see if they have the right set of prospects to offer the respective teams.

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Signing Glavine

So Wren said today from Orlando what we’ve thought for a while - the Braves want Glavine back.

Glavine, who turned down a $13 million dollar option in New York, apparently wants to come back to Atlanta to the tune of something around $8 million. If it’s worth $5 million less to pitch in Atlanta, we should consider him. The man can still pitch a bit - he’s got some left…

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