Arbitration Avoided For Teixeira

As discussed with Frank Wren on Sunday, a long-term deal with Mark Teixeira continues to be a high priority. That’s not done yet, but the Braves and Tex struck a deal on his 2008 salary level without having to go to arbitration. He’s set to make $12.5 million next year, up from $9 million last year.

Other players avoided the arbitration process Thursday as well. Omar Infante, Tyler Yates, and Mike Gonzalez also settled on salary level with the Braves. Read more »

Aybar to Rays for Relief

So the trade de jour involves Willy Aybar - who has been on a bit of a roller coaster over the past two years. Wren announced late yesterday that he sent Aybar and minor leauge infielder Chase Fontaine to the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for left-handed relief pitcher Jeff Ridgway.

Now I know you’re thinking “I’ve never heard of Ridgway before, this won’t help us.” - but he shows some promise. Read more »

Mailbag: Too Many Outfielders?

Cheyanne wrote the Mailbag yesterday with the following question:

With the Braves acquisition of Mark Kotsay what is the chance that Willie Harris or Brandon Jones is traded to get some more relief pitching?

Well first off, Cheyanne, thanks for asking a question - you get two entries into the Kelly Johnson autographed ball contest, as do all mailbag participants. We don’t think Willie Harris has much of a chance of being traded - he was released by the Braves after the Will Ohman trade (signed by the Nationals, by the way).

However, I think your question bears some teeth here. We have a ton of outfielders. With Francoeur in right and Kotsay in center, we have one open outfield spot to platoon with Diaz in left. Read more »

Braves Rotation Preview

Let’s break down the rotation for 2008. We have possibilities for 2008 - a pretty deep roster, especially compared to years past. There are question marks and asterisks and too many older guys for my taste, but all in all, I think it’ll be one of the better rotations we’ve seen since the Big Three were pitching in the 90’s.

#1 slot - John Smoltz will fill the #1 spot again this season. Smoltz is getting older but is 44-28 since coming back to the starting rotation. Last season he was 14-8 and pitched more than 200 innings for the third year in a row. He takes the leadership role for the rotation and should be expected to come near or break 200 innings once again with a low 3 ERA.

Read more »

2009 - AAA Ball to Gwinnett

It’s official - the AAA team is moving to Gwinnett after just one year - we’ll have baseball in 2009.  The Braves will rent a stadium from the county for $250,000 a year for 30 years beginning next year.  Gwinnett County will design and build the stadium without much input from the team.

Image from http://www.gwinnettbraves.com

Read more »

NL East Power Rankings

So we’ve looked team by team at the NL East. You may agree or disagree with what we’ve said so far, but this is where we break down the analysis into power rankings. Of course we have our five categories - Offense, Defense, Starting Pitching, Relief Pitching, and Coaching. You may disagree, so feel free to comment and let me know what your thoughts are. And Mets fans, no whining.

Offense:
#5 - Washington Nationals - The worst offense in the NL East isn’t looking much better this year.
#4 - Florida Marlins - These guys have a long way to go, but they’re not as bad offensively as the Nationals. Read more »

Richmond Braves Relocating to Gwinnett

The AJC is reporting that the Richmond Braves will be relocating to Gwinnett after the 2010 season.  They quote two people familiar with the situation as saying that the top farm team for the Braves will move to the north Atlanta suburb.  Apparently their lease expires after the 2010 season.

What are your thoughts on having the AAA squad so close to home?  Will it help or hurt attendance at Turner Field?  Read more »

FanFest Recap

It’s time for our comprehensive review of this year’s FanFest.  We went both days, spent significant time participating in activities, and yes, Rue wants me to mention, once again, that she got her picture made with Buddy Carlyle, even though the rest of the BravesBlast staff can’t quite figure out the obsession.  So after many hours spent, we feel we can offer our opinion on FanFest and the craziness within.

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FanFest - Day 2 Updates

The BravesBlast crew just arrived home from FanFest.  The second day was MUCH more subdued than the first day, and we all enjoyed ourselves.  The major factor here was that there were significantly fewer people there today, making all the lines bearable and the attractions more accessible.

We enjoyed meeting a couple friends from MySpace, hitting whiffle ball batting practice, and getting pictures made with McCann’s Cans.  Rue, one of our staff, got her picture made with Buddy Carlyle and she is quite ecstatic.

Read more »

Kotsay to Atlanta

We found our center fielder - today the Braves triggered a deal with the Oakland Athletics - Joey Devine for Mark Kotsay.  Now, you say, Kotsay was slated to make almost $8 million in 2008.  Should we spend that much money on a guy who has had back issues?  Well, what if I told you that the A’s agreed to pick up all but about $2 million of Kotsay’s 2008 contract?

Read more »

FanFest - Saturday Update

FanFest is great - packed with everything Braves related, and then some!  We’re coming up for air to post some updates about today.  Firstly, if you’re thinking of coming today, it’s already jam packed.  I’d advise coming tomorrow first thing if you want to beat the crowd.

Let’s take a look at some of the attractions, and I’ll post the schedule for tomorrow as well.

The Stages - There’s a trivia stage where you can try your hand at trivia, as well as a main stage where different activities are going on during different times of the day.  We just caught the Heavy Hitters - the drumline for the Braves - and they were good.  Frank Wren is doing a question and answer session as I begin this post, and they’ll have other stuff throughout the day as it progresses.

Homer dancing with the Heavy Hitters. 

Read more »

Kotsay, FanFest, and more

We’re entering a great weekend here in Atlanta - Braves FanFest is today and tomorrow. We’ll see autograph sessions, skill clinics, and interactive games in the ridiculously large Georgia World Congress Center. Of course BravesBlast will be there for part of today and most, if not all, of tomorrow. We’ll bring you updates and news from the floor of the Congress Center, so check back regularly!

It’s been confirmed now that the Braves are discussing Mark Kotsay with the Athletics. Read more »