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Extra Boost Could Help Braves
Written by Colin on July 29, 2009 – 6:57 amHere we are in late July, and with the Phillies considering trading their future for Roy Halladay, it’s time for Sports Illustrated to bring back the same slideshow they’ve used for the last few seasons hailing the “best midseason trades ever.” Of course, Fred “Crime Dog” McGriff, David Cone, and some of the newer guys – Orlando Cabrera, Carlos Beltran, etc, are on the list. The Phillies figure to pick up Roy Halladay in exchange for some change, where some change equals some of their top prospects. Right now, they’re at an impasse, and let’s hope they stay there.
The Braves figure to stay where they’re at – maybe trade for a reliever to solidify the bullpen. And while that’s fine, and leaves them with a chance to win the Wild Card (they can pitch, and they do get Hudson back – who at the very least is a very bad-ass long reliever – which is why recent stories have the Braves backing away from trading for a reliever), but I really want to see us pull a 1993 – we need another bat. Where do we add someone? First base. Casey Kotchman is average. He’s good enough to play in the big leagues, but not good enough to wow anybody every night. Maybe, if Kelly Johnson is not going to suck, the answer is to play Martin Prado at first instead of Kotchman – Prado has been on fire – but what about some true pop? Why not go for it and make a trade designed to take on the Phillies? It doesn’t have to mortgage our whole future – we don’t need a modern day McGriff – we just need to upgrade. We don’t need a long-term fix – trade Kotchman away in exchange for another first baseman – with Freddie Freeman waiting in the wings in a year or two, we just need someone through the end of 2010. Maybe Prado’s that guy?
Note: I don’t mean to pick on Kotchman – I like the guy – but where else do we upgrade our offense? It’s been pretty awesome recently.
Hell, don’t trade anybody and give Barbaro Canizares a chance to bring the big bat to the majors. Let Kotchman sub defensively and give Canizares a chance to bring some of his pop to the lineup.
I want to see October baseball this year. Maybe this team does that. Maybe. But seriously, do something to take it over the top.
It’s been too long since we’ve seen October baseball in Atlanta.
Alright, Kent, your turn to write an article on how the Braves don’t need to make a move…
Tags: Barbaro Canizares, Casey Kotchman, Martin Prado, Roy Halladay
Posted in General | 2 Comments »
By Clay on Jul 29, 2009 | Reply
I doubt many teams are looking to DOWNgrade their first-base power, so I don't see any eager buyers for Kotchman. Also, trading away Kotchman for the relatively little he would command combined with Stephen Marek being woefully ineffective in the minors would make our resale of Tex that much more pitiful. I am aware of the principle of sunk costs, but that would still be a tough pill to swallow. I like Kotchman defensively and though he has but few sparks offensively, I think we're stuck with him. He is our Sid Bream Lite for now. I wouldn't mind moving Prado over there against lefties, though, and having Kelly or Brooks Conrad (don't get me started on his demotion) fill in those days at second.
By Clay on Jul 29, 2009 | Reply
And as for keeping Kotchman but benching him, I'm not sure how quality a first baseman we could get for any of our current tradeable major leaguers. Our farm system is still pretty reeling from trades in the last few years, except for a few big studs like Freeman, Heyward–exalted be his name–and some promising pitchers at the lower levels. Your suggestion of Canizares isn't bad; I wish he'd gotten more playing time in the bigs. He and Brooks Conrad sure deserve spots more than Diory Hernandez (not bashing Diory, just his numbers) and Greg Norton (yeah I'm bashing him even though I like the guy). Yeesh.