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Rumors Of Demise Have Been Exaggerated
Written by Kent on June 20, 2009 – 10:48 pmIn response to Colin’s post about the season being a loss for the Braves, Kent responds with his opinion on the matter:
As I write this, the Atlanta Braves still find themselves wedged slightly under .500. They’ve demonstrated no reason for Braves fans to wager a month’s rent that they will still be playing baseball beyond 162 games. And I realize it’s hard to muster much faith in any team that’s not even north of .500 by the middle of June. The Braves have certainly been a frustrating team to watch this season. No doubt about it. That said… I wouldn’t advise selling all your ’09 Braves stock just yet.
The reality is that the Braves have at least most of the ingredients necessary to be a high quality team, and they are blessed to play in a surprisingly weak NL East division. For these two reasons, they’re still alive, and they still have a legitimate chance to appear on the formerly familiar October stage.
Atlanta’s pitching is strong and deep. This starting rotation is so solid right now, that recovering staff ace, Tim Hudson, may have to take up temporary residence in the bullpen when he returns to action, presumably about six weeks from today. And despite a couple of recent failures, the Braves ‘pen has been nearly airtight since mid-April. An already very good pitching staff is likely to do nothing but improve in the second half of the season with the afore mentioned return of “Huddy”, and the ongoing maturation of rookie phenom, Tommy Hanson.
As for the offense, Bobby Cox’s lineup now features 3 all-stars (Chipper, McCann, and McLouth) , and two other quality hitters (Escobar and Kotchman). Garrett Anderson may have a much better second half as he continues to acclimate to a new league and a new team, after getting a very late start to his ’09 season. And the return of Omar Infante, not long after the all-star break, will provide further insurance against Kelly Johnson’s patented hyper-slumps. It’s not as though the Braves have nothing to work with here offensively.
Even if Frank Wren and Co. make no further changes to this roster, I think we’re likely to see more offensive output from this Braves lineup than we witnessed through the first 10 weeks of the season. Nate McLouth was mired in a bit of a slump when he was traded to Atlanta, so the full impact of his arrival was not immediately apparent, but I believe we’re beginning to see it. This team will get tremendous offense from at least 3 positions, and solid production from at least 6 or 7 positions.
Given the quality of and depth of Atlanta’s pitching, I believe the Braves could muster enough offense with the pieces they already have to make a post-season run this year. I really do. However, I, every other Braves fan in the world, and every member of the Braves organization realize that something’s missing. There is one missing link that stands between an offense that is hopefully serviceable enough OR unquestionably dangerous! And that one missing link is, of course, a right-handed hitting run producer. Someone who can pick up where Jeff Francoeur left off… in 2007.
The Braves are one piece away from becoming a truly excellent baseball team. And fortunately for the Braves, they’re the only team in their division that can say that. Even if the Mets add one significant starter, or one more noteworthy bat, they will still have substantial holes. And even if the Phillies add a top-tier starter, their rotation will still be thin, and they will still have a closer problem. In short, Atlanta has less to fix than their division rivals.
If the Braves add nothing further to their roster via trade, they will remain an incomplete team. However, with excellent pitching in a division stocked with nothing but incomplete teams, they can still make a run – or at least a spirited jog – at a division title this year. BUT, if Frank Wren can pull off another trade, this time for the quality right-handed run producer they so clearly need… the Atlanta Braves will be the class of the National League East. By a country mile.
Either way, they’re not out of the hunt. There are still 100 games left to play, folks. Rumors of the Braves demise have been greatly exaggerated.
What about you? Have you abandoned all hope, or are you holding onto your Braves stock a little longer?
Tags: 2009 Season Outlook, Braves 2009
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