This Isn’t A Contending Team

Let’s be objective. The Braves, performing as they are now, are not a contending team.

A contending team’s offense can’t go from red-hot to ice-cold.

A contending team’s bullpen can’t blow leads more frequently than they use the restroom. Not to mention 8 run leads.

Sure, we’ve got a decent starting rotation. Sure, Kawakami, Lowe, Jurrjens and Vazquez have performed fairly well so far, but for heavens sake, we started Jo-Jo Reyes against Pittsburgh and expected to win the game?! Sure, our offense started off hot, but they’ve cooled to an exactly middle of the road .265 batting average.

There have been a few side stories that have contributed. Chipper missed some time on his hand (Chipper is always going to sit a little bit). McCann had some weird vision thing come up that has hopefully resolved itself. Tom Glavine busted his shoulder again (who are we kidding: we wanted him to be a reliable pitcher again?)

But a bullpen that blows a 7 run lead? An offense that can’t beat Pittsburgh given a good start? And a team that puts Jo-Jo Reyes on the mound? Seriously? It feels like this season is an extension of last season – where the baseball gods are laughing at us and poking us with sticks. We have to establish some good play before everyone gets in a funk and assumes we’re always going to blow leads – because that will become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

There are opportunities for us to get into the race. We have to stop blowing leads. The first step to that was getting rid of Blaine Boyer, which we have completed. Now the rest of the bullpen needs to live up to their potential. The offense needs to be more consistent – we win games when Chipper is in the lineup – and having BMac back will help. And people, write your senators and congressmen – it’s time to petition against Jo-Jo Reyes. If we get a law passed that he can’t pitch for the Braves, Frank Wren and Bobby Cox will have no choice but to send him packing. Sure – don’t bring Hanson up yet – let him season for a little bit – but enough with this Jo-Jo the No Show Blo-Blo bit. Let Escobar or Francoeur pitch if we have to.

We can still get into this year. We can become a contender. There are (most of) the pieces of the puzzle we need to contend this year, but the Braves have seriously got to step it up and start playing to expectations. I was emotionally battered enough last year and I don’t know if I can handle the pattern we appear to be getting ourselves into already this season. Buck up fans – let’s stick behind them and cheer for them louder than ever, because they need it. We can contend for the NL East, but a few little things have to change.

Chipper Returns To Try To Avoid Sweep

With Chipper Jones out of the lineup for the past 4 games, the Braves have been nothing short of abyssmal.  In those 4 games, the Braves have only managed 6 total runs, as well as being shut out by the Pirates the last two games.  After starting out the season 5-1, they have dropped 5 straight to fall below .500 on the season.

Chipper has been nursing a bruised left thumb for the entire season that he reaggravated during a home game against the Marlins last Tuesday.  Yunel Escobar, who has missed two games with a strained abdominal muscle, is a game-time decision today.  Hopefully one, or both, of the two can provide a much needed spark for the Braves’ offense today and avoid the sweep by the Pirates.

Javier Vazquez takes the mound for the Braves today with an 0-1 record and 4.50 ERA.  Vazquez has been dominant with the strikeout this season, but still has been giving up some runs.  Zach Duke will be on the hill for the Pirates with a 2-0 record this season and a non-existent 0.59 ERA.  Chipper however, has hit .500 on his career against the left-hander.

Stay with us for ongoing updates throughout the game.

Campillo to DL, Injury Updates

The Braves have struggled in the past couple of seasons keeping people healthy and playing and the 2009 season looks like it’s not getting off to much different of a start.  There has been a good bit of injury-related news for the Braves in the last 24 hours so we figured a quick update was in store:

Jorge Campillo is the first of the Braves pitching staff (a pitching staff that is all too familiar with the DL, mind you) to make a trip to the disabled list since the start of the season.  After yesterday’s game against the Marlins, it was announced that Campillo will be placed on the DL with right shoulder fatigue.  He has complained of having a “dead arm” since pitching for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic and playing winter ball.  The outlook for Campillo is a little vague right now and he will be evaluated over the next couple of days.  James Parr will be called up from Gwinnett to replace Campillo on the roster.

Yunel Escobar came up lame in yesterday’s game while running out a grounder to first base.  The injury however, a strained abdominal muscle, happened while he was warming up in the on-deck circle.  Braves fans are accustomed to seeing Yunel jumping up and down in the on-deck circle before heading to the plate, which apparently was the cause of the injury.  I’m sure he won’t stop doing it however.  The Braves think it may be three or four games before Yunel is back in the lineup, despite Escobar’s confidence that he could play tonight against Pittsburgh.

Chipper Jones continues to battle the bruised left thumb that has kept him out of the last two games.  He reaggravated the injury while getting jammed against the Marlins on Tuesday.  He is expected to miss tonight’s game against the Pirates, but could be back in the lineup Saturday.  The thumb only bothers him on his left-handed swing.  His play on Sunday will be dependent on how he feels as the Pirates will be sending right-handed Zach Duke to the mound.

David Ross was activated from the disabled list before yesterday’s game and took the start in place of Brian McCann behind the plate.  Don’t worry though, Braves fans, it was just a regularly scheduled off-day for Mac.  Clint Sammons was optioned to AAA to make room on the roster for Ross.  He had been on the DL since straining a groin muscle in a March 31st preseason game.  Ross gives the Braves a little bit of power in the backup catcher role and he should be a good fill-in for the days when McCann needs to be rested.

So the left side of the infield is a little battered and bruised aready, with Chipper and Yunel both missing time, but the Braves aren’t expected to call up another infielder. Infante and Prado are quite capable and handling the load and we should see the starters back in the lineup soon.  Let’s just hope this is nothing serious for Campillo and that he recovers quickly.  I don’t want the pitching staff to start getting too familiar with being injured yet again.

What If Chipper Hadn’t Signed?

Today’s article is a guest post from Jack Liberio, submitted via the Mailbag.  Be sure to welcome Jack as a poster on the site and, as always, feel free to make submissions of your own.

Make no mistake about it, there was no way Frank Wren could afford to let Chipper Jones walk after the season. Entering the final year of his contract, the Braves’ long-time third baseman made no secret of his desire to work out a contract extension with the only team he’s ever played for, and following the public uproar over John Smoltz’s departure earlier this winter, Wren would’ve faced an even larger revolt next winter if Chipper had entered free agency.

Jones agreed to a three year, $41 million guaranteed offer (which could go as high as $62 million and four years in options and incentives). Ignoring the public relations aspect, did the Braves even have a choice when it comes to the baseball aspect?

Jones is incredibly productive when healthy, worth an incredible 7.5 wins above replacement last season. He’s had only one season under 4 wins above replacement since 2002 (3.4 in 2004), factoring in his injury issues. Trying to replace that production next offseason would’ve proven to be a difficult task for Wren and the Braves’ front office.

Potential free agent options next winter include:

Adrian Beltre (SEA): Six years younger than Jones, Beltre’s easily the best available option on the open market. He’s finishing up a five year, $64 million contract, making $12 million this season. He’s a Boras client, who the Braves have been able to successfully work with (see Derek Lowe), but you can be confident that Boras will get top dollar for Beltre next winter. Beltre’s played at about a 4 win rate over the last three seasons, so he’s nothing to scoff at. The large majority of his value, though, comes from his glove. One of the absolute best defenders at third base, Beltre makes his pitchers look better. His bat’s okay, at almost seven runs above replacement last year, but he wouldn’t come close to replacing Chipper’s offensive production. If Wren had made a run at Beltre, he’d have certainly had to offer at least as much, if not more, as they were able to get Chipper to agree to.

Chone Figgins (LAA): Figgins will be 32 next off-season, and would provide a different look for the hot corner in Atlanta. Figgins is a speed demon, stealing 223 bases over the last five years. It’s impossible to tell what you’re going to get out of his bat, however. If he repeats his 2007 performance (.330/.393/.432), you’ve got a great lead-off hitter. Of course, his 2007 was sustained on an impossible .399 BABIP. In 2008, his BABIP dropped to a more sustainable .333 (his career BABIP is only .295, so it could potentially regress even further), and Figgins’ slash line last year was .279/.367/.318. Jeff Francoeur was the only Braves regular last year with a lower slugging percentage, and with the loss of Chipper, the Braves would be dying for power in the middle of the lineup – McCann can’t provide the entirety of the team’s punch.

Joe Crede (MIN): Another Boras client, Crede signed a one year deal this winter in order to reestablish himself as a reliable option. Plagued with all kinds of injury problems (sound familiar?), Crede hit .248/.314/.460 last year in just 97 games. Coming in at just under 2 wins above replacement, Crede would represent a major step down from the production, both offensively and defensively, the Braves are accustomed to. He would’ve certainly been available for less than the $14M the Braves will be paying to Chipper next year, but even if they’d been able to sign him for half of that figure, the team would be looking for another upgrade somewhere else in the lineup for about $7M.

Potential trade options:

Michael Young (TEX): Young’s 5 year/$80M contract extension just kicked in this year, and if the Braves desperately needed someone, they could probably get him for not much more than salary relief, but it’s safe to say there’s absolutely no reason Young will be in high demand any time soon.

Aramis Ramirez (CHC): It’s possible the Cubs could start looking at moving their third baseman within the next year or two, but it seems unlikely. He’s maintained a remarkably steady .900 OPS over the last four years, even as his K% climbed to 17.0% last year. He’s got a full no-trade clause, makes nearly $16M in 2010, and has a $16.6M player option for 2011. The cost both in dollars and prospects that would be required to get Ramirez make it highly unlikely the Braves would’ve considered any deal.

Garrett Atkins (COL): The Rockies have made no secret out of the fact that they’ve been trying to move Atkins, even after trading away Matt Holliday to Oakland earlier this offseason. 2010 will be Atkins’ last year under team control, so the Braves would either have viewed him as a stopgap solution or be forced to try and sign him to an extension. Making just over $7M in his second year of arbitration, Atkins could expect close to $9.5M next off-season in his final year of arbitration, and then a yearly rate of over $11.5M each year thereafter. Atkins hit .286/.328/.452 last season, and was worth only 0.5 wins. He’s an atrocity with the glove, putting up a combined total of -26.2 runs in fielding alone over the last two seasons. The Rockies are known for being fairly ridiculous in asking price for their players, so the Braves would again be forced to deal a handful of quality prospects, as well as pay nearly $10M for Atkins in 2010.

Potential internal options:

Omar Infante/Martin Prado: It’s possible the Braves could’ve chosen to go with either of their internal options at third if Chipper was gone in 2010, but as we’ve seen in their limited time throughout 2008, neither is quite good enough to be a starting infielder. Neither fits the prototypical mold of a power third baseman, and like Figgins, going with a non-power player at third base would leave the Braves gasping for power in their lineup.

Brandon Hicks: He’s a shortstop right now, and while it has been mentioned that he could eventually be Chipper’s replacement at third, he’s also seen as a glove-first, bat-second player.

Eric Campbell: Once upon a time, he was destined to be Chipper’s replacement. He hasn’t exactly worked out as planned, so even though he may have gotten a chance to prove his worth, it’s unlikely Campbell would’ve taken over at third for long.

When it came down to it, Chipper Jones had all the leverage in the world when it came to negotiating his extension in Atlanta. He’s incredibly productive, even factoring in his injury issues, and he’s the face of the franchise. One day it’ll be McCann’s face on the billboards downtown instead of Chipper’s, but for now, two offseasons in a row in which the Braves lost long-time players would’ve spelled trouble for Frank Wren, regardless of the quality of the job he was doing.

There are no better options on either the free agent market or among current major league third basemen, and the Braves don’t have any high quality third base prospects coming up through the system any time soon. I wouldn’t be surprised to see them draft or trade for one during the next three years, because when Chipper does retire, whether it’s in 2012 or 2013, they’ll need someone ready to take his mantle.

Chipper, Braves Agree On Contract Extension

Chipper Jones will now have the opportunity to finish his career as it started, as an Atlanta Brave.  This morning, the Braves announced that they have come to an agreement on a 3-year contract extension for more than $40 million with an option for a fourth year that would take Chipper through 2013.  He will be 41 at that point.

As we expressed earlier in the season, locking up Chipper was an absolute must.  Chipper had also continually expressed that he wouldn’t negotiate a contract during the season, so it’s nice to see the front office get this out of the way.

Chipper has been injured a good bit over the past three seasons, averaging playing in only 124 games, but he has also been productive.  Over those seasons, he has lead the majors batting .342.  Last season, after spending a good bit of the year above the .400 mark, he ended with an impressive .364.  Injured or not, he can still produce.

So rest easy, Braves fans.  We’re not going to lose Chipper too and we can look forward to him finishing out his career here in Atlanta.

Hanson, Heyward To Minors

Tommy Hanson won’t be starting the season in the major league rotation. He is headed to AAA Gwinnett along with Jo-Jo Reyes. First baseman Freddie Freeman and outfield prospect Jason Heyward were also sent to the minors, as was backup catcher Clint Sammons. There are three more names that will be announced today when the moves are made official.

Hanson has performed to his billing this spring – posting a 2.45 ERA and a 1-0 record in 4 appearances. He gave up 14 hits and 6 walks, along with 14 strikeouts in 14 2/3 innings. Jo-Jo Reyes went 2-0 with a 2.08 ERA with nine hits and three walks allowed in 13 innings. We’ll see who comes up first, should injury come to the rotation – Hanson is the future of the organization but Reyes is left handed (and the Braves only have one lefty – Glavine – in the rotation). The downside to Reyes is that he’s been far less than impressive in the regular season in the bigs leagues. Maybe this is the year he breaks that trend, but I won’t be holding my breath.

Hanson will continue to impress for years to come. His visit to big league camp this year brought praise from the mouths of Chipper Jones and Bobby Cox – mouths that normally stay shut on the potential upside of prospects. We’ll see Hanson in Atlanta before the end of the season. He needs the innings he can get at AAA to finish developing before he comes a few miles south to help out at Turner Field.

Hanson and Heyward will head to their minor league homes after today’s game vs. the Blue Jays.

Spring Training Continues, Mets Pester Braves

Spring Training Update:

The Braves continue to prepare for the season in Lake Buena Vista. Even with McCann still playing for Team USA and Chipper still recovering from a strained oblique, the Braves have compiled a great record in grapefruit league play. They’ve won 10 out of their last 11 games, including yesterday’s game where Jair Jurrjens pitched six innings with six strikeouts and only four hits allowed. It should be noted that the Braves’ starting pitching has compiled a great 2.09 ERA during the last 11 games – continuing their stellar performance this spring.

It should be noted that the Braves’ record in spring training doesn’t mean anything. After all, while the Braves are missing Chipper and McCann, other teams are missing their star players. One good thing is that with McCann gone, the Braves’ pitchers are getting used to the backup catcher, Dave Ross.

In injury news, Garret Anderson was cleared to run after sitting out 12 days with a strained right calf. Chipper is back with the team and aggressively treating the oblique issue he’s facing. Chipper is optimistic about the injury not lasting all season and hindering his playing time. I’m just a little concerned, though, because he’s had similar issues in the past. Are you concerned about Chipper?

World Baseball Classic thoughts:

Team USA advanced to the semifinals to play Venezuela after beating Puerto Rico yesterday on David Wright’s bottom of the ninth heroics, but the real story is the cronyism here. Note that Carlos Beltran robbed Brian McCann of a home run earlier in the game, and that that home run would have made David Wright’s heroics unnecessary. Now note that David Wright and Carlos Beltran play for the same team – the Braves’ division rival Mets, and I believe the cronyism I referenced previously has been established. We’ll get you back soon, Mets.

Injury Worsens, Chipper Out of WBC

Chipper Jones was officially scratched from the World Baseball Classic before Team USA’s game yesterday against the Netherlands.  Chipper returned to Braves training camp in Florida late yesterday to be evaluated by team doctors.  He reaggravated his right oblique muscle during batting practice.

Chipper initially injured the muscle during the March 8th WBC game in Toronto, but only missed one game.  The injury is still thought to be a mild strain after the initial evaluation, but it was determined that he should cut short his time in the Classic and return to Orlando to work on getting healthy for the 2009 season.

In 10 at-bats during the WBC, Chipper was hitless and struck out 6 times.  This brings to mind the concern of injuries with players participating in the Classic, but there is no guarantee that the same thing wouldn’t have happened in Braves training camp, so there’s no reason to fault the event.  The big concern now is Opening Day, April 5th, and whether or not we’ll see Chipper on the field.

How concerned are you about the injury to Chipper Jones?

Chipper Leaves Game With Strain

Chipper isn’t doing much in the World Baseball Classic, but yesterday he left the game with a strained right oblique – an injury he sustained when reaching to field a ground ball. If you know your Chipper history, you’ll know he missed time in 2006 with issues with his oblique – but at least that was his left oblique and this was his right.

Chipper doesn’t expect to miss any time and hopes to be playing again Wednesday, but he’s obviously going to be checked out today to make sure nothing more serious is going on before he’s cleared to play. The last thing the Braves need is the main muscle in their lineup injured before the start of the season. Chipper’s agent said that Chipper doesn’t plan on going home and intends to stay with Team USA.

While Chipper has had offensive struggles during the World Baseball Classic, Brian McCann did well in his first appearance. The Braves’ catcher went 1-2 (and walked once), but his two-run home run and sacrifice fly RBI helped Team USA to a victory over Canada on Saturday. It’s aboot time those Canadians see how talented the young Mr. McCann is, eh? Sorry, I couldn’t resist.

Team USA also won the contest that injured Chipper 15-6 last night to guarantee an advance to the second round of games.

Early Spring Training Review

Pitchers and catchers reported to Spring Training last Saturday with the rest of the squad close behind.  The non-roster invitees are getting the chance to meet some of the big leaguers and the young guys have the annual chance to prove that they deserve a spot on the team, either at the start of the season, or down the road when injuries take their toll.  We wanted to take a quick look at what’s going on down at Wide World of Sports since most of this week has been taken up with discussing the last few contract issues the Braves have been working out.

Jair Jurrjens has turned down the opportunity to pitch for his native Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic in the interest of preparing for the 2009 season with the Braves.  With The Netherlands not expected to advance from the first round of competition and the Braves wishing for him to return after his first start, the decision was a little easier for Jurrjens.  Coming off of a surprise season last year that left him as the Braves most productive starter, everyone has high hopes for him in 2009.  This leaves Javier Vazquez as the only Braves pitcher in the Classic, pitching for Puerto Rico.

Chipper Jones and Brian McCann are the only two position players that will be participating in the World Baseball Classic.  Chipper received permission to report to Spring Training early with the pitchers and catchers as he will miss a portion of the preseason.  McCann has the toughest of all though.  With at least three, and potentially four, new pitchers in the Braves’ starting rotation this season, he has a lot to learn to prepare for the season.  With his participation in the Classic, he will miss up to three weeks of Spring Training, but he and the Braves are confident he’ll be ready to go by Opening Day.

Kenshin Kawakami will be the first Japanese player to play for the Braves at a Major League level and he has been soaking in everything that Spring Training brings.  He’s been excited to see his fellow rotation members pitch and eager to show what he’s got as well.  His first couple of sessions throughout the week were mostly to get used to the change in setting and get loosened up and he’s expecting to begin his harder sessions and workouts this week.

Peter Moylan is apparently looking great in camp.  It’s still unknown if he will be ready to go on Opening Day, but he is throwing beyond everyone’s expectations right now, including throwing live batting practice to hitters in Spring Training.  Moylan is recovering from Tommy John surgery on May 8th of last year, a surgery that usually requires a full 12 months for recovery.  My biggest concern is that he takes the time to come back correctly and to not rush anything that might hurt his chance of a full return this season.  Moylan will be a huge asset to the bullpen this year if healthy.

Tommy Hanson has been impressing everyone at camp with his slider.  Hanson is consider one of the top minor league prospects in all of baseball and Bobby Cox continually likens the slider that he throws to that of John Smoltz.  It’s doubtful that we’ll be seeing him in Atlanta at the start of the season, but I have the feeling he will make a few appearances in and out of Atlanta throughout the season.  I expect big things out of this kid down the road.

Jason Heyward is excited to impress as many people as he can this Spring Training.  While likely that he’ll start the season in Rome and probably have the chance to make it up to Mississippi, Heyward is not just another prospect.  At 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds, Heyward is the Braves’ power-hitting outfielder of the future and plays defense to back it up.  At 19 years old, he still has some development to go through, but as MiLB.com’s 3rd-rated prospect in the game, look for him to be making a name for himself in the upcoming seasons.

Those are the main things that have happened as far as Spring Training has gone so far and we’re expecting a lot more news to come from this week when preseason games get started on Wednesday against the Tigers.  Don’t miss your first chance to catch the Braves on TV this season on Thursday when the Braves take on the Astros at 1:05pm on ESPN.  This week will likely start the competition between Josh Anderson, Gregor Blanco, Jordan Schafer and Brandon Jones to tie up the loose ends for outfield positions this season; I’m sure we’ll have lots of news on that this week.

So what’re the things to watch for this week in Spring Training?  Who do you expect to impress?  Who’s not going to meet expectations?  There’s a lot to be excited about.  It’s Spring Training and it’s time for another baseball season to get underway.

Francoeur Signs Contract

Just a day or so before heading to Arizona to have his arbitration hearing, Jeff Francoeur has reached a contract agreement with the Braves.  Now the focus can turn towards Spring Training and bouncing back from the tough season he went through last year, batting only .239 with 11 home runs.  The agreement gives Jeff a base salary of $3.375 million with some small incentives to push the contract a little past $3.4 million.

This is a huge step in the right direction for Francoeur.  I’ve been concerned as the days have passed, and we got closer to the schedule arbitration hearing date, that going to an actual hearing was the last thing that he needed to do for himself, his performance and the team.  Frenchy is no doubt still a little fragile mentally after the tough going he experienced last season, and the process of the arbitration hearing likely would have been damaging to him.  The Braves would have been able to make a strong argument at the hearing for their salary figure, which was $2.8 million, given past performance.  Jeff had requested $3.95 million.

In other contract news, Chipper Jones and the Braves are in the process of negotiating a contract that will keep Chipper in Atlanta for a few more years.  Chipper has always played in Atlanta and only wants to play in Atlanta.  As we discussed earlier on in the offseason, not giving him a new contract to keep him here is not an option.  There are still a lot of details to work through for the soon-to-be 37-year-old third baseman, but at least the front office is making the effort to get talks underway.  Chipper has continued to maintain that he will not discuss a new contract once the season begins.

So the contracts are signed, no one’s headed towards arbitration and we’re one step closer to getting baseball season started for 2009.  Next on the list…..figuring out who is going to fill out the rest of the outfield to give Francoeur a hand.

Where Will Chipper Bat?

It’s no secret that Chipper Jones likes to hit third in the batting order. But in 2009, if the Braves don’t sign a power bat for the outfield, where will he hit?

Chipper likes hitting third. He’s actually a bit better batting third in his career than he is batting fourth. Keep in mind he’s had something on the order of 6600 plate appearances in the three hole, and 2000 plate appearances in the four hole. When batting third, Chipper bats .316, OBP .411, SLG % .557. When he’s batted fourth, Chipper puts up a .297 average, .400 OBP, and .528 SLG %. Nothing THAT drastically different – Chipper has had more good years while batting third exclusively – but he’s more comfortable batting third and it shows, even if just a little bit. About the only area where his stats are that noticably unproportional is the IBB column – Chipper gets far more intentional walks batting fourth.

Chipper 3rd, McCann 4th

McCann has been exceptional in his first three full years with the Braves. He’s just not a true cleanup hitter – he hits 20+ish home runs, not 40. He fits in so well in the middle of the order – fifth or sixth – and I just don’t think we’re going to see him sprout 10-15 more home runs just by placing him right behind Chipper. Sure, McCann could do it – I think he’s the most qualified to do it other than Chipper – but I don’t think it’s the best fit.

Chipper 3rd, Francoeur 4th, McCann 5th

This puts a lot of weigh on Francoeur’s shoulders. He could theoretically step into it – I think he’s going to have a better year this year than last year for sure and I hope to see some power out of him as he develops. That said, I don’t think that this year is the year to put extra pressure on him by throwing him in the cleanup spot. He’s going to come around with time – we just need to be patient and wait for it.

Chipper 4th, McCann 5th

You could argue for 30+ comments about who to bat third (and please do! Register an account and use the thumbs up buttons to vote the comments you like to the top), but Chipper is the old pro, the most stable player on the team, and hits for the most power. He’s also a lot older and wiser than he was the last time he had to hit fourth primarily. He hits the most home runs. He’s developed more as a player. I think that this makes the most sense and is something I’d be most comfortable with. Chipper also is generally a selfless player – he puts it all on the line for the team – and if this is the need, I’m sure he’s more than willing to step into the role.

All I’m saying is that IF the Braves don’t acquire a power bat for the outfield, Chipper makes the most sense in the four hole, despite him having a preference for batting third. Either way, it’s going to be fun to watch.