I remember shuddering when I’d see his name on the projected starters list, once he finally recovered enough from his bevy of injuries enough to convince people he was ready to pitch. More often than not though, that still didn’t mean he would actually take the start. Whether it was a strained pectoral muscle in warmups, or a sprained ankle, or a fingernail scratch on his cheek that just stung a little to much to have to work that night, we never really saw Mike Hampton on the mound all that often.

Tonight, when he takes the start at Turner Field, Mike Hampton will be wearing a Houston Astros jersey. I must say, the only thing that I’d like to see more than Hampton on a different team is Hampton walking away from Atlanta with the loss. Maybe I’m just being harsh, but I feel like he owes us that at this point.

ESPN is reporting that the Braves are not likely to get Jake Peavy, but it could be revived at any time. Speculation is that our offer is still on the table and that if the Padres decide to play ball, we’ll end up with Peavy after all. Sounds like they’re just being unreasonable with what they want for Peavy.

ESPN also said that with $40 million to spend, the Braves will upgrade their starting pitching. No duh. That was helpful. I could have a TV show if that’s all I needed to say.

Looks like the Braves didn’t land Junichi Tazawa, the 22 year old Japanese phenom. Two separate newspaper reports indiciate he’ll sign with the Red Sox on a 3 year major league contract soon. That’s a shame – I’d have loved to see him pitch here in Atlanta. Here’s hoping two major newspapers are full of crap.

What do you think the Braves can do from this point forward to make the best of the offseason?  No CC? No Peavy? No Tazawa? Should we forget about pitching and just buy all the offense we want? If not, who do we want?

And then he had to leave last night’s game at AA Mississippi in the second inning with a strained left groin.

It’s only a mild strain, and he’s expected to make at least one more rehab start and then they’re re-assess him.  He’s only Day-to-Day – it’s not like his leg detached.  But that’s how the story goes.  Mike, we wish you the best and truly hope to see you come back strong in Atlanta.  Just be careful and have someone drive you everywhere you go.  And have someone else brush your teeth for you too.  Ya know what, just go ahead and buy a giant plastic bubble.

- Colin

So, we haven’t posted in a while, but this would be a good time to discuss the break and such. Chipper, McCann and trainer Jeff Porter are in New York as I write this enjoying the sites, including Yankee stadium, as well as enjoying their four days off. Chipper and McCann have been THE most consistent presences in this line-up, everyone knows that. While they do deserve these four days off, I doubt either would trade in a trip to Yankee stadium to play the final All-Star game their for those days off.

The Braves played San Diego and the Dodgers last week, coming away with their first .500 road trip of any length since WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY back last season when they went 1-2 against the Mets and 2-1 against the Nats from September 10-16, seriously. But going into the break with a road trip like that, even if it is against the worst team in the league in San Diego, is still something to build on.

Looking more into those six games, the Braves pitched out of their mind amazing, they gave up eight runs to LA in three games and eight runs to the Padres in three games. Against San Diego, only seven of those runs were earned and against LA only seven of those runs were earned as well, bringing the team ERA for those six games down to a ridiculous 2.33, yet we only went 3-3, sad.

The two teams we played, from before the season even started, were supposed to be slightly offensively challenged, yet the Braves looked like the team that needed a bat or three or four. In the first five games in the series, the Braves went 1-54 (0.019) in the first four innings, THEY HAD ONE HIT IN FIVE GAMES IN THE FIRST FOUR INNINGS! Throwing in the final game doesn’t make it that much better either, the Braves had three hits in the first four innings Sunday, bringing the grand total up to 4-67 (0.059). That’s just pathetic offensively.

With the Mets heating up and Florida not going away any time soon (they just got Josh Johnson back for the homestretch), this won’t be easy. Philly’s ball park isn’t miraculously going to get bigger and allow them to hit less home runs, and the Mets and Marlins aren’t going to stop hitting either. This team needs some sort of a wake up call and they need it fast, whether it is waving the white flag to trade guys away and tell them, “we’re not invincible,” or get a new guy in the clubhouse and infuse new energy. Heck Mike Hampton pitching might put enough energy into this team to give them some new life. Who knows?

Looking ahead to past the break, the Braves have a sweepable series against the Nats. The pitching matchups have already been set. Aces duel in the first game when Tim Hudson (9-7) takes on Tim Redding (7-3), Jair Jurrjens (9-4) gets the ball in game two against John Lannan (5-9) and Jojo Reyes (3-8) will face off against Odalis Perez (2-7) in the final game of the series.

Btw, was it just me or was taking Reyes out of his Friday start against the Padres after four innings because we had guys in scoring position a serious desparation move by the Braves? Buddy Carlyle came in and did a good job finishing it up, but seriously. For whatever reason, Reyes always seems to have a shorter leash than any of the other guys out there.

- Akshay

Akshay: ok, so Hampton got through his first rehab start (45 pitches) fine

Me: Is there a punch line?

Akshay: lol

All I’m saying is we’re not holding our breath, but Hampton had no body parts separate unnaturally from the rest of his body in his first rehab start.  He pitched 2.2 innings and allowed two hits and struck out two.

He’ll have two more class A starts before going to AA and then maybe being activated.  If he comes off the DL, we may send Morton down to let him keep honing his skills, or even spell Reyes for a bit.  It could also give us the opportunity to let Jurrjens or Campillo get a rest to heal blisters every now and then for the rest of the season.

Will he actually make it back this time?  I dunno, last time I wrote one of these things on Hampton he got injured later in the day.  So watch out Mike, I’m gonna hit the publish button anyways.  We’re rooting for you.

Colin

Up in Queens, the Queens have fired longtime sucky manager Willie Randolph.  I don’t mean that in he was their manager for long, but that he has sucked for most of his time as Mets manager.

Jerry Manuel will replace him as interim head coach.  The Mets also cleaned out some of their other manager positions.  For more info, check out our buddy Andrew’s site over at TheRopolitans.

The Braves are finally up to 10 road wins, taking three out of the last four on the road.  Do you think they’ve turned a corner?  With the starting pitching looking great its last time around, will they continue their improvement?

And as Mike Hampton heads down to the Gulf Coast League for a couple rehab starts, will he ever pitch in Atlanta this season?

What is the status of Mike Hampton? I can’t find any updates on his recent injury and/or his rehab status. Anything would help – thanks.

Mike, let me help you with this one. Expecting Mike Hampton to be back at Turner Field anytime soon is probably setting yourself up for disappointment (not saying I’ve done the same thing time and time again).

I was one of the biggest Mike Hampton believers coming into this year, and as much as I’d like to believe that he can come back from this injury and pitch effectively for the Braves from the starting rotation, I have to caution you against buying into it. Until we actually see Hampton on the mound for the Braves, I’m in doubt that it’ll happen. And I sure won’t count on it.

That said, Hampton threw on flat ground Saturday, and there were no issues or re-straining of the pectoral muscle that has been giving him trouble all year. Hampton said “It felt good; I didn’t feel anything.” Hampton has another set of flat ground throwing Monday, where he’ll throw more than he did Saturday. He’s expected to have a few more similar sessions before he throws off a mound – that’ll come in the next week or two.

As far as a timetable for return, nothing has been said. I hate the cynicism that has crept into my thinking on Hampton, but it’s there nonetheless. I think we’ll see him in Atlanta sometime this year, but I can’t tell you when. I would love to see him come back from this and anchor the back half of the rotation for the remainder of the year, but that’s a long shot. Let’s all hope he can make it back and stay healthy. The guy’s worked hard and he deserves it.

There, I said it.  With John Smoltz and his bum shoulder pushing him to the bullpen (hopefully if he can heal), our starting rotation looks a wee bit tattered.  Think I’m kidding?  Take a look at the starting rotation.  Hudson has been the Ace so far, with six wins.  Jurrjens has been great with four wins and 41 strikeouts in eight starts.  And then we have Glavine, who is better than his record shows, deserving better than a 1-1 record, but concerning with a 4.41 ERA and a 1-1 strikeout to walk ratio.

Past that, it’s not a rotation.  It’s a random weekly game of bingo that decides between Chuck James, Jo-Jo Reyes, and Jeff Bennett and they rotate out as soon as one of them sucks it up.  And it’s not something that will let us compete into September.  At least Chuck’s out of the consideration for now, but that just leaves room for another Joe Somebody to try.

We had depth, supposedly.  But Smoltz has had shoulder issues – and he’s had those sporadically at the end of the season in seasons past.  And I can’t even discuss what happened to Hampton without feeling like I’d be suggesting he could heal.  And until he proves me wrong, I won’t believe it’s a possibility.  But can we make it to September?  I’m doubtful.  Something has to be done.

Sure, we’re first in the league in ERA and BAA, and second in OPS allowed and third in WHIP, but does that mean jack diddly when we have three starters?  It won’t last long, I tell you.  We’ll miss Smoltz as long as his shoulder keeps him pitching two innings late in the game.  We need a strong starter.  And unless Jo-Jo Reyes can keep it up and start pitching like he pitches in AAA ball, where there’s less pressure, or Jeff Bennett turns a page for the rest of the season, we’ll be a team with three consistent starters and two fillers.  It concerns me.

Do we make a move?  We have tons of young outfielders in the minor league system.   Do we bring up Charlie Morton from AAA and see if he is ready for the big time?  I’m just an armchair GM, sure, but I’m not the only one in Atlanta who is a little concerned about our rotation.

At the time, there was no reconstruction and recovery procedure for the injury and pitchers that suffered from a torn or “compromised” (like Moylan) ligament were doomed to sit out the rest of their days. Dr. Frank Jobe decided to try a new, unheard of procedure on John. He hypothesized that if he could use a tendon from another part of the body (most likely the arm or leg) and attach it to the elbow, it would grow into a ligament. Jobe tried the procedure but had to wait an entire year to witness the results of the surgery.

Jobe was delighted to see that the surgery was a success. John went on to a 10-10 record in his first season back, 1976. John went on to pitch 13 more seasons in the bigs and compiled a 288-231 record and had a 3.34 career ERA.

With John being the first to successfully complete a rehab from the UCL surgery, the reconstructive procedure took on his name and to this day is considered a pitcher’s best friend.

Now as far as its ties to the Braves go, several pitchers on our staff have had the surgery already:

John Smoltz – In 1999 Smoltzie started throwing with a side-arm and three quarters-arm delivery. I don’t know if this is what caused the UCL tear or if he pitched that way because of arm troubles, but it was fairly effective. Smoltz went 11-8 with a 3.19 ERA. Smoltz pretty much lost all or part of five years with the surgery as a starter. It’s probably that he would be a 300 game winner, or at least within reach of the milestone. But there’s another one he can get to at this point: 200 saves.

Mike Hampton – Wow…what more is there to say about Hampton. He was off to what looked like a career year for the Braves before having fore-arm soreness in May on 2005. He made one more start that year towards the end, before electing to have the procedure. He sat out all of 2006 rehabbing from the injury, but unfortunately tore another ligament in the same elbow.

Rafael Soriano – Soriano was supposed to be a great relief pitcher for the Mariners. He struck out 68 in 53 innings in 2004 with a 1.53 ERA, but had to have the surgery late in 2004. He pitched well in 2006, but had to sit out the last month with a severe concussion after getting hit with a line drive in the head. The Braves then traded for him and he has had mixed success in his time with the Braves. Luckily the MRI on Soriano’s elbow came back negative for anything serious.

Jorge Campillo – Campillo also pitched for the Mariners (what is with us and getting players from AL west teams, a few from the A’s and a couple from the Mariners and one big one from the Rangers). He debuted in 2005, but quickly required the surgery after just two appearances. He was released after rehabbing because the team was not pleased with his progress. He signed with the Braves this past offseason and has been a great addition to the roster.

Jeff Bennett – Bennett pitched one season with the Brewers going 1-5 in 60 appearances. Bennett required the surgery in 2006 after spending 2005-06 in the minors. Bennett signed with the Braves after the 2006 season and spent much of 2007 in the minors. During the September call-ups, Bennett proved he could pitch in the majors and won a spot as the long-reliever/spot starter in spring training.

Among other pitchers in the Braves organization, Anthony Lerew underwent the surgery after two starts last season and is currently rehabbing.

Kelly Johnson also underwent the surgery after a tear on a throw from the outfield during the 2005 season. Braves personnel decided to shift him to second base (he was originally drafted as a short stop) to avoid any further injuries to his arm. He sat out the entire 2006 season, but has returned the Braves lineup as an asset as the leadoff man.

With more and more pitchers electing to get this surgery on a regular basis, it poses the question, “what’s the best way to pitch?” Pitchers get hurt pitching overhand, side arm, whatever. Is there really a perfect way to pitch to avoid injuries? So far Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux may be the best examples of two pitchers that have avoided pitching-related injuries for as long as they have.

Hampton’s in the final year of his $121 million contract.  Since 2005, he has made 12 starts in the majors and made $56 million dollars.  On that fact alone, he’ll always have the critics against him.  I don’t think he takes satisfaction in making multi-millions and not pitching at all, but rather he just is injury-prone and has had a series of bad luck.  He’s not giving up on it yet and is planning to continue working throughout the season before making a final decision on what to do after this season.  If he doesn’t pitch this season, however, I feel like he’ll have a tough time finding a new contract somewhere.

More to come on this one as we hear it, but I doubt there will be any developments on it anytime soon.

Chuck James replaced Hampton in the fourth inning, leading fans to believe that Jo-Jo Reyes will get the start against the Reds this weekend in place of the fifth starter. Reyes has been spectacular at Richmond, going 1-1 with 1.17 ERA in 23 innings, his most impressive stat might be that he has walked only eight hitters in the 23 innings pitched.

This is Smoltzie’s second trip to the DL this season – and leaves Tim Hudson to ace the staff while Smoltz is recovering.  The Braves hope that a few weeks now will let Smoltz finish out the season strong, assuming the inflammation doesn’t come back.  The problem with that is I’m not 100% confident it’ll go away – it’s been an issue on and off now since the end of last season.

Can the Braves win without Smoltz?  It’s a good question. We need him and Hudson at the top of the pitching staff in order to allow Jurrjens and whatever other starters are healthy to anchor the back end of the rotation.  The good news is that Glavine is ready to pitch tonight and was activated from the DL as Smoltz went down.  Hampton is scheduled to make a start at AAA Richmond tomorrow and may be activated immediately after that if he can stay in one piece.

Not good for the Braves’ starting rotation, which has seen much more turbulence this season that previously expected.  We’ll keep you posted as we hear more.

Chipper Jones – Chipper missed the last two games with spasms in his lower back.  This is a tricky injury that could be gone in a minute or stick around for a couple of weeks.  Chipper’s tough though and if there’s any chance of him playing, he’s not going to miss a game.  He’s still having some trouble rotating his body though, so we may see him miss another game or two.  He should hopefully be back by the time the Braves return to Turner Field this weekend.

Yunel Escobar – Yunel cracked his fingernail trying to lay down a bunt in Friday night’s game and missed the games on Saturday and Sunday as a result.  Bobby Cox said there’s an outside chance that we’ll see Yunel play Tuesday night.  The swelling in his finger is going down but he’s still unable to really grip a bat and I’m sure he’ll be severely crippled by the injury in the field as well.  I look for him to be back in the lineup by the time the Braves head back to Atlanta as well.

John Smoltz – Smoltz has been bothered off and on by soreness between his neck and shoulder.  He was strong in his two previous starts before coming out of the game after only 3 innings yesterday.  In his postgame interviews, Smoltz gave a less than positive impression of how he was feeling, saying that he doesn’t know if this is more than just muscle tightness.  Losing Smoltz would be a huge blow to our already crippled pitching staff, but if a month on the DL would keep him healthier through the rest of the season, it’s for the best.  I’m sure we’ll hear more on this soon as Smoltz may head back to Atlanta for medical evaluation.

Tom Glavine – Glavine’s expected to return from the disabled list to make his start this Tuesday.  Tommy has been out for a couple of weeks after leaving a game in the first inning with tightness in his hamstring.  His stint on the DL has gone smoothly however and the Braves are confident that he’ll be ready to go against the Nationals tomorrow night.

Mike Hampton – How can there be an injury report without a man by the name of Mike Hampton.  Hampton’s still looking to make his first start in the majors since 2005 after a slew of injuries.  The latest was straining a pectoral muscle while warming up for a start at Turner Field earlier this season.  Hampton made a start with AAA Richmond this past week and went three innings.  I’d look for at least one more rehab start in Richmond before he heads back to Atlanta to make another attempt at starting.  He joined up with the team in New York this past weekend however and spent some time playing catch pregame.

Peter Moylan – Losing Moylan for the remainder of the season is a scary prospect, but is highly likely at this point in time.  Moylan is currently on the 15-day disabled list with a bone spur in his elbow that has compromised his UCL.  Later this week, he will be reevaluated to make a determination as to whether or not he will need to undergo Tommy John surgery to repair the ligament.  I say that if this is the determination that is made, they shouldn’t waste any time in getting the surgery done to give Moylan as much time to recover as possible.  Tommy John usually requires a year at the minimum for recovery and rehab.

Mike Gonzalez – Gonzalez made an appearance in extended spring training last week throwing 12 pitches.  He still has a ways to go to be ready to pitch in the majors, but hopefully after a month or so more of rehab, we’ll be able to look to him to take a spot in the bullpen.

Rafael Soriano – Soriano’s elbow troubles continue to plague him.  When his stint on the 15-day disabled list was over, he was definitely not ready to come back to pitch.  We need Soriano healthy to take his spot as the closer, especially with Moylan down and out as well.  We’ll have to rely on Acosta for now until we get Soriano back.  Soriano threw a bullpen session last week and experienced some lingering discomfort in the elbow, but will continue to try throwing over the next week.

So there are the current injuries that are hampering the team.  On the offensive side, we desperately need Chipper and Yunel back in the lineup as they are great producers on that side of the ball.  Most of our problems lie in pitching however; 3 of our 5 starters are on this list as well as a number of key bullpen members.  Without pitching, we’re not going to go very far this season.

Mike Hampton made a start at AAA Richmond, and apparently he looked and felt good.  He surrendered only three hits in three scoreless innings – and managed to get off fifty pitches without his arm completely detaching from his shoulder and hurtling towards the plate.  Hampton, who hasn’t pitched in the majors since *checks his history book* 2005, will likely make another rehab start on his way back to the majors.  He’ll be evaluated by the team as he joins them in NY today.

Now, you may find me too negative towards Hampton – and I’m sure he’ll pitch in Atlanta at some point this season – but I can’t find myself counting on him for any number of starts or wins.  I hope against all hope that he’ll be able to start 20 games and will stay healthy the remainder of the season, but it’s a little bit hard to expect that after he randomly injures himself repeatedly.

Mike, get well soon, we’ll see you in Atlanta, and we can’t wait for it.  But please, please, please – have someone else drive you places, have someone else tie your shoelaces, and don’t shave.  It’s just too dangerous.

Glavine Likely to Pitch Saturday
Tom Glavine threw off a mound yesterday and was throwing pretty hard without pain.  Assuming no complications or bad feedback from his hamstring, we should see him pitch Saturday against the Dodgers.  We’ll hope he comes back effectively and doesn’t have any negative feedback.

Hampton Throws Off Mound
Mike Hampton threw off a mound yesterday and apparently felt no pain, so we should see him make a rehab start or two before being back at the big league level.  No word yet on where or when those rehab starts may be.  We’ll hope (yet once again) that he can stay healthy.

During pregame warmups to make his first big league start since August 19th, 2005 last night, Hampton felt some tightness and discomfort in his left pectoral muscle on his 23rd warm up pitch.  He tried to make a couple of more pitches before the Braves made the decision to scratch him to try to avoid further injury.  Hampton apparently had a ton of family and friends in the stands to see his start.  My question to them……Why?

Chuck James, whose shoulder has not been bothering him lately, is the likely candidate to fill the spot in the starting rotation.  The Braves have also made the decision to call up Jo-Jo Reyes from Richmond to take the long reliever start; a move that I’m sure more than just I could agree would have been better filled by Buddy Carlyle.  I’m far from high on Jo-Jo’s abilities to pitch in the big leagues yet.  Maybe he’ll prove us wrong.  Hopefully we’ll see Hampton back soon.

Jeff Bennett is a trooper, stepping in for the spot start in the emergency start.  He worked hard each of the last two nights and still jumped in there for the start, pitching four innings and 77 pitches.  He struck out three, walked two, and gave up two earned runs.

But the Braves saw the night turn into one much like they experienced the first two nights.  The bullpen (and a Martin Prado error) let the Pirates back into the game, and the Braves lost their third game this season by one run in extra innings.  Bobby seems to like using everyone out there – these guys are going to be tired if we can’t get some solid starting pitching and get them some rest.

Offensively, Chipper continued his hot start, going 3-5.  Reliever Chris Resop got sent to left field for Adam LaRoche’s at-bat, when Royce Ring came in to deal with him.  Resop then came back to the mound and finished his outing.  At least it was entertaining to watch.

The Braves tried to tie it in the bottom of the 10th.  Mark Kotsay hit a monster drive to dead center that was within six inches of going over the wall.  He ended with a stand-up triple.   But that counts for nothing when you can’t score him, and we didn’t.

The final score was 4-3; mark it down as a 1-3 start with all three losses by one run, two of them in extra innings.  Something’s gotta start going our way.

Next up, the Mets come to town, and Hudson will take on John Maine tomorrow.  Should be a good game – tune in here for coverage.  Look for Hudson, Glavine and Smoltz to make the starts against the Mets.  Hopefully we can get the bats going early and we should have some great games to watch.

Mike Hampton takes the mound for the Braves (1-2) tonight to close out the opening home series of 2008 versus the Pirates (1-1).  As long as nothing happens to him in the next 3 hours, tonight will mark Hampton’s first regular season start since August 19th, 2005, when Tommy John surgery and some assorted other injuries knocked him from competition.  The Braves are looking to ride a successful start from Hampton to get their season record back to .500 after starting the season 0-2.

The squad made a strong showing last night, beating the Pirates 10-2 on a powerpacked 7-run 8th inning highlighted by Mark Teixeira hitting his first home run of the season.  Hopefully the Braves can keep the offense going tonight and that the bullpen can provide the needed backup for Hampton.

After we close out the series tonight, we have a 3-game series against the Mets to carry us through the weekend.  Come by and chat with us during the game, 7:10pm EST start.

Thanks to five Braves hits and two Indians errors, the Braves rallied from the 4-0 deficit to win the game 5-4 as the game was called on account of rain.  The rally included RBIs from Corky Miller, Gregor Blanco, Brent Lillibridge, and our new favorite utility player, Ruben Gotay.  Earlier in the day, Chipper almost knocked in pinch-runner Lillibridge, but he got thrown out at the plate by right fielder Franklin Gutierrez.

Hampton started for the Braves, and he looked good.  The Indians strung three hits together in the second to score a run, but otherwise we should be once again encouraged by Hampton, who seems ready to start the season and answer any doubters who think he can’t handle the Majors anymore.  He’ll pitch well for us until he breaks his arm turning on a light switch.

Jake Westbrook is downright nasty as a pitcher – the Indians have to be thankful for him and C.C. in the division race with the Tigers.  I think the AL Central will be a very fun division to watch all year.

Next up?  Oh yeah, actual regular season games.  One, actually, against the Washington Nationals in DC, opening their new stadium.  President Bush will throw out the first pitch and it sounds like the guys are excited to have the opportunity to be a part of the first game in the new park.  Here’s hoping we torch the Nats.

Jair Jurrjens got the start, giving up two runs in over three innings of work.  However, one of those runs should be charged to Boyer, who did not look good at all in the fourth after he came in.  Some other quick observations:

• Yunel made some great plays defensively, including a nice leaping catch.  I’m excited to see him play a full season.
• Kotsay made a diving grab in the outfield that scared me a little bit – he seemed to catch his arm a little bit but he came up fine.
• I was impressed by Kotsay on the basepaths.  He stayed alert and stole second when the catcher simply dropped the ball.  Caught everyone off guard.  It resulted in Atlanta’s only run of the day.
• We had a “Andruw would have gotten that” moment tonight – but it was later in the game and I think Gregor Blanco was in center, not Kotsay.  So we won’t pop that counter yet.  At least not until the regular season.
• Chipper still won’t run out infield ground balls.
• Fernando Nunez looked good today.  Never heard of him before today, but he looked good.
• Acosta looks good – he’ll be an important part of our bullpen this season.
• The Kelly Johnson / Yunel Escobar double play duo this season will be fun to watch.  They’re getting in the groove and should be really smooth here soon.

Next up, Hampton starts against the Indians at 1:10 tomorrow.  The Braves will have their 25-man roster done tomorrow at some point too.  They have to have it set before Sunday’s game against the Nationals.