Archive for the ‘Atlanta Braves’ Category
According to Scout.com. the Atlanta Braves have traded LHP Horacio Ramirez to the Seattle Mariners for Right handed Reliever Rafael Soriano.
Soriano was 1-2 last season for the Mariners with a 2.25 ERA in 53 games. He allowed 44 hits in 60 innings pitched, 15 earned runs, 21 walks, and 65 strikeouts.
The hard-throwing reliever turns 27 in a few weeks. He's been in the big leagues for parts of five seasons. Soriano will help set up Bob Wickman in the Braves' bullpen next year.
Ramirez had an injury-plagued 2006 season with the Braves. He was 5-5 in 14 games with a 4.48 ERA.
Thats too bad. It seemed whenever Ramirez pitched against the Mets he got lit up every time, especially by David Wright. Soriano should do good with the Braves after making the switch from the AL to the NL and he has some very nasty stuff. I hate to say it, but I think the Braves made a steal with this one.
Sphere: Related ContentP Gil Meche spent the night at a Maple Leafs game accompanied by Blue Jays GM J.P. Riccardi.
The Red Sox and OF J.D. Drew are expected to sign a 4-year deal worth $15-16 million a season with a vesting option for a fifth year.
Sources told the Chicago Sun Times that the Cubs did not offer P Jason Schmidt a 3-year contract worth $44 million. It is still believed the club has interest in Schmidt though.
Now a bunch of nuggets from Mr. Baseball, Ken Rosenthal:
The Orioles are ridiculiously dumb for spending so much money on Ps Jamie Walker, Chad Bradford, Scott Willamson and Danys Baez.
OF Manny Ramirez would be a great fit for the Dodgers because he has experience with manager Grady Little.
The Red Sox plan on making a run at Devil Rays OF Rocco Baldelli.
The Braves are unlikely to sign P Tom Glavine if they cannot trade P Tim Hudson.
C Rod Barajas did not sign with the Blue Jays because his wife didn’t want to move to Canada.
The Cubs, Mets, Royals and several NL West clubs have shown interest in P Miguel Batista.
The Diamondbacks, Padres, Giants, Rangers and Indians are showing interest in P Mark Mulder, who isn’t expected to return before the all-star break.
Sphere: Related ContentTom Glavine was miffed that Braves GM John Schuerholz detailed a private conversation he had with Glavine when he left to join the Mets. The excerpt comes from Adam Rubin's Daily News Blog.
called Bobby Cox at Bobby’s farm at Adairsville, Georgia, that Saturday
and, as Bobby related to us, said, “I made a mistake. I don’t want to
do this.” Bobby called me, concerned about Tommy’s well-being. He liked
the guy. Tommy was like a son to him. Bobby said, “John, I think you
should call him.”
So I called him. Tommy invited me to come out to his house. …
I got in the car late that evening and drove there, a pretty good
distance. Tommy lives out in Alpharetta, on the extreme northern
outskirts of the Atlanta area, at the Country Club of the South. We
shared a bottle of Silver Oak cabernet wine. He and his wife, Chris,
and I talked. The three of us talked and talked and talked. It was a
tough visit. At times, we were all on the verge of tears. Tommy did
most of the talking — about what was on his mind, which was about
remaining a Brave. I related my similar experience when the Braves
coaxed me into leaving Kansas City.
I said, “Tommy, we would be happy to have you remain with us if
that’s what you want. If that’s how you feel, I give you my word that
we will do all that we can to make that happen.”
There are two sides of me conflicting with each other on this whole Tom Glavine affair. One side of me is sympathetic to the fact that the guy is torn between family and baseball, but the other side of me sees a guy who even after becoming a Met told his old team he made a mistake, which I take as an insult in a way and how dare he go back to our sworn enemy and tell them of his displeasure of becoming one of us. In a way it sort of soils how I feel about Glavine, despite all the good things he has done here, he was a mercenary. He's the anti-Cliff Floyd.
Of course if he were to return, and pitched another good year for us, i'd probrobly forget all about this and love the guy all over again. Baseball really is a funny thing.
Rangers GM Jon Daniels said he is “cautiously optimistic” that his club will re-sign P Vicente Padilla.
The Braves and Orioles could be discussing a Tim Hudson for Hayden Penn/Adam Lowern trade.
White Sox GM Kenny Williams denied reports that P Freddy Garcia was on his way to Anaheim for P Ervin Santana.
The A’s might not offer a contract to OF Barry Bonds.
The Angels view OF J.D. Drew as a fallback option for OF-2B Alfonso Soriano.
The Dodgers, yet again, remain close to re-signing 1B Nomar Garciaparra.
The Phillies #1 priority if the club fails to re-sign P Randy Wolf is to sign P Adam Eaton, not Soriano.
Sphere: Related ContentOur friend Matt Cerrone @ MetsBlog is reporting that Jerry Crasnick was heard on ESPN Radio reporting that the Braves are close to acquiring Jake Peavy from the Padres in exchange for 2B Marcus Giles, RHP Horacio Ramirez and C Jarrod Saltalamacchia.
Well, that would suck. Not only because I think Peavy is a pretty good 2nd or 3rd option for the Mets to acquire for their rotation, but to have him come to the Braves is a double whammy. Lets hope at least this increases the odds that Glavine is not headed there as well.
Sphere: Related ContentThe Braves have picked up the $8 million option for 2007 with John Smoltz reports ESPN.
Smoltz, 39, had expressed frustration earlier in the season that the team had waited this long to exercise the 2007 option.
Smoltz is 14-9 with a 3.72 ERA after Thursday's win over the Rockies.
Red Sox Taking Backseat To Mets As Yanks Rival
Posted by Anthony De RosaSeptember 18, 2006 at 3:44 pm
18 Sep
With the Red Sox fading into the Yankees rear view mirror, many fans are now turning their attention to their cousins across town. Wallace Matthews explores the possibility of a rematch of the 2000 World Series, but with the Mets bringing a much more improved arsenal of weapons in today's Newsday.
may remain the enemy, but the players know better. Now the only rivalry
left for the Yankees is strictly intracity. Boston no longer is a
threat. Flushing, however, is.
Going into today's action, the
Yankees and Mets are separated by a half-game for baseball's best
record, but you don't need the standings to confirm what your eyes can
see. These are the two best teams in the game, and barring an early
October collapse by either one, they should meet again in the World
Series.
But this time, the Mets come in with the same
credentials as the Yankees. Both teams can hit the cover off the
baseball. Both teams are unsure about the back ends of their starting
rotations and have concerns about their bullpens. Neither has won a
thing in the 21st century.
And unlike the 2000 Mets, who
magically found themselves in the World Series after someone else - the
St. Louis Cardinals - knocked off perennial nemesis Atlanta for them,
the 2006 Mets have proven their case as the class of the National
League, no matter how long it is taking them to close the deal.
There is no Benny Agbayani in their starting outfield this time around,
no Little Mikey Bordick at shortstop. This is a real team with MVP
candidates whose claims are every bit as legitimate as Jeter's.
For too long, the Mets toiled in the shadow of the Braves and the
Yankees were consumed with the specter of the Red Sox. This year, the
Mets left Atlanta behind and for the time being, the Yankees have
shaken the Red Sox off their ankles. Finally, they have only each other
to worry about.
Now that sounds like a rivalry worthy of a word like eternity.
Omar Minaya was humble in his comments after the Braves had been mathematically eliminated from winning their 15th divisional title.
“What Atlanta has done between (manager) Bobby Cox and (general
manager) John Schuerholz, what can you say?” Minaya said. “If there
were a Nobel Prize for baseball, they would be voted a Nobel Prize for
the work they've done there over the years. I like and respect what
they've done and what they've accomplished. I don't think it's been
done in the history of baseball.”
Minaya, himself fond of player development - even if the current Mets
have only a handful of homegrown players: David Wright, Jose Reyes,
Aaron Heilman, Lastings Milledge and Heath Bell - labeled the Braves
the blueprint for other teams, including the Mets, to follow.
“They do it right,” Minaya said. “They've done it right. And they'll
continue to do it right because they believe in scouting and
development, and they believe in their scouts and their people. There's
not enough good things for me to say about the Atlanta Braves and their
front office and what they've done and what they've accomplished.
“They are the model. They are the model of success in the past 15 years.”
Minaya was so respectful of the Braves that he used qualifiers before
last night's game regarding the official elimination of Atlanta from
division contention, saying things such as “If we clinch …”
There wasn't any gloating, of course.
“You're not going to get that from me,” Minaya said.
Chipper Jones recently paid his respects to the Mets, and wished them well in the playoffs.
“If the Mets go on and win the World Series this year, my hat's off to them,” Braves third baseman Chipper Jones said Monday. “It's a team you don't mind losing the division to, if they go on and do something special.
“Either way, whether they do or not, the best team in the division won the division. There's no disputing that.”
Theres a great story in the Bergan Record about Roger McDowell's metamorphasis from master of the Hot Foot and Mets closer on the 1986 World Champion New York Mets to current Atlanta Braves pitching coach…
As a player, Roger McDowell's favorite prank was the hotfoot.
As a coach, McDowell has had to put his prop comedy and sight gags
on the shelf. What the first-year Atlanta pitching coach really wants
to do is light a fire under his staff.
“I'm the same guy. I'm just a little bit older,”
said McDowell, who was 14-9 with 22 saves and a 3.02 ERA in 1986, the
last year the Mets won the World Series.
Read the whole story here.
Sphere: Related ContentDaily News : 3 Reasons Mets Win/Lose Braves Series
Posted by Anthony De RosaApril 17, 2006 at 2:09 pm
17 Apr
From DailyNews.com…
3 REASONS METS WILL WIN SERIES
* Braden Looper is in St. Louis.
* Rafael Furcal is with the Dodgers and Chipper Jones is on the DL.
* These aren't the same old Mets. When the Mike Piazza
3 REASONS THEY'LL LOSE
* The Mets are the Mets and the Braves are the Braves. Does
* Victor Zambrano and Tom Glavine are pitching. Sure,
* Bobby Cox manages the Braves and Willie Randolph manages the Mets. Cox
The Mets' biggest problem against the Braves has been an inability to
close out games. From Armando Benitez to John Franco to Kenny Rogers to
Braden Looper, the Mets could never finish what they started. With
Billy Wagner in the pen, things will be different.
These two guys have killed the Mets over the years, and neither one
will be around this week. Only bad news is Met fans can't chant
“Laaaaarry,” the entire game.
era at Shea ended, so did the Braves' mental hold over the Mets. Guys
like Carlos Delgado, Paul Lo Duca and Xavier Nady don't have the Braves
in their heads.
anyone really think the Mets are going to put Atlanta away in
mid-April? Seriously. The Braves have history on their side and that
won't change this week.
Pedro pitches tonight, but after that it's the worst starter in the Met
rotation (Zambrano). Then comes the former Brave (Glavine) who, despite
being paid by the Mets the last three years, has been owned by Atlanta
the entire time.
is a Hall of Fame manager who knows how to work the umps and force the
opposing manager into making bad moves. Randolph is still learning the
art of a double-switch.
The Mets, speaking from a position of power, take a different approach to the Braves series.
Julio Franco…
“After all that winning they believe in themselves. … I think we believe in ourselves too, though.”
“Every game counts, but the ones against the teams in your division
have a way of feeling different or more important, Maybe it has to do with how well the teams know each other. … I
think we all know plenty about the Braves.”
Willie Randolph…
“Those are the guys we have to go through to be where we want to be, We're looking forward to that challenge.”
“I know the struggles we've had with the Braves in the past, but this
is a whole new team. We have a lot of new faces, We don't have too many guys who were around for the struggles. We're
going into this with a fresh outlook.”
“We've gotten off to the start we wanted. Now it gets down to this: We
have an understanding that the NL East championship is going to have to
go through Atlanta. To be the best, you have to beat the best. They've
been on top for a while. We have all the right tools. If we play good
baseball, we're going to win.”
Sounds like we've got a real battle on our hands, and the Mets seem ready to take on the challenge. Should be an interesting couple of days to say the least.
Funny that the Braves are associating themselves with MC Hammer with a new commercial called “My Braves” featuring current and former Braves and Hammertime himself. Maybe they can start wearing parachute pants to complete the awful package.
Come to think of it, didn't Hammer grow up in Oakland and got his start as a bat boy for the Athletics, and with the financial help of several Athletics players, started his own record label? So much for hometown loyalty.
No longer can they kill the Mets for “Who Let The Dogs Out”. At least the Mets had the sense to dump that one soon after they adopted it while the Yankees continue to play “Cotton Eyed Joe” and “YMCA” during the 7th inning stretch.
Hat tip to Always Amazin' for the link.
Sphere: Related ContentLarry “Chipper” Jones appears to have hurt his knee badly in an awkward slide in the 5th inning of todays Giants/Braves game. The Braves lead 5-4 in the top of the ninth. Its not yet known how long Larry will be out but it did look ugly.
UPDATE: Sprained right ankle, swollen knee is the current report. Braves bullpen implodes again. Giants comeback to win in the bottom of the 9th. Mets hold a 2 game lead in first place.
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