Post by The Commish Dude Abides on Aug 6, 2015 7:57:50 GMT -6
John Hart took a wrecking ball to the 2014 Braves leaving only three position players remaining: Simba, Freeman, and (unfortunately) Chris Johnson. The main emphasis has been (a) dumping excess salaries and (b) rebuilding the horrid farm system that Frank Wren decimated (with misguided trades and short term rentals) by placingan emphasis on acquiring starting PITCHING ... and more pitching. He's been successful on both fronts, including (somehow) getting rid of Melving Upton (who is also putting up meddling numbers this year).
The cost has been losing some good players early and recently (e.g., JUp, Kimbrel, Heyward, Alex Wood, Uribe, Johnsons, etc.) but the Braves were going to lose most of them after 2015 anyway and a highly paid closer is a luxury a rebuilding team can't afford (Padres have failed miserably this year with those and other costly acquisitions). In return, the Braves have acquired some top flight YOUNG talent, mostly pitchers, that will be cheap and under club control for a long time. Most of these players have performed very well this season, including the Padres top pitching prospect, Matt Wisler, who has been throwing well for the Braves. This thread will track their progress.
The biggest move for offensive talent is a very risky acquisition at the trade deadline for Hector Olivera, a 30 year old Cuban 2B/3B with a sketchy health history acquired (along with two pitchers and a 1st round draft pick) by trading Alex Wood, Peraza, and other pieces. Olivera should make it to the Braves by the end of August. The trade is hugely unpopular (mostly because of the exagerrated value in fans' eyes of Wood and Peraza), so his performance will be very closely watched this year as the primary measure of its success.
By clearing up all the dead weight salaries, the Braves also acquired lots of draft picks, international free agent pool money, and lots of money to sing free agents in the offseason. Reportedly, they will have up $50-60 million to spend, allowing them to go after big time FAs like David Price and Cespedes should they choose. Bottom line: exciting times for this franchise with all the new faces in and coming. Certainly more exciting than their on the field play for the rest of 2015!!!
The cost has been losing some good players early and recently (e.g., JUp, Kimbrel, Heyward, Alex Wood, Uribe, Johnsons, etc.) but the Braves were going to lose most of them after 2015 anyway and a highly paid closer is a luxury a rebuilding team can't afford (Padres have failed miserably this year with those and other costly acquisitions). In return, the Braves have acquired some top flight YOUNG talent, mostly pitchers, that will be cheap and under club control for a long time. Most of these players have performed very well this season, including the Padres top pitching prospect, Matt Wisler, who has been throwing well for the Braves. This thread will track their progress.
The biggest move for offensive talent is a very risky acquisition at the trade deadline for Hector Olivera, a 30 year old Cuban 2B/3B with a sketchy health history acquired (along with two pitchers and a 1st round draft pick) by trading Alex Wood, Peraza, and other pieces. Olivera should make it to the Braves by the end of August. The trade is hugely unpopular (mostly because of the exagerrated value in fans' eyes of Wood and Peraza), so his performance will be very closely watched this year as the primary measure of its success.
By clearing up all the dead weight salaries, the Braves also acquired lots of draft picks, international free agent pool money, and lots of money to sing free agents in the offseason. Reportedly, they will have up $50-60 million to spend, allowing them to go after big time FAs like David Price and Cespedes should they choose. Bottom line: exciting times for this franchise with all the new faces in and coming. Certainly more exciting than their on the field play for the rest of 2015!!!
