2008 Braves Season

Well, the 2008 Baseball season is coming closer and closer, so I decided to undate you on happenings from both last year and this year.

Centerfielder Andruw Jones did not renew his contract at the end of the year, which resulted in him being acquired by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Hate that. On the plus side, the CF position has been filled, at least temporarily, by Matt Kotsay. He had to pass a physical on Monday, which he did. We now have a CF. (Like anyone could ever replace 'Druw. Never gonna happen.)

Our infield looks great. At first base, we have Gold-Glover Mark Teixeira, who adds much-needed depth to our batting order. I'm expecting great this from him this year, considering the massive home-run pop he brought to the Braves last year.

At second base is Kelly Johnson. He had a solid year last year, which was especially great, because he used to be an outfielder. If he can work on the backhand pickup/throw motion, he'll be at 2nd for a long time.

Our shortstop is my fave player, Yunel Escobar. With the loss of All-Star SS Edgar Renteria, we also lost some early-order consistency. Esco can fill the gap with ease. He looks like a pro at short, and he can also play 3rd, 2nd, and in emergencies, catcher. Versatility is key, so it makes him all the more valuable.

And at third base is Chipper Jones. The biggest thing with him is STAYING HEALTHY. That does NOT mean that we play the first 2 months, then get hurt in the process of hurling our bodies over a 3rd baseman, just to avoid a tag! Then we DO NOT sit on the bench for the next month or so, because we have bruised palms and can't hit, field, or catch. We need him for the whole season. He's much needed in the 3rd BO (Batting Order, not Body Odor) spot, and on the field at 3rd. Hear that, Chipper? Don't be stupid.

Our outfield is made up of several talented players. In left field, we have 2 guys who add some serious depth to the BO. Matt Diaz played there most of last year, and he's a great LF. He's also very versatile in where he can bat. It's a deadly combination. Great swing, good average, and his playing ability. Fabulous...

We also had Willie Harris, who can not only play left, but center as well. Personally, I think that he would have made a great CF. However, he's 5- 9". CFs are normally at least 6 feet. Andruw was 6- 3". Anyway, Willie gave us a basestealer, something that we haven't had, and desperately needed. He's the smallest person on the team, but he's also the fastest. He can also play 3rd, 2nd, SS, and catcher if he needed to. Last year, before Esco was acquired, Willie filled in for Chipper at 3rd. We definately need to keep him around.

In CF is Matt Kotsay, whom I mentioned before. I think that he could be a promising CF, if he shows consistency and discipline at the plate. That's something that Druw didn't do last year. He swung at everything; up high, in the dirt, or out of the zone. Hopefully Kotsay won't.

And in Right Field, is the invaluable Jeff Francouer. He's been our RF since about 2003, when he was drafted, along with buddy Brian McCann. With one of the best arms in the majors (last year, he threw a ball from the right field corner to the catcher, in the air, and got a runner coming from 3rd to home), he's a great RF. Also, he's versatile in the BO.

As our catcher, we have Brian McCann. The only things that he needs to work on are: losing a few pounds, which will help his running; and throwing out basestealers going from 1st to 2nd. He's a solid middle-batting order guy, who's a power hitter, not an RBI hitter.

Our pitching rotation looks good. Our starting rotation will look like this John Smoltz, Tim Hudson, Tom Glavine, Mike Hampton, and Chuck James (If Mike Hampton is healthy by the start of the season, because he hurt himself AGAIN, rehabilitating in Mexico winter ball.) Our bullpen is solid, as always. We have Tyler Yates, JoJo Reyes, Peter Moylan, possibly Mike Gonzalez (depending on how he's feeling after his Tommy John surgery), and Rafael Soriano as our closer. We got Gorkys Hernandez in a trade for SS Renteria, so that's another great addition.

The biggest thing for our pitchers is being able to go 6-7+ innings, and not overwork our bullpen. We can't be taking starters out in the 5th inning. That killed us last year, because arms get tired after working every night. Losing Mike Gonzalez to Tommy John surgery last year HURT. He's a guy who can go multiple innings. We just can't have him throw out his arm, which is amazing, by the way.

Well, that's my run-down on the 2008 Braves. Hopefully we can work on that Division Title dynasty that has eluded us for the past 2 years. I'm not the only Braves fan who wants to see more pennants hung underneath the Turner Field Press Box.

P.S.- Note to Bobby Cox. Congrats on breaking the all-time ejection record last year. That was SWEEETT!