Braves president John Hart: “It’s not like I’m breaking up the ’27 Yankees” ....

[goldfly]

Braves president John Hart: “It’s not like I’m breaking up the ’27 Yankees”

The Braves traded Jason Heyward to the Cardinals last month in a deal that netted them Shelby Miller. It wasn’t a popular move with the fan base, but it was deemed necessary with Heyward one year away from free agency. Some more familiar faces could soon be on the move, with Justin Upton and Evan Gattis reportedly on the block, but new Braves president John Hart indicated to Jeff Schultz of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that a change in direction doesn’t bother him.

“Let’s be honest: This team finished 29th in offense,” Hart said. “It’s not like I’m breaking up the ’27 Yankees.”

That’s a pretty decent line. Hart denies that the team is in tear-down mode, and the recent signing of Nick Markakis would seem to back that up, but he also realizes that they aren’t ready to compete with the Nationals. They also owe $28 million combined to Dan Uggla and B.J. Upton in 2015. That means they have to ask themselves some difficult questions with a new ballpark coming in 2017.

“We had a tough year, and I know there was a lot of speculation about us going into this winter,” Hart said. “We had the 29th-ranked farm system in baseball. We had some bad contracts. Everybody felt there would be some players we would definitely unload — become a seller, if you will. But we’ve never felt like there was something we had to do. Obviously we’re contractually obligated to some players who aren’t performing well. But just because 2017 is coming, it doesn’t mean we’re going to throw a hand grenade on the club and blow it up. That wouldn’t guarantee success for 2017, either.”

For what it’s worth, Hart says he had unproductive conversations with “six to eight” teams about Justin Upton. The 27-year-old is due to become a free agent after next season and figures to be too expensive to keep long-term, so it would be a surprise if he doesn’t get dealt this offseason. As for the other Upton, well, it looks like the Braves are stuck with him.

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/20...he-27-yankees/

[Heyward]

He's not wrong.

Some of yall act like we traded Mike Trout.

[thethe]

Feel the same way. Its a bit extreme the reaction thats going on.

[Metaphysicist]

He's not wrong.

Some of yall act like we traded Mike Trout.

Are you gonna change your screen name?

[goldfly]

he might not be breaking up the 27 yanks

but he is getting rid of the players that aren't the problem

[nsacpi]

he might not be breaking up the 27 yanks

but he is getting rid of the players that aren't the problem

I must say it's rather extreme of you to point that out.

[MadduxFanII]

No, it's not the '27 Yankees. And trading away half the productive hitters from the club isn't going to magically improve things.

Also, can we please stop pretending that 2014 was the only season? 2013 happened. So did 2012.

Finally, it's odd how much credit Hart gets for "candor" when that "candor" seems to consist of complaining about how much Frank Wren sucked.

[Knucksie]

he might not be breaking up the 27 yanks

but he is getting rid of the players that aren't the problem

Yeah, like the problem players are so marketable a trade bait...

[nsacpi]

I've outlined my thoughts on Heyward relative to Markakis/Miller elsewhere.

My other main criticism regarding this off-season had to do with the lack of attempt to bring in potential upgrades at third and center, and the prospect of going into 2015 with 4 low OBP hitters in the lineup (Bethancourt, Simmons, Melvin and CJ). But I might have to back off that if the Gattis to left idea is being shelved. Also acquiring Callaspo does open up the possibility that Peraza could play center or that there could be a domino effect where Peraza would displace Callaspo at second who in turn would take some of CJ's playing time at third.

Hope that's not too extreme.

[kendiz]

he might not be breaking up the 27 yanks

but he is getting rid of the players that aren't the problem

There was a problem with Heyward. He was not producing as I thought and a lot of folks thought he should be. He was extremely stubborn in not making adjustments at the plate as he needed to do. And I believe he would have never signed a long term deal with the Braves if a large city team wanted him....Yankees, Boston, LA...... I could be wrong, but I don't think so. It was a good trade in my opinion.

[yeezus]

There was a problem with Heyward. He was not producing as I thought and a lot of folks thought he should be. He was extremely stubborn in not making adjustments at the plate as he needed to do. And I believe he would have never signed a long term deal with the Braves if a large city team wanted him....Yankees, Boston, LA...... I could be wrong, but I don't think so. It was a good trade in my opinion.

Lots of players have up and down season, especially young players.
The "stubborn" part is complete speculation. It's more likely that adjustments are just difficult, and it can take players a bit to adjust, especially young players.

[NinersSBChamps]

he might not be breaking up the 27 yanks

but he is getting rid of the players that aren't the problem

Yeah I guess it's so easy to get rid of garbage players. I am sure teams are blowing up his phone asking how they can get our CFer.

[keithlaw]

Yeah I guess it's so easy to get rid of garbage players. I am sure teams are blowing up his phone asking how they can get our CFer.

It is easy to get rid of garbage players. Its not easy to get rid of their salaries.

[VirginiaBrave]

he might not be breaking up the 27 yanks

but he is getting rid of the players that aren't the problem

Unfortunately you nor I can say that with certainty. Look we all want BJ gone, but somebody has to want him to make it happen and nobody in their right mind is gonna take that scrub at this point. Wren put us in bad shape with those contracts and the bills are due. We honestly have now three tradable pieces, Upton, Minor, Gattis and I honestly hope Hart holds out for the best deal on Gattis and Upton. This is not gloom and doom people we will compete for the second wildcard not in 2016 but in 2015 bank on it.

[Heyward]

Are you gonna change your screen name?

No.

[Carp]

Trading Heyward and Upton has everything to do with trying to get better long term. Of course the Braves would still love to be productive in 2015. But they weren't/aren't going to mortgage the future any longer on a team with major flaws.

[yeezus]

Trading Heyward and Upton has everything to do with trying to get better long term. Of course the Braves would still love to be productive in 2015. But they weren't/aren't going to mortgage the future any longer on a team with major flaws.

Having good players long-term also helps being good long-term. We need to get good players somehow. They usually cost money or other young players.

[nsacpi]

So is Hart mortgaging the future if he lets Justin play out his remaining year with us with no extension?

[UNCBlue012]

I can get on board with these comments.

[weso1]

I think the Braves have made smart moves to this point. Good value moves. Trading for and signing guys that are maybe not at their elite values and trading away players that are at their peak values at least since Hart has been here. Classic money ball stuff. I can truly see the Coppolella influence.

Hart's comments are candid across the board, not just about bad contracts and the lame farm system. Very candid about what's going on with Justin Upton and candid about planning for 2017 and what their overall vision is. While there is some implied grump about how Wren put him in a tough position, I don't really see him being mean spirited in anyway. He's just trying to explain why he's doing what he's doing. How is he supposed to explain without saying, well we need to improve our farm system and we need to dump crap contracts? I mean the Braves have a crap farm system and a couple of bad contracts they can't get rid of. It is what it is and this is the reason that they can't give an exorbitant contract to J Hey.

I think some of the Hart grumps are a bit unfair.