To me the Nats look like a team that has spit the bit already. It wouldn't surprise me if this series was the catalyst to them falling off to third or maybe even fourth place.Originally Posted by Heyward
To me the Nats look like a team that has spit the bit already. It wouldn't surprise me if this series was the catalyst to them falling off to third or maybe even fourth place.
Nats are what they are...overrated
Talented roster, but talented bc we have overrated a lot of their guys.
Well, I had them around 90-95, not 105-110 wins like everyone else did.
Even still, I didn't see them being this bad...
Hanson also isn't the pitcher he was when he first came up due to injury. That Hanson was better than Medlen and would of been our best pitcher. He was legit. Injuries happen. Medlen is a good #3 borderline #2 starter. Last year was a fluke and not a transformation into him being a TOR starter. Sorry.
CyYoung31 (08-08-2013)
Eh I tend to disagree with Medlens season last year as a fluke. Sure, he wont ever post those numbers bc they were obsurd, but when Medlen has great control, teams cant hit him. This season, he is having trouble with his command/control. I consider THAT a fluke.
Speaking of Hanson, I watched him a bit last night vs Texas. His velocity was a bit better early, around 92 mph. But he still cannot hold a runner to save his life. They were stealing bases on him like taking candy from a baby. They stole 5 bases on him including third twice. He ended up lasting less than 5 innings and giving up 5 earned runs.
That said, it's a shame what injuries have did to him. When I was watching him coming up he reminded me of Smoltz a bit. But that was then and this is now. Thankfully we were still able to get Walden for him after last year.
Last edited by Braves1976; 08-08-2013 at 01:13 PM.
I think he will settle in as excellent. A low #1 starter. I don't think his command can possibly be as good for long stretches as it was last year, and I think he will clean up his mechanical flaw that's hurting him this year (in his words, flying open and pulling off the pitch, thus leaving it over the plate).
If you think about it, most of the time it's one pitch or one inning he gets roughed up. Other than that, he's about the same guy who went 9-0, 0.97.
That's the thing. When he has great control. Last year he had Cliff Lee type control. I don't believe he has the ability to do that consistently which is why I think last year was a fluke. This year he is basically doing what he did in 2010 except for walking a half batter more per 9 innings. I consider what he's doing now to pretty much be in line with his ability going forward.
Yeah. While not really selling high on Hanson we still dealt him while he had some value left. Which in the past the Braves would hold on to such a player and get nothing in return while non tendering them.
He's a guy that has to have impeccable control and has to throw his offspeed pitches for strikes. He is really tough to beat when he has umps last night with larger zones. When he has umps with tight zones and he has to get it closer in to the zone, he struggles. When he has everything going, he's probably a mid 3 type era guy.
It also probably wouldn't hurt the guy to eat a salad every now and then.
The Good: He had a great fastball and two plus off speed pitches.
The Bad: His mechanics were frightening, he couldn't hold runners, bunt, hit, or field his position, his body language was terrible, he worked slowly and his team had trouble staying engaged.
Pretty much every skill ancillary to pitching sucked. When he lost his fastball it was over. Getting Walden was a great return.
Lets see if this inability to command his pitches in the zone is the new norm. Sometimes its there, and sometimes its not. Everyone knew that his numbers last year were a fluke but the regression this year to me is a fluke as well.
Natural Immunity Croc
But compared to what his numbers were in 2010 there isn't much regression at all.
Why would we use his first year in the majors starting as his baseline?
Natural Immunity Croc
Because it's pretty much what he is doing this year. Much better to look at that then something he will never repeat again.
Those ancillary skills are a real strength our current homegrown guys (plus Hudson), and reminiscent of the Big Three. With the exception of some trouble with bunting, our pitchers are mostly excellent in these areas. In general, they're poised out there, field the position, hold runners, even help themselves with the bat once in a while.
You wanna bet on it?
Don't care to be honest, I think they go on a run at some point.
What would you want to bet?
I'm not saying to use his last year either. I don't believe Kris has formed his baseline yet. We will see what he materializes into. Its not as common as it was this year for a young pitcher to hit the gate running.
Natural Immunity Croc
Why do you keep saying that? They can't score runs at all and that's not going to change.
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