Trust The Process: Rebuilding Plan Is What's Best For Atlanta Braves

[thewupk]

I would be perfectly fine with Coppy going back on his statement about Freeman if the right deal came along. He should not deal in absolutes with the media, but I don't think he should change the way he operates the franchise based on an interview.

Unless of course he is a Sith Lord

[The Chosen One]

Unless of course he is a Sith Lord

Or... a Sith Laird.

[emk418]

Ouch. Not posting this because I agree or disagree but ouch

http://mlb.nbcsports.com/2015/11/18/...ing-to-behold/

[thewupk]

Or... a Sith Laird.

There are always two. Is he the master or the apprentice?

[thewupk]

Ouch. Not posting this because I agree or disagree but ouch

http://mlb.nbcsports.com/2015/11/18/...ing-to-behold/

That guy is an idiot for not trusting the process

[Metaphysicist]

There is no reason to trust the process. If the Braves are ever good under Liberty, it will be an accident.

What is the best case scenario here? Some of our prospects turn into legitimately good stars, and we lock some of them up long term. And then what? We just had that: a young core, bristling with potential, a good portion of which we had locked up. And that was considered grounds for burning the team to the ground.

[mqt]

Ouch. Not posting this because I agree or disagree but ouch

http://mlb.nbcsports.com/2015/11/18/...ing-to-behold/

I definitely agree with his points on Coppy's demeanor and defensiveness. I am not upset with the team for the moves that were made, but it's ridiculous to think we should believe AJ and Aybar are some sort of saviors for 2016.

[nsacpi]

There is no reason to trust the process. If the Braves are ever good under Liberty, it will be an accident.

What is the best case scenario here? Some of our prospects turn into legitimately good stars, and we lock some of them up long term. And then what? We just had that: a young core, bristling with potential, a good portion of which we had locked up. And that was considered grounds for burning the team to the ground.

As best as I can understand JC sees his job as building for perpetual never-ending success. Since the team was not in a position to deliver on that it was time to tear it down and start from scratch.

He's given quite a few interviews lately. Some recent quotes of note:

"We don’t want to build a team that is going to win 85 games every year; we want to build a team that expects to be in the World Series every season.”

"The goal for us isn’t to get to 80 wins, or 85 wins, or 90 wins; the goal is to win a World Series, and I feel we move closer to that with every move we make.”

I'm going to be unkind here and say that these quotes reveal a naive and unsophisticated way of thinking. Winning a championship like many other things in life is a matter of probabilities. Nothing is foreordained. But JC seems to believe that he is onto a formula that will transcend merely winning 85 or 90 games. He is a man of messianic zeal.

[smootness]

Ouch. Not posting this because I agree or disagree but ouch

http://mlb.nbcsports.com/2015/11/18/...ing-to-behold/

This article pretty perfectly sums up my thoughts. That interview can not happen again from Coppy. It was ridiculous.

My issue is not with personnel moves. I still basically support the direction we're going. But you can not treat the fan base like this without consequences. That assumed revenue from the new stadium will not be there if you keep saying that kind of crap publicly.

The majority of the fan base is not as invested or as informed as we are. The feeling of the average fan is, 'What the heck? Are we trying to lose? We're just trading our good players.'

The response to that is not, 'Oh you idiots, why would you question me?' It's, 'Let me explain our thinking and how this will eventually help us.' If the fan base doesn't see your logic and plan, that's on you, not them.

[thewupk]

As best as I can understand JC sees his job as building for perpetual never-ending success. Since the team was not in a position to deliver on that it was time to tear it down and start from scratch.

He's given quite a few interviews lately. Some recent quotes of note:

"We don’t want to build a team that is going to win 85 games every year; we want to build a team that expects to be in the World Series every season.”

"The goal for us isn’t to get to 80 wins, or 85 wins, or 90 wins; the goal is to win a World Series, and I feel we move closer to that with every move we make.”

I'm going to be unkind here and say that these quotes reveal a naive and unsophisticated way of thinking. Winning a championship like many other things in life is a matter of probabilities. Nothing is foreordained. But JC seems to believe that he is onto a formula that will transcend merely winning 85 or 90 games.

I agree with that. I think the goal should be to put yourself in position to make the playoffs. That's all you can ask because after that it's a crapshoot. And I would hope he understands that.

[MadduxFanII]

Coppolella would do well to take lessons in PR from John Hart. I don't much like the guy, but there's no denying Hart won over the media about five seconds after he took the job here. How much fawning coverage did Hart get for his "honest, straight-forward, tell-it-like-it-is" answers when basically all of the quotes in question were about explaining the extent to which Frank Wren really, really sucked? But Hart's so avuncular that everything he said went over really well.

Admittedly, if your general manager has to lack a skill, public communication with the media is probably the one you want him to lack. But it is the sort of thing that can burn you eventually- Paul DePodesta basically got run out of LA by Bill Plaschke and TJ Simers.

[sc1767]

So I just read that criticism article and "a few years"? A few years? What does that mean? I think he is backing up. It was a couple of years, now it's a few, as he realizes how bad he has made the team. You can say "fair weather fan" but I have been one since the '80s and am about to just quit following.

[bravesfanforlife88]

[thewupk]

So I just read that criticism article and "a few years"? A few years? What does that mean? I think he is backing up. It was a couple of years, now it's a few, as he realizes how bad he has made the team. You can say "fair weather fan" but I have been one since the '80s and am about to just quit following.

I agree. They haven't come out and actually said but somwhere in the last 6 months it seems the narrative has changed from 2017 until sometime later. That may not be the case but that is my opinion. Maybe after the Olivera deal they realized that pitching wasn't the currencey that they thought.

[The Chosen One]

Don't see how we can be seriously competing in 2017. Doesn't give enough time for hte kids to develop unless they plan on callling them up after June next year and then this team "finding an identity" for 2017 that could give them push to make a run for the playoffs.

[bravesfanforlife88]

I agree. I think they will be more competitive by about 2018. But a lot will be dependent on the market next offseason. If there's very little pitching available maybe the braves unload Teheran and Miller.

[Dalyn]

I think 2020 or so is more likely.

[clvclv]

So what do you suggest some of us post on this board when we look at a move, consider it, think it over and disagree with it?

I'd never presume myself to be someone who should be consulted about what line anyone should draw in the sand when expressing their personal opinion. Just express it in that context - "I disagree, but it's just because my opinion differs from yours".

I'm certainly no more qualified to tell you you're wrong than you're qualified to tell me the same thing. You haven't heard the first peep out of quite a few posters that have been lumped together as "blind followers" or other terms disagreeing with posts about how Coppy handled the "we aren't trading Freddie Freeman" interview - my guess is that most everyone's in agreement that he botched that to an extent. The difference is that one side deems him "incompetent" because he didn't word some of his answers correctly and screams he should be fired because he's going to run the franchise into the ground instead of saying "you're right - he could've approached that a little differently, but there's little substance in what he said that should warrant the "idiot" tag".

He's FAR AND AWAY more qualified to do his job than you or I, and if you're not willing to admit that maybe somebody deserves that tag more than he does. I'm willing to bet you're far more qualified to do your job than he is or I am. I'm also willing to bet I'm far more qualified to do my job than you are. Why others feel there's something terribly wrong with admitting that is what's so hard to grasp - it just seems like a personal and/or self confidence issue to me. My opinion's no more valid than yours, so why be so threatened if it's different?

[clvclv]

I agree with all of that. It's why they are making the big bucks. However they aren't perfect. They do make mistakes. What I find annoying is those that refuse to admit that and blindly trust everything they say and do.

See above. The problem around here (recently, anyway) is that if you've voiced ANY opinion supporting or agreeing with any decisions that have been made, you're instantly labeled as a "blind follower" and any explanation of why you might agree to a point is instantly cast aside and ignored.

Glass half-full vs. glass half-empty, ya know???

[smootness]

I think 2020 or so is more likely.

I think it'll be 2019 at the absolute latest. By then, all the guys currently in the system will have had time to get to the majors. You're looking at a potential rotation of Newcomb, Sims, Wisler, Jenkins, possibly Teheran still, and potentially Allard, Soroka, and/or Toussaint. And a lineup that includes Freeman, Albies, Davidson, Olivera, Mallex, and possibly Riley. And we'll have money to spend and excess prospects to trade between now and then. If we're not able to compete by then, something has gone wrong.