That's not necessarily true. There were still rumors of our interest in Yelich after the Kemp trade, but the Marlins were insisting on Acuna as part of the deal and we rightfully scoffed.
Discussion of Braves 2018 Offseason plans
- Thread starter Horsehide Harry
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That's not necessarily true. There were still rumors of our interest in Yelich after the Kemp trade, but the Marlins were insisting on Acuna as part of the deal and we rightfully scoffed.
Sure. But it was quoted that trade talks broke off a week or so before the Kemp deal. Of course there was still interest but nothing about any serious talks taking place either. Both sides had long moved on by that point.
50PoundHead
Hessmania Forever
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Looks like we are going to go to war with the guys we currently have. I'm good with that. Looking forward to Camargo and Ruiz getting a lot of at bats at third, Acuna coming up in May to play left, and Newcomb and Gohara holding down spots in the rotation. I'm hopeful of a rebound year from Teheran, and I think Folty still has some development ahead of him. Not to mention All-Star caliber seasons from Freeman and Inciarte, and Albies building on his 2017 debut. Vamos los Bravos!
BeanieAntics
Arbitration Eligible
Most Braves fans seem to have bailed out on Folty's upside, but I think he has a better than average chance to be sort of a late bloomer and turn into a very solid pitcher. I still buy in to his upside. I'm like you though, I am really excited to see how much value the young players can produce this year. Can one of Camargo or Ruiz turn into a solid regular, can Albies become the All Star we all think he is, will Gohara take that next step, will Dansby bounce back, will Acuna live up to the hype?... I think these are all the most important questions for our franchise going forward and I think the best way to do that is to stand pat this offseason and preserve our flexibility for 2019. And if the answer to those previous questions is yes on all accounts (or maybe 4 out of 5), I think we will set ourselves up nicely for a long extended window.
I think a few things have helped that. Moving Kemp and clearing his 2019 salary. None of the lost prospects currently rank in many, if any, top 100 lists. So the anguish over that has died down. Acua being hyped even more by being listed #1 or #2 on all prospect lists puts more eyes looking at what he'll do in ST and this season.
Which has been fine all along, but you still have to wonder if there's not going to be a bargain sign or two in the next week as the players realize the teams' stances aren't going to change and their agents are simply going to have to go get them a job.
Somebody like Maybin, Tony Watson, or Sergio Romo may suddenly be really cheap and the RPs could possibly even be brought in on split deals and tucked away in Gwinnett.
I also still wouldn't rule out a trade for Clint Frazier at some point.
jpx7
Very Flirtatious, but Doubts What Love Is.
You don't think they'll employ the long-speculated Mukaki Shift and then play Acuña in RF?
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Brandon Phillips might be a good fit.
As things stand, we start the season with an Adams/Tucker platoon in left, to be supplanted soon by Acuna. The rest of the bench is Suzuki, Culberson and one or two of Ruiz/Santana depending on whether we go with a 7 or 8 man pen. If we signed Phillips he would presumably replace one of Ruiz/Santana on the bench. Ruiz has options and Santana is on a minor league deal, so it would not be a problem sending them down to start the season.
Whatever the configuration, I wouldn't be surprised if guys who are predominantly infielders also get some playing time in left until Acuna comes up.
http://www.myajc.com/blog/atlanta-b...ly-moustakas-here-why/d7oBitpK4El24sHewGeusL/
The money quote:
"For the Braves to sign him (Frazier), they probably would’ve had to backload perhaps a two-year, $20 million contract, which probably wouldn’t have worked for them for two reasons: I don’t get the impression they had even $8 million or so to spend on one player right now"
All things some of us have been saying for weeks/months.
So...
Who is still questioning that payroll is going down in 2018?
DOB said "they don't have", not, "they don't want to spend", that money. Why don't they have the money? Because revenue didn't meet projections to support a $125M+ payroll in 2018.
Now let the new round of excuses why Enscheff is still wrong begin...Go!
The money quote:
"For the Braves to sign him (Frazier), they probably would’ve had to backload perhaps a two-year, $20 million contract, which probably wouldn’t have worked for them for two reasons: I don’t get the impression they had even $8 million or so to spend on one player right now"
All things some of us have been saying for weeks/months.
So...
Who is still questioning that payroll is going down in 2018?
DOB said "they don't have", not, "they don't want to spend", that money. Why don't they have the money? Because revenue didn't meet projections to support a $125M+ payroll in 2018.
Now let the new round of excuses why Enscheff is still wrong begin...Go!
50PoundHead
Hessmania Forever
I am pleased that we haven't seen any "do something just to do something" moves from the new leadership. I felt there were times that Coppolella would have a brain spasm and just do something without really thinking it through.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
Anthopoulos has indicated Acuna would play left. There seems to be some unwritten rule that you don't shift the vet mid-season. I seem to remember Harper played left and Werth stayed in right the first season Harper came up. Seems kind of silly. But not a big deal. Eventually Acuna should have a long run in right, with some time in center whenever Inciarte needs a day off.
I was one who hitched my wagon to the "Folty is an Ace" train. Seeing him throw 98 MPH on his 105th pitch of a game is hard to ignore.
However, after grading his stuff using the actual numbers, I came to realize his breaking balls are much less impressive than I originally thought. That lack of a dominant breaking ball will also likely limit his effectiveness out of the BP, where guys typically succeed with 2 above average pitches.
Maximizing Folty's value might entail trading him to another team that is still dreaming on him "figuring it out".
I think Markakis is staying in RF because there is less ground to cover there than in LF at Suntrust.
jpx7
Very Flirtatious, but Doubts What Love Is.
Hadn't read that. But yes: veteran deference I suppose dictates sub-optimal defensive alignment. Luckily it's likely another lost year, anyways.
I'm still holding out hope Markakis finds himself on the first reasonable trireme out of town.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
That's a good point. It is like Yankee Stadium, where the Yankees have often played their better corner outfielder in left. When on the road though, the usual considerations kick in. This is why after this season we will probably see Acuna in right.
nsacpi
Expects Yuge Games
The Braves don't seen to encourage their pitchers to throw the cutter. But I think it is a pitch that might work for someone like Folty. Unfortunately it might take a move to a different team for him to get the right kind of instruction.
Lol, that literally said nothing. He was talking about that's what we would have had to try and make work on our end, not what it would have took to actually sign Frazier. 8 million or so to spend on ONE player probably isn't in the cards if they want to add a 3b, RP, and SP with their remaining budget. This isn't anything new. They have likely around 10-15 million remaining and spending more than half of it on one player isn't too smart unless it's a complete bargain.