Around the Majors - 2022 Version

[Heyward]

There is something to be said about always selling high but even the Rays wouldn't trade Contreras at this point. With a super thin system the Braves are going to need players like Contreras to develop into 2-3 WAR guys (or better) to extend the window of contention through at least Acuna's remaining years. And I believe that should be AA's focus in the long-term scale of the franchise. Build a team that can contend while Acuna is still here.

I think AA will extend Acuna to a more market level deal once there's 2-3 years left. Astros did the same with Altuve. But given how thin the system is, trading William is a non-starter, not even sure what for.

 

[Russ2dollas]

I've said that I think Contreras needs to be in the lineup every 4 out of 5 games. When TDA is healthy he should be the starting catcher right now. I'd have Contreras catch when TDA needs a day off and then have him in LF or DH in the other games. Whether it's Contreras or Ozuna in LF I don't really care at this point. Harris and Acuna will play good defense in the other outfield spots.

I don't think you can do that with Pina out for the year. He is the back up catcher and is not trained to be running in the OF. If he pulls a hammy and is out for a while you are in trouble at C.

I think the answer in LF is to get better in LF. Find a trade partner, a guy on the roster or get someone healthy who does not suck in LF.

I think it is much more likely they'd DH Wild Bill and put Ozuna in LF than play him in LF w/o Pina around.

 

[thethe]

I don't think you can do that with Pina out for the year. He is the back up catcher and is not trained to be running in the OF. If he pulls a hammy and is out for a while you are in trouble at C.

I think the answer in LF is to get better in LF. Find a trade partner, a guy on the roster or get someone healthy who does not suck in LF.

I think it is much more likely they'd DH Wild Bill and put Ozuna in LF than play him in LF w/o Pina around.

Good point - I think once Acuna is in LF everyday it will be much easier to get Contreras into the lineup.

 

[clvclv]

I've said that I think Contreras needs to be in the lineup every 4 out of 5 games. When TDA is healthy he should be the starting catcher right now. I'd have Contreras catch when TDA needs a day off and then have him in LF or DH in the other games. Whether it's Contreras or Ozuna in LF I don't really care at this point. Harris and Acuna will play good defense in the other outfield spots.

Everybody hates hearing "I told you so", but it sure does feel good when you hear these types of discussions when you said this a long while back and people told you Contreras' bat wasn't good enough to be a DH. Everyone (including me) hates the gloating when someone got it right and the vast majority didn't, so I'll limit it to this and keep it short and sweet - na, na, na, NA-NA-NA!!!

 

[CyYoung31]

Woof - Remember when people wanted to spend money on pitchers like Grienke?

Can't wait till Strider settles in - Rotation is stacked as some of us were saying from the beginning of ST.

The Braves are 3-10 in games started by someone other than the top 4. An actual 5th starter would have netted us 3-4 more wins at this point. And Strider hasn’t proven that he’s the answer yet.

 

[thewupk]

I don't think you can do that with Pina out for the year. He is the back up catcher and is not trained to be running in the OF. If he pulls a hammy and is out for a while you are in trouble at C.

I think the answer in LF is to get better in LF. Find a trade partner, a guy on the roster or get someone healthy who does not suck in LF.

I think it is much more likely they'd DH Wild Bill and put Ozuna in LF than play him in LF w/o Pina around.

That's fair. The DH will be a blessing for the Braves and Contreras. Not sure how he will be long term behind the plate but for the eye test he hasn't been anything close to as bad like he was last year.

 

[thethe]

The Braves are 3-10 in games started by someone other than the top 4. An actual 5th starter would have netted us 3-4 more wins at this point. And Strider hasn’t proven that he’s the answer yet.

That starter did not exist in the FA market.

That was the whole point.

 

[chop2chip]

There is something to be said about always selling high but even the Rays wouldn't trade Contreras at this point. With a super thin system the Braves are going to need players like Contreras to develop into 2-3 WAR guys (or better) to extend the window of contention through at least Acuna's remaining years. And I believe that should be AA's focus in the long-term scale of the franchise. Build a team that can contend while Acuna is still here.

Totally. Obviously we probably shouldn’t trade Contreras. But if the Padres offered Tatis, you would, so obviously he is available. I’m interested in how other Braves fans view Contreras after a 100 (amazing PA’s) considering the majority of fans wished we traded him instead of Langeliers.

 

[chop2chip]

That starter did not exist in the FA market.

That was the whole point.

That’s a bit of a cop out imo. There were plenty of useful starters that signed with teams (or were acquired in trades). Would have Tyler Anderson have signed here for the same or higher deal he gave the Dodgers?

And yes that’s cherry picking with the benefit of hindsight, but the value of a great general manager is they will make moves that more often than not look good in hindsight.

 

[thethe]

That’s a bit of a cop out IMP. There were plenty of useful starters that signed with teams (or were acquired in trades). Would have Tyler Anderson have signed here for the same or higher deal he gave the Dodgers?

And yes that’s cherry picking with the benefit of hindsight, but the value of a great general manager is they will make moves that more often than not look good in hindsight.

Like you said - Its easy to go back with the benefit of hindsight. So technically my statement was inaccurate but at the time it was mostly centered around guys like Grienke and Archer.

I still believe the depth is good in the system and that Strider/Ynoa will do a good job in that 5th/6th spot until Soroka is ready.

 

[Nerfherders]

But also the Braves RS in those games is only 3.5, and that's with a 16 R outburst in one game. 10 of the 13 games they scored 3 runs or less. Not gonna win many of those regardless of the pitcher.

I'm not saying the 5th starter hasn't been bad - just saying there's other pieces of the puzzle.

 

[clvclv]

But also the Braves RS in those games is only 3.5, and that's with a 16 R outburst in one game. 10 of the 13 games they scored 3 runs or less. Not gonna win many of those regardless of the pitcher.

I'm not saying the 5th starter hasn't been bad - just saying there's other pieces of the puzzle.

This.

The main concern is having 4 good, healthy, and rested starters to be part of a playoff rotation - even the best teams are typically just trying to tread water with their 5th-8th SPs, and any time you have continuity and CONSISTENT production from the #5 slot you start seeing teams running away with big leads in their division.

 

[Enscheff]

That starter did not exist in the FA market.

That was the whole point.

This flex you keep trying to make is pure stupidity.

The Braves are 1 SP short, as evidenced by their poor record in games not started by the top 4. As usual, you can’t even apply facts to arguments competently, instead twisting what facts mean to fit the moronic narrative stick in your head.

 

[Enscheff]

I've said that I think Contreras needs to be in the lineup every 4 out of 5 games. When TDA is healthy he should be the starting catcher right now. I'd have Contreras catch when TDA needs a day off and then have him in LF or DH in the other games. Whether it's Contreras or Ozuna in LF I don't really care at this point. Harris and Acuna will play good defense in the other outfield spots.

Contreras looks legit, but folks may want to pump the brakes a bit after 89 PAs. K rates of 28% and BABIPs of .348 aren’t great signs for sustainable offense, especially from a catcher.

I think Snit is handling him well now, and will be able to get Contreras more DH PAs as Acuna plays RF more an more. Eventually he should get 2-3 games per week at catcher, and then DH 1-2 games a week when Ozuna is faking it in LF. He can be part of some sort of semi-complicated semi-platoon in the OF/DH positions if AA goes out and gets a guy like Benintendi, or if Rosario comes back and does anything.

 

[Russ2dollas]

This.

The main concern is having 4 good, healthy, and rested starters to be part of a playoff rotation - even the best teams are typically just trying to tread water with their 5th-8th SPs, and any time you have continuity and CONSISTENT production from the #5 slot you start seeing teams running away with big leads in their division.

I agree with this.

Before the lock out there were some big names that could have been possible like Stroman. After the lockout I did not see a guy out there that really move the needle.

I thought we would have been good to sign an Alex Wood Type....a 2-5 million dollar starter who is good but not great. Maybe has some injury issues. Then you could pencil him in the 5th spot and maybe baby his innings.

Then we must recall that we exacerbated our starting problem by going with a 6 man rotation for months. Essentially using two fifth starters. I do not believe any other team did this.

The Braves have been very conservative with the rotation and Acuna given the lockout and injuries. Hopefully it will pay off later in the year. Hopefully they didn't too big a hole. There are a lot of good teams fighting for those wildcard spots. The ones in the Central have a lot of bad teams to play.

 

[thethe]

This flex you keep trying to make is pure stupidity.

The Braves are 1 SP short, as evidenced by their poor record in games not started by the top 4. As usual, you can’t even apply facts to arguments competently, instead twisting what facts mean to fit the moronic narrative stick in your head.

We are not 1 SP short because even with the futility we are looking like a solid playoff team and then that #5 is irrelevant and just a waste of money.

 

[thethe]

I agree with this.

Before the lock out there were some big names that could have been possible like Stroman. After the lockout I did not see a guy out there that really move the needle.

I thought we would have been good to sign an Alex Wood Type....a 2-5 million dollar starter who is good but not great. Maybe has some injury issues. Then you could pencil him in the 5th spot and maybe baby his innings.

Then we must recall that we exacerbated our starting problem by going with a 6 man rotation for months. Essentially using two fifth starters. I do not believe any other team did this.

The Braves have been very conservative with the rotation and Acuna given the lockout and injuries. Hopefully it will pay off later in the year. Hopefully they didn't too big a hole. There are a lot of good teams fighting for those wildcard spots. The ones in the Central have a lot of bad teams to play.

And the Braves still have yet to give Strider a full run and the rotation seemed much worse because of Mortons performance.

 

[thewupk]

The Braves have had 6 pitchers start a game that aren't Wright, Fried, Anderson, and Morton. I won't count Chavez as he was clearly an opener. Here are their numbers

Strider - 2 GS - 8.1 IP - 4.34 FIP
Davidson - 3 GS - 12.2 IP - 4.48 FIP
Muller - 1 GS - 2.2 IP - 7.64 FIP
Ynoa - 2 GS - 6.2 IP - 7.34 FIP
Elder - 4 GS - 19 IP - 6.30 FIP

That's a bunch of meh to bad.

Taking into consideration that Anderson has a 4.52 FIP and Morton has a 4.60 FIP. Our SP has been pretty gross. Wright and Fried have been studs but that's about it. AA needs to target a starter at the deadline.

 

[thethe]

The Braves have had 6 pitchers start a game that aren't Wright, Fried, Anderson, and Morton. I won't count Chavez as he was clearly an opener. Here are their numbers

Strider - 2 GS - 8.1 IP - 4.34 FIP
Davidson - 3 GS - 12.2 IP - 4.48 FIP
Muller - 1 GS - 2.2 IP - 7.64 FIP
Ynoa - 2 GS - 6.2 IP - 7.34 FIP
Elder - 4 GS - 19 IP - 6.30 FIP

That's a bunch of meh to bad.

Taking into consideration that Anderson has a 4.52 FIP and Morton has a 4.60 FIP. Our SP has been pretty gross. Wright and Fried have been studs but that's about it. AA needs to target a starter at the deadline.

We only need a SP if the goal is to win the division.

 

[msstate7]

I prefer ynoa/Davidson/muller as the 5 with strider as a late inning reliever