Preparing for the Cards in the NLDS

I wish they would have let JT come out of the pen some the last two weeks. We knew he wasn’t starting this post season so let’s see how he fares in one to two inning bursts. I would like him in that role to be honest.
 
Although the odds of it making a difference are small, imo choosing Swarzak over Teheran and Blevins reduce our chances of winning this series. The stars get most of the attention and rightfully so. But success in baseball also depends on the accumulation of small advantages.
 
On the fangraphs matchups it had an interesting tidbit on how the Cards crush four seam fastballs but are below average against virtually every other pitch, including sinkers which our starting three throw as their primary fastball.
 
nsacpi said:
Although the odds of it making a difference are small, imo choosing Swarzak over Teheran and Blevins reduce our chances of winning this series. The stars get most of the attention and rightfully so. But success in baseball also depends on the accumulation of small advantages.
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Ooo...it's O'Day not Swarzak who makes the roster. I would also favor Teheran or Blevins over O'Day.
 
My son just sent a tweet he got from the Braves, it lists O'Day and not Swarzak. Sent at 10:06. Anyone else see that? Can't check tweets at work on my computer.

Never mind...
 
nsacpi said:
Although the odds of it making a difference are small, imo choosing Swarzak over Teheran and Blevins reduce our chances of winning this series. The stars get most of the attention and rightfully so. But success in baseball also depends on the accumulation of small advantages.
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I don't think I would have carried Swarzak simply because he hasn't been good in four months and the Braves don't really lack for right handed options.

I think it's funny that most of the coverage I've seen of Teheran seems to lean in on the idea that he's not dependable in the early innings so that makes him a poor relief candidate. My response to that would be that he's much better the first time through the order than in any other situation. I think he's a very up and down pitcher who gets by on ... well I don't know exactly what, but it looks extremely lucky and he tends to have spells where things are going really well for him that tends to be BABIP driven and then other spells when they aren't and that's when he's getting somewhat normal BABIP results. Since he's not going well currently, that's a shrug.

I think I'd feel marginally better about him in a long relief stint than I would Tomlin but it's six of one.
 
bravesfanforlife88 said:
Roster released Swarzak left off
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Ah never mind.

I've been sort of mildly tuned out since the Braves put a fork in the Bats, so I haven't seen O'Day pitch much. I'd be interested in a comparison of his stuff to what it has been in the past. This feels like the highest upside play for the last spot, but maybe not the most dependable.
 
The full roster, per DOB:

P (11): RHs Folty, Greene, Jackson, Martin, Melancon, Tomlin, Soroka, O’Day; LHs Fried, Keuchel, Newcomb
C (3): Cervelli, Flowers, McCann
INF (5): Albies, Donaldson, Freeman, Hechavarría, Swanson
OF (6): Acuña, Duvall, Hamilton, Joyce, Markakis, Ortega
 
No Wacha and no Gant. But they went with the third lefty in the pen.

Their two switch hitters, Wieters and Edman, hit lefty pitching better. The platoon advantage does favor all the right handed pitching we have. If Newk comes into play, it should be against Fowler (also a switch hitter, but has hit righty pitching better the last few seasons), Wong and Carpenter. And that's it.
 
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thewupk said:
a rookie lefty at that. braves seemingly will have a splits advantage here
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I'm assuming Flowers will be catching Keuchel. I would like to see a right handed hitter between Muk and Joyce. Either Flowers or Swanson.
 
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