The Side Line
Money spent on starting pitching, namely Derek Lowe. What was the main complaint from fans the last few years? The starting rotation has clearly dropped talent-wise from the glory days of the 90s, perhaps the main reason the Braves are in a division title drought after winning 14 straight.
Francoeur and McCann. You know them, you love them, you watched McCann flourish and “Frenchy” falter last season. Well, McCann is only getting better, and is arguably the best young catcher in the game. Francoeur has completely changed his batting stance, opening up more and bringing the bat down on his shoulder more, for a quicker swing and the ability to wait a split-second longer to diagnose pitches.
Jordan Schafer. As of this column, he has two homers in his first three major league games, including a solo blast in his first ever at-bat. A lefty version of Francoeur when he started out, providing spark and power, and what appears to be a better decision process at the plate than Francoeur had. Not bad, kid. Keep it up.
Bobby Cox. Simply put, there has never been a better manager in baseball who has meant more to his team. Bobby is a legend not just in Atlanta but in all of baseball. He holds the record for most ejections in history, and his competitive fire often sparks a win after his departure from a game.
The race for the NL East. How’s this for a division: The Mets, who added arguably the best closer in baseball to an already loaded team, the always-talented/unpredictable Marlins, the up-and-coming Nationals and oh-by-the-way the World Series champion Phillies, all competing with the Braves for at most two playoff spots.
This will be a fun year. Come along for the ride.
Posted by Colonnade Archives
on Apr 10 2009. Filed under Sports.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0.
You can leave a response or trackback to this entry
