The Braves Are What They Are

You'll hear plenty of people say the Atlanta Braves' upcoming series, which starts tonight against Philadelphia at Turner Field, is the series which will determine the season for the team or determine what they have. At 35-40 and practically halfway through, I think it should be obvious all that has already been determined. When comedian George Carlin explained why he didn't rail on politicians as much in his act, his reasoning was that he realized that they all came from American families and American universities, and what we have is the best we have to offer. Whether or not you agree with that, the parallel is blatant. This is as good as the Braves are going to get, and they likely will get worse before the season is over.

It's tempting for people to point out that with the Braves playing about as bad as possible, that they are only five games out of first place, and with a sweep they could get to within two games of the first place Phillies. But that's honestly more of a reflection on how mediocre the division really is. Also, factor in the Phillies and Mets have played well below their potential, and that's the only reason the Braves are anywhere near them. Even if the Braves were to pull off a sweep and get within two games of Philadelphia, they still have to catch both the Mets and Marlins as well. And let's do a little quick math. The Braves are currently 35-40, a winning percentage of .467. Let's say that it will take 90 wins to win the division. To do that, the Braves would have to go 55-32 the rest of the season, a winning percentage of .632. And even though the wild card will likely come from the NL Central, let's say the Braves were going to make a run at that. So let's say it will take 87 wins to get the wild card. Even then, the Braves will have to 52-35, a winning percentage of .598. So we're looking at the Braves having to play at least .600 baseball the rest of the way to even have a hope at the postseason. Can you REALISTICALLY expect that from one of the worst offenses in the league?

There are some factors you could point to that could give the Braves some hope in winning and maybe even sweeping the series. The Phillies pitching has been terrible lately, almost as bad as the Braves offense, and something has to give. The Braves will be throwing Derek Lowe, Jair Jurrjens and Javier Vazquez this series, and they face Joe Blanton tonight, who they have owned. That leads me to the first reality check of this blog...we're talking about the Atlanta Braves. This is the perfect time for them to take a 4-1 loss to Blanton tonight and to be swept at home by the Phillies and subsequently buried in the race. After all, the Phillies have won their last nine games at Turner Field.

Many fans are still operating under the thought that the Braves are one big bat away from being division champions and going deep in the playoffs. Here's reality check number two....the only three bats that would make that kind of impact are Albert Pujols, Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez. And none of those will be in Bobby Cox's lineup card anytime soon. Think about it; if Mark Teixiera wasn't the difference maker, Jermaine Dye certainly can't be. It's understood that if the Braves had anywhere near a good offense, they'd be in first place and in pennant contention. Their pitching staff is as good as any. Ignore Lowe's (7-6, 4.53 ERA) last three starts, all of which have been horrible, and he's been what was expected of him. Ignore the win-loss records of Jair Jurrjens (5-6, 2.93) and Javier Vazquez (5-7, 3.04), and you could make an argument for either one of them to be the National League starter in the All-Star game. But their lack of run support is going to cost them both a spot on the roster and Cy Young consideration. That's not to mention Tommy Hanson (4-0, 2.48), who, if he keeps it up, will probably be Rookie of the Year.

But the Braves just do not have an offense. Jeff Francoeur has gone all the way from the real-life version of Roy Hobbs (as penned by Sports Illustrated three years ago) to one of the five worst outfielders in the game. Kelly Johnson has been absolutely terrible, and is regressing rather than progressing like he should be at 27. Yunel Escobar is still talented and having a respectable year, but he's now seen as a hassle in the clubhouse, and he seems to have given up on hustling. Finally Casey Kotchman, who is good defensively, has provided a whopping two home runs at the first base position. Granted he's never been more than a 15-20 home run guy, two won't cut it. Which brings me to reality check number three...it's time for the Braves to realize they won't be serious contenders this year and enter the sellers market and rebuilding mode. You could make an argument that in some ways the rebuilding mode, even if not self-consciously, has begun. Atlanta didn't make the play for a power-hitting corner outfielder that they needed to in the offseason, but rather brought in an aging Garret Anderson to serve as a stopgap. Anderson and Kotchman are both likely stopgaps for the two 19-year-olds (leftfielder Jason Heyward and first baseman Freddie Freeman) in the farm system who are supposed to be the next big thing. But take that with a gargantuan grain of iodized salt; Francoeur was the next big thing not too long ago.

You could say that Frank Wren's job is likely on the line (There seems to be some tension between John Scheurholz and him about how the Smoltz and Glavine situations were handled.), and that he may try and go balls out for the division. But if the Braves continue down that path without a realistic shot at winning a world series, they will forever be stuck in this hole of mediocrity. Now besides the top prospects such as Heyward and Freeman in the system, McCann, Hanson, Nate Mclouth and Jurjjens should be seen as untouchables (unless there's a total mind-blowing deal for Jurjjens). Everybody else should be seen as expendable. It'd be hard to part with Vazquez and Lowe, but they could net you a good return. Tim Hudson will be back later this year, which will give the Braves six good starting pitchers. Another couple that could be dealt are relievers Rafael Soriano and Mike Gonzalez.

It's realistically going to be hard to trade Francoeur or Johnson for much more than a bat boy, some Gatorade coolers, a sample of dirt from the bullpen and free tickets to a Coldplay concert because those two are so terrible. Escobar still has value and should be dealt. And finally we have Chipper Jones. It may very well be time for him to go. I know, you can say it'll never happen, and you're probably right. As of now, he's in the worst slump of his career, but as good of a hitter as he is, he'll snap out of it. And if he happens to get red-hot before the trade deadline, that's a perfect opportunity to send him to a team and get a nice little rip-off. But in looking toward the future, I'd say Chipper's time is running thin. The only problem with letting him go however, is that it would be a public relations disaster and lower an already pathetic attendance that much lower.

Finally Bobby Cox's ship needs to sail. You can keep him the rest of this year, since the team isn't really going anywhere. But in the offseason, he should be given the option of retirement or being fired. Cox has grown too old and is not the aggressive manager he once was and needs to be. The Braves are not a power-hitting team, and yet they don't steal bases. They don't hit and run; they don't bunt runners over. They don't do things that can generate more runs rather than sitting back and waiting on the three-run homer that hardly ever comes.

It's time for the Braves to wake up and smell the roses, and maybe a sweep at the hands of the Phillies could do that. This is what they are going to be the rest of the season. Why not trade away what they can, and get some great talent in return and look towards contending the next few years? In the end, that's what the fans really deserve, isn't it?

Big Scott

"You're Scott's son, aren't you?"That's the question I most often get in Dublin, Georgia, the place I call home. Once you see us both, listen to us talk, watch us adjust our glasses and use the same facial expressions, there's not much doubt I'm Scott Thompson's son. If you know us really well, you'll know we can both be completely sarcastic and quite dorky as well. Those of you who know him know he works tirelessly. He's been a real estate attorney for I believe 27 years. He's a historian, has authored books on the history of Dublin and Laurens County and publishes a weekly column in the Courier Herald. He's a member of the Dublin City school board, having been elected in 2005. He was a little league coach, and he's been involved with the Dublin High School band and baseball team. And that's just some of what he does.He also happens to be one of the more generous people you can run into, having given much money to kids and schools in the county, along with other charities and causes. And he lent a helping hand in making sure that every team member on Dublin's state championship athletic teams got their championship rings. He often quotes Winston Churchill, saying "We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give."We both share a love for writing. The highlight of my short career as a journalist so far has been covering a football game in Athens with him last September. As I sat in the press box, he was down on the field taking pictures between the hedges. And it was he who introduced me to baseball, which we both are very fond of. He was my coach for the majority of my little league career. I used to follow him to work a good bit when I was little, sporting a suit and all. Those days are gone now, but our bond isn't.Back in January, he had a heart attack. Luckily his heart problems were realized soon enough to avoid anything worse. Even when I got the call, I wasn't really panicked. Because the man endures. And even though I felt uncertain in those couple of months, I knew in the end, he'd be fine. It's certainly made me appreciate spending time with him a great deal more.Along with my mom, my dad has been my rock. He's been to countless band concerts, practices, marching band performances, baseball games, banquets, you name it. And even when other people have let me down, he's been by my side throughout it all, supporting me in all that I've done.Having a father that is so widely respected around the community as well as a grandfather who was the same way, I often find myself wondering if I will live up to that, and I put a good bit of pressure on myself. The best advice my dad has given me is to be myself and follow my dreams.People can be amazed at how he rattles information off the top of his head like an encyclopedia, and I used to pretend not to know him when he did the twist in front of the entire band. But it's all him being him. I believe he's still very much a kid at heart.Big Scott is not perfect. He'll be the first to tell you there are things he could have done better. Like all the rest of us, he's only human. But in his number one job as a dad in a world that is in desperate need of more good ones, he gets an A+ from me.Happy (early) Father's Day.

A Few Quick Hits

After a long absence I'm back. Things have been pretty busy lately, but here's a few short thoughts.

* Watching this Sarah Palin-David Letterman thing unfold, I have to say that there's little doubt in my mind that the joke was directed at the 14-year old daughter. But here's a few things/questions:

1. The joke was in poor taste and not funny at all.
2. The joke was a obvious sexist one, but the outcry is not quite as much as it would have been if Palin were an liberal woman, and Letterman a conservative.
3. If the 14-year old daughter of Palin is now fair game, does that mean that the Obama daughters are also in play for such wisecracks? It would be interesting to get Mrs. Obama's opinion on this whole ordeal.
4. Should Letterman be fired? That should be up to CBS, not any kind of government legislation.
5. How come nobody has talked about how this might piss Alex Rodriguez off? I personally wouldn't take a joke about me committing statutory rape very lightly.

* When Christians as a whole become more Christ-like in their actions and not so judgemental and hypocritical, other people's opinion of them will certainly rise.

* Supporters of democratic gubernatorial candidate Roy Barnes should ask themselves this question: Why do they support a candidate who has already proven he can polarize a state and lose an election as an incumbent with a huge money advantage?

* The video on the news of the cop pulling over the ambulance and putting the EMT in a chokehold because he didn't yield at a yield sign (despite having a patient in the back) shows that unfortunately, there are some law enforcement officers who feel they are above the law. I see this a great deal in Milledgeville.

* While I would say I generally watch Fox News more frequently than other news networks, I will say the new Fox Nation commercial they've got is WAY over the top.

* The radical who shot the abortion doctor in Kansas has succeeded in giving the media the opportunity to paint the entire pro-life movement as a fringe one. I watched a PBS documentary the other night, with two colleagues of Dr. Tiller basically saying the "anti-abortion" people are domestic terrorists. This deranged man obviously was - the peaceful protesters are not. It's sad that a disagreement could lead to a murder. Maybe one day people will accept that abortion is not a black and white, clear-cut issue. There are way more gray areas involved, and regardless of whether you agree with it or not, sometimes there are extraordinary circumstances. But people need to be able to make their own choices, which is why I am pro-choice. But let me remind you that not all people opposed to abortion or abortion rights are going to go kill abortion doctors. Honest disagreements and civil discourse is part of America.