SB Nation - Jorge Campillo

The Atlanta Braves Weekly Wrap

gondeee — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 17:34:49 -0000

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Mike Gonzalez may be harder to re-sign now that Scott Boras is his agent.

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Here's a look at the major stories in the world of the Atlanta Braves for the week ending November 22nd:

In the Press...

Tommy Hanson finished a disappointing third in the NL Rookie of the Year balloting.
Pitcher Buddy Carlyle signed with the Nippon Ham Fighters to play in Japan next year.
Mike Gonzalez changed agents to Scott Boras.
We learned through a couple of different sources that the Braves are indeed trying to move Derek Lowe, but are having difficulty doing so.
The Braves added five pitchers to their 40-man roster, protecting them from the Rule 5 draft next month.
The Royals signed former Braves pitcher Jorge Campillo.

At Talking Chop...

I took a look at the choice the Braves made with Andruw Jones and the choice the Blue Jays made with Vernon Wells.
We were the first to report on the Braves minor league free agents.
We reviewed the 2009 seasons of relievers Rafael Soriano, Mike Gonzalez, and the rest of the Braves relievers.
We took a look at some of the top free agents and how they affect the Braves.
Matt and CB reviewed the Braves top-10 minor league relievers here and here.
The bloggers at TC did a round table on the relievers in the Braves system.

Notable FanPosts and FanShots...

Dave_D shared some professional looking photos of some Gwinnett Braves players.
Mgomez4closer wants us to take a look at some minor league free agents.
'hawkchop is concerned about relying too heavily on an ETA for Freddie Freeman.
alligatorimpersonator wants the Braves to bring back Andruw Jones.
Dutch Braves Fan thinks we should re-sign Adam LaRoche.
Doghnut shares a link with us to a good explanation of BABIP.

Braves Have 16 Minor League Free Agents

cbwilk — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 17:03:31 -0000

After an outstanding 2008 for Myrtle Beach, Ernesto Mejia missed the majority of 2009.

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The list of Six-Year Minor League Free Agents has been released and the Braves have 12 players on that list:

Pitchers: RH Bobby Brownlie, RH Jerome Gamble, LH Mariano Gomez, RH Moises Hernandez, RH Lance Niekro, LH Juan Perez

Catchers: Jose Camarena, Alvin Colina

Infielders: 2B/SS Chris Burke, SS/3B Kody Kirkland, 1B Ernesto Mejia, 3B Antonio Perez

In addition to these players, RHP Jorge Campillo, RHP Buddy Carlyle, RHP Vladimir Nunez, and OF Reid Gorecki were previously announced as Minor League free agents after being removed from the Braves' 40-man roster.

Brownlie was one of the top amateur talents when he was drafted in the first round by the Cubs in 2002 but his career has been sidetracked by a series of injuries. He joined Gwinnett in the middle of the season and had a fairly effective run as a swingman, going 5-2 with a 4.13 ERA and 1.35 WHIP in 56.2 innings. If the Braves find they need more depth at the upper level he could be re-signed.

Like Brownlie, Gamble has missed large parts of him Minor League career to injuries, but he's been effective playing for Mississippi and Gwinnett the last two seasons. He spent the majority of 2009 with Mississippi, mostly as a reliever, going 2-1 with a 3.05 ERA and 1.28 WHIP in 44.1 innings. Gamble is a good influence on younger players, so it's possible he could return.

More analysis after the jump...

Gomez has the rare distinction of being the first player ever signed out of his native Honduras, inking with the Indians in 1999. 2009 was his first season with the Atlanta organization, the 10th of his career, and the best of his career, as the big lefty was great out of the bullpen for Gwinnett, going 8-4 with a 1.99 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in 72.1 innings. The Braves like him and if they can beat out the competition he's very likely to return.

Hernandez was aquired from the Orioles in exchange for allowing Leo Mazzone to become their pitching coach. He missed the entire 2008 season to Tommy John surgery and only pitched 35 innings in 2009. He'll be 26 going into 2010 with only 10 games above A ball in his career, so he seems unlikley to return.

The son of former Brave Joe Niekro and nephew of Braves legend Phil Niekro, the former infielder Lance took his first fulltime try at pitching, employing the family knuckleball, in 2009. He remained in the low level GCL, working a 1-3 record and a 5.61 ERA and a 1.60 WHIP in 33.2 innings. If the Braves liked the progress he made, regarless of the results, they could bring him back and give him a chance to try the knuckler at a higher level.

Perez missed the second half of 2008 for Pittsburgh's AAA team and got a late start in 2009 for Gwinnett, but pitched well in 57 innings, compiling a 2-4 record, 3.47 ERA and 1.33 WHIP. He could be brought back to add AAA depth.

Camarena has been a backup for the majority of his career with Atlanta, playing just 32 games with Mississippi this year, ending with a woeful .424 OPS. But, with the Braves lack of upper level catching depth, he could find himself re-signed.

Colina lent a strong, veteran presence to Gwinnett, sharing time with Clint Sammons at catcher. in 256 plate appearances, he hit .262 with 8 home runs, 42 RBI, and a .766 OPS. Again, with the lack of upper level catching depth, but even more because of the intangibles he brings, he seems very likely to return in 2010.

After being picked up in June, Burke was a solid veteran presence for Gwinnett, playing SS, 2B, and LF for the team while hitting .285 with 3 HR, 32 RBI, 13 SB and a .752 OPS in 309 plate appearances. He showed that isn't washed up, so there could be several teams vying for his services this offseason.

Kirkland was signed to be a backup at Mississippi and despite poor hitting, a .201 average and .572 OPS, he excelled in this role, playing every position on the field except C and LF. He was actually very good in 44 plate appearances for Gwinnett, hitting .289 with a .807 OPS. If the Braves need a backup for the upper levels he could be brought back.

Mejia had one of the best seasons in the Braves' system in 2008, hitting .274 with 47 doubles, 21 home runs, 93 RBI and a .829 OPS. But, after tearing his ACL in Spring Training, he missed most of 2009, collecting just 139 plate appearances. Given his talent, the Braves will be very likely to re-sign him and, due to his recent injury, there probably won't be much competition for his services.

Perez, who was once traded for Lou Pinella, was signed as a backup and didn't show much with the bat in 147 plate appearances for Gwinnett, hitting .190 with a .553 OPS. He seems unlikely to return.

Wednesday's Frosty Mug

KLSnow — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:40:04 -0000

More photos » by David Zalubowski - AP

I'm hoping we'll have a picture of Rick Peterson without a Mets hat soon.

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Some things to read while earning your cat-holding privileges.

The Brewers made Rick Peterson's hiring official yesterday, and he immediately turned his sights to Yovani Gallardo and Manny Parra.

Peterson also tweeted about his new gig, and was welcomed into the fold by Seth McClung (more on McClung later today). Miller Park Drunk also welcomed Peterson, and started him off with a cheat sheet on Brewer pitchers.

Now, perhaps the Brewers will get started on the task of acquiring some pitchers for Peterson to coach. Dave Cameron of USS Mariner has the Brewers trading J.J. Hardy to the M's for Brandon Morrow, and Matthew Pouliot of Circling the Bases has a hypothetical trade sending Prince Fielder to the Red Sox for Jacoby Ellsbury and Michael Bowden. Meanwhile, over in Speculationville, Roguejim wonders if J.J. Hardy might be a fit for the Pirates.

Could Jody Gerut end up as a bargaining chip in a trade? Amazin' Avenue lists him as a player who may be undervalued this winter due to a low BABIP in 2009. Gerut posted a .230/.279/.376 line last season, but hit a much more respectable .272/.341/.447 in August and September.

Wherever pitching help might come from, there doesn't appear to be much of it on the horizon in the minors. Baseball America has their final minor league pitching leaderboards up, and the only Brewer mentioned (Evan Frederickson) is among the leaders in a category you don't want to lead (walks allowed). Frederickson, a sandwich pick in the 2008 draft, walked 82 batters in 97.1 innings for Wisconsin this season, and has posted a 5.22 ERA in the minors.

Perhaps Josh Butler will be the exception, though: After playing all over the minors and in the majors this season, Butler is blogging from the AFL (FanShot) His first post covers his wild season, AFL teammates, food and weather.

We've covered the list of reasons why Felipe Lopez should be offered arbitration and the opportunity to return, but Miller Park Drunk has the counterpoint: the list of reasons why Lopez doesn't fit into the Brewers' plans and will almost certainly not be back.

Around baseball:

Braves: Pitchers Buddy Carlyle, Jorge Campillo and Vladimir Nunez have been removed from the 40-man roster and will become free agents. (h/t Rowland's Office)
Mets: Released reliever Ken Takahashi.
Pirates: Reliever Chris Bootcheck rejected an outright assignment and is now a free agent.

Because of the arbitrary nature of the cutoff line for Super 2 players, there's good news for the Diamondbacks and bad news for the Giants today. Slugger Mark Reynolds fell three days short of the service time required to be a Super 2, will not be arbitration eligible and will remain under team control for four more seasons. Tim Lincecum, on the other hand, was over the cutoff by about a week and will be arbitration eligible this offseason.

Three managerial vacancies remain, but at least one team has eliminated Ned Yost from contention: The Indians are believed to be conducting second interviews with four candidates, but Yost is not one of them. Manny Acta is the only finalist for the Indians' job that is also a candidate for the Astros' job.

Over the last few seasons, baseball has shifted heavily toward emphasizing young players and prospects, but here's a reminder on the importance of not looking too far ahead: Lookout Landing has a list of 44 players who appeared for the Mariners in 2008. Less than two full years later, only ten of them are still with the organization. Things can change pretty fast.

Livan Hernandez spent the end of the 2009 season with the Nationals, and despite the fact that he's long past the prime of his career, he'll likely be looking for work again this offseason, because he needs the paycheck. Hernandez reportedly has serious financial issues that could lead to the foreclosure of his home in Miami.

Unfortunately, despite the fact that the postseason has had some pretty exciting games and interesting storylines, the top story once again is terrible umpiring, and a call Big League Stew is calling "the worst call of all time." I keep hoping that maybe, someday, Major League Baseball will be shamed into action on this issue, and do something to either correct inept umpires or put effective umpires in their place. It's likely a pipe dream.

I've spent a fair amount of time lately discussing the Arizona Fall League, partly because there's not much baseball being played lately but also because I find it fascinating. If you're having a hard time getting into it, maybe you should check out Geoff Young's look back at the 2001 AFL, which featured a bunch of future productive major leaguers...and Bill Hall.

Speaking of prospects and development, Derrick Goold has a nice conversation starter about age as it relates to prospects, and when one becomes too old to be considered one (h/t BBTF). In last year's Community Prospect Rankings, we ranked a couple of older players (Brad Nelson and Tim Dillard), and I'm guessing Adam Heether might sneak into this year's list as well.

Finally, this link isn't really baseball related, but I'm dropping it in today because I think it's important, and if you or someone you know coaches youth or high school sports I hope you'll read it: Driveline Mechanics has a look at overtraining in high school sports and its consequences.

Happy birthday today to Gabe Gross, who posted a .797 OPS over 2+ seasons as a Brewer and turns 30 today, and to Franklin Stubbs, who was virtually worthless as a Brewer and turns 49.

Drink up.

Top-5 Off-Season Questions for the Atlanta Braves: #5

gondeee — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:42:03 -0000

More photos » by Mark Avery - AP

Ryan Church and Kelly Johnson may not find themselves in the Atlanta Braves plans for 2010.

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We conclude our look at the top-5 questions facing the Atlanta Braves this off-season.

Question Five: To Tender or Non-Tender

One of the repeated questions I was asked on blog-talk radio shows this season was how long Jeff Francoeur was going to be in a Braves uniform. My repeated answer, and one that I put in post after post on this blog, was that he would not be in a Braves uniform through the end of the season, but that the Braves were unlikely to just release him. The logic followed that the Braves had built this guy up too much to just "waive" him goodbye, they had to get a warm body for him. Enter the Ryan Church trade. Church gives the Braves a player that they can cut ties with without the big media frenzy and the fairweather fans screaming, "but not Francooerrr." By trading him during the season, at least there was the distraction of games to be played to misdirect attention.

So there you have it, the Braves will release Ryan Church this off-season. Church is a third-year arbitration case who made $2.8 million last year, and would likely get a raise to over $3 million next year regardless of his 2009 numbers. That's way too much for an oft-injured fourth outfielder.

The Braves will also release Kelly Johnson this off-seaosn.

Wow, I really said it. This is a very similar situation to the Marcus Giles situation several years ago (which actually was the impetus for moving Kelly to second base). Giles was coming off a poor season in which the Braves had a tight payroll and through arbitration he was due a big raise. The Braves tried and tried to trade him, but every other GM knew that the Braves couldn't afford him, and they didn't want to give up players and more money by trading for him. This is exactly the situation we find ourselves in with KJ. Yes, Cox came out and gave Kelly a vote of confidence, but I bet you can find a similar quote from Cox at the end of the 2006 season about Giles, and Marcus had a much better year that season than Kelly did this year.

As much as many Braves fans like Kelly, the fact is he just hasn't lived up to his promise, and the Braves can't pay him many millions just to see if he finally will next year. Yes, the Braves will try and trade him, and we'll hear plenty of rumors, but that ain't happening, and the Braves will release him.

Brooks Conrad will also be non-tendered. As good as he was for a few weeks during his mid-year call-up, he was only 1-for-18 as a pinch hitter -- that one hit was a three-run game-winning homerun in his first at bat as a Brave. The Braves may offer him a minor league contract and another invite to spring training, but not a major league contract or a guaranteed spot on the 40-man roster.

Brian Barton, gone. Greg Norton, mercifully gone. Buddy Carlyle will probably get released, but with an eye towards a minor league contract and an invite to spring training. Ditto for Jorge Campillo.

Eric O'Flaherty, he'll be back, as he was a pleasant surprise. I can't see the Braves parting ways with any other pitchers, other than the ones listed above and the annual parting of the ways with Vladimir Nunez. I get this feeling that there will be a lot of new faces added to our bullpen or potential bullpen mix this off-season. Bobby Cox needs more relievers he has confidence in, and I feel there will be a lot of auditions going on in spring training.

Matt Diaz will be offered a contract, and will get a hefty raise -- this is one of the reasons I think he'll be a prime trade candidate. He's good, but the Braves covet a power bat, and they may be able to match up with a team who would prefer the Diaz approach to hitting. I would rather keep him, but as I said in the first post today (question one), I don't see how he fits in the outfield with Heyward and a power bat that would presumably play left.

That's all for the top-5 questions, I hope you enjoyed them. I initially thought these five questions would be just one post, but they sort of spiraled out of control, so thanks for reading (if you've gotten this far).

Will the Braves make any more moves before the trade deadline

gondeee — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 01:28:08 -0000

Mark Bowman passes along this quote from Atlanta Braves General Manager Frank Wren:

"There's a certain chemistry and feeling that every team has and when you feel like you've reached that right balance, you are a little hesitant to make a change," Wren said. "I know the guys on this club feel good about this team right now and that's a positive. That doesn't stop you from inquiring and seeing if there are other things that you can do. But we've done quite a bit already."

I don't know that the Braves have a lot of flexibility -- both financially and prospect-wise -- to make any more moves without moving a significant piece of the current team. Besides, hitting is at such a premium around the league, and there are other teams that can afford to pay more than we can. That reality makes the Nate McLouth trade, and to a lesser extent the Ryan Church trade, great moves.

The one thing the Braves might need down the stretch is some additional bullpen help. I've been saying that bullpen help is what we would most likely trade for, but the more I think about it the more I think we don't need to. We've got several guys coming back from injury who should be able to spell some of the tired arms in the pen. The combustible amateur wall-boxer Jeff Bennett should be back within a month, and well rested could provide some good relief. Buddy Carlyle and Jorge Campillo should be back at some point this year, and of course Tim Hudson could certainly provide help in the pen if he is not needed in the rotation. Add to them other guys like Jo-Jo Reyes, the recently demoted Luis Valdez, and maybe a hot hand between Bueno, Nunez, and Gomez -- though we might be in more trouble if it came to those guys.

The story here is that we're probably okay to stand pat with the team we have right now. It also seems that the players are okay to head down the stretch with the current team, whereas in years past they would usually expect a move to be made before the deadline.

Glavine, Campillo, Barton, Medlen, Hanson, McLouth... a busy Wednesday for the Atlanta Braves

gondeee — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 02:40:16 -0000

More photos » by Gene J. Puskar - AP

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After the Atlanta Braves came back to win Tuesday's game in extra innings, the players waited patiently for Wednesday's game, but the Braves front office was busy moving players up and down between the majors and minors, trading players, and parting ways with a Braves legend. Here is a recap of the day's events:

They placed pitcher Jorge Campillo on the DL for the second time this season with rotator cuff tendinitis.
They recalled outfielder Brian Barton.
They announced that they had released future Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Glavine after they deemed he could not pitch at the major league level. Glavine said he was surprised and disappointed.
The team announced that Kris Medlen would move to the bullpen.
They announced that they would recall top prospect Tommy Hanson to start against the Brewers on Saturday, making his major league debut.
Just after game time they announced that they had traded Charlie Morton, Gorkys Hernandez, and Jeff Locke to Pittsburgh for outfielder Nate McLouth.

Quite a busy day for the Atlanta Braves and their fans, and one with a lot of emotion, shock and excitement. The news of Tom Glavine was not the way I think many people, including Tom, wanted his career as a Brave to end. The news that another Tom, Tommy Hanson, would be finally called into big league service is what Atlanta fans have been waiting for all year.

At the end of the day the Braves strengthened their outfield (something they tried to do all off-season), acquired a lead-off hitter, strengthened their bullpen, and added the most promising pitching prospect they've had since Steve Avery to their major league rotation. I don't think anyone had any idea all of this would happen when they woke up this morning (probably not even the Braves front office).

Tommy Hanson to Start Saturday for Braves

bigjoe — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 23:02:37 -0000

Its been confirmed by David O'Brien

Tommy Hanson will start Saturday for the Braves against the Milwaukee Brewers with Kris Medlen being moved to the bullpen after Jorge Campillo was placed on the DL today.

The Tommy Hanson era has officially begun in Atlanta. And its gonna be awesome.

Game 45 Recap - Giants 4, Braves 0

bigjoe — Wed, 27 May 2009 13:33:48 -0000

More photos » by George Nikitin - AP

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I'm sure we all feel like Kris does over there right now. The Braves got owned by Tim Lincecum, plain and simple. There was nothing anyone could do to stop the Timmy Train. The Braves had a couple of opportunities to get some runs across, but 2 of those opportunities with RISP came with the pitcher's spot in the order up, and we know how that turned out due to the lack of Infante.

Kris Medlen pitched better last night. Not great, but better. His horrible second inning really doomed him, and he's pulling a Reyes in the fact that he seems to not be able to pitch effectifvely with runners on base. Heres a fun little stat: with men on, Medlen is allowing a OPS of 1.333, while with the bases empty, the number drops to .345. Very small sample size yes, but its telling. Jojo Reyes's splits aren't as telling, only a 140 point spike, but the numbers are horrible either way.

In news bound to please many people around here, the Braves placed Buddy Carlyle on the 15 day DL and brought Jorge Campillo off. Carlyle has been a disaster lately, and hopefully Campillo can help provide some long relief to the pen that has strugged with it lately.

Final - 5.26.2009	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Atlanta Braves	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
San Francisco Giants	0	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	X	4	5	0
WP: Tim Lincecum (4 - 1) LP: Kris Medlen (0 - 2)

Complete Coverage >

Crumbling Rockies continue east coast trip in Atlanta

Poseidon's Fist — Mon, 18 May 2009 17:53:10 -0000

I'm going to try a new tactic here. The Rockies cannot win this series. There's no reason to believe they can. Colorado has won 2 series in 13 tries this season, and to pull out number 3 vs Atlanta on the road, they would have to win at least 3 of 4. That streak has only happened twice this year, with the help of the hapless D-Backs and Padres. And Coors Field.

Am I honestly scared of a .500 team? Oi vay.

Atlanta Braves (18-18, L1, 3rd, 2.5 GB)

Monday-Thursday : 4-game series at Turner Field

Unlike the Rockies, whose commonly fell into a win-one-lose-one scenario this season, the Braves have been streakier than an '05 Hawpe. Atlanta has won 5 of 6 three times on the season but also owns two 4-game losing streaks. As they are now, they have won 7 of their past 10 to reach .500. The Rockies have won 7 games each at home and the road, so maybe visiting Turner Field isn't so bad, especially considering Atlanta is 3 games better on the road than at home.

The Braves won the season series 4-3 last year after Colorado won the first three in early April. The Rox have lost their last 5 games at Turner Field.

The Braves are ranked 20th in wOBA, 24th in runs, 7th in starter ERA, and 16th in reliever ERA. Their 6 blown saves is 11th highest.

LINEUP	Avg	HR	RBI
Kelly Johnson	.234	3	11
Yunel Escobar	.303	3	18
Chipper Jones	.314	4	14
Garrett Anderson	.238	0	8
Brian McCann	.275	3	12
Casey Kotchman	.296	2	15
Jeff Francoeur	.252	3	19
Jordan Schafer	.220	2	4

Omar Infante will also likely get time in place of Kelly Johnson at some point.

Probable Pitchers:

Tonight, 5:00 MDT

	W-L	ERA	WHIP	K	BB
2009 - Jason Marquis	4-3	5.40	1.40	20	15

Bad Marquis has made his appearance. Touted by some as a possible alll-star amongst the purple paupers, his ERA and WHIP no longer induce intense pride. Unfortunately, it's not much of an aberration. He was unlucky with several BABIP singles in his last start, but his season BABIP is now at career levels, and while his ERA is unfairly high, his 4.78 FIP is still high enough as is.

	W-L	ERA	WHIP	K	BB
2009 - Derek Lowe	5-1	3.80	1.33	34	19

Derek Lowe has won four consecutive starts, despite being outpitched by Jorge de la Rosa in that span and raising his ERA by over a half run. Lowe is walking hitters at a career high rate, but his HR allowed is near the bottom. The Rockies, 3rd in the NL in HR, might be able to change that. Interestingly, Lowe's fastball has lost 1mph from last year and is at its slowest since 2003 - he appears to be throwing his slider more often in response.

Tuesday, May 19, 5:00 MDT

	W-L	ERA	WHIP	K	BB
2009 - Jason Hammel	0-2	4.62	1.70	16	8

Hammel is allowing an disappointing but not unprecedented .359 BABIP against. Unfortunately, that's well withing career averages when throwing out 2008. Hammel got shafted with the loss Thursday, thanks to Garret Errorkins, in spite of allowing just one earned run. His defense IS mistreating him, but he also has a 5+ FIP. Consider this another audition to stick with the rotation, and dream of Frisco.

	W-L	ERA	WHIP	K	BB
2009 - Jair Jurrjens	3-2	2.06	1.17	24	17

Jair Jurrjens is pitching very well in his second full season. The Dutch righty has won just one of his last six starts but has allowed just 8 runs in those 6 starts. Note however, that his low BABIP (.244) and very high LOB% (85%) point to a rising ERA. In fact, his ERA is lower than FIP by the 2nd largest margin in the NL. He is 2-1 with a 3.48 ERA against the Rockies in his career.

Wednesday, May 13, 5:00 MDT

	W-L	ERA	WHIP	K	BB
2009 - Jorge De La Rosa	0-3	3.16	1.17	45	16

Life is unfair, starring Jorge de la Rosa. DLR ranked #2 in May strikeouts thanks to 22 in his past two starts and has allowed 3 runs or less in all 6 starts since his 2009 debut. Even his ERA has been higher than his FIP this year, which is below three. Yet no wins. It will come on this day. It will!

	W-L	ERA	WHIP	K	BB
2009 - Javier Vazquez	3-3	3.71	1.13	67	13

While Lowe has been a celebrated addition to the rotation, Javier Vazquez has been even more valuable. The former White Sock is not only 2nd in the NL in K's, but he is 3rd in K/BB, behind just Dan Haren and Johan Santana. Good company. On top off that, his FIP is lower than 3 as well, a top ten ERA/FIP margin in the league. Vazquez is well on his way to his 3rd consecutive 200-K season. It's a tough draw for DLR.

Thursday, May 14, 5:00 MDT

	W-L	ERA	WHIP	K	BB
2009 - Aaron Cook	2-1	5.71	1.63	21	20

Aaron Cook lasted just 1.2 IP in his last start Saturday...thanks to rain, but he may not have lasted long anyway. Cook is suffering from a stiff back, which will be monitored. This will be the storyline of Cook's start, as losing Cook as an innings eater at least would be a huge loss. His last start broke a string of four consecutive quality starts and two consecutive starts allowing just one earned run.

AAA Stats*	W-L	ERA	WHIP	K	BB
2009 - Kris Medlen	5-0	1.19	0.80	44	10

Kris Medlen is slated to make his major league debut Thursday against the Rockies, pushing Jo-Jo Reyes to the bullpen. Medlen was drafted in the 10th round in 2006 and has rocketed as a dark horse through the minors. This year, he has dominated AAA in eight appearances. Scouting reports here and here and here. The Braves have an absolute find after converting the shortstop to a pitcher with three plus pitches and exceptional control.

Chipper Jones (.412/.522/.750 in last 7), as usual, is performing well of late. Garrett Anderson (.400/.375/.450), Brian McCann (.333/.391/.429) and Omar Infante (.357/.357/.429) are also heating up a bit.

Jeff Francoeur (.087/.120/.087 in last 7) seems to always be struggling these days, and rookie Jordan Schafer (.158/.304/.158 ) and Kelly Johnson (.250/.318/.300) also have been doing Garrett Atkins-impressions of late.

Pitchers Tom Glavine and Jorge Campillo are on the 15-day disabled list, and Tim Hudson (elbow) is on the 60 day DL

The NL West Report will be updated later in the day.

NL West Report

Arizona (14-23, 5th, W1, 11 GB)

Last Week: 0-3 vs Reds, 1-1 @ Braves. Sunday's game against the Braves was postponed due to weather.

This Week: 4 game series @ Marlins, 3 game series @ Athletics

News:

Arizona Diamondbacks Injuries

15-Day

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Tom Gordon	hamstring	05/04/2009
Yusmeiro Petit	shoulder	05/09/2009
Conor Jackson	other-illness	05/12/2009
Tony Clark	other-excused	05/06/2009
Brandon Webb	shoulder	04/07/2009

Los Angeles (26-13, 1st, W1)

Last Week: 2-1 @ Phillies, 2-1 @ Marlins

This Week: 3 game series vs Mets, 3 game series vs Angels

News:

Los Angeles Dodgers Injuries

Questionable

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Eric Stults	thumb	05/17/2009

15-Day

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Hong-Chih Kuo	elbow	04/30/2009
Jason Schmidt	shoulder	03/30/2009
Hiroki Kuroda	oblique	04/07/2009

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Doug Mientkiewicz	shoulder	04/17/2009
Claudio Vargas	elbow	04/05/2009

San Diego (16-22, 3rd, W3, 9.5 GB)

Last Week: 0-3 @ Cubs, 3-0 vs Reds

This Week: 3 game series vs Giants, 3 game series vs Cubs

News:

San Diego Padres Injuries

15-Day

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Shawn Hill	elbow	04/26/2009
Luis Rodriguez	ankle	05/14/2009
Cliff Floyd	shoulder	04/05/2009
Walter Silva	forearm	04/14/2009

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Cha Seung Baek	forearm	03/30/2009
Mark Worrell	elbow	03/27/2009
Mike Adams	shoulder	03/27/2009
Everth Cabrera	hand	04/20/2009

San Francisco (19-18, 2nd, W1, 6 GB)

Last Week: 2-1 vs Nationals, 1-3 vs Mets

This Week: 3 game series @ Padres, 3 game series @ Mariners

News:

San Francisco Giants Injuries

15-Day

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Noah Lowry	shoulder	03/27/2009
Andres Torres	hamstring	04/28/2009
Sergio Romo	elbow	03/27/2009
Joe Martinez	concussion	04/10/2009

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player	Injury Type	Injury Date
Juan Uribe	other-excused	05/17/2009
Edgar Renteria	hamstring	05/17/2009
Nate Schierholtz	ribs	05/17/2009

Poll

How many wins can we steal in the ATL?

0 - Didn't you see the game yesterday? This team is a mess, and Hurdle's seat really will get hotter

27 votes

1- Surely they won't get swept

53 votes

2 - The Braves aren't that great..and we've split 100% of even game series. Weak sauce

20 votes

3 - Surprise series win to save Hurdle's job!

6 votes

4 - What can I say? I'm an indefatigable optimist and masochist

12 votes

118 votes | Poll has closed

Here Come the Injuries

gondeee — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 00:05:07 -0000

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Here we go again. As if last year wasn't bad enough with the multitude of injuries, they are starting to mount yet again this season.

Yunel Escobar strained an abdominal muscle on Thursday and might be out three or four games. These little nagging injuries are what slowed his last year.
Chipper Jones has missed three games with a bruised left thumb, essentially he is unable to hit against right-handers.
Jorge Campillo is experiencing "dead arm" and was placed on the 15-day DL. James Parr was called up to take his spot in the bullpen.
Garret Anderson has missed time this year with a left oblique strain.

And this is just the second week of the season. What concerns me is that there might be more dead arm in that bullpen than just Campillo.