SB Nation - Gregor Blanco

Braves 2009 Season in Review: Jordan Schafer

gondeee — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:53:13 -0000

Atlanta Braves' Jordan Schafer will use next season to work his way back to the majors.

One of the most disappointing story lines of the 2009 season for the Atlanta Braves was the failure of center fielder Jordan Schafer. Going into spring training he was competing with two other guys, both with major league experience, Josh Anderson and Gregor Blanco. Schafer had such an impressive spring that he beat out both of them, relegating Blanco to the minors and Anderson to the trading block.

The positive spring training reports and performance turned up big in those first few games of the 2009 season. Schafer hit a homerun on the fifth pitch he saw in the first at-bat of his big league career. Another hit and a walk in that first game had everyone abuzz that this kid was for real. After his first 5 big league games he was hitting .421, he had hit in 4-out-of-5 games and 3 of those games were multi-hit games. Then came a 1-for-21 stretch as the league adjusted to him, then some more good hitting where he adjusted to the league, but it wasn't enough, and the injury he suffered in those first few games caught up with the grind of the big league season. Schafer tried to gut it out, but a wrist injury combined with the inexperience of a rookie caused his numbers to crash.

Schafer eventually had surgery on that left wrist to remove a bone spur and insert a wire linking two other bones. More info on that here.

When looking ahead to a return to the majors next season, or more likely a return to the majors in 2011, how do we quantify Schafer's 2009 performance to get expected results? Do we take the .300-hitting Schafer of the first 8 games, or the sub-.200-hitting Schafer of the next 42 games? Maybe a little bit of both? It's easy to throw a dart right in the middle and say that's what kind of hitter he'll be in the majors. The Bill James 2010 Handbook pegs him as a .239 hitter were he to see big league action in 2009.

What we need to do when analyzing Schafer is to go back to those scouting reports when he was a prospect. Baseball America said last year that Schafer has "good hand-eye coordination with quick wrists and plus bat speed." That combination is still there, and now it's there with a renewed sense of determination to get back to the big leagues and prove to everyone what he can do when he's healthy. Most all of the prospect reports from last year on Schafer also said that he would benefit greatly from at least half a year at triple-A, but he made the jump directly to the majors after just 84 games of double-A.

2010 will be the year that Schafer should have had last year. It will be a year to further his seasoning as a ballplayer at the top rung of the minor leagues, and to regain the confidence and swagger that is so much a part of who he is. He's too much of a tireless working not to come into next season with a mission to prove to everyone that he deserves to be back in the majors. To do so he'll have to work on keeping his strikeouts down, keeping his walks up, and continuing to work at becoming a guy who hits for a high average. Success in triple-A early next season could make him a very valuable backup in case of injury to anyone in the 2010 Braves outfield, and a potential major impact player late in the season for Atlanta.

Atlanta Braves Players and Prospects in Fall and Winter Leagues

gondeee — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 15:52:18 -0000

The Major League baseball site is a bit slow updating their Winter Leagues pages, especially the roster pages, but on the ones that are updated I've been able to find quite a few Atlanta Braves players and prospects competing this off-season in fall and winter leagues.

In the Mexican Winter League, which starts today, the Braves have four prospects representing Atlanta, pitchers Brett Butts and Tim Gustafson and outfielders Concepcion Rodriguez and Matt Young. It's worth keeping an eye on all of these guys, as the pitchers could figure into our future bullpen mix and the outfielders could at least become candidates as future major league backups. We might see a few other guys participating, but not all of the rosters are available yet.

In the Venezuelan Winter League, which also starts today, the Braves have several participants; catchers Osman Marval and J.C. (automatic yearly invite to spring training because he's a catcher) Boscan, who are not really prospects, and first baseman Ernesto Mejia, who is certainly a prospect to keep an eye on. Left-handed starter Jose Ortegano will be another prospect to watch, and he is joined on the same team by outfield prospect Luis Sumoza.

Gregor Blanco also makes his annual appearance in the VWL, and Martin Prado is listed on the roster of one of the teams, so hopefully he gets to spend some time close to his family while getting some extra work in (I wonder if he'll play right field <<big gasp>>).

Of course, the Arizona Fall League starts Tuesday with the elite Braves prospects participating. The Braves top two prospects Jason Heyward and Freddie Freeman highlight the position players, along with shortstop Brandon Hicks. Top draft pick Mike Minor gets his first taste of upper-level minor league competition, as he fronts the Braves pitching contingent of closer candidate Craig Kimbrel and relievers Lee Hyde and Jeff Lyman.

Matt and CB will be spinning up daily Fall/Winter League recaps starting next week so that everyone can keep up with our prospects this off-season. So check back daily for the latest on the next generation of Atlanta Braves.

Atlanta Braves Minor League Recap: 7/30

yondaime4 — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 02:58:07 -0000

Rochester 1, Gwinnett 2

B. Jones 1-4 2B
B. Barton 1-1 HR(6). 2 BB
T. Redmond 7IP 6H 1R 1BB 7K

Look at Todd Redmond getting back on track. His one run allowed was of the unearned variety when Gregor Blanco missed a ball in the OF which led to Rochester scoring their only run of the night. Brandon Jones actually has 5 XBH in his last 7 games. What has gotten into him?

West Tenn 3, Mississippi 0

F. Freeman 2-3
R. Reynoso 7IP 5H 2R 1BB 0K

You know it can't be easy to get a quality start without striking out any batters, but Ryne Reynoso pulled it off. Too bad the offense was shut down by Steve Bray. Even Jason Heyward went hitless with 2 K. (Don't worry he still has almost twice as many BB as K in Mississippi and more than twice as many XBH).

Kinston @ Myrtle Beach - RAIN

Asheville 8, Rome 4

L. Sumoza 3-4 2B, RBI
A. Milligan 2-4 3B, RBI
JJ Hoover 5IP 8H 5R 2BB 7K

This one probably constitutes JJ Hoover's worst start of the season which isn't too bad in my estimation. I wonder if he isn't getting a little tired though as he is having his worst month of the season. His control has still been superb and as you can see he is still getting his strike outs. Asheville is the best hitting team in the league so for now I will chalk it up to that.

Danville 3, Burlington 1

LV Ware 1-5 2B, SB(17)
B. Rauh 1-3 2B, SB(4)
J. Teheran 8IP 2H 1R 1BB 11K

There really hasn't been anything from Julio Teheran that hasn't been impressive this season. He is getting Ks, he is pitching deep into games (7 or more innings in 4 of his 7 starts), he gets ground balls and he doesn't walk a ton of people. I really want to see him move up a level and show us what he can do. Obviously he has all the time in the world being only 18 years old.

GCL Braves 6, GCL Blue Jays 10

A. Odreman 2-5 RBI, 2K
C. Bethancourt 2-5 RBI
D. Falcon 2-3 2B, 3B RBI

The very young Christian Bethancourt keeps on hitting the ball to the tune of .314/.362/.465. He has shown good doubles power so far and a K rate that isn't horrible. I hope everyone has him on their lists at the end of the year.

Atlanta Braves Minor League Recap: 7/26

yondaime4 — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 02:42:59 -0000

Lehigh Valley 1, Gwinnett 5

R. Gorecki 2-4 3B, RBI, K
B. Jones 1-2 2B, RBI, 2 BB
G. Blanco 2-3 HR(2), 2 RBI

This is crazy! Brandon Jones has 4 XBH in his last 4 games. He better be careful or SLG will rise above .400. Gregor Blanco broke out of his slump (0 hits in his last 7 games; and to think we might have had him in CF full time earlier this year) with a couple of hits. Barbaro Canizares has seen his AVG fall down to .308 on the season but his OPS is still sitting at a respectable .845.

Mississippi - Off

The Southern League gets a day off from Jason Heyward's assault.

Myrtle Beach 3, Winston Salem 4

D. Linares 2-4 2 2B, RBI
C. Johnson 1-4 3B, 3K

Nothing much going on in this one. Cody Johnson has 6 XBH in his last 10 games but he also has 16K in that span. He appears to be reverting back to his early season form now that Heyward and Freeman are gone. Maybe he is pressing too much.

Rome 2, Kannapolis 3

A. Milligan 2-3 HR(4), RBI, BB, K
R. Barba 3-4 2 2B

So who do you guys think has a better chance to become our LF of the future? Milligan or Johnson? Cody has a better eye right now but Milligan appears to have better contact ability, though his K rate is still decently high. If he can get his walks up he would become a very nice prospect.

Bluefield 5, Danville 2

M. Jones 2-4 2B
C. Harrilchak 2-3 RBI, BB
C. Masters 4IP 5H 5R 2BB 3K

I really like the package that Mycal Jones brings to the plate with him. He has 9 XBH in his last 10 games and on the season he is putting up a .276/.371/.488 line. He takes walks pretty well (16 in 123 AB) and uses his speed well so far (6 SB with 0 CS). At this point his only weakness is the typical strike out problem (30 in the same 123 AB). Cory Harrilchak is described by Baseball America as a "more of a grinder than a tools guy" and that he has a good feel for hitting. That appears to be apt as he has posted a .349 AVG so far with a 13/7 BB/K split in 106 ABs. There are some solid looking players down in the Appy league. I can't wait to see what they do in full season ball next year.

GCL Braves - Off

Call it June 31st: Braves 11, Phillies 1

dajafi — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:04:25 -0000

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

Braves starter Jair Jurrjens held the Phillies hitless through 6 2/3 innings in Atlanta's blowout win Wednesday night. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

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Not much to see here. Cole Hamels struggled to keep his composure early, allowing a third-inning bloop single to opposing pitcher Jair Jurrjens and some close calls that went against him from home plate ump C.B. Bucknor to spiral into a three-run frame that put the Phils in a 3-0 hole. After the team got one run back in the fourth inning on a Jayson Werth walk, a two-base error on a Jurrjens pickoff attempt and a Greg Dobbs sacrifice fly, Hamels totally fell apart in the fifth: a walk to Gregor Blanco, a single to Martin Prado, a two run double by Larry Jones Jr., a run-scoring single by Brian McCann, and Cole's night came to an early and ignominious end with the Phillies trailing 6-1. Reliever Tyler Walker surrendered two home runs and three more runs in all before escaping the inning.

After that, the only drama was how close Jurrjens would come to no-hitting the Phillies. He was seven outs away when Paul Bako singled to end the bid; Shane Victorino later added another single. That was it for the Phillies offense on the evening. The Braves later added two more runs off reliever Jack "Why Am I Still on the Roster?" Taschner.

With the Mets and Marlins also winning earlier, the Phillies' lead in the NL East is now just a half-game, and they could be a bad weekend away from fourth place. Most immediately, J.A. Happ will try to avoid a sweep in Atlanta tomorrow night against Braves starter Javier Vazquez.

The Devil's Named Prado: Braves 5, Phillies 4 (10)

WholeCamels — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:51:18 -0000

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

Trauma (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

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It looked for a few minutes like the 2009 Phillies were back to their early season late inning comeback ways. But then, they must have remembered it was still June. Another late inning comeback, another bullpen fold.

Trailing 3-2 in the top of the 8th, the Phillies quickly took the lead after Mike Gonzalez surrendered back-to-back home runs to John Mayberry, Jr. and Pedro Feliz. Then, in the bottom half, after retiring the first two batters, Ryan Madson walked Gregor Blanco, who promptly advanced to second on a poor pickoff throw by Madson. Blanco then scored on a double by Martin Prado, advanced to third on a fielding error by Jayson Werth.

The game finally ended on a one out RBI single by Prado in the 10th. For his part, Prado was 4-for-6 with a home run, a double, and four of the Braves five RBI. Blanco and Prado accounted for seven of the Braves' 13 hits.

Phillies starter Joe Blanton was largely ineffective, allowing 11 baserunners in his five innings pitched.

I keep wondering if this isn't Karmic recentering due to all those improbable comebacks earlier this season. For instance, Ryan Howard's two out ground rule double would have easily scored Chase Utley from first had it not hopped the wall. Oh well.

Thank God it's July.

via w www.fangraphs.com

Game 76 Recap: Phillies 4, Braves 5 in 10

gondeee — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 03:04:07 -0000

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

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The Braves scored a big win against the Phillies on Tuesday night, breaking Philadelphia's 9-game winning streak at Turner Field thanks to the late inning heroics by Martin Prado. After Mike Gonzalez had given up the lead on two solo homeruns in the eighth inning, Prado came through with a double to drive in the tying run. Then in extra innings, Prado came through again with runners on second and third by lacing a single over the drawn in outfield for the walk-off win.

Derek Lowe started a bit shakey and battled inconsistency all night, but he kept working through his troubles, and got some help from his defense, and held the Phillies to just two runs through six innings. The bullpen, except for Gonzalez, responded brilliantly, keeping the Braves close and allowing them to come back -- something they've been having trouble doing lately.

The middle of the order struggled for Atlanta, with just two hits combined from Chipper Jones, Brian McCann, and Garret Anderson, but it was the top of the order that did the damage as Gregor Blanco had three hits , including a triple, and Martin Prado had the first four-hit game of his career. It was great to see Prado come through in those tough situations -- he fits perfectly as the number-2 hitter for Atlanta. It's going to be tough to get him out of the lineup. Kelly Johnson may be relegated to backup duties for the foreseeable future.

Nate McLouth and Yunel Escobar were both once again out of the lineup because of injuries. Bobby Cox gave McLouth an extra day to rest his hamstring, and Escobar may need more than a day to be at a point where his hip is no longer a problem.

Final - 6.30.2009	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	R	H	E
Philadelphia Phillies	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	2	0	0	4	10	2
Atlanta Braves	0	0	1	0	2	0	0	1	0	1	5	13	0
WP: Peter Moylan (2 - 2) LP: Chan Ho Park (3 - 2)

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Nate McLouth Traded To The Atlanta Braves

faketeams — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 00:43:00 -0000

More photos » by Keith Srakocic - AP

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The Pittsburgh Pirates cleared the way for their top outfield prospect to play every day. The problem is the organizationt raded its best player to do so. OF Nate McLouth was dealt to the Atlanta Braves for three minor leaguers - AAA LHP Jeff Locke and RHP Charlie Morton and AA CF Gorkys Hernandez.

The obvious winner of the deal is the Atlanta Braves whose outfield production was nothing short of putrid. McLouth brings the power and plate discipline missing from its current iteration of Garrett Anderson, Gregor Blanco and Jeff Francouer.

The other winner of the deal if rookie Andrew McCutchen who now has nearly four months to adapt to major league pitching without a threat to his ABs. The risk for the Pirates is McCutchen struggles as badly as a similarly skilled rookie did with the Braves - Jordan Schafer. I can't help thinking the Braves dealt Gorkys after seeing a more talented Schafer struggle so badly.

The losers are the Pittsburgh Pirates who added pitching arms that do not seem to be any better then Jeff Karsten-type and an all-speed CF who plays the same position as McCutchen and hasn't shown the power to play a corner outfield spot. This for a 27-year-old signed through 2011 at less than $6 million per season and has a club option at $10.25 MM for 2012?

Poll

Who did better?

The Atlanta Braves - an affordable, All-Star OF for three minor leaguers

145 votes

The Pittsburgh Pirates - McLouth was overrated and the team needs to accumulate possiblly cheap major leaguers

63 votes

208 votes | Poll has closed

Atlanta Braves Minor League Recap: 5/28

yondaime4 — Fri, 29 May 2009 06:23:47 -0000

Indianapolis 6, Gwinnett 10

G. Blanco 4-5 RBI, K
B. Canizares 3-4 2B, 2RBI, BB
T. Glavine 5IP 6H 0R 1BB 2K

A couple of guys tossed in homers in this one as well. Cllint Sammons had a a 2 run shot and SS Antonio Perez added his first of the season. Tom Glavine is making a bid to move back to Atlanta. This is something I can't get behind. I've mentioned how I feel in the past, so i won't get into it here, but please no. Also, it is a little sad that Barbaro Canizares is posting a .930 OPS but has no where to play in Atlanta.

Mississippi 0, Birmingham 8

T. Jones 1-3 2B, BB, K
G. Creek 1-3 2B, BB
C. Gearrin 1IP 0H 0R 2BB 1K

Well that was ugly. The M-Braves managed just 2 hits on the game against 3 Birmingham pitchers. Cory Gearrin got the call up from Myrtle Beach as a lot of relief pitchers shifted in the organization today. Gearrin was also the only Braves pitcher not to allow a run in this game. Good for him.

Winston-Salem 3, Myrtle Beach 2

F. Freeman 1-4 RBI
C. Ludahl 3-4 2B
C. Rohrbough 5.1IP 5H 3R 2BB 4K

Jason Heyward sat out a second straight game. My guess is his hammy is tender again and they are just being cautious with him. Rohrbough came out in the 6th and then Tim Gustafson allowed two hits and error by Ludahl allowed two runs to score. The other run he allowed was on a wild pitch in the 2nd inning.

Rome - Off

Atlanta Braves Minor League Recap: 5/13

yondaime4 — Thu, 14 May 2009 06:13:08 -0000

Sorry these are so late. I have also been on vacation this week.

Gwinnett 9, Buffalo 1

G. Blanco 0-1 4BB, SB(6)
B. Jones 2-3 RBI, 2BB
B. Canizares 3-4 2B, HR(6), 6 RBI, SF
C. Morton 7IP 3H 1R 3BB 2K

Not really a classic Charlie Morton start here, but he was still really effective by getting a lot of groundballs. Look at that line from Blanco! Basically just doing the things he does marginally well: walking, stealing a base and not hitting. This game by Barbaro Canizares might be the single best hitting game for a Braves farm hand this season. Cody Johnson and Gerrardo Rodriguez have had a couple good ones too. But this one is really nice.

Mississippi 1, Jacksonville 4

G. Hernandez 1-4 BB, SB(8)
D. Heath 6IP 5H 4R 3BB 6K

Meh, nothing special going on here. Gorkys continues to be one of the most productive hitters we have and could really fill our void at the top of the lineup in the next few seasons. I have never seen either one play live but I have heard that Hernandez's defense is actually better than Schafer's. I know Schafer is supposed to be a stuf, but I haven't really been blown away by him this season except on the couple of highlight type plays he makes. Either way, I want to see Gorkys in Atlanta this season.

Myrtle Beach 2, Frederick 1

J. Heyward 3-3 2B, HR(5), BB
E. Cordier 4IP 3H 0R 2BB 5K

Nice. Heyward throws in an excellent bounceback game. Just to back up my point from yesterday he has only 5 strikeouts in his past 10 games and 4 walks in the same span. He has just been a little streaky with the hits falling in with a BABIP of .260 on the season. His line drive % is also down this year from past years (19% last year in Rome; 8% so far this season). Also I just want to note the solid season Eric Cordier is having as he is coming off of his surgery last year. He is currently sporting a 1.69 ERA with 17K in 16IP and 9BB. He might get a quick bump up if he improves his stamina and keeps up the solid numbers.

Rome 7, Asheville 5

S. Moody 2-3 2B, RBI
L. Sumoza 1-3 2B, 2BB, 2K

Shayne Moody was our 24th rd. pick out of UNC- Charlotte last season. He was drafted a SS but played 2B in this game (his first in Rome). He doesn't really have any standout skills that I can see. I would guess he is solid with the glove since he has little speed and doesn't show any pop in his bat. Brett DeVall got knocked around a little in this game and Paul Clemens came in and pitched 3.1 scoreless innings but gave up 5 hits and didn't strike anyone out. You can't do that when you have this guys fastball.