9/27 News, Links, Discussion: Braves-Marlins, Appy League Prospects, Medlen Links
September 27, 2012 at 11:38 am by David Lee under Atlanta Braves
Game 3 vs. Marlins
The Braves made sure of at least a series win against the Marlins with a 3-0 win on Wednesday. Paul Maholm pitched 6.2 scoreless innings for a 70 game score, while Martin Prado went deep and drove in two. The Braves reached 90 wins with the victory but remain four back of the Nationals with seven to play.
Tommy Hanson will face Jacob Turner in the series finale. Turner was listed as the Tigers’ No. 1 prospect this year before being traded in the Anibal Sanchez deal. He’s had a rough go of it in 41.1 major league innings, recording a 5.23 ERA and 5.43 FIP. But he has flashed the talent that made him a No. 1 prospect, such as seven shutout innings against the NL Central-winning Reds on Sept. 14.
Turner’s biggest strength is variations of a very good fastball that runs 90-95, showing the ability to cut, sink and run arm-side. He also has a plus power curve in the high-70s that he goes to for strikeouts, as well as a good changeup.
After a few good-enough outings from Hanson, he went back to being a pumpkin last time out, allowing five runs in 5.1 innings to the Phillies. While his control has been better lately, his command remains weak, and he lacks the stuff to overcome it. Whether his shoulder is dead or his stuff and command have simply dropped off with fatigue, only he knows. But each five-plus-inning start means one fewer as a Brave, in my opinion.
Game time is 7:10. Atlanta: SportSouth. Miami: Fox Sports Florida.
MLB.com preview
STATS preview
Appy League Ranking
Baseball America rolled out its top 20 prospects in the Appalachian League. Braves prospects are Mauricio Cabrera (5th), Lucas Sims (6th) and Jose Peraza (18th).
Cabrera had a 2.97 ERA in 57.2 innings at Danville this season, including 48 strikeouts to 23 walks. He was ranked 21st on our midseason list, and Ethan said at the time: “Mauricio Cabrera is one of the most exciting arms in the system. Equipped with three potential above-average offerings, the 18-year-old Dominican right-hander has pitched exceptionally well in the Appalachian League, which is loaded with older college hitters. … Mauricio could be a top-5 prospect within the next year or so. Follow this kid.”
Many will remember Sims as the Braves’ first-round pick this year out of Brookwood High School in the Atlanta area. After three good starts in the GCL, he had a 4.33 ERA in 27 innings for Danville to end the season. The best part of his stint there was the 29 strikeouts to 12 walks, which is a good start for a kid fresh out of high school in the rookie league. Ethan: “All in all, Sims is definitely a special talent and garners close attention over the next couple of years. His ceiling resides near the top of the rotation thanks to a projectable three-pitch mix.”
Peraza put up a solid .281/.351/.339 line in 136 plate appearances at Danville as an 18-year-old. He hit our midseason list at 22nd. Ethan: “Jose offers a combination of defense, speed, and contact ability, and this is a nice package on which to build for an 18-year-old physically undeveloped shortstop that is knocking on the door to full-season ball.”
More Links
Braves.com recap for Wednesday’s win.
AJC quotes following Wednesday’s win. Paul Maholm: “Going out there the first few innings were trying to find the rhythm and get back into it. And going out for the third I felt like I found my rhythm and was able to pretty much throw every pitch for a strike.”
Per notes, another mention of Craig Kimbrel striking out four in one inning last night, and more details of the Braves honoring Chipper Jones on Friday. Also, Brian McCann played his 1,000th career game yesterday, making him the fourth catcher to reach that mark for the Braves; Joe Torre, Javy Lopez and Del Crandall are the other three.
In Maholm’s start Wednesday, according to ESPN Stats & Info, the Marlins swung at 15 two-strike pitches out of the zone from the left-hander (ESPN Insider).
Yahoo’s Tim Brown talks on Kris Medlen’s season.
Mark Polishuk of MLB Trade Rumors looks at Medlen as an extension candidate.
Grant Brisbee of SB Nation writes on the wild card berth for the Braves.
Danny Knobler of CBS Sports writes on the Braves staying patient after last year.
Rob Neyer does the same.
Check us out on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter: @Ben_Duronio, @fjrabon, @David11Lee, @EthanPurser.
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I may have missed you posting it or you may be saving it, but Jayson Stark has a great article (in my opinion) on Chipper winding his career down.
http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/8427136/the-many-amazing-feats-chipper-jones
Really hoping we can get more than a sack of baseballs for Tommy this off-season.
He’s not that bad. Calm down.
Wait what?
He hasn’t won since July 30th. He has career highs in ERA, FIP, xFIP, WHIP, HR/9, BB/9, H/9 and his K/9 and SO/BB ration is down. Oh… and he’s been worth -0.7 WAR this year. Now I’ve seen your posts and know you know what you’re talking about, so I know I don’t have to explain that’s less than replacement level.
Look at it this way… Medlen, Hudson, Hanson, Maholm, Minor, Delgado/Teheran, Beachy (around All-start break). Who would you pick for the rotation next year?
Look at it another way that’s more relevant… Medlen, Hudson, Hanson, Maholm, Minor. Who would you pick for the 4-man rotation in the playoffs?
If you’re answer includes Hanson in either of those, you’re lying to yourself. So, why not trade him when we MIGHT be able to get some value? Or, would you rather have another J.J on our hands?
Ok, re: calm down.
I don’t think Hanson is as bad as he has been pitching. That is all. I’m not a fool and wouldn’t suggest he start in the playoffs. Anyone can acknowledge that he has been awful since the break. It just annoys me to no end to first read nothing but “Tommy must have shoulder problems” to “Tommy sucks ass let’s flush him down the toilet!” It’s not like we’re considering keeping Mark Redmond in the rotation for the next season. Tommy still has a pretty bright upside.
Bright upside, albeit considerably darker than it was just a year ago.
@vivabeta, why would it bother you to hear “Tommy must have shoulder problems”? I’m thinking you’ve heard that from me (though I’m not sure it’s all shoulder). I think that’s the best case scenario, because if it’s amenable to rehab/repair, he might recover his once impressive form. If he’s just over the hill and declining, that is a truly dismal scenario.
John, it was just something that was written over and over again here. I don’t necessarily dispute it but in this multi-multi-million dollar business, I highly question that the Braves would overlook the health of one of their most important pieces. Like you, I really hope that it’s not just a decline. That would be a sad state for the former #1 pitching prospect.
Viva, it’s not that they are overlooking it at all. These subtle injuries are not always so easy to diagnose with imaging. Tommy may get a more extensive eval in the offseason.
Are you guys gonna have a post discussing the postseason roster? For the game with the cards then possibly beyond?
When everything gets solidified, I’m sure we will. Personally, I’d rather wait than write based on speculation.
If Braves and Nats tie for division, will they have a 1 game playoff for Division winner or will it go to Nats since they lead head-to-head?
1 game playoff.
Thanks
He’s not an ace pitcher by any means, but I am really happy that Paul Maholm has gotten to experience a postseason drive. He’s really helped the Braves rotation down the stretch.
“each five-plus-inning start means one fewer as a Brave”
I’m more inclined to believe that five-plus innings is a good thing.
I’d take six- or seven-plus, myself.
Hanson has to be one of the worst hitting pitchers ever. He is terrible
Fangraphs recently noted that he has the third worst wrc+ of any player ever with 200 or more PAs. EVER.
http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/when-tommy-hanson-made-it-happen-once/
“Pitchers just bunt all the time, often poorly”
Which is why it’s an awful, downright dismal, strategy to leave the pitcher in just to bunt when you’re going to pull him in the bottom of the same inning for a reliever. They too often fail to get it down. Fredi did this at least twice last year. I’m not sure he’s done it this year. One of those games last year was the most frustrating game I’ve ever seen as a Braves fan (Teheran)
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