Where the Braves Sit Right Now

Jeff Morris - Follow on Twitter

We could sit here for some time and keep talking about the surprising dismissal of John Coppolella, in-fighting between the remaining John's (Hart and Schuerholz), the possibility of pending sanctions, and so on. And you can be sure we will address more of that when the information is available. However, like it or not, the 2017-18 Hot Stove is warming up and it's time to start looking at next year's roster.

The Braves used 49 players in 2017 - down from the 60 utilized in both of the last two seasons. Part of that was a little better luck injury-wise, but the big reason the Braves used fewer players was that they were saying the days of random players you forgot were still playing were over. With depth increasing at Triple-A, the Braves were calling on an increasingly younger collection of talent as the season progressed. Of the eleven starters they used, eight were younger than 27. The Braves were looking to the future in many regards to their player usage.

Let's take a gander at what the roster makeup for 2018 looks like right now. This is just for general information as regardless of what happens when Major League Baseball finishes their investigation, the Braves will still be active in the trade market. They'll still sign free agents. The roster will change from what it currently looks like and life will eventually get back to normal.

Speaking of free agents, the weird thing about this team is that they really only have one major league free agent. A lot of the player movement will actually come from non-tenders and trades as the Braves look to open up room on their 40-man roster.

For what it's worth, my arbitration estimates are based on similar arbitration agreements from last winter. We may take a much more robust look at arbitration-eligible players later on, but for now, I used last year's results to help guide me. For players mentioned in the coming attractions, I'm limiting it to guys I project appearing in the majors next year if healthy and productive. Each renewal is given a $545,000 contract for 2018. Some will make more while some will make less due to the nature of split contracts and earning a different salary in the minors.

Starting Pitchers
Signed: Julio Teheran ($8M)
Arbitration: Mike Foltynewicz ($2.25M -Taijuan Walker, First Year, Super 2)
Renewal: Aaron Blair, Luis Gohara, Max Fried, Sean Newcomb, Lucas Sims, Matt Wisler
Option: R.A. Dickey ($8M team option, $500K buyout)
Free Agent: None (yay!)
Coming Attractions: Kolby Allard, Tyler Pike, Mike Soroka

There is a lot of depth here, though just as many question marks. Teheran and Foltynewicz both had good stretches during the season, but each struggled for the majority of the year. Gohara and Newcomb have the stuff, but will they consistently throw it for strikes? Is Sims better suited for the bullpen? Are Blair and Wisler done for? And will the Braves bring back Dickey?

I've been struck with how confident people are that the Braves aren't looking at possibly bringing in a big arm. This rotation, as its currently constructed, could be good, but the questions are far too numerous for me to be very bullish on that prospect. As far as Dickey goes, I imagine the Braves decline his option if he's still iffy on returning on 2018 and tell him that they'll be interested in bringing him back if he changes his mind. In the meantime, they'll start to kick the tires on a big move to stabilize the rotation.

Current Projection: $13.475 million

Relief Pitchers
Signed: Jim Johnson ($4.5M)
Arbitration: Rex Brothers ($1.42M - Rex Brothers :), Third Year), Sam Freeman ($908K - Evan Scribner, First Year), Ian Krol ($1.275M - Blake Wood, 2nd Year), Arodys Vizcaino ($2.55M - Jake Diekman, Third Year, Super 2), Daniel Winkler ($850K - Bruce Rondon, First Year)
Renewal: Jacob Lindgren, Mauricio Cabrera, Jose Ramirez, Armando Rivero, Jesse Biddle, Jason Hursh, Luke Jackson, A.J. Minter, Akeel Morris, 
Free Agent: Jason Motte
Coming Attractions: Phil Pfeifer, Corbin Clouse, Devan Watts, Caleb Dirks

Don't be fooled by so many names (nearly 20) - the bullpen will need some work. For starters, there are at least two non-tenders here with Brothers and Krol - and yes, I used Brothers as an arbitration comp for himself. In addition, many of the names in the renewal department have issues either from injury (Lindgren, Biddle, Rivero) or bad-to-average 2017 numbers (Cabrera, Hursh, Jackson). That leaves Johnson, Vizcaino, Minter, Morris, and Ramirez along with safe arbitration keepers like Freeman and Winkler. While there are some reinforcements mixed in, the Braves will likely want to find a couple of established arms to help out.

Current Projection: $13.713 million

Catchers
Signed: Kurt Suzuki ($3.5M)
Arbitration: None
Renewal: David Freitas and Tony Sanchez
Option: Tyler Flowers ($4M, $300K buyout)
Coming Attractions: Kade Scivicque and Alex Jackson

Freitas and Sanchez will likely be designated for assignment soon so don't expect them to stick around. Before the Coppy mess, reports were that picking up Flowers' option was as good as done. That is likely still the plan because the value in comparison to the price is so high here. Catcher might be the easiest position to pencil in.

Current Projection: $7.5M

Infield
Signed: Freddie Freeman ($21M)
Arbitration: Matt Adams ($4.3M - Lonnie Chisenhall, Third Year), Jace Peterson ($885K - Tim Beckham, First Year)
Renewal: Adonis Garcia, Dansby Swanson, Ozzie Albies, Johan Camargo, Rio Ruiz
Coming Attractions: Travis Demeritte, Austin Riley, Luis Valenzuela

Three of the four starting spots should be locked up with a number of cheap options for third base to fill out the infield. For what it's worth, I imagine the Braves will go cheap at third base, but there certainly is a chance they could get involved in some of the higher price options. One possible connection could formulate if Dayton Moore takes the Braves job and wants to bring Mike Moustakas with him. The arbitration cases here are both interesting. I wrote the other day that if the market doesn't develop for Adams - and I think there is a good chance it doesn't - I'd rather keep him than lose him for nothing. Peterson's poor play the last two years makes him a non-tender candidate, but a strong finish (.325/.460/.475 over his last 50 PA) may have bought him another year. He'll be out of options, but the Braves may see him as worth the investment. I don't foresee any coming attractions pushing their way on the roster this spring, but all three could appear in Atlanta by late summer next year.

Current Projection: $28.91 million

Outfield
Signed: Matt Kemp ($21.5M), Nick Markakis ($10.5M), Ender Inciarte ($4M)
Arbitration: Danny Santana ($600K, Ehire Adrianza, First Year)
Renewal: Lane Adams, Micah Johnson
Coming Attractions: Ronald Acuna, Dustin Peterson

The Braves will try to trade one of the corner outfielders this winter to open a spot for Acuna, which they may find easier said than done. As for Santana, he seems a goner due to his poor play after joining the Braves. This position isn't quite as easy to forecast as catcher, but we know there is probably going to be a mix of Inciarte, Acuna, and a veteran to be named later (likely Kemp). Micah Johnson rarely got a chance to play in Atlanta after being designated for assignment on twitter several weeks ago. Lane Adams, on the other hand, played his way into the mix to begin 2018.

Current Projection: $37.09 million

Other consideration: $2.75 million from the Padres

Roster Projection: $97.938 million

Note that this roster projection is just an estimate based both on salary arbitration figures that could be wrong and renewals that may or may not happen. Chances are that the player payroll projection right now is a bit lower than I have it, but I believe my total is a nice jumping off point.

So, let's try to put that nearly $98 million into perspective. Since 2014, the Braves have had opening day payrolls of $112M, $97M, $87M, and $123M. The last total was also last season when the Braves opened SunTrust Park. That gives me some degree of confidence to suggest that the Braves have a low-end player payroll cap of $120 million with a higher-end estimate of $130M. I'll take the difference and say that next year's cap is likely around $125 million.

Recall that the nearly $98 million total I gave you doesn't include Dickey's option and does include a number of non-tenders. The Braves may elect to go away from what I am predicting. They may also choose to non-tender someone like Matt Adams. The other way they could cut salary here is via trades - especially involving a corner outfielder. The best-case scenario involves dealing Kemp. Now, just dealing the outfielder won't add $21.5 million to the potential spending money for the Braves as they would almost certainly have to include money to facilitate a deal. But say they have to include $20M in two equal installments over the next two seasons - that's still $10M less on 2018's payroll. That's a really good reliever or two pretty good relievers.

Obviously, it's difficult to look at the future offseason because of the front office turmoil and it's unlikely to be resolved very soon. That said, there's still a team to build for 2018 and by my count, the Braves are looking at between $20 million and $30 million of spending room before the Hot Stove is actually, ya know, hot. That may not seem like a lot - the Braves spent nearly $26 million on Dickey, Bartolo Colon, and Sean Rodriguez for 2017 (minus whatever the Pirates paid for Rodriguez) - but if spent much more wisely, the investment could bring big-time dividends for the Braves as they look to turn the page.

Should the Braves Consider Moving Teheran?

Julio Teheran looked like the unquestioned ace of the Big Four pitching prospects the Braves once had churning in the minor leagues. Along with Mike Minor, Randall Delgado, and Arodys Vizcaino, Teheran was part of a group that would hopefully anchor the Braves rotation for much of the 2010's. Of course, here we are in 2017 and only Teheran remains as a starter, let alone in the Braves staff. And some might argue that we've reached the point where even that needs to change

Such commentary has pushed other Braves fans in a different direction. While more focused on a different pitcher, a frustrated Aaron Kirby remarked on Twitter this morning, "In fact, Julio and Folty have pretty similar stats this season. When are we moving Julio to the pen?" This refers to a common refrain from Braves fans - including ones at this blog - that Mike Foltynewicz profiles better as a reliever. But Kirby rightfully points out that both the flame-throwing right-hander and Teheran share many of the same issues. Why does one get talked about moving to the bullpen and the other doesn't? I would say for a variety of reasons, but the biggest is perception. People have long felt Folty's stuff was better suited for the bullpen. Nobody held the same regard for Teheran, who was considered a potential front-of-the-rotation arm.

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But five years into his career, is Teheran merely a decent enough rotation filler? Should the Braves consider possibly trading Teheran now rather than pay him at least $20M (including a 2020 buyout) through the 2019 season? While many will scoff at the idea out of practice, it's worth considering.

When Teheran signed a $32.4M extension in mid-February of 2014, he was coming off his first full-season in the majors. The deal effectively bought out the remaining five years of arbitration, a year of free agency, and potentially a second year with an $12M option for 2020. Along with the Andrelton Simmons' extension, both were very aggressive moves by the front office as they attempted to get ahead of the horse for what appeared likely to be very expensive arbitration years for the two young players. The plan was to pay them a bit more now but potentially save money later on. In turn, the players received financial security. Simmons would later be traded and while Teheran was often thrown around as a potential arm to be dealt in trade talks, he stuck around as the Braves went into a full rebuild.

Since signing the extension, he's been equally good and bad. In 2014 and 2016, he posted a matching WAR, according to Fangraphs, of 3.2 in both seasons. But then, his WAR fell to 1.1 in 2015 and it's unlikely to even reach that this season. In fact, since he signed the extension, his fWAR ranks just outside the Top 50 qualified starters in baseball at 7.9. That's lower than Tanner Roark, Mike Leake, and Bartolo Colon. It'd likely be lower if not for Teheran's durability. He's tossed the tenth most innings since the beginning of 2014. Nevertheless, the last four years haven't exactly lined up for Teheran like anyone had hoped.

Further, there is a reason to believe his 2016 bounce back season had a little too much luck in it. Lefties had a .247 BABIP against him that season, 35 points below his career average when facing left-handed hitters. His production against lefties has long been an issue that has limited Teheran, who has yet to develop a pitch to keep them honest. In turn, lefties bash him around to the tune of a 5.05 FIP over his career and it's only worsened as time has gone on (5.67 FIP since the beginning of 2015). Nearly 35% of batted balls since 2015 are classified as hard-hit, according to Baseball Info Solutions. To put it another way, a third of all balls left-handed batters put in play are scorched around the park. Some are caught, but too many of them find holes in the defense - or worse, become a souvenir for a fan in the outfield bleachers.

Teheran's problems against left-handers start with one key issue: his fastball loses much of its effectiveness against them. About a quarter of all swings on his four-seam fastball against right-handers are whiffs. That number falls about 10% against left-hand batters. Without a fastball to get ahead in the count, Teheran can't use his secondary pitches to induce weaker contact - or get more whiffs. Further, we don't see much of a drop in whiffs on Teheran's breaking pitches despite how many plate appearances in a game a right-hand hitter might have against Teheran. Against left-handers, his slider and curve see great declines in whiffs-per-swing after the first time through the order. That suggests that after left-hand batters get a read on his breaking pitches, they learn to lay off the ones they can't hit. The ones that they do...well, they don't always land.

Single Season Top fWAR for Braves SP since 2008 

Let's pull back for a second because it's definitely worth mentioning that Teheran doesn't turn 27 until the end of next January. Further, this is a pitcher with a pair of 3-win seasons during his career, something that's happened just nine times over the last decade for the Braves and almost certainly won't occur this year. Ignoring the reasons the Braves gave him an extension in the first place is a disservice to Teheran's time in the majors.

But two other pitchers show up on that list of 3-win guys since 2008 and they should scare Braves' fans - Jair Jurrjens and Tommy Hanson. Much like Teheran, they were, at different times in their career, expected to front line a Braves' rotation for the next half-decade. And while we can talk about injuries and personal demons, another issue that developed for both pitchers might also serve as a warning sign for Teheran.

Declining velocity doesn't always mean something bad, but it can be a problem for a pitcher moving forward. In his rookie season of 2008, Jair Jurrjens averaged 92.4 mph on his four-seamer and 92.7 mph on his sinker. By 2011, he had lost three mph on both and a year later, he would be non-tendered by the Braves. He's made three starts in the majors since. During Hanson's rookie year, he averaged 92.7 mph on his four-seamer and 92.4 mph on his sinker. During his one 3-win season, he added a tick more velocity on the four-seamer but lost some on his sinker. The added velocity on his four-seamer was gone the next year and in 2012, it fell to 90.7 mph. That was his final year with the Braves. With Teheran, his velocity dropped after his rookie season from 93 mph to 92.2 mph. It stayed roughly the same in 2015, but he's continued to bleed a little velocity off in the two years since. In five years, he's gone from an average 93 mph to 91.9 mph. He's just 26 years-old. Now, the loss in average velocity is not a massive alarming discrepancy, but at his age, losing velocity is something to keep an eye on.

To not be concerned about Teheran's production at this point is to ignore reality. What's worse is that Teheran's struggles might only get worse, depending on how high this peak in offensive production that we are seeing league-wide goes. In 2014, the league ISO was .135 and the wOBA was .310. It's climbed to .172 and .322 respectively this season, prompting many commentators to refer to this year as a sign the ball is juiced again. Teheran has always given up a healthy amount of homers, but with home runs leaving the yard at an increased rate, that makes a pitcher like Teheran especially vulnerable. It's worth mentioning that baseball runs in cycles and just a few years ago, people were going crazy about a "Golden Age of Pitchers."

Could the Braves need, as Kirby also said, a new pitching coach? Well, they went down that route last winter when they sacked Roger McDowell in favor of Chuck Hernandez. It's unlikely that the Braves will shed Hernandez after just one year, though Ken Rosenthal recently suggested some radical moves might be on the horizon by an increasingly frustrated front office.

Let's circle back to those questions I asked earlier: is Teheran merely a decent enough rotation filler? Should the Braves consider possibly trading Teheran now?

To the first question, I think there is a good chance of yes, Teheran is just a durable innings eater. According to Baseball-Reference, Teheran's most similar pitcher through 25 was Scott Sanderson. A veteran of 19 years in the majors, Sanderson got to the bigs at 21 years-old with the Expos and a lot was expected from the right-hander. Ultimately, he never received a Cy Young vote, was named to just one All-Star Game, and started two playoff games in which he got beat around a good deal. Nevertheless, he was a good rotation piece for the Expos and then the Cubs before settling into a more nomadic experience over the final seven years of his career. Essentially, he was the Ervin Santana of his time. Could that be Teheran's future?

Or could he be a starter that does figure it out finally in his later 20's more than he ever had before? Certainly, it's a possibility, but is it one the Braves should count on? Is it one that Teheran has shown much reason to expect over the last three years?

Maybe the best argument against trading Teheran is the one I have made before. Trading him this offseason might be the worst time to do so. His value has taken a big hit this season and moving him now could be considered selling low on a player who, again, has had two 3-win seasons in his young career. General managers can get over missing the right window to trade a pitcher - as Frank Wren did with Jair Jurrjens. What keeps them up at night is trading a pitcher who looks to be on the decline only to see them find it again in a new city while you took back a small return just to get rid of him.

Teheran's Splits vs. LH batters since 2013

The second-best argument against trading Teheran is the same one that one might argue when we discuss moving Foltynewicz to the bullpen. Why move these guys when the rotation isn't exactly pushing them out of the way right now? Inning eaters certainly have value especially in a young rotation prone to outings that require long relief stints. In addition, trading Teheran would have to be part of a series of moves aimed at shoring up the front-of-the-rotation. John Coppolella would have to rebuild the first three spots in the rotation this offseason without Teheran in the mix at an affordable rate.

To sum up, this has been an exercise from someone who's not sure what the answer is. I have decreasing confidence that Teheran will resemble the guy we once thought would headline a playoff rotation. At the same time, are the Braves in a position where they can actually trade Teheran right now? And even if they were, is now the right time to trade Teheran? Did the Braves already miss their window to maximize Teheran's market value and now are better off keeping him for some level of consistency as he eats innings every fifth day? All the while, they are merely hoping to see another unsustainably low BABIP against left-hand batters to increase Teheran's production.

There's no easy answer here. My belief is that the Braves will wait, see, and hope. I guess their fans are left with the same options.

Walk-Off Talk 1.8: The Trading Deadline Extravaganza

(Stephen Tolbert and Ryan Cothran have joined me, Tommy Poe, for a conversation on Braves' targets for the trading deadline.)

Tommy: It's the final weekend before the Non-Waiver Trading Deadline and the Atlanta Braves are in the middle of scores of rumors. Atlanta has already completed two trades as they pull off the shocker and find a new home for the well-liked, well-regarded, well-travelled, well-named Chaz Roe. Oh, and they traded Jaime Garcia, too. But will that be it? Chances are no.

Atlanta is in a weird place where they both want to sell off assets they no longer need or want and also acquire assets that they can play a role for next year's club and beyond. It builds on last year's efforts in which guys like Kelly Johnson and Jeff Francoeur were shipped out but Matt Kemp was acquired (albeit, in large part to get rid of He Who Shall Not Be Named).

That is why the Braves have both been shopping deals for Brandon Phillips and trying to acquire a big name starter - such as Sonny Gray.

On Tuesday, you talked about Gray, Stephen. The price tag for such a pitcher is stiff, but the reward is potentially great as well. After an injury-filled down year in 2016, Gray's numbers have reverted back to their 2014-15 levels in which Gray posted a combined 6.8 fWAR during his first two full seasons in the majors. In his Age-27 season, Gray has two more years of arbitration left and if he continues to pitch at his current level, could be peaking at the right time.

Gray has his issues - which many fans are quick to point out. He's a groundball pitcher who relies a good deal on his defense making plays. That said, he is carrying a career-high 23.5% strikeout rate into action Wednesday so it's not like he can't get strikeouts. A big reason for his increased strikeout rate is a better feel for his changeup, which has made it more effective. Others would point out that he's a health risk. A pair of unrelated injuries put him on the shelf twice last season while a lat strain suffered in spring cost him the first month of action this season. It's worth mentioning that he threw 427 combined innings in 2014-15 so he's flashed durability in the majors.

Could Newcomb get a new rotation mate in Sonny Gray? | Chris Blessing

Like most potential trade targets for the Braves, the fit for this version of the Braves is a clear upgrade. The Braves' rotation has looked improved after the release of Bartolo Colon and improvement of R.A. Dickey, but it remains one of the weakest collection of starters in baseball and that was before you remove Garcia from the mix. Adding Gray won't fix all of those problems, but adding him means Mike Foltynewicz isn't the team ace. It means Julio Teheran's struggles might be easier to deal with. It means Sean Newcomb's emergence over the final two months is a little less important. Those three are controlled through 2019, the earliest Gray would hit free agency.

But the biggest issue in regards to Gray is the price tag - and I'm not talking salary. The first player the A's have apparently asked about was Ronald Acuna. Naturally, that is a non-starter. Ozzie Albies is logically the next player the A's might be interested in - though a package of Cristian Pache and pitching arms (along with a closer offensive prospect like Dustin Peterson) might be enough to convince Billy Beane.

Of course, that's a best-cases scenario and those don't develop often. The Braves' interest in Gray is at least matched or exceeded by other clubs, including the Yankees who are considering a blockbuster deal for both Gray and Yonder Alonso. Such interest inflates the price for Gray even more.

I'm going to throw out my thinking and see if it matches up with you two. Stephen, I think we're on the same side of things actually. Is Gray worth a top package? In this market? Abso-freaking-lutely. But is he worth a top package of Braves prospects to the Braves? Here is where I start to pull away. If the Braves can discuss an Albies/Acuna-less package of players and the A's sign off on it, I'm game. Let's make a deal. But if the A's hold out - and they probably should - for Albies or Acuna, I'm walking.

So, to you two, what are the chances the A's do go for a package without Albies or Acuna? Should Atlanta at least consider a swap even if Albies is in it? And more generally, do you believe Gray is "that guy?" Is he a pitcher worthy of such a price tag in the first place - whether or not you're willing to pay it withstanding?

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Stephen: Hello boys. Always enjoy these. Yeah so obviously I just wrote about this so my thoughts are pretty well known.

From the A’s point of view, they see the package the White Sox just pulled in for Jose Quintana, which included one of the best prospects in all of baseball, and they want something similar, which is fair. There was a report out yesterday they were interested in Ronald Acuña which is close to water being wet territory in terms of newsworthiness but they have every right to hope for the moon. And, honestly, given their financial disadvantage, it would be committing malpractice if they didn't at least ask. But asking doesn't mean getting and there's zero chance Atlanta gives up any of their top prospects for a guy who's only under control for 2 more years after 2017.

And it's that last part that really is the crux of the issue with Gray. I think he's a fantastic pitcher and I may even be higher on him than most but, as I wrote yesterday, while matching up talent is important, matching up timing is equally important. Atlanta simply isn't ready to maximize a guy like Gray with multiple playoff berths because they simply aren't there yet in their timeline.

I really like Sonny Gray and there will come a point where acquiring a guy like him is exactly what Atlanta needs to do. They just haven't reached that point yet.

Ok Ryan, how do you see the Sonny Gray situation?

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Ryan: If there was some way for the Braves to pull off a quantity over quality, sending the A’s 4-5 mid-level prospects that don’t seem to factor into the Braves future plans, then I’m all-in. Unfortunately, this is not going to be the scenario and Sonny Gray will likely land two blue-chippers and a few throw-ins. For me, that’s a kicking and screaming NO!  If he was under control for four years and hadn’t had injury problems or lackluster results last year, I’d be down. But make no mistake, this is a buy-high and he’s THE guy right now that many teams want and Braves just aren’t in a position to be selling their farm yet for 2.5 years of control. John Hart said this after the Braves went and met with Jon Lester prior to his free agency: “He’s the right guy at the wrong time”.

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Stephen: So it looks like we all agree trading for Sonny Gray wouldn't be a wise decision given where the team currently is and what the price reportedly is so let's move to the next guy.

Fulmer | Keith Allison on Flickr [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Our next candidate certainly isn't one we have to worry about how long the team controls him. Michael Fulmer is having a really good sophomore year for the Detroit Tigers, who appear to be on the verge of their own rebuild. Detroit has spent the last decade paying for the present by mortgaging their future and it looks like that bill is about to come due. Massive long term contract to aging players have left the Tigers without many actual trade chips which is why they may consider moving Fulmer for the right price.

One thing that makes him so attractive as a trade piece is his age, and therefore his salary. Fulmer is 24 and in his second year in the majors meaning he has 4 years of team control at a highly affordable rate.

Another positive for Fulmer is how he's able to consistently keep the ball on the ground. His ground ball rate sits at 50%, well above league average, which obviously means he's also able to get the ball in the ballpark. In a perfect world, I'd like to see him miss a few more bats but you can't have everything.

All of this, of course, means he wouldn't come cheap in a trade and if Atlanta really wanted him, it'd take a decent size chunk out of their farm system.

The other possibility from Detroit would be taking on Justin Verlander and some of his mega deal. Verlander is getting paid $28M a year for the 2018 and 2019 seasons before becoming a free agent again so Detroit would definitely have to take on a chunk of that just to give him away. If they want anything real in return, they'd have to take even bigger of chunk.

The primary reason for that is Verlander really isn't that great anymore. He has league average ERA, league average FIP, league average strikeout rates...you get it. He's just an average pitcher now and while that has value, it doesn't have 28M/year in value.

So what you two think of the Detroit guys? Anything interesting there or hard pass? Ryan, we’ll start with you
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Ryan: When discussing Fulmer, not much is different from my opinion on Gray, and that is the Braves just aren't in a position to do a move like this quite yet. If the next wave of pitchers and position players come up (Acuna, Albies, Soroka, Allard,etc.) and show they can be big league commodities, then a surplus develops and it's easier to bite a chunk out of the farm. So, for me, I'm not ready to see a trade that costs the Braves 3-4 top 10 prospects.

Now Verlander? You're getting into my territory. Regardless of what the Tigers say, a Verlander trade will not bring a big haul back to Detroit. This is where the Braves could land a dependable starter at a discounted prospect price and, hopefully, a discounted actual price. However, in regards to this kind of move, Verlander is down my list 2-3 spots.

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Tommy: Essentially, we are hoping to be on the other side of a Melvin Upton/Craig Kimbrel exchange here. Pay less in terms of prospects because you are taking on an overpriced asset that could make it more difficult to rebuild. It worked out for the Padres as when they used the desired commodity (Kimbrel) in another trade, they got much better value than they surrendered in the first place.

The problem I see is will Verlander agree to a trade to a team that isn’t yet in contention? He carries a full no-trade protection - something Detroit hands out like candy - and can Atlanta even convince him to come south even if they wanted him to?

Separating Fullmer from Verlander might be not only more preferable for the Braves, but a necessity if Verlander declines to go with Fullmer. Another pathway isn’t as dramatic but still, would give the Tigers a little financial freedom. Taking back Ian Kinsler in the trade would save the Tigers roughly $9-$10M when you factor in Kinsler’s buyout for 2018. Atlanta could try to flip Kinsler, of course. They could also take back Anibal Sanchez, who is owed around $12-$13M (another $5 buyout for next year included).

Again, these are not significant salaries to tie in with Fullmer, but other assets like Justin Upton and Jordan Zimmermann have some degree of no-trade protection which could make it difficult to trade for their contracts - which is essentially what we are talking about here.

Say Verlander does agree. There might be a way to keep the Tigers from not having to pay the Braves money to pay off some of the right-hander’s salary. The Braves could opt to send Matt Kemp to the Tigers. There are a couple of problems with such a proposal. One, the deal doesn't provide enough financial relief. Kemp's salary is about $13M less over the next two seasons than Verlander. Detroit might want a little more financial freedom and the Braves could offer to add an additional $3.5M the next two years to give the Tigers at least $20 extra million in financial relief over the next two seasons - plus whatever prospects.

As for the prospects, Atlanta can use their wealth of starting pitching plus some positional prospects to try to smooth over a deal. Say something along the lines of Aaron Blair, Kolby Allard, Lucas Sims, Travis Demeritte, Kemp, and $7M for Verlander and Fullmer. I’d also see what it might take to add Justin Wilson to the trade and hope the presence of Verlander might keep Wilson’s price tag from not being as significant as this trading market demands for good relievers.

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Ryan: Well that was more like it! All different takes. I like it! I just feel with Fulmer’s asking price and Verlander’s expensive contract and a no-trade clause, we just typed a whole lot for nothing.  But if we really want to start typing a bunch of nothing, let’s talk about Christian Yelich and Giancarlo Stanton!

This is a tall-tale in the mold of David vs. Goliath, but we aren’t referring to physical size, but contract size.  Let’s look at their contracts:

Yelich | hueytaxi on Flickr[CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Yelich: Under team control through 2022 on a team friendly deal that would max out at a total of 58.25MM for ‘18-’22 (5 years).

Stanton: Lifetime contract, bajillion dollars. I mean, heck. That’s what it seems like. Seriously, the contract runs through 2028 (he’d be 39) and it pays him anywhere between 25 and 32MM annually.

So, why are we discussing these 2 bozos? Well, I think it has a lot to do with a ridiculous tweet that a bigger bozo (me) sent out earlier this week. Most met this tweet with outrage and rightfully so as taking on a 300MM contract is absurd, right? Well, maybe it is but dig a bit deeper.  If the Braves could package Nick Markakis and Matt Kemp, who most consider dead money at this time, you’re essentially getting Stanton for $240MM. Well...that’s still crazy. But it did make me think and swing my head to the left...that is left field and there I found Christian Yelich. This dude has a pretty tasty contract, plays fair defense, is only 25, and can hit. Not only can he hit, but he’s a left-handed hitter which looks as though will play well at Suntrust Park. But he’ll be expensive...like 2-3 top 10 prospects expensive. While it’d be nice to have both of these guys in a Braves uniform, let’s be realistic for a moment:

There’s minuscule chance a mid-market team takes on Giancarlo’s absurd contract, especially one as frugal as the Braves.

Yelich is a good player, but as stated above, the price at this point just doesn’t make sense for the team. The next wave needs to hit and Braves need to see what sticks before really addressing any areas of need and trading away assets. There will be some traded, but I don’t think trading now is the answer.

Tommy, am I wrong? I prefer to be right but I can accept defeat as well…

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Tommy: For a change, I’m kind of hoping you aren’t wrong.

I love Christian Yelich. Absolutely love the guy. Even though his numbers are a little down compared to last year, he's one of the quiet superstars in the game and a big-time performer in the lineup.

With Giancarlo, it's hard not to love his power. 240 homers in less than a thousand games? Yes, please. He has a good idea of the strike-zone and gives his team impact potential with each plate appearance.

But unlike Yelich, his contract is just all kinds of ugly for the franchise. Especially for a guy who has avoided time on the DL just once in his seven full-time seasons. So, that brings me back to Yelich and I have to admit it's difficult not to get a little nutty here. Can you imagine an outfield of Yelich, Ender Inciarte, and Ronald Acuna? It's an embarrassment of riches. Oh, and he has four more years under his contract for a very affordable deal as you brought up.

Yelich is exactly the kind of expensive, controllable player the Braves are seeking. He’s signed long-term to a contract that suits the team very well. Here’s the “but” because we knew it was coming. But this only works if the Marlins are willing to take pitching and a lot of it. Luckily, the Marlins desperately need that particular commodity. The unfortunate death of Jose Fernandez left them with a massive hole in their rotation that is currently relying on Dan Straily and Edinson Volquez to fill in the void. Further, while the Marlins have some decent arms in the minors, what they don't have is a Kolby Allard, or a Mike Soroka, or even a Luiz Gohara. The farm system has been wrecked in recent years and currently has no one in the MLB.com Top 100.

Sometimes, you have to make a tough choice to give up on a young-and-exciting talent to try to gobble up more of those type of players. The Braves lived that rebuild. It might be time for Miami to do the same and if Yelich hits the trade market, I imagine the Braves would be one team that will step up to the table and play some "Let's Make a Deal."

As for Stanton...he can continue to enjoy Miami during a rebuild.

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Stephen: So this is interesting and a place where I probably differ than most.

First of all Ryan is correct, the likelihood of either of these guys being moved is slim at best considering the team is currently in the process of being sold. Moves like this are usually made by the new owners, not the old ones, so while Miami eventually will have to make some tough decisions on these guys, it probably won't happen until after they're sold.

But if we only talked about trades that are likely to happen, we'd never talk about trades and where's the fun in that?

Yelich is a fascinating player to me because everything about him screams superstar except one really weird thing. Since he debuted in 2013, no player in the NL has hit the ball on the ground more than Christian Yelich. He's at almost 60% for his career and that was shocking to me considering the numbers he's put up. You add that to the meh offensive year he's having this year (113 wRC+ GB% at 57%) and the exorbitant cost it would take to acquire him and I don't know, I pause.

It's silly because he really is a great player but he just has to do so much damage on the ball he doesn't hit on the ground, it just gives him a smaller margin of error than most. I know I'm stupid.

With Stanton, normally I prefer the route of taking on money to acquire talent instead of giving up prospects. Money replenishes at a quicker rate than talent does. But this is a whole new level of money. Stanton is still owed 295M over the next 10 years and that much money combined with his injury history would give me cold sweats at night as a GM. The talent is unprecedented but the value is the combination of talent and cost and right now, Stanton’s cost speaks louder than his talent. Unless Miami is willing to eat significant dollars, it's a hard pass for me.

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Tommy: All of that is fair, Stephen. Moving on from guys that are getting a lot of trade rumors play, I want to move onto the guy we think is the best fit for what the Braves might need. And with that in my mind, the Braves should go after Marcus Stroman.

Stroman | Arturo Pardavila III [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Before I address the mega elephant in the room, Stroman is in his fourth year since coming up in 2014. There's a missed campaign in 2015 where he made just four starts, but other than that, he's been a durable workhorse. The only other time he missed any notable time was because of a suspension for methylhexaneamine, a common “stimulant found in over-the-counter dietary supplements" back in 2012. And that injury I mentioned? That was knee surgery - not an arm issue.

Since 2014, Stroman ranks in the Top 30 in both FIP and xFIP. He has the second-best groundball rate in that time frame to Dallas Kuechel, who is a very similar pitcher. He does everything you are looking for and he's only improving as he's getting more whiffs than ever. His sinker is one of the best versions of that pitch and he uses it half of the time - without suffering as a result.

Stroman is also one of baseball's top showman - a reason to put butts in the stands and enjoy one of the game's very best practicing his craft. He even hit his first homerun this year in interleague action. He should be in the NL where the antiquated idea of a pitcher hitting is still in vogue.

But there's a catch. He won't come cheap and I don't just mean the package the Braves will have to surrender. As a Super 2 arbitration-eligible player, Stroman already has reached the $3.4M plateau in salary after beating the Jays in arbitration last spring. That means big money for both 2019 and 2020 as he goes through a third and fourth year of arbitration if he's not signed to a long-term deal beforehand.

And then there's the price in prospects that make this deal a little pie-in-the-sky. Okay, "little" is an understatement. The Blue Jays apparently aren't interested in dealing their controllable assets. I wouldn't be either, but the Jays aren't exactly getting younger. The Braves could try a similar approach to the Fullmer one we discussed and take back salary to make the deal more attractive. J.A. Happ is due $13M next year and the Jays could jumpstart a quick rebuild centered around their influx of young-and-talented position prospects and the pitching prospects the Braves and others might surrender for their assets.

The price would be significant. Likely, it would be too much to bear. But if there is some room to work here, Stroman would be the perfect addition at the perfect time for the right team.

Stephen, who is your guy that you think will fit perfectly for the Braves?

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Stephen: So my guy is a little out of nowhere and I'm not sure how many people have ever actually heard of him but I want 3B Yandy Diaz of the Cleveland Indians.

Yandy has been on my radar for a couple years now as it's become clear that 3B was a bit of an organizational hole. He got a cup of coffee in the majors earlier this year but he's basically a prospect at this point. Of course when I see that, what I see is 5 or 6 years of team control at an affordable rate so that's a plus for me.

As far as why Yandy, all you have to do look at numbers he's put up in the upper minors the last few years:

• 2015 (AA): 143 wRC+
• 2016 (AA): 144 wRC+
• 2016 (AAA): 149 wRC+
• 2017 (AAA): 151 wRC+

And it's not just the production, but the underlying skill:

• 2015 (AA) BB% 14%  K% 11%
• 2016 (AA) BB% 22%  K% 14%
• 2016 (AAA) BB% 11%  K% 15%
• 2017 (AAA) BB% 15%  K% 15%

That kind of production matched with that kind of discipline is rare and I'd love Atlanta to find a way to get him. Cleveland is a win now team with an All-Star 3B in Jose Ramirez so it's not crazy think Diaz could be had if Atlanta could send something their way to help their 2017 club. Their catchers and 2B have been pretty terrible this year so maybe some combination of Phillips and Suzuki plus maybe a reliever? I don't know.

All I know is Yandy is exactly the type of prospect I think gets undervalued in today's game. His consistent production against the highest levels of minor league baseball combined with his rare level of plate discipline make him one of my favorite potential targets and one I hope Atlanta takes a serious look at.

Ok Ryan, who's the guy you hope the Braves make a run at?

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Ryan: Well...it’s no secret that my buy-low guy was Jeff Samardzija but that has been stomped and burned as we found out a few days back that the Braves are not one of the teams that he’d accept a trade to...disheartening. There were some wrinkles when acquiring The Shark but combine his peripherals with a team that (hopefully) features the best framing catching combo in the league (and yes, this is my plug to extend Suzuki for another year) and I think we could have had a K-machine that sports a mid-3 ERA.  In addition to that thought, I think the Giants would have to send over a good chunk of cash to get any deal done. Yet, once again I typed a paragraph for no reason...so I’ll move on now.

Sometimes matchups with teams seem like no-brainers and as an armchair GM, it’s easy to harp on these ideas.  However, there are some cases where teams are making pushes and everything just seems to come together.  The Braves just so happen to have Julio Teheran, Matt Adams, and Brandon Phillips, all which seem to be available in some sort of capacity. Also, there just so happens to be a team that has been shuffling the deck all season at 1st base that has also suffered late injuries to their starting 2nd baseman AND a starting pitcher in the rotation. How about we take a look at ravaging a system one more time before this rebuild is complete? So I don’t have a “guy” per se, rather guys. Making this kind of deal really puts me out of my comfort zone, but I’m looking at at least 3 top-10 prospects.  So here’s where my idea gets interesting.  Yankees have 3 great players on the shelf for quite a while in Michael Pineda, Dustin Fowler, and Gleyber Torres. While I don’t think they’d sell-low on all of these guys,  2 of the 3 could be in play. It’s a risk…a risk that I’ve warned about in the past, but I’m willing to roll the dice one more time. My proposed deal:

Yankees get Julio Teheran, Matt Adams, Brandon Phillips
Braves get Chase Headley, Michael Pineda, Dustin Fowler,  Miguel Andujar, and 2 lower level prospects.

A future 3B, a 2018 fill-in 3B (or offseason trade piece), a future star RFer, and a roll of the dice stud SP.

Who’s with me?  Likely not Yankees fans!  Go Braves!

First Half Timeline for the Braves

By EricEnfermero [CC BY-SA 4.0], via Wikimedia Commons

The Braves enter the All-Star Break at 42-45, 9.5 games out of the Eastern Division and nine games behind the Rockies for the second Wild Card spot. Two other teams, the Cardinals and Cubs, are a half-game in front of them. Their expected win-loss record is actually worse at 39-48, a product of a bad pitching staff.

How did we get here? Here's a timeline of the first half of the season.

April 3: Opening day and the Braves fall 6-0 to the Mets. Their opening day roster included Emilio Bonifacio and Eric O'Flaherty, two guys the Braves brought back after they both struggled in 2016 for Atlanta. Not on the roster is Sean Rodriguez, who some believe will miss the season after he was involved in a car accident with a drunk driver.

April 17: After losing six of their first seven ballgames, the Braves won five consecutive games to pull to .500. This streak was capped off by a four-game sweep to open SunTrust Park, including a walk-off 5-4 win against the Padres after Dansby Swanson singled with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth to finish the series. The Braves were 6-6 on the year. They would lose their next six straight and have yet to get back to .500.

April 19: In a sign of things to come, Julio Teheran is hammered for seven runs over four innings against the Nationals in his second start at SunTrust. In nine home starts during the first half of the season, Teheran allowed four or more runs six times. He only allowed that many runs in nine road starts once. The Braves have won only two of Teheran's home starts and have lost just two of his road starts.

April 29: The Braves score double digit runs in back-to-back games for the only time this season as they beat the Brewers 10-8 and 11-3. The first victory came after Bartolo Colon and Jason Motte combined to put the Braves in an 8-4 hole entering the seventh. Freddie Freeman finished the comeback with a two-run homer in the top of the ninth.

May 10: Atlanta concludes a low point in the season as they follow up the two wins against the Brewers mentioned above by losing eight-of-nine games to drop to a season-worst nine games under .500. This included a 16-5 bloodbath at the hands of the Mets on May 3 in which Colon gave up five runs in four innings. Of his 13 starts with the Braves, Colon surrendered five or more runs eight times - including his final four starts.

May 17: The Braves have righted the ship, winning five-of-six, but the fifth win was a costly one as Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Aaron Loup nails Freddie Freeman on the wrist during his fifth-inning at-bat. Freeman is immediately removed and further tests reveal a fracture. He's originally expected to miss at least two months.

May 20: John Coppolella decisively acts to fill the hole created by Freeman's injury as he acquires Matt Adams from the Cardinals. Adams, who had lost essentially all of his playing time after the Cardinals moved Matt Carpenter to first, makes an immediate impact with the Braves. In his second game, he blasts a two-run homer in a 5-2 win over the Pirates. The next night, after Jim Johnson blows a save, Adams finishes a two-run rally with an RBI walk-off single. He had also homered in the game.

June 7: Three days after scoring 13 runs, the Braves set a season-high with 14 runsagainst the Phillies. Nick Markakis picks up five RBI with three doubles while Matt Adams and Dansby Swanson each homer. Mike Foltynewicz throws seven shutout frames - though the Braves offense didn't need such excellent pitching.

June 10: Atlanta plays their only double-header of the first half and drops both games to the Mets. They scored just two runs and waste Sean Newcomb's debut. The lefty was masterful over 6.1 innings. Only an error, charged to Newcomb, led to a run. He walked two and struck out seven, but takes the loss. With a Game Score of 68, it is tied for the eighth-best major league debut in Braves history.

June 12: The Braves make Kyle Wright the fifth overall draft choice of the 2017 Draft. Wright, the ace of the Vanderbilt staff, was lauded for his pitchability, stuff, and potential for a quartet of plus pitches. They would later add Drew Waters, a player with potential five-tool skills. The Braves showed with this draft that they were willing to play the hand that was dealt to them. A year after championing the quantity of prospects from a deep draft, they aimed at hitting on a few quality picks in this year's shallow draft.

June 17: Jaime Garcia gives up six runs, but the Braves win 8-7. It was the beginning of a bad streak of games for Garcia to finish the half. Including this game against the Marlins, Garcia surrendered five or more runs in four consecutive starts with an ERA of 9.41 during those starts. The Braves offense bails him out enough to win two of those games, though. Before the streak, Garcia looked like this year's Shelby Miller with a record of 2-5 and an ERA of 3.16.

June 21: Braves walk-off for the third time in six days and for the sixth time during the first half. After Arodys Vizcaino and Jim Johnson blow a two-run lead - again robbing Newcomb of a win - Matt Kemp hits the third homerun of the game for the Braves, a two-run bomb to lead to a 5-3 win. The previous weekend, Brandon Phillips had smoked hits through the Marlins infield to win in walk-off fashion in consecutive days. The Braves would follow up the Giants walk-off win by winning their next three to get to 36-38.

June 30: Mike Foltynewicz comes oh, so close to history. He tosses eight no-hit innings before a homerun to open the ninth breaks the hearts of many Braves fans who had stayed up late to watch and listen to the game in Oakland. What made the result even worse was that it looked like Foltynewicz had gotten a strikeout earlier in the at-bat, but the umpire disagreed. Foltynewicz throws 119 pitches during the game and in addition to the one hit allowed, he walked four and struck out eight.

July 4: Originally expected to miss at least two months, Freddie Freeman returns after just 44 games  to face the Astros on Independence Day. To help the team, Freeman volunteers to move to third base to keep Matt Adams in the lineup. Atlanta goes 24-20 without their best player. Unfortunately, the Braves will get demolished 16-4. The next night is nearly just as demoralizing as the Braves get beat by possibly the best team in baseball, 10-4. Also on the fourth, the Braves officially released Bartolo Colon. He lasted 13 games with the team.

July 7: With Braves fans excited about their team's prospects for hunting down the Nationals, Jim Johnson falls apart in a 5-4 walkoff loss to the NL East leaders. Atlanta had a chance to once again get to one-game under .500, but Johnson, who has struggled this year when used on back-to-back days, blows a three run lead. Ian Krol finishes the sad effort by giving up a walk-off hit in the tenth.

July 9: A day after smashing the Nationals 13-0, the Braves finish with a disappointing split of their final series against of the first half after losing 10-5.

Atlanta will be back in action on Friday as they welcome the Diamondbacks to Atlanta for the beginning of a six-game homestand that will also include the Cubs.

Comparing 2017 to 1991? Pump the Breaks

Julio Teheran | Jeff Morris (Follow on Twitter)

During yesterday's broadcast, Braves "analyst" and resident curmudgeon Joe Simpson took time from telling everyone what music was appropriate to play during a loss to compare-and-contrast the 2017 Braves with the 1991 Braves. That team, after 80 games, was 40-40 and in third place in the NL West, 8.5 games back. The current squad, who would win their 81st game later that day, was 39-41 with a hold on second place in the NL East this season. They trail the Nats by 7.5 games, who also won Sunday.

The comparison is a best-case scenario. The 1991 team would win 54 of their remaining 82 games that season with a young club aided by some smart veteran pickups like Sid Bream and Terry Pendleton. The 2017 team also made some veteran pickups before the year to help lead the squad to higher ground. Why couldn't the same thing happen? Could the 2017 Braves follow in the 1991 team's footsteps?

But this comparison is lacking. What Simpson did not mention is that the 1991 team had a run differential of +28 in the first 80 games. They would improve that over the second half to +77, but the '91 Braves squad was already a pretty decent team after 80 games regardless of what their record said. After 80 games, they were simply elite in large part because their rotation was both great and gave Bobby Cox a lot of innings.

To be fair, there is something in this comparison that could prove quite interesting. 1991 was a year of mediocrity for the National League. Only five teams finished over .500 and of those five, only three reached the 85-win plateau. This year's NL has just six teams at .500 or better with the Cubs winning yesterday to rejoin the club. That could aid the Braves moving forward except for the fact that their schedule includes many of the league's best teams moving forward. They deal with the Nats ten more times, the Dodgers and Cubs seven more times, and Arizona and Colorado six more times each. Also included are two games with the Astros and three each with St. Louis, Texas, and Seattle - clubs that are, like the Braves, teetering around .500. Of their remaining 81 games, nearly half come against current playoff contenders.

But ultimately, at the end of the day, if we circle back to run differential, that may be why this comparison has its biggest problems. The Braves have a run differential of -36. Even with their winningest month of the season so far in June (16-12), they managed a +4 run differential. The Braves in 1991 had pitching. While the 2017 club is improving in this regard, they still are miles behind the '91 squad.

A better comparison might be the 2014 Braves. After 80 games, they were four games over .500 but had a negative run differential of -5. They would go 37-45 down the stretch, costing Frank Wren his job.

Or perhaps the best comparison is the 2007 Atlanta Braves. After 80 games, they were 42-38 and just four games back in the NL East. They had a run differential of +2. But they, like this version of the Braves, had a big problem. Despite a solid offense pumping out 4.5 runs per game after at the 80-game mark, their pitching staff was giving out nearly as many. That didn't change for the rest of the year and despite one of the league's best offenses in the second half with the addition of Mark Teixeira, the Braves finished in third place in the NL East. They wouldn't have made the NL Wild Card Game had their been one, finishing five games behind the second Wild Card spot.

Optimism never killed anyone. I do understand that and don't really take joy in being a "wet blanket." If you want to believe the '91 worst-to-first can happen again in '17, there is enough reason to hope. Regardless if you believe if my point is worth making, we can all agree that this current squad is a hell of a lot more fun to watch than the ones we've seen the last few years. Yet, it's difficult for me to see a comparison between this one and the 1991 NL Champs. Now, the 2007 roster...that seems like a quite appropriate comparison - even down to the superstar first baseman coming to the team in July. Fortunately, the Braves won't give up a treasure chest of prospects to get Freddie Freeman like they did with Teixeira.

But that '07 roster was burned by the same things hurting this team - a bad rotation and an iffy bullpen. You can't outslug everyone, after all. But if the Braves can get more of this weekend's pitching (albeit, it came against maybe the worst offense in baseball), maybe the 1991 comparison will become more and more valid moving forward.

Monday Roundup: Big Flies Lead to Big Week

A full slate of games last week as the Braves welcomed both the Giants and Brewers to town. Let's dive in.

June 19, 9-0 WIN vs. Giants
Mr. Ryan Cothran recently pointed out how R.A. Dickey's splits-by-month improve once the temperatures warm up. Last Monday, he made Cothran look really good with seven masterful frames. He yielded just three hits and walked one while striking out a half-dozen. The game was a close one heading into the eighth, but things got nutty as the Giants' pen imploded. Danny Santana had the big knock of the frame with a three-run pinch-hit homer that may still be in orbit. Matt Adams also hit a homer, his 11th, and was one of four Braves to notch multi-hit games.

Jeff Morris - Follow on Twitter

June 20, 6-3 LOSS vs. Giants
Like the previous day, the eighth inning saw a lot of action. Unfortunately, it wasn't the kind of action the Braves needed to see. Julio Teheran had breezed through seven innings before a Dansby Swanson error on what should have been a double play was immediately followed by a three-run home run. After another hit and a sacrifice, Ian Krol entered and another two errors (charged to Krol and Adams) helped to pad the Giants' lead. Atlanta got one back in the bottom half on a Matt Kemp ground-rule double, but the Braves couldn't scratch across any more runs across. Johan Camargo finished a homer short of the cycle.

June 21, 5-3 WIN vs. Giants (11 ING)
With former Brave Cory Gearrin on the mound, Matt Kemp delivered a two-run homer in the eleventh as the Braves won in walk-off fashion. The homer provided some solace for the Braves after wasting a 3-1 lead in the late innings. It was Jim Johnson's fifth blown save of the year when he surrendered a Hunter Pence game-tying solo bomb in the ninth. Atlanta won despite only managing seven hits because three of them went screaming toward the stands. In addition to Kemp's 12th homer, Matt Adams hit his 12th as well and Tyler Flowers smacked his sixth. Sean Newcomb's third start was solid. He scattered three hits, including a RBI triple which was the only blemish on his record. He walked just one and K'd a trio.

June 22, 12-11 WIN vs. Giants
A wild one was played after a nearly 90-minute rain delay to begin the night. Jaime Garcia got lit up to the tune of a half-dozen runs over 4.1 innings. Still, a crazy fifth inning gave the Braves just enough offense to win this one. Down 6-4, Brandon Phillips smacked the first pitch he saw of the frame for a homer. After a pair of singles chased Giants starter, Matt Cain, Matt Adams brought home a run on another single to tie it. The theme continued with a go-ahead RBI single by Kurt Suzuki. Johan Camargo made the first out of the inning count with a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded before Lane Adams gave the Braves their second pinch-hit three-run homer of the week. It was Adams' first homer of his major league career. Danny Santana, who entered as a pinch-runner for Matt Kemp earlier in the inning, finished the scoring with a RBI single to plate Phillips (who had walked in his second PA of the inning). All told, the Braves scored eight runs and sent 13 batters to the plate. It was nearly not enough as the Giants fought back to score three off Ian Krol (a costly Lane Adams error led to two of those runs being unearned) and added two more runs off Jim Johnson, but the Braves closer finished the game with his 14th save. The long night was even harder on the Giants, who had a game the next day at home. The rain delay kept the game from starting until 9:01 and it ended around 12:30 AM. They left the park about 90 minutes later and hopped a cross-country plane. Jet-lagged and exhausted, the Giants would lose to the Mets the next evening, 11-4.

June 23, 5-4 WIN vs Brewers
Braves built a pair of three-run leads but had to hold on for a one-run win without their closer available in this one. Mike Foltynewicz was good, though had some big-pitch innings. He finished with 9 K's in just 5 innings and only one run allowed. He walked three and threw 104 pitches. The Brewers scored a run off Sam Freeman and added two more against Jose Ramirez before Arodys Vizcaino pitched around a leadoff double for his first save of the year. The defense played a big role in the final two frames. With runners on first-and-second and only one out in a one-run ballgame, Jesus Aguilar rocketed a ball toward third where Johan Camargo fielded it cleanly and quickly got the ball over to second. Brandon Phillips turned a flawless double play from there to end the threat. In the ninth, following the leadoff double, Dansby Swanson ranged to his right to field a grounder and didn't hesitate on a strong throw to third to cut down the leading runner. The next Brewers hitter smacked a long fly ball that would have scored the runner. Swanson also caught a dying liner to end the game. Brandon Phillips homered for the second consecutive game, a solo bomb in the first. He added a RBI double later in the game to spearhead the Braves' attack.

June 24, 3-1 WIN vs. Brewers
Stay hot, R.A. Dickey. The knuckleballer tossed seven superb innings and the bullpen had an uneventful night for a change. Brandon Phillips did it again, homering for the third consecutive night. His two-run bomb broke a 1-1 tie and was all the edge Atlanta and Dickey would need. The first inning was a weird frame. It included a questionable balk call and an ejection of Milwaukee Brewers utility man, Nick Franklin, for arguing that the Braves were given too much time to decide whether or not to challenge a play. They ultimately didn't, but it still meant Franklin had an early night even though he wasn't playing. In all of the chaos, there was the Brewers only run, which scored on a bases-loaded fielder's choice. Atlanta would tie it in the first on a two-out single by Tyler Flowers. The Braves catcher was down 0-2 against Matt Garza, but worked the count full before rocketing a single through the infield to plate Phillips.

June 25, 7-0 LOSS vs. Brewers
Julio Teheran didn't have to wait long for his day to implode like he did earlier in the week. He retired just nine batters and was charged with all seven runs. He walked two and K'd three during his short day. Luke Jackson allowed one of those runs to score after he inherited it, but that was the only bad thing anyone could have said about Jackson's outing. He went four shutout innings, scattering two hits, and striking out four. He didn't walk a batter. Ender Inciarte had two of Atlanta's five total hits - all singles.

This Week's Record: 5-2
Season Record: 36-39, 2nd Place in the NL East, 9 GB

Minor League Week in Review (Briefly)
Gwinnett: 3-3...38-36, 2nd Place in the South, 7.5 GB
Mississippi: 2-2...2-2, 2nd Place in South (2nd Half), 1 GB
Florida: 2-4...2-2, 3rd Place in North (2nd Half), 1 GB
Rome: 2-2...2-2, 2nd Place in Southern (2nd Half), 1 GB
Danville: 2-2...2-2, 3rd Place in East, 1 GB
GCL: Opens play this week
DSL: 3-3...8-10, 7th Place in Northwest, 2.5 GB

Three Last Things
1) Things Are About to Get Tough

Sunday marked the 24th game of June. Atlanta has done well with a 14-10 record. All but six of those games came at home via a quirk in the schedule. Further, only a half-dozen of those games came against teams with a .500 or better record. That will change soon.

Following an off day today, Atlanta heads out west for six in California with the Padres and A's. Then comes a buzzsaw that includes 2 vs. HOU, 4 @ DC, 3 vs. ARZ, 3 vs. CHC, 4 @ LAD, and 3 @ ARZ. The Braves will finish July with four games in Philly. As they arrive in the City of Brotherly Love, we'll know a lot more about this team. To this point, only 20 games total have come against teams with a .500 or better record (they're 9-11). In July, they are scheduled to have 19 games against those kind of teams. They'll also play 21 games on the road between now and the trading deadline and are 16-19 on the road this season. For reference, the four-game set in Washington comes right before the All-Star Break.

Some people are buying in. They believe the Braves are better than advertised and will surprise some people. If they are right, July has to be just as impressive as June despite a much tougher slate of games. If you want the Braves to be buyers, they need to continue their recent success against the Astros, Nationals, Diamondbacks and so on. They'll need more games like Friday and Saturday when they took down an impressive Brewers club, and fewer games like Sunday, when their "ace" was blasted for seven runs.

2) Jose Ramirez is Finding Out Regression is Tough

Despite being one of the most trustworthy arms in the pen this year, many were slow to buy in on Jose Ramirez as a true asset. Those that waved off the bandwagon over-and-over may have made that right call. Over his last 14 games, Ramirez has allowed eight runs in 10.1 ING, blown two saves, and walked ten compared to just seven strikeouts. He's also allowed two homeruns.

But we had to see this coming, no? His xFIP heading into June was above 4.00 despite strong WHIP numbers. The belief was that he had been very lucky to this point with a super-low BABIP helping to hide some of the warts. In June, those warts have come out in full force with a 9.02 FIP/7.84 xFIP. While short sample size concerns negate too much value being placed on those numbers, Ramirez has struggled considerably with his control and after some early-season success in inducing weak contact, he is no longer able to rely on that.

Ramirez needs to adjust quickly. He's walked a batter in each of his last seven games, which resembles the guy who was cast to the minors during the first few games of the 2016 season.

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3) Oh, Julio

I've always been a big fan of Julio Teheran. Back in 2010, when he climbed from Rome to Mississippi, I was anxious to see him dominate in the majors. I even stayed positive during his iffy 2012 campaign where he struggled as the Braves tinkered with his delivery. And I was rewarded for my patience with four seasons and a solid major league pitcher.

Sure, he wasn't an "ace," but he was still very good. His 9.9 fWAR between 2013 and 2016 ranked 35th in the game. He was a durable second starter who simply needed an ace to team with. The Braves were never able to find that, of course, as they cycled through Mike Minor, Kris Medlen, and Shelby Miller. Nevertheless, if you are rebuilding and putting a focus on starting pitching, the reasonable belief is that one of those flamethrowing kids would take the ace mantle and run with it. That would push Teheran back and the Braves could roll with a solid rotation.

But...this season happened.

I don't really know what is wrong with Teheran. There's nothing in his release point or movement that really stands out. His frequency of using one pitch over another is not too far removed from last year, though I've never understood why he stopped featuring his curveball as much after 2014. His velocity is about where you expect it to be and he can still reach back and hit 96 mph when he wants to. If you ignored the actual results on the field and just scoured the pitch data, you wouldn't come away thinking anything was too out of the ordinary. But nobody pays a pitcher for a consistent release point or velocity. They pay them to take those things and turn them into positive results and right now, there simply is none to speak of for Teheran.

And it's really difficult to understand why his numbers are just so awful. The strike% is right there. His first-strike percentage, the pitch we are told is so important, is at a career-high. About a quarter of his strikeouts end in the backwards K, a career-high. He's pitching ahead as frequently as ever with only 31% of his matchups ending with the batter ahead in the count (right in tune with his career).

Perhaps he's hurt. Perhaps he's in his head. Perhaps he's throwing rather than pitching. Perhaps the dismissal of Roger McDowell has had an effect. Perhaps it's mechanical. Perhaps SunTrust Park just doesn't work for him.

Whatever the case may be, the Braves aren't going very far this year with this version of Teheran. And it's just damn ugly to watch.