Official Offseason Thread

[NBA_Starter]

I would move Prado to 3B, I would give Georgie at least a shot in CF. Some names for LF that interest me are Jason Kubel, Alfonso Soriano, and I wonder if Tyler Colvin has ever played LF? I know that Soriano is horrible on D but after his slow start he put up good numbers at the plate this year, it would just depend on the price.

[Getting UGGLA]

Getting Uggla, i'm sorry but i think you are a joke...Where do i start...
Paul Maholm for 4,250,000 is a bargain, 3.66 and 3.67 ERA the last two years, a ground ball pitcher which sabermetrics says he is a good 3rd starter. So getting rid of him is a mistake.

With no one else to replace McCann in the organization or in FA, we don't have another option so you can be pretty sure he will be back.

Pastornicky doesn't bring much to the team but he should be in the minors next year so we don't have to worry for his contract.

If we want to trade Uggla we will have to eat a big part of his salary, so there's no way we will get more value with the money left to spend. We're stuck with him (he brings value to the team anyway).

We need a real SS next season? wow just speechless. Not even going to lose my time explaining to you why Simmons is the best choice, and that he is the best SS in this organization since Furcal.

If we bring back Reed Johnson back for a salary around 1 million, is a no brainer, a guy who can play all three OF positions, and kills lefties. NO BRAINER.

Where do I start?

We don't need Paul Maholm or the salary we're paying for him. We have enough pitching without him.

Don't be so sure Mac will be back, he is injury prone, and options are out there. His spot is ice cold in terms of production, you'd be a fool to believe he isn't subject to be traded.

Uggla is history dude, one way or another, he's gone. Get over it. The masses are tired of him hitting .220 and swinging out of his shoes ALA Andruw Jones when he was ice cold. We can do better than Uggla, and we will.

Latly, don't be surprised if we pick up a quality SS and let Simmons develop for a year or 2. It's what we should do.

[SB75]

Sorry I forgot I was talking to the man who thinks Jason Heyward is the second coming. And yes, Heyward bounced back but was he one of the best players in the majors? Hell no! I said, he'll suffice, that's it. We have numerous problems. On top of that, SS is a spot where we can aquire a talent, a MUCH BETTER talent than Simmons and not be affected. He would play backup and develop into a BETTER talent. If another team is going to make a multi-player deal with us, we have multiple positions we need help, and SS is one of them. After his play in the WC game, I'm definitely not sold on Simmons, his play or his attitude, and outside his average which is decent, nothing about him is appealing to me.

LOL.... No one acted like he was the second coming. You just went out of the way to burry the kid and you where 100% wrong! So just like last year, you are wrong again. I just don't understand why you sit from an arm chair ( or any chair you are sitting on) and try to burry players. Simmons is a wiz defensively, one bad game defensively does not change everything he did in Atlanta and in the minors. His bat is also good when you are speaking of SS. At just his current pace he would have been in the top 10 amoung SS in avg, OBP, 3B, and top 20 in doubles and hr's for around 500k a season. You don't even think to move or demote this kid unless you can get someone who is light years better and guess what that's not available on the FA market and teams that have those handful of players are not trading them.

[Getting UGGLA]

LOL.... No one acted like he was the second coming. You just went out of the way to burry the kid and you where 100% wrong! So just like last year, you are wrong again. I just don't understand why you sit from an arm chair ( or any chair you are sitting on) and try to burry players. Simmons is a wiz defensively, one bad game defensively does not change everything he did in Atlanta and in the minors. His bat is also good when you are speaking of SS. At just his current pace he would have been in the top 10 amoung SS in avg, OBP, 3B, and top 20 in doubles and hr's for around 500k a season. You don't even think to move or demote this kid unless you can get someone who is light years better and guess what that's not available on the FA market and teams that have those handful of players are not trading them.

Predicting what he may or may not do for a full season is futile. The fact remains he is immature, and needs a year or two to develop. I think we might be able to trade for Starlin Castro from the Cubs. Much better option with speed, defense and some pop. Maybe we could even bring in Soriano in that deal as our LF and a 2B option. He has been a steady good player for years. He also has one of the nicest swings in the game.

[beldugo]

Where do I start?

We don't need Paul Maholm or the salary we're paying for him. We have enough pitching without him.

Don't be so sure Mac will be back, he is injury prone, and options are out there. His spot is ice cold in terms of production, you'd be a fool to believe he isn't subject to be traded.

Uggla is history dude, one way or another, he's gone. Get over it. The masses are tired of him hitting .220 and swinging out of his shoes ALA Andruw Jones when he was ice cold. We can do better than Uggla, and we will.

Latly, don't be surprised if we pick up a quality SS and let Simmons develop for a year or 2. It's what we should do.

You say we don't need Maholm but let me tell you that injuries happens, at the beginning of this year we had, Hudson-Hanson-Jurrjens-Beachy-Minor to start the year, JJ was then sent down because he sucked, Beachy had TJ, Hanson struggle and Minor looked like **** for an entire first half, we even have to rely on Ben Sheets a guy that last game started was like 2 years ago and has recently retired. I'm guessing you are counting with Medlen-Hudson-Hanson-Minor-Teheran. We have to go with our best 5 starters and Maholm belongs in that rotation. In my opinion the pitcher that we should trade is Hanson.

Can you tell me what are the options "out there" in the catching position, and don't tell me Bethancourt or Gattis. Because one of them is nowhere near ready and the other is a question mark with a injury history and probably isn't good enough to be a catcher.

Can you provide me any reasonable thing you will do with the Uggla situation, how much money did we have to eat, possible destinations for a trade and possible targets later.

Wanna make a bet on Simmons?, let's say that if Simmons is the opening day starter at SS for next year you cannot post here anymore (with that account) if we trade/sign for the next opening day starter at SS i won't post again (barring any injury of course).

[beldugo]

Predicting what he may or may not do for a full season is futile. The fact remains he is immature, and needs a year or two to develop. I think we might be able to trade for Starlin Castro from the Cubs. Much better option with speed, defense and some pop. Maybe we could even bring in Soriano in that deal as our LF and a 2B option. He has been a steady good player for years. He also has one of the nicest swings in the game.

It's funny that you say Simmons is immature, when you don't have any prove that he is, and then you say that we can trade for Starlin Castro, a guy who had a lot of problems in the past because of his immaturity.

http://www.rantsports.com/mlb/2012/0...tarlin-castro/

[rtgthree]

A few general notes...

On Christian Bethancourt: I like Bethancourt as a prospect. Really, I do. But we're talking about a guy that's about as raw offensively as a player can get. He posted a .566 OPS...in the Southern League. Not only would a promotion to the majors stunt his development and take away time in the minors that he desperately needs, he would be a disaster of historic proportions trying to hit in the major leagues. There's a level of offensive suckitude that can be tolerated from players who are good on defense, but Bethancourt wouldn't even come close to that threshold. He's not an option for 2013.

On David Wright: I get the attraction to Wright, but he really hasn't been an elite offensive player for several years now. Solid, but not elite. And he wants a seven-year deal, which is going to carry him into his late-30s, at something like $18 million per year. I just don't think the Braves can take that kind of risk.

On Zack Greinke: He is truly one of the more confusing players in this winter's market. The Braves really don't need him, and spending money on him could really handicap the efforts to get better on offense. But at the same time, rumors keep persisting that he has a preference to play in Atlanta, where he can contend and be close to his Orlando home. And at some price point, how can you pass up a pitcher that talented? It would free up even more young pitching to be traded for controllable (read: cheaper) solutions on offense. It will be very, very interesting to watch this situation. It seems unlikely that the Braves could fit Greinke in, but he's always been a different guy and he could just make up his mind that he wants to come to Atlanta.

Would be crazy if we could get Middlebrooks and Ellsbury for something like Teheran Delgado and Ahmed that would be nice.

Yes, it would be crazy. The Red Sox are much more likely to build around Will Middlebrooks than they are to trade him.

And anyone who thinks swish will leave the Yankees is crazy. add to that Atlanta isn't a huge draw for free agents and now chip is gone so it will be worse. I'm expecting more trades then free agents.

What is your source for thinking that Swisher wouldn't leave the Yankees? Atlanta actually IS a big draw for certain free agents, since it's such a well-run franchise with a great reputation away from a glaring media spotlight. And from everything I've read, Swisher is exactly the kind of player who would prefer that sort of environment.

Is Coco Crisp a FA? He could probably be had for 3/21. That would leave approx. 15-18 million for a LF or 3b. Swisher could be in play at that rate.

Sounds great and all, but he's signed for 2013 with an option for 2014. Cot's Contracts is a great resource for answering these sorts of questions.

Everybody, I don't care who you are or how much you think you know, is wrong if they think Uggla can't be traded. Sorry. Your just wrong. There is no rule in baseball that says Dan Uggla cannot be traded from the Braves.
The question is how REALISTIC it is that Uggla gets traded. That's the only question. All of this "uggla can't be traded" talk is crap.
As I've stated before....if Danny Ferry can trade Joe Johnson, another guy that "couldn't be traded"...Wren can move Uggla.
If you disagree, then you are wrong.

Okay, fine, there is no rule prohibiting Uggla from being traded, so technically he CAN be traded. In the same way that Tyler Pastornicky CAN be traded straight up for Felix Hernandez. You win.

And yes, if Frank Wren agreed to pay the majority of Uggla's contract, a trade would even be realistic. The problem is that Uggla is still a solid (albeit overpaid) offensive second baseman, and there's just no way that the Braves could replace his production with the money that would be left over AFTER Wren paid Uggla to go away. The math just doesn't work.

Mac and Maholm for Ellsbury and Salty?

Not sure why a rebuilding Red Sox team would want a pair of expiring contracts. Salty is controllable and Ellsbury is a fan favorite and strong extension candidate.

Now Hamilton is a 5-tool player, like Heyward was expected to be

No, like Heyward IS expected to be. He showed growth in just about every category, and at age 22, he's not even close to being done developing. After how wrong you were wrong about him last season, you might want to stop mentioning him for a little while at least.

As for salaries you say we need to cut...most are free agents who are going to leave anyway. Always good to see you remind us that you don't actually know who is going to be a free agent and who is not. Beyond that, you're cutting Maholm, who will be a bargain at $6.5 million to be a mid-rotation horse with a 3.50-ish ERA? He's arguably the most likely pitcher in the entire organization to post an ERA in the mid threes.

You're cutting Andrelton Simmons, who showed offensive potential and the best glove in the majors? All because he made some rookie mistakes in one game? Please. Maybe you should turn on the TV more often.

You're cutting Dan Uggla, as if cutting him makes his salary go away? Exactly how do you expect to "free up this money"? There's no way to trade him without eating a big portion of his contract.

You're not willing to spend $1 million and change for one of the best backup outfielders in baseball (Reed Johnson)? Get in touch with the free-agent market, friend.

I would move Prado to 3B, I would give Georgie at least a shot in CF. Some names for LF that interest me are Jason Kubel, Alfonso Soriano, and I wonder if Tyler Colvin has ever played LF? I know that Soriano is horrible on D but after his slow start he put up good numbers at the plate this year, it would just depend on the price.

Jose Constanza is not a major-league center fielder. As a fifth outfielder and pinch runner, he's fine. But nothing more. And your suggestions for left field are interesting, but somewhat unusual. Kubel and Colvin are home-park mirages. Soriano might work except for all the money still owed to him.

Uggla is history dude, one way or another, he's gone. Get over it. The masses are tired of him hitting .220 and swinging out of his shoes ALA Andruw Jones when he was ice cold. We can do better than Uggla, and we will.

Fortunately for those of us who know something about baseball, the opinions of "the masses" have absolutely zero effect on the Braves' decision making.

I think we might be able to trade for Starlin Castro from the Cubs.

Because the Cubs totally signed him to a $60 million extension just to immediately trade him. That makes a ton of sense.

[SB75]

Predicting what he may or may not do for a full season is futile. The fact remains he is immature, and needs a year or two to develop. I think we might be able to trade for Starlin Castro from the Cubs. Much better option with speed, defense and some pop. Maybe we could even bring in Soriano in that deal as our LF and a 2B option. He has been a steady good player for years. He also has one of the nicest swings in the game.

Dude you shoot holes in your own logic. How is predicting what he may do based on the numbers he did put up futile, compared to saying what he can't do based on just your opion? The Cubs just gave Castro an ext, their not trading him! Every year you seem to pick one young player to single out, I wonder who it will be the next year? Every one has said Simmons is a stud and is ready except you.......

By the way you bring up maturity and then you want to trade for Castro? Really just WOW! You might should read the reports on that kid!

[chipurmunki]

simmons is very much ready.

i know the rev has been completely vilified on here, but what about him at 3rd? his range was shoddy, at best, and his bat needs work, but that move has worked for us before. i'm not saying i'm gung-ho for the idea, but what do y'all think about if his game would transition to 3rd well?

[SB75]

simmons is very much ready.

i know the rev has been completely vilified on here, but what about him at 3rd? his range was shoddy, at best, and his bat needs work, but that move has worked for us before. i'm not saying i'm gung-ho for the idea, but what do y'all think about if his game would transition to 3rd well?

IMHO..... His range would be plus at 3B. However he does not have the conventional bat or the arm to stick at 3B.

[chipurmunki]

yeah, that's what i was thinking. tryin to get too creative i guess.

[ATL#22]

Because he isn't ready. Baserunning blunder and throwing error were costly in the WC game.

He was the best defensive SS in baseball last year and he rarely strikes out. There is no way we replace him especially since he is making the minimum.

[devildogdco]

IMHO..... His range would be plus at 3B. However he does not have the conventional bat or the arm to stick at 3B.

He has a cannon as an arm which would fit at 3b however like you said the bat doesn't profile there.

[SB75]

He has a cannon as an arm which would fit at 3b however like you said the bat doesn't profile there.

Pastor, cannon for an arm? Never herd that one before.

[devildogdco]

Pastor, cannon for an arm? Never herd that one before.

My bad I was thinking Simmons when I read that