Minor League and Prospect Discussion

[realmofotalk]

It's not Maddux-Glavine-Smoltz, but Smoltz-Hudson is still ownage.

Neagle rocked in Atlanta. Remember '97, when Smoltz had the highest ERA at 3.02 out of the big 4? Wohlers couldn't find the strike zone half the time though.

[General]

We do have too many starters..we need to trade a few of them for a bat.

[realmofotalk]

Macay McBride not a starter? I recall his name quickly because the Braves picked him with LA's Andy Ashby compensation 1st round pick.

[General]

Nope. relief pitcher for us.

[ATLien]

I remember like 3 and a half years ago, everyone was talking how Adam Wainwright, Bubba Nelson, and Macay McBride were going to be the new millenium version of Maddux, Glavine, and Smoltz. LOL! Shit happens. McBride's been a bust, and is now in the BP in Atlanta. He's looked pretty.. average, from what I've seen so far.

[General]

Where's Wainwright?

[ATLien]

St. Louis from the JD Drew trade

[realmofotalk]

Andy Pratt was one of the names too.

[ATLien]

Yep.

Betemit was supposed to be the next Soriano, but now he's rebounded from being a bust and is looking pretty good. No Soriano, but an every day player.

[General]

Jeff Francoeur hit a three-run homer and threw out two runners at home plate today in the win over the Diamondbacks.
Francoeur, who has made just 24 starts in the outfield, already has eight outfield assists, putting him two shy of the NL leaders (Cliff Floyd and Geoff Jenkins).


Man, he is a BEAST.

[General]

Triple-A Richmond's Chuck James pitched one-hit ball for eight innings in a 1-0 win over the Buffalo yesterday.
Fausto Carmona was the loser of the pitcher's duel. James has a 0.71 ERA in two starts for Richmond, but he's still no higher than eighth on Atlanta's SP depth chart.

[General]

High Class A Potomac catcher Salomon Manriquez is putting up career numbers this season. Currently hitting .301/.353/.505, Manriquez has emerged as the top catcher in the Nationals system, but that doesn’t mean he’s the best catcher in the Carolina League. Defensively, that honor goes to Winston-Salem’s Gustavo Molina, as voted by league managers in BA’s Best Tools survey. Offensively, it's Myrtle Beach's Jarrod Saltalamacchia, who is hitting .324/.393/.533 with 16 homers in 383 at-bats. “Manriquez is having a great year at the plate, but I’d take either one of those guys ahead of him,” one CL manager said. “He doesn’t have nearly as good catch-and-throw skills as a guy like Molina and he doesn’t have the pop in his bat Saltalamacchia has. I think Saltalamacchia is ahead of where (Braves catcher Brian) McCann was at this point last year—both offensively and defensively. He just brings more to the table, and has a great approach from both sides of the plate.”

Richmond lefthander Chuck James was brilliant in his second Triple-A outing. James allowed just one hit—a single by Buffalo catcher Javier Cardona—over eight innings in the Braves’ 1-0 win. He struck out four and walked three. "I had a little trouble keeping my fastball down," James told the Richmond Times-Dispatch. "I had good life on it, so that helped me out a lot. I got away with a lot. I think I gave up 12 or 13 warning-track shots. They're a good hitting team."

[ATLien]

Wow @ Salty's BA. That's awesome.

[General]

Triple-A Richmond's Andy Marte had a solo shot and a three-run homer off Louisville's Justin Germano last night.
Marte has 20 home runs in 362 at-bats for Richmond.

[General]

Prospects seeing action this year:

Marte
Langerhans
Francoeur
Davies
Devine
McCann
Kelly
Betemit
Lerew
Boyer
Pena


Bold means they've been real good; underlined means they've performed admirably..Devine, Pena, Marte haven't seen too much action, and Lerew just got called up.