Morning Chop: Atlanta Braves News 10/12
Oct 4, 2013; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Braves injured pitcher
Tim Hudsonin the dugout during game two of the National League divisional series playoff baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports
Morning Chop: Summary of Braves’ News
Mike Minor Will Earn Right To Atlanta Braves’ Opening Day Start in 2014
It might take a few weeks for every single Atlanta Braves fan to move forward from the disappointing ending to the 2013 season. When they do however most will be excited about the team the Braves will throw out there in 2014. One area that will get fans excited will definitely be the pitching staff. Even if they do not bring back Tim Hudson for one more season, the Braves have a stacked and young starting rotation. Even with a load of talented starters there is going to be one man that will be leading the Braves on Opening Day. I think that man should be Mike Minor.
Right now, so soon after the end of the 2013 season, I think Fredi Gonzalez should go ahead and announce it today. Minor assumed leadership of this pitching staff when Hudson was injured and he was one of the best starters in the game for a while before struggles reached him down the stretch. Even after struggling then, Minor provided a fabulous performance in the NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Unfortunately he did not get the chance to outpitch anyone in game five.
NL East Notes: Nationals, Phillies, Braves, Marlins
- The major question marks facing the Braves are whether to bring back pitcher Tim Hudson and what to do with struggling, high-priced second baseman Dan Uggla,writes Mark Bowman of MLB.com. Bowman wonders if Atlanta might try to move Uggla, swallowing a big chunk of the $26MM that the 33-year-old is still owed. He also suggests that the team could push for a trade for a top-flight starter like David Price. As things stand, says Bowman, it appears that the Braves have the capacity to add something in the neighborhood of $15-20MM via free agency or trade.
Mayor Reed: Braves should keep their name
Some critics believe the Atlanta Braves may want to consider a name change too.
But don’t count Mayor Kasim Reed among them. After all, the “Atlanta Braves” is more than a name. It’s also a brand. With a lot of equity.
The issue has not exploded here in Atlanta like it has in DC. At least not yet.
But either way, Mayor Reed says he’s not in support of a name change for the Braves.
“I do not,” said the mayor. “I think that the name the Atlanta Braves is a name that we should keep; and I have a number of friends who are Indians, and they haven’t shared any offense with me about it. So I go by my experiences.”
Braves Fans Should Calm Down
I wanted to write this article after Atlanta Braves fans had a chance to take a deep breath and calm down. The fan in us is always quick to criticize and get upset, but most of the time when we take a step back, we can see things a little more clearly. That’s what I am trying to do with this Braves team, because believe it or not, this team had a really good year.
I will start this off by saying that I completely disagree with anyone that thinks Fredi Gonzalez should be fired. I don’t even understand how you could arrive at that conclusion, when this team led the division for every day of the regular season except for one. Sure, guys didn’t hit like we wanted them to, but didn’t Fredi make those changes towards the end of the year and at playoff time?