Morning Chop: Atlanta Braves News 3/14
Lance Lynn struck out 8 Braves in a row (video)
Lance Lynn had himself a nice little spring outing Thursday, striking out 10 Braves in four innings including 8 straight.
Really Braves? 8 straight strike outs? That wasn’t Tom Seaver out there, you know.
Braves must have had early dinner reservations. Or maybe they just didn’t want the Cardinals’ fielders getting any practice.
Maybe they are trying to destroy Lance Lynn by making him become over-confident.
Or maybe Lance Lynn really is that good. Maybe he’s Nolan Ryan now.
I don’t think so though. I think the Braves just wanted to get back inside the clubhouse and play some Playstation.
via Miami Herald
Braves’ Santana signing well-received within clubhouse and fan base
With injuries to their starting rotation reaching a crisis stage, the Atlanta Braves bit the financial bullet Wednesday by signing free-agent pitcher Ervin Santana to a one-year, $14.1 million contract, a move that drew praise within the clubhouse and fan base.
Santana, 31, was 9-10 with a 3.24 ERA and 161 strikeouts in 211 innings last season for the Kansas City Royals and tied for fourth in the American League with 23 quality starts (six innings or more and three earned runs or fewer allowed).
The right-hander was weighing offers worth $13 million to $14 million or more from the Orioles and Blue Jays and was close to making a decision before the Braves swooped in.
“In light of what’s happened over the past few days with our pitching staff, we thought it was incumbent on us to do everything we could to strengthen our starting pitching,” said Braves general manager Frank Wren, who texted Santana’s agent, Jay Alou, shortly after pitcher Kris Medlen left Sunday’s game with an elbow injury expected to require surgery.
The Braves were talking to Santana before Brandon Beachy left Monday’s start against the Phillies with biceps tightness near his twice-surgically repaired elbow. That injury only strengthened their resolve to get Santana.
“It just worked out that he had not reached an agreement yet,” Wren said. “We feel like he really gives us a big shot in the arm as far as the rotation’s concerned.”
Brandon Beachy Is Atlanta Braves’ Most Important Injured Pitcher
With the sad news that Kris Medlen will most likely undergo his second Tommy John surgery and the very good news that the Atlanta Braves signed pitcher Ervin Santana to a one-year contract, it’s being said that the rest of the pressure lands either on Freddy Garcia or Alex Wood.
To this point, Wood is outperforming Garcia, giving up no runs in his three starts compared to Garcia’s six in the same number of starts. Other than his last start, though, Garcia has been just as impressive as Wood. It has been a fact from the start of Spring Training that one of these two guys was going to have to fill in for Gavin Floyd until he can work his way back into the major leagues.
However, who is lost in this equation? Of course Brandon Beachy. In a matter of days, his injury has been seemingly forgotten. When it comes down to it, the Braves have already replaced Medlen in the rotation, and Beachy is left to fill a hole, if healthy, that is much bigger than the one of Garcia or Wood.
Freeman Leads Braves Pre-Season Odds
Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman is ranked as having the sixth best chance of winning the 2014 National League MVP Award, by Bovada Sports Book.
Bovada rates the Pirates Andrew McCutcheon as having the best chance to win the NL MVP at 6/1 odds, then the Reds Joey Votto at 7/1, the Diamondbacks Paul Goldschmidt at 9/1, the Cardinals Yadier Molina at 12/1 and the Giants Buster Posey at 12/1. Freeman checks in at 14/1 odds to win the National League MVP.