Atlanta Braves News: The Morning Chop
By Jeff Schafer
Commission OKs zoning for new Atlanta Braves stadium development
Tomahawk Take Editor Notes: The Atlanta Journal Constitution has been on-top of this facility upgrade for the Atlanta Braves since the beginning. On Tuesday, the zoning change necessary for the Braves to proceed with their planned mixed-use development just outside the future ballpark was unanimously approved. This is exciting news as this new entertainment hub will be a one-stop place.
"The Braves have said they will spend $400 million on building a mixture of shops, restaurants, offices, residential and hotel units, along with a 100,000-square-foot entertainment venue.Mike Plant, the Braves executive vice president of business operations, said the team expects to announce the developers for the mixed use portion of the development “within days.”“This was a big step in our continuing process to build a … legacy generational opportunity for the people of Cobb,” Plant said after the vote. “This is a huge compliment to the ballpark plan that we’ve had. All of this was part of the master plan, and this was the culmination of it today."
Braves need a leader
Tomahawk Take Editor Notes: After Dan Uggla reported late to the ballpark last Saturday, the Braves suspended him for one game. After that, there were reports that one Braves player was supposedly upset when he saw the story on ESPN’s Bottom crawl. That player was upset that the story leaked and now upset at Uggla for disrespecting the organization and his teammates by showing up an hour before the game?
"Where are the leaders on this team? Or, maybe the more appropriate question is, “Are there any leaders on this team?” I don’t think so, and that may be the biggest problem the Braves have as we start the second part of the season Friday.Last year’s leaders are gone. Tim Hudson is in San Francisco. Brian McCann is in New York with the Yankees. After Chipper Jones retired two years ago, Hudson and McCann took over. They were the veterans respected in the clubhouse by the younger players.But the Braves decided they couldn’t afford either player. Hudson was coming off the bad ankle injury, while McCann was turning 30 and was just too big of a risk to sign to a long-term contract. But will the decisions to allow those veterans to walk away cost the Braves in the long run?"
Selig: Braves, Indians should make decisions locally
Tomahawk Take Editor Notes: Major League Baseball Commissioner, Bud Selig, addressed the media about the speculations with the ongoing Washington Redskins story. His quote was “I know that for years, the Indians did polls and studies, and they kept telling me they had no problem. The Atlanta Braves told me the same thing. The local club will have to make a judgment call.”
"The Atlanta Braves’ long-time mascot, Chief Noc-A-Homa, came with the team from Milwaukee in 1966, and was predominantly featured as part of the team’s logo through the 1980s, when it was replaced by the tomahawk logo that the Braves and its minor league affiliates use today. Plans to bring back the Chief Noc-A-Homa image on the Braves’ batting practice hats in 2013 met with wide-spread criticism. The Braves eventually backed away from those plans, sticking with the “script-A” image that has been the team’s primary cap logo since the late 80s.Some current criticism includes demands that the Indians and Braves change their teams names and remove all measure of Native American symbolism from the team’s uniforms and graphic image. No formal statement has been issued by the Braves thus far regarding the commissioner’s comments Tuesday."