Atlanta Braves News: The Morning Chop 10/1
By Jeff Schafer
The Braves’ Walker: A good coach got bad results
Tomahawk Take Editor’s Note: Greg Walker resigned at 6:48 pm on Tuesday afternoon. Braves fans pretty much saw this one coming but most thought he would be fired instead of resigning. He knew the success that should of happened in 2014 didn’t and thought he was at blame for it. Fredi Gonzalez and John Hart have a meeting scheduled for today (Wednesday) to go over many topics…it will be interesting to see what comes out of it.
We’ll never know for sure if the Braves would have fired Walker had he not resigned, but it’s hard to imagine them retaining the chief hitting coach — Scott Fletcher is the deputy — of a team that scored fewer runs than 28 of the 29 other big-league clubs. Whatever Walker/Fletcher were doing hadn’t worked.
It wasn’t for lack of effort or expertise. Walker worked hard — most all big-league coaches do — and tried pretty much everything. But a hitting coach is judged on results. The Braves lost 83 games with a pitching staff that compiled the third-lowest ERA in the National League. (Only one of the five NL playoff qualifiers had a lower ERA.)
Will Braves Manager Fredi Gonzalez keep his job?
Tomahawk Take Editor’s Note: On Monday, Gonzalez spoke to the media to go over any topics they had. David O’Brien asked him numerous times about the future with him staying as the Braves coach and his response kept staying “we’ll know more on Wednesday after the meeting with John Hart.”
"The Braves are ending one of the team’s worst seasons in more than 20 years, and will miss the post season for the first time since 2011. As a result, the team on Sept 22 fired longtime general manager Frank Wren.Gonzalez seemed at ease on Monday when he and a handful of his players went to Turner Field to clean out lockers, according to MLB.com’s Mark Bowman.“I feel more for the coaches than I do for myself,” Gonzalez said. “I think the meeting on Wednesday will clear some stuff up.”"
Braves Foundation to help Cobb nonprofits
Tomahawk Take Editor’s Note: The Atlanta Braves foundation is a support system for many recipients. Christian Aid Mission, Cobb Alcohol Taskforce, Cobb Health Futures, Cobb Library Foundation, Cobb Police Athletic League, Cobb Country Public Schools Education Foundation, Marietta Police Athletic League, Marietta YELLS to name a few.
"The Atlanta Braves Foundation recently awarded more than $300,000 in grants to nonprofit organizations around the metro Atlanta area, including eight in Cobb County.Since 1994, the Atlanta Braves Foundation has provided support and resources to thousands of metro Atlanta-based organizations and has contributed more than $5.6 million in financial assistance to the community."