2021 MLB

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MacLaren
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2021 MLB

#1

Post by MacLaren »

So, I thought I would go ahead and start a new thread for the upcoming new season.
That being said, I see that Atlanta let Mark Melancon go to the Padres.
Way to go Atalnta......here's to making another decent run in the playoffs and NO WORLD SERIES.
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Re: 2021 MLB

#2

Post by legOFwhat? »

Brother Paul, I'm shocked they let him go, he was flat out good last year for the Braves!
-Larry
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MacLaren
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Re: 2021 MLB

#3

Post by MacLaren »

legOFwhat? wrote:
Fri Feb 12, 2021 8:08 pm
Brother Paul, I'm shocked they let him go, he was flat out good last year for the Braves!
See Larry?
Its like Atlanta is just fine with being a contender.
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Re: 2021 MLB

#4

Post by TkoK83Spy »

MacLaren wrote:
Fri Feb 12, 2021 8:44 pm
legOFwhat? wrote:
Fri Feb 12, 2021 8:08 pm
Brother Paul, I'm shocked they let him go, he was flat out good last year for the Braves!
See Larry?
Its like Atlanta is just fine with being a contender.
Better than being the Brewers! Being there, but not really being there :p
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Re: 2021 MLB

#5

Post by Doc Dan »

Atlanta, a once proud franchise, is now happy with being an almost ran.

Still, I will be glad when baseball season starts. I do not support the drug dealers and gangsters and anti-Americans of basketball and pro-football. I did not even watch the Super Bowl.

Baseball is still the proper pro sport, in my opinion.
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p_atrick
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Re: 2021 MLB

#6

Post by p_atrick »

Doc Dan wrote:
Fri Feb 12, 2021 10:18 pm
Atlanta, a once proud franchise, is now happy with being an almost ran.

The Braves are owned by Liberty Media corporation, and this suits MLB just fine. Owners no longer want to see people like Ted Turner or George Steinbrenner as one of their colleagues. Every team is chasing "financial flexibility", which is another way of saying they want to keep costs down. Of course, non-baseball revenues are going up. This is the real reason that the owners are pushing for expanded playoffs. All of this TV revenue is shared equally among the 30 teams. You get a pay raise for just existing. When profits are tied to revenue streams independent of on-the-field success, then there becomes less of an incentive to make your team better. Adding more playoff teams will only exacerbate this problem. That is why teams are doing things like this. The problems that define the Braves are inherent to the sport itself. They were started by Selig and expanded upon by Manfred. The Braves are not unique in this situation.

Having said that, the Braves are the best team in the NL East. More importantly, they have been spending this offseason while many teams aren't hiding the fact that they are shedding payroll as fast as they can.
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Re: 2021 MLB

#7

Post by p_atrick »

MacLaren wrote:
Fri Feb 12, 2021 5:21 pm
So, I thought I would go ahead and start a new thread for the upcoming new season.
That being said, I see that Atlanta let Mark Melancon go to the Padres.
Way to go Atalnta......here's to making another decent run in the playoffs and NO WORLD SERIES.

There are plenty of reasons to let Melancon go. First among them that he is 36 years old. This is not the age where you tend to see improvements over the previous season. If the Braves had retained Melancon, they would be looking at a closer with the potential to be a detriment to the team. The two most alarming numbers are the dip in his fastball velocity (lowest of his career) and the dip in swinging strike percentage. That mean when Melancon is throwing a strike, fewer hitters are not missing. Melancon is already a groudball pitcher. If you are relying on the fielders to make the out, the last thing you want to see is lower velocity and the loss of the ability to fool hitters. Melacon's barrel percentage (the amount of times when a hitter puts the barrel of the bat to the ball) is going up. These are all signs that Melancon could see an increase in blown saves. By going to SD, he is out of the closer position, and any bumps in the road won't affect the team as much as a blown save. Of course, he only pitched just over 20 innings last year; it is hard to make any concrete projections about Melancon's performance in 2021 with so few data points. Still, I think the Braves were smart to pass on Melancon as their closer.
Last edited by p_atrick on Sat Feb 13, 2021 12:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: 2021 MLB

#8

Post by MacLaren »

p_atrick wrote:
Sat Feb 13, 2021 12:24 pm
MacLaren wrote:
Fri Feb 12, 2021 5:21 pm
So, I thought I would go ahead and start a new thread for the upcoming new season.
That being said, I see that Atlanta let Mark Melancon go to the Padres.
Way to go Atalnta......here's to making another decent run in the playoffs and NO WORLD SERIES.

There are plenty of reasons to let Melancon go. First among them that he is 36 years old. This is not the age where you tend to see improvements over the previous season. If the Braves had retained Melancon, they would be looking at a closer with the potential to be a detriment to the team. The two most alarming numbers are the dip in his fastball (lowest of his career) and the dip in swinging strike percentage. That mean when Melancon is throwing a strike, fewer hitters are not missing. Melancon is already a groudball pitcher. If you are relying on the fielders to make the out, the last thing you want to see is lower velocity and the loss of the ability to fool hitters. Melacon's barrel percentage (the amount of times when a hitter puts the barrel of the bat to the ball) is going up. These are all signs that Melancon could see an increase in blown saves. By going to SD, he is out of the closer position, and any bumps in the road won't affect the team as much as a blown save. Of course, he only pitched just over 20 innings last year; it is hard to make any concrete projections about Melancon's performance in 2021 with so few data points. Still, I think the Braves were smart to pass on Melancon as their closer.
Whatever dude. He did pretty dam good every time I watched him.
We shall see then I reckon.
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Re: 2021 MLB

#9

Post by Doc Dan »

I agree with a lot of what was just said. Yet, on the other hand, the Braves keep almost getting there and can't win when it counts. It makes me wonder why?

I remember the Yankees facing this issue despite having the best talent money could buy. The reason there was that they all played as super stars and not as a team. They did not mesh.

But, what is the problem with the Braves? They have had the best team in baseball, overall, and still come up short. I hope this year will be different.
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Re: 2021 MLB

#10

Post by p_atrick »

Doc Dan wrote:
Sat Feb 13, 2021 11:41 pm
I hope this year will be different.
The NL pennant goes through SD and/or LA. It is going to be a tough road, but it doesn't mean the Braves don't stand a chance. It would have been nice if the Braves signed Turner, but I don't think that ever would have happened given his contract demands. Who knows, maybe Austin Riley progresses this season (he'll almost certainly be better with the glove). The Braves would benefit greatly from the DH in the NL. You get Ozuna off the field, and you can make a very strong case that the Braves would have the best defensive OF with Inciarte in LF. The Braves have developed a very strong core of young players, and they have yet to offer a bad long-term deal to a veteran (the fact that Ozuna got four years was surprising). This team should have a long competitive window.
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Re: 2021 MLB

#11

Post by MacLaren »

I just feel its the right time for Atlanta to get that big name that actually can propel them to the World Series.
Chris Russo ( Mad Dog ) told me thats prolly what Atlanta would do, and that was about a year or a year and a half ago.
I actually called in to the show! :D
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Re: 2021 MLB

#12

Post by p_atrick »

MacLaren wrote:
Sun Feb 14, 2021 9:23 am
I just feel its the right time for Atlanta to get that big name that actually can propel them to the World Series.

Ozuna just might be that guy. The Braves had the third best offense last season. If it wasn't for Freeman, you could have made a good argument that Ozuna deserved the NL MVP. The loss of Ozuna would have been a big step backwards, but he's back with the team. Their catcher had a career year last year, which may not happen again. I still think Riley is the "weak link", but he is young enough that he should still continue to progress. Clearly the Braves believe in Riley, and their recent track record of developing players is pretty good. One of the interesting signings is Drew Smyly. I remember him for his very brief time with the Rangers. He sucked. Since then, however, he has been working on a curve ball. In 2020, he threw it almost as much as his fastball. He had a crazy 50% whiff rate on his curve. 2020 was a short season, it is hard to extrapolate stats from then to 2021. Maybe hitters didn't see Smyly enough to make adjustments to his new pitch. Or maybe, Smyly has reinvented himself. This wouldn't be the first time this happens. If his curve is legit, Smyly goes from a back of the rotation pitcher to somebody towards the top. That would be a huge boost for a deep playoff run.
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Re: 2021 MLB

#13

Post by benben »

The Braves need a new base running coach, that’d be a great start! :rolleyes:
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Re: 2021 MLB

#14

Post by MacLaren »

Wow. Just saw where MLB just shut down 40 Minor League Team?
This is not cool at all man.......greed will absolutely destroy the sport. I hope the owners realize this.
I am disgusted!! The Appalachian League is History!!
No more Elizabethton Twins, Johnson City Cardinals, Kingsport Mets and Greenville Braves!
Not to mention many more!!
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Re: 2021 MLB

#15

Post by Doc Dan »

MacLaren wrote:
Sun Feb 14, 2021 10:10 pm
Wow. Just saw where MLB just shut down 40 Minor League Team?
This is not cool at all man.......greed will absolutely destroy the sport. I hope the owners realize this.
I am disgusted!! The Appalachian League is History!!
No more Elizabethton Twins, Johnson City Cardinals, Kingsport Mets and Greenville Braves!
Not to mention many more!!
Whaaaat!!! Where did you see this?
I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof! (John Adams regarding the White House)

Follow the Christ, the King,
Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King--
Else, wherefore born?" (Tennyson)



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Re: 2021 MLB

#16

Post by MacLaren »

Doc Dan wrote:
Sun Feb 14, 2021 11:42 pm
MacLaren wrote:
Sun Feb 14, 2021 10:10 pm
Wow. Just saw where MLB just shut down 40 Minor League Team?
This is not cool at all man.......greed will absolutely destroy the sport. I hope the owners realize this.
I am disgusted!! The Appalachian League is History!!
No more Elizabethton Twins, Johnson City Cardinals, Kingsport Mets and Greenville Braves!
Not to mention many more!!
Whaaaat!!! Where did you see this?
ESPN Doc, and they're keepin it quite too!
I had to search for more Info!
I am.just beside myself Doc....
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Re: 2021 MLB

#17

Post by MacLaren »

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Re: 2021 MLB

#18

Post by Doc Dan »

MacLaren wrote:
Mon Feb 15, 2021 6:33 am
This is what's left...
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/304 ... shakes-out
Man, that gets me. First the Stars move to Biloxi, and now Kingsport, Johnson City, and Elizabethton are gone! Well, Lakeland and Birmingham are still around.
I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof! (John Adams regarding the White House)

Follow the Christ, the King,
Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King--
Else, wherefore born?" (Tennyson)



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Re: 2021 MLB

#19

Post by Doc Dan »

Really, there is nothing better than sitting in the sun, eating a hotdog, drinking a beer or coke, and watching a baseball game. I've seen some of the greats play and been to a lot of ball parks. It never, ever, gets old.
I Pray Heaven to Bestow The Best of Blessing on THIS HOUSE, and on ALL that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but Honest and Wise Men ever rule under This Roof! (John Adams regarding the White House)

Follow the Christ, the King,
Live pure, speak true, right wrong, follow the King--
Else, wherefore born?" (Tennyson)



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Re: 2021 MLB

#20

Post by benben »

Doc Dan wrote:
Mon Feb 15, 2021 8:43 am
Really, there is nothing better than sitting in the sun, eating a hotdog, drinking a beer or coke, and watching a baseball game. I've seen some of the greats play and been to a lot of ball parks. It never, ever, gets old.
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