re: Atlanta Braves 2020-21 Offseason

Holy shite what a deal.

frick Anthopoulos

Oops.

Maybe it’s the Dodgers have a better baseball team.

What TV? frick FSS.

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Happy to be wrong

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Same here. Crow tastes good.

Meanwhile Bauer to the Dodgers

For the Morton doubters:

Jayson Stark did a write up on Morton...





“I think it’s important to have someone who has that type of experience,” Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos told us this winter. “I still think there’s value in that in this day and age. I still remember, when I was in Toronto, hearing Roy Halladay talk about the impact Pat Hentgen had on him as a young pitcher. I remember Hentgen talking about the impact Jack Morris and Roger Clemens had on him when he pitched. … I just think those lessons that older players can teach younger players is a real thing.”

So the Braves see Morton as an ideal veteran stabilizer who can provide perspective, wisdom, leadership and balance to one of the youngest staffs of any contender — a staff that also has 23-year-old ace Mike Soroka returning from an Achilles tear, by the way. Here’s why they were looking for a guy just like Charlie Morton:

• Of the Braves’ 60 regular-season games last year, 45 were started by pitchers 27 or younger — more than any playoff team except the Marlins (53).

• Overall, 51 of those 60 games were started by pitchers in their 20s — also the most of any playoff team except the Marlins (59).

• But the nine games started by Braves pitchers in their 30s — five by Josh Tomlin, three by Tommy Milone, one by Cole Hamels? Uh, they didn’t go so hot. To the tune of a 5.51 ERA, the third-worst by 30-something starters of any team in baseball and by far the worst of any playoff team.

Morton, on the other hand, has had one of the most remarkable late-career resurgences of any pitcher in this sport. His performance, since he joined the Astros in 2017 at age 33, ranks with this group of aces, all of whom own Cy Young trophies (except him):

Best active starters since age 33*
PITCHER YEARS ERA K/9 IP
Max Scherzer
2018-20
2.85
12.41
Justin Verlander
2016-20
2.87
10.98
Zack Greinke
2017-20
3.2
8.77
Charlie Morton
2017-20
3.34
10.64
(*min. 50 starts)

On the surface, Morton’s 4.74 ERA and declining whiff rate last year in Tampa Bay might seem like a reason for concern. But not for the Braves, who saw a pitcher who was clearly set back by the COVID-19 shutdown and then got better as he went along.

Average four-seam fastball velocity

July: 92.5 mph
August: 93.0 mph
September: 94.1 mph
October: 95.0 mph

(Source: Statcast)

“He’s already defied most of the doubters about his ability to stay healthy,” said one rival exec. “Great (addition), especially with so many young guns on that staff.”

So is anyone shocked that this was many execs’ favorite signing of the winter? For some reason, these people seem to love one-year deals for guys with ace upside. Go figure!

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Folty signed a 1 yr deal with the Rangers.

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I wish him well but he clearly has some mental issues. He was always a headcase on the mound who couldn't have a short memory. Last year, he looked like he had just been released from a Japanese POW camp.

Hopefully he gets right because he was really fun to watch when he was on. I still think that his performance in Game 2 vs the Cardinals was the single best game by a Braves pitcher in the last 20 years.

Braves signed Jake Lamb 3B and Phillip Ervin OF in the last few days. Any thoughts?