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Inbox: Will Braves make big play?
Beat reporter Mark Bowman answers Braves fans' questions
By Mark Bowman / MLB.com
11/30/09 10:00 AM EST
Thank you for the tremendous response you've provided since I revived this forum which will once again be posted on a weekly basis. For regular Hot Stove updates, check my blog and follow me on Twitter.This is a wishful-thinking question, but what are your thoughts about the chances of Matt Holliday or Jason Bay signing with the Braves?
-- Carlos A., Caracas, Venezuela
You are correct, Carlos. It would be wishful thinking to hope for Holliday or Bay to end up in Atlanta. In addition, contrary to reports, it doesn't seem like the Braves have much interest in acquiring Miguel Cabrera from the Tigers or grabbing Jermaine Dye off the free-agent market.
Atlanta doesn't want to be handicapped by the financial effects of getting into a bidding war for either Bay or Holliday. As for Cabrera, he could certainly fill the need for a right-handed first baseman. But at a cost of $126 million over the next six seasons, he doesn't appear to even be on Braves general manager Frank Wren's radar.
The fact that the Braves don't currently appear to be interested in Dye is somewhat surprising. His struggles during the final two months of this past season were certainly alarming. But at the same time, he was very productive during the first half of the season and the opportunity to return to Atlanta may energize him.
If the demand for Dye rivals what Bobby Abreu received before signing his one-year, $5 million contract in February, Atlanta could then have interest in him.
At this time last year, the Braves were also saying that they weren't interested in Derek Lowe.
Can the Braves move Chipper Jones to first base and maybe look for a third baseman?
-- Edward G., Santiago, Dominican Republic
Chipper has said numerous times that he'd accept a move to the other corner if the Braves had a better third-base option. While they don't currently have a better option in their system, they could be tempted to make this move if they were to grab Chone Figgins, Adrian Beltre or Pedro Feliz off the free-agent market.
But with the strong possibility that Freddie Freeman could be ready to assume his role as the everyday first baseman by the start of the 2011 season, where would you then play Chipper during the final two years of his contract?
It's something to think about, and there is reason to believe this move could have a benefit next season. But when you look at the big picture, it seems the Braves can only hope that Chipper's defensive struggles at third base this past summer weren't a sign of things to come over the next three years.
What is Frank Wren's logic for wanting to wait until later in the winter before trying to get deals done?
-- Barry M., Martinsville, Va.
The patient approach that has been projected for this offseason is aimed more toward the free-agent market. Along with most other Major League club, the Braves seem to be taking the approach that they want to see how the market plays out before overspending on what is a weaker than normal free-agent market.
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If you look up the antonym of procrastinator in a thesaurus, you could appropriately find an illustration of Wren. He certainly understands the value of filling needs as early as possible and consequently providing better clarity about the resources that he has available to fill out his roster.
But instead of limiting his resources by having to pay top dollar on the free-agent market now, Wren will continue to attempt to fill some of his needs through the trade market as soon as possible. We may have to wait for John Lackey to choose a new employer before learning where Lowe or Javier Vazquez will be dealt.
Still, before next week's Winter Meetings begin, I wouldn't be surprised to see Wren make a trade, and by that, I mean one more significant than the one that could involve Kelly Johnson.
Why don't the Braves spend as much money as the Yankees? In my opinion, they will always be a Major League farm team unless they find a way to spend as much money as the league's other top teams do.
-- James R., Prince Rupert, British Columbia
The Braves do spend as much money as the Yankees. It just takes them slightly more than two seasons to match the annual payroll allocated by the Bronx Bombers.
When the Braves chose to start reducing their payroll at the end of the 2003 season, they weren't hindered by the reduced funds as much as the fact that they had been given this mandate after entering into long-term contracts with Mike Hampton, John Smoltz, Andruw Jones and Chipper Jones under the belief that their payroll would at least stay the same.
Obviously Hampton's contract proved to be the biggest burden, especially from 2006-08. Now that Atlanta has removed itself from that albatross and been able to spend each of the past six offseasons planning within a consistent financial framework, the club seemingly finds itself with a payroll figure that provides a chance to win and also keep the future by securing the costs of the likes of Tommy Hanson, Jason Heyward, Yunel Escobar and Jair Jurrjens.
What do you think of my idea that Chipper Jones should retire with Bobby Cox and take over as manager? Who knows this team better than Chipper?
-- Brian T., Augusta, Ga.
Chipper is a pretty bright dude and he possesses tremendous knowledge of the game. But if he were dumb enough to walk away from the $26 million that he's guaranteed during the 2011 and '12 seasons, then I'd have to question his ability to capably handle the managerial role.
Seriously, Chipper will have plenty to offer the game during his retirement years, and I guess there's a slight chance he might entertain the option of coaching and/or managing. But instead of prolonging this time-consuming lifestyle, I think we'll have a better chance of seeing him with his family or at Double Dime Ranch during his post-playing days.
Mark Bowman is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
