It's been often repeated this off-season, and will likely be repeated even more as the season nears: the Atlanta Braves didn't add a single new Major League player via free agency or trade. The only "moves" the team made were moves of subtraction, by trading away Derek Lowe and letting Alex Gonzalez leave as a free agent. Other than that, this team looks nearly identical to the team that missed the playoffs by one game last year.
With that in mind, today's poll question is pretty simple, "Do you think the Braves did the right thing this off-season by not adding any additional players via trades or free agency?"
Vote in the poll and discuss in the comments.
0 recs | 28 comments
the team is good..
Our line-up is pretty solid… especially if Heyward has the year he is supposed to have. The only thing to be overly concerned about is TP at short-stop. Ive read a couple articles on him but i dont really have a feel for him.. Is he a solid player?
Saxby Phillips - February 3, 2012
I expect him
To have a higher .obp than sea bass with servicable D, overall an upgrade imo. I for one think the “non-moves” this winter were the best moves they could make. They can compete now, but also in upcoming years
HansonManCrush - February 3, 2012 via mobile
Trade deadline
JJ will most likely have much more value at the deadline this year then he does at this point. I know it is rare to trade away a top pitcher when you are in a pentant race but in this instance I think it would be wise if he puts up similar numbers to last year. We have too much starting talent under team control to go all season with someone we will NOT lock up long term and watch leave through Free Agency. IMO
rcates - February 3, 2012
I said no only because I would have liked to make an addition
Though I’m not unhappy about the offseason. There is still the trade deadline if we need something, and we have a very solid young team to compete. If they play the way they are capable of playing we will be a force to reckon with.
TCfromDubVee - February 3, 2012
Which addition would you have made?
Fatvirus - February 3, 2012
Personally, Carlos Beltran
but then I’m not the one trying to fit it in on a budget, so money is no issue.
Mr. Sanchez - February 3, 2012
Agreed. I wish we could have landed Beltran somehow.
BW Smith - February 3, 2012
Beltran, or I should also add
one of the Red Sox SSs, Scutaro or, sorry Krash, Lowrie. One of the 3, if not Beltran and one of the two Red Sox SSs.
Mr. Sanchez - February 3, 2012
Lowrie was the one guy that I was surprised we didn’t get. My guess is we just didn’t match up well with what Boston wanted, unless you’d be willing to give up Johnnie Badass.
And we all know that Beltran was a pipe dream. Shit, we couldn’t even work Scutaro in the budget, much less Beltran
Fatvirus - February 3, 2012
If we really have a few million to spend?
Marco Scutaro. Rockies got him for basically nothing, and it would have been a 1 year commitment. I would have liked to have had a sure thing at SS for solid if unspectacular production.
DK8 - February 3, 2012
Same.
I don’t hate what the Braves did (or didn’t do), but it would have been nice to add another piece of two, so I voted no. Too much gray area for such a polarizing question.
Tarkus - February 3, 2012
I voted no because I wish they would have made a move, but for who I don’t know. I trust Wren and the staff and believe they know what they’re doing. I do believe either JJ or Prado may be traded during the season. I think giving JJ an extension on his contract makes him more attractive as an in season trade.
Sean Cooper - February 3, 2012
The thing we dont know is the legit offers we had for people like Prado and JJ. No point in making moves just to make them. Would I of liked to seen something done for SS or LF, absolutely. However due to our budget, and offers we had for those willing to trade its completely understandable to not have made any moves.
Overall our team should be better this year, with what little we did and we always have plenty in the tank to do something at the trade deadline.
ToBeTooGreat - February 3, 2012
The team is pretty good
But I would have liked to have traded JJ for some prospects to add depth to the organization. I realize is stock was at an all-time high last July and his injuries have hurt his worth to other teams, but a deal should have been made. I think he could have easily returned a CF close to big league level and a decent pitching prospect.
The Braves would still have a solid rotation of:
Hanson
Hudson (Delgado if not healthy)
Beachy
Minor
Teheran
With that said, I think they could still trade JJ this year. If he gets off to a good start, it might be best to do it early in the season before his production drops off.
bbaker68 - February 3, 2012
I feel like this poll question is another way of asking if you trust Wren's decision making.
If he tells the fans that the deals weren’t good enough to warrant moving anyone, I’ll take him at his word.
Chipper Pwns - February 3, 2012
You Forget
That the number one large change was in hiring an experienced batting coach. Now, let’s see if that fixes the problem.
MarvelGoose - February 3, 2012
I'd say it was a tie between letting Parrish go or trading away Lowe .
bravesdude - February 3, 2012
I voted "Yes."
I think we had to give Prado a second opportunity in LF. This was his first year in LF, and he was affected by injuries. I don’t believe we needed to add a big-time SS because we have plenty of depth in our system. Besides LF and SS I don’t believe we had any real needs. I expect Prado and Heyward to bounce back, and TP seems like an upgrade to Gonzalez. Best move we made was sending Lowe and Parrish as far away from Turner Field as possible.
CaliforniaBrave - February 3, 2012
My vote was no...barely...
… because I expect we’ve just kicked the can further down the road. My thinking is based on the assumption that even if both Prado and JJ have great years, they will both be more difficult to either hold onto (due to costs) OR trade away next season. If they have medicore or poor years, then it will be even more difficult.
Mind you, I certainly hope they both have breakout years…and I also think that ‘no trade’ is better than ‘bad trade’… but if cash is such a difficult commodity for this team, then deferring the inevitable won’t help matters.
carpengui - February 3, 2012
sometimes - the best descision is
no descision – just a mid-season delay…
Jaghomer - February 3, 2012
"The best decision is no decision", this guy agrees
Mr. Sanchez - February 3, 2012
Prado, Uggla, Heyward & McCann
Those four guys play all season healthy and consistently and it will be like having four different guys on the team from last year. There were no SS that were available in the Braves budget, so hopefully TP has a decent year and can play the field respectably. Unloading Lowe and KK were the best off season moves the Braves could have made.
HeyMikey - February 3, 2012
Voted "yes"
yes: 347
no: 302
This was a team that missed the playoffs by one game despite Lowe’s suckiness, despite injuries to Hanson and Jurrjens, and despite three of the team’s best hitters (Prado, McCann and Heyward) having less-than-stellar seasons offensively. This was already a good team.
TonyAlmeyda - February 3, 2012
++11
HansonManCrush - February 3, 2012 via mobile
Voted "no"
because the team should have been upgraded by adding another legit RH hitter or a top drawer OF prospect.
The problem as best I can tell was money. An upgrade was not possible because the budget was too tight.
As a fan of a team that is obviously a contender at least for the playoffs, if not also for a championship, I am not happy that the team does not have the money to do what needs to be done.
Note that I am not criticizing FW over any move he made or did not make, and think he did “the right thing(s)” as best he could given the budgetary limitations he was working under.
fandave - February 3, 2012
Really can’t be answered the way the question is worded.
ChillyMutt - February 3, 2012
I can't really answer 'yes' or 'no'
Should we have added a corner outfielder? Probably. It makes sense given the injury history of Chipper and the unknowns that Heyward and Prado will bring. But we simply didn’t have any money, needed to save at least a small bit for a move at the trade deadline, and helped ourselves with the subtraction of Lowe, Linebrink, Sherrill and Gonzo.
Scott Coleman - February 3, 2012
Voted no
I just think this team is just lacking another power bat. We’ve got Uggla, but other than him the middle of our lineup is just sort of “meh” power wise. It would have been real nice to pick up another bat to stick beside Uggla, and we had the piece in Jurrjens to do so.
But I do still think Jurrjens gets moved in a deal during the summer without a doubt. Wren seems to just be waiting for Hudson to get back and to get a better look at what the young guy’s can do, then come the trade deadline I feel certain he will move JJ for a middle of the order hitter to make a playoff push in Chippers (likely) final year.
ATLandUNC - February 4, 2012
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