Fields of green touched by sparkling sun

filled with hopes and dreams anew

Games to be lost games to be won

nothing so beautiful ’tis true

Baseball is beautiful. It’s a ballet of talent and statistics.  It’s a game of heroes and scapegoats.  It’s a game of mortals and those beyond mortality.  It’s a game of history and changing history.

On the first day of spring training in the beautiful Florida or Arizona sun as the rays of light stream across the green manicured fields, sparkling clean uniforms and fans who have waited through the winter, the feeling of all is right with the world sweeps over all those in attendance.  It becomes a sort of hushed church of sports for the briefest of moments as the sights and sounds of it sweep over for the first time of the season.  There is nothing like it in sports…the first spring training game.

It is the epitome of optimism.  When the losses and short comings of the past season are wiped clean.  Where the memories of almost and so close become faded and distant.  It’s a rebirth just like spring.  Where the brown and seemingly lifelessness of winter turns into the new green, leaves, flowers, birds of spring.  The colors of the teams blend with the colors of the sunny fields of dreams once again open to the possibilities of the season.

Baseball is beautiful in every sense.  In the colors, the smell, the joy, the sorrows.  It’s beautiful in the numbers and the managerial schemes.  It’s beautiful in the wins and in the losses.  The first game of spring training is quite possibly the most beautiful of all sports events.  A complex ballet of color, numbers, smells and sounds….and only 19 days away.

Martin Prado, the subject of about a million trade rumors and scenarios, has now signed a new deal with the Braves for 1 year and a little over 4 million dollars.  That puts an end to any and all trade rumors and scenarios that have been talked about for weeks now regarding Prado.  He is officially with the Braves for another year.

The Braves have also made no moves whatsoever to suggest that any rumors regarding Jair Jurrjens are going to come to pass either.  Almost every rumor that has surfaced has involved a scenario that involves trading Jurrjens and Prado as a package deal in order to get more return.  That is now no longer possible.  With arbitration now firmly underway, a deal with Jurrjens seems ever more likely as teams and players like to work to avoid hearings if at all possible.

The Braves have three players still in the arbitration process including Jurrjens, Eric O’Flaherty and Michael Bourn.  If things work as they have in the past, all three will end up agreeing to some kind of arbitration deal and avoiding a hearing.

Braves GM Frank Wren has said in recent days that he does not see the team making any trades before Spring Training and each day that passes lessens that likelihood.  I think with the signing of Prado it almost surely guarantees that the Braves will be making no further trade moves.

It looks like they are definitely standing pat going into the season and hoping for the best.  It remains to be seen if that gamble pays off.

In looking at who they are shopping arguments can be made for both letting them go and for keeping them.  There are those who see the possible loss of Jair Jurrjens and Martin Prado as a good thing.  It would free up salary and open up options for the Braves in possibly obtaining more power for their lineup.  The Braves are said to be in the market for a shortstop and some power hitting for the outfield.

But what of their pitching should they get rid of Jurrjens? Yes, he has had some health issues and that may make it even harder to unload him, but what if Tommy Hanson’s recovery is not completely successful?  And what about the fact that the Braves rotation that is projected to include at least 2 pitchers with less than 2 full years of experience?

In the outfield scenario, Michael Bourn’s contract expires the end of the 2012 season and the Braves are already looking for a replacement.  Giving up Prado, removes a reliable replacement for Chipper Jones on the days he needs to rest and next year he is sure to need that rest just as he did this year.

While I can see the trade of Prado more readily than I can Jurrjens, both leaves the Braves with some holes to fill and it seems they are not looking to fill the pitching hole.  They traded away Derek Lowe earlier this month to free up money and now they are looking to trade Jurrjens to do the same, but nowhere have I seen that they are looking for pitching, something they definitely need.

Yes, it would be nice to get a good outfield power hitter, but what of Chipper’s rest? What of the fact that the pitching needs some help?  What of the loss of a utility man like Prado?  Saving money is all well and good if you use that money for what you really need to compete next year.  It looks like the Braves are shopping for pieces to use down the road and not the upcoming season.  That’s always a bad sign and generally leads to a team not seeing the post season when they overlook the immediate needs.

Players for sale shouldn’t turn into throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

I have been through the Hank Aaron era.  I have been through the years of drought where the Braves were the worst team in all of baseball.  I have been through the 90s where they were one of the best teams in baseball.  I have been through the great players like Glavine and Maddox.  I have been through the not so great players and those whose names you can’t remember or wish you could forget.  I have been through the pennant and world series highs.  I have been through the finishing last in all of baseball, not just the division or the league.

I have stuck by them through all the 1 run wins and extra inning heroics.  I have been there for all the 1 run losses (the Braves may hold this record and if they don’t they should) and the extra inning devastation.  I have stuck with them through 90+ win seasons and 106 loss seasons like 1988.  I have seen them do it all.  I am still here.

After all the Braves have put me through, I continue every spring training to come back.  To have hope.  To be optimistic.  To be excited for the start of a new season.  And then it starts and then the bipolar team that the Braves are begins their season dance of good and bad, win and lose, up and down.  The inconsistency is the only thing that a Braves fan can count on to happen year in and year out over the last several years.  They almost make it to the postseason, but then lose on the last day of the regular season.  They make it to the postseason and get blown out in straight games in a matter of days.  They build up your hopes only to dash them to bits.

Perhaps being  Braves fan makes a person stronger.  Weathering the storms of inconsistency.  I doubt it though.  I think it makes a person cynical and that’s a sad turn of events for someone like myself who loves baseball more than any other sport.  This last performance and extra inning loss to the Phillies, of all teams, has caused me to look forward to next season with lowered expectations.  I don’t think when spring training rolls around I will be as excited.  I don’t think I will be as hopeful.  I think that my optimism will be much less.

Yes, I will still be a Braves fan.  I have been through seasons much worse than the one just completed and I will be again and for probably all of my life.  But will I be hopeful that they can win 90+ games?  Will I be optimistic that they can get into the postseason? Will I be hopeful that they can win the World Series?  No, that won’t happen.  My expectations are severely lowered going forward.  Perhaps it’s a form of protection of my own emotions.  Perhaps it’s just reality finally setting in.  Whatever the reason, I can tell you this, it’s sad and it makes me sad…..and perhaps that’s the saddest thing of all.

Firstly, I am not bipolar, nor have I ever been.  The Braves, the team, is bipolar.  They play bipolar baseball, win, lose, good, bad.  They are completely inconsistent.  It has nothing to do with my mental state, which as I said does not include being bipolar.

Secondly, I am not in any way responsible nor do I feel responsible in any way for the Braves performance on the field.  The wins, losses, good, bad belongs solely and entirely to the Braves team.  They alone are responsible for how they perform on the baseball field.  I certainly have no responsibility in it whatsoever nor do I feel that I do.

Now those two things said, let me point out that being a Braves fan is difficult.  In fact, sometimes it is near to impossible.  They have the team with which to play well, very well.  They  have the team with which to win games, many games.  They have the team with which they should be in the post season every year.  But they don’t do those things.  They play baseball up and down like a rollercoaster and as a fan it is very hard to ride it with them a lot of times.  It is disappointing and it can make a Braves fan feel very worn out.

That was the only point of my last write on the Braves.  That the TEAM makes it hard to be a fan.  The TEAM is very disappointing at times and of late, a lot of the time.  They have now put themselves in a position to completely miss the post season.  There are 6 games left in the regular season.  The first 3, the Braves get the Nationals who are now on a 5 game win streak thanks mostly to a Phillies team that has decided to stop playing baseball.  Then, the Braves get the Phillies for the last 3 games of the year and their only hope is that the Phillies continue to not care whether they win or lose games.

Let me clarify again, I am not bipolar.  I am not responsible nor do I feel responsible for the Braves losing.   I am however disappointed once again in their on the field performance and I am not exactly hopeful that they will make it to the post season.  But this is the life of a Braves fan where the TEAM is bipolar and completely responsible for the mess they find themselves in.

That said, I am STILL a Braves fan and I will likely be so for the rest of my life, win or lose.  It’s just not an easy thing to be.

The Braves are a team of bipolar ups and downs, wins and losses.  It has always been so, it will always be so.  It seems ingrained in their very psyche.  They do not know how to function in another manner.  I have become accustomed to it.  It is an existence of normal.  They always play well enough.  Any team with over 90 wins on a season, is not something to look down one’s nose at.  It’s the slow death of missing the post season that is the proverbial dirt on the grave…..and they seem determined to make it so.

The Braves were not very long ago more than 13 games up in the wildcard race in the National League.  They looked to have things well in hand.  I could make it through the inevitable losses knowing that they would make the wildcard.  But slowly, surely, the march towards doom started.  A trickle at first.  Like the first drop of water torture.  Nothing to worry about.  Then it became more drops.  They started losing series to much inferior teams.  The drops became steady.  A heartbeat of badness.

The journey continued on.  The Braves would win a game and lose 2.  Win a game and lose 3.  Not win any games.  Slowly but surely, the Cardinals began the march to overtake them.  Closer and closer they came.  Like an evil wind chilling you to the bone.  They moved ever closer.  The Braves allowing them to move closer until the breath from their mouths was on their necks.

Now, there are 8 games remaining for the Braves.  Eight games.  The Marlins, the Nationals and then the dreaded Phillies.  The Braves are 2.5 games ahead of the Cardinals in the wildcard race.  That’s 2.5 games.  And let’s not forget the Giants.  The Braves are only 3.5 games ahead of them and the Giants have won 8 games in a row.  Time is running short.  It’s become dire.  The coffin is laid out.  The flowers of remembrance are ordered.  The death notice is written.  Killing me slowly.

There is still hope, but it is becoming hard to see.  There is still belief, though it is hard to muster some days.  The Braves must win.  The Cardinals get the Mets, Cubs and Astros.  It’s like cake.  The Giants get the Pirates, D-Backs and Rockies.  A little harder than cake, but not the Phillies.  The Braves must win.

Time keeps moving forward.  The regular season clock is almost at zero.  The Braves are on the precipice of the end…..killing me slowly.

The Braves are now a full 12 games behind the Phillies and have just about zero hope of making up any ground on that score.  They do however have to fight to keep the Cards at bay and to not play their way right out of the playoffs.  It would be travesty to win 90 games, which the Braves most likely will and to miss the playoffs by losing at the end.  That would be taking bipolar to the next level.

This week the Braves have the Marlins and the Mets, two teams they SHOULD be able to beat.  The Cards will get the Pirates and then the Phillies.  Their prospects don’t look so bright especially for the weekend.  After this week, the Braves get the Marlins AGAIN and the Cards get the Cubs.  And then the Braves get the Nationals and the Cards get the Mets.  Outside of the Phillies, these two teams look to have an easy two weeks of things.

Then the Braves get the Phillies for the last series of the year and the Cards get the Astros.  That is a set of games most definitely in the Astros favor.

All things being equal, the teams could end up in that last series of the year still very close and as we all know, the Braves have a very, very hard time with the Phillies.  It could turn very ugly for them if that’s the case.  The Braves need to win.  They need to sweep series leading up the Phillies matchup.  They need to sweep the Marlins twice.  They need to sweep the Mets and the Nationals.  The odds of that I know are high, but there is no reason they shouldn’t win most of those games.  No reason.  But then I thought they wouldn’t get swept by the Cards either.

The Braves have played themselves perilously close to missing the post season.  They have 15 games in which to get the ship righted and they need to start today with the Marlins.

While the Braves have played well this year, they are currently 84-60 on the season and a 90 win season is not out of the question.  By most teams standards, that’s a really good season.  It’s a good season for the Braves and they will make the playoffs, all things staying equal.  But once they get there, the hopes of getting much past the first 3 games are really dwindling at this point.

But then, it depends on what happens in the meantime, what the Phillies & Braves decide to do the last series of the regular season plays into it as well.  Right now, the Braves are 10 games behind the Phillies in the NL East but they are 7.5 games ahead of the Cards and 8.5 games ahead of the Giants for the wildcard spot.  Let’s say, the Braves come to the last game of the regular season at 7 games ahead of the Philles.  The 3 game series won’t mean anything for either team, except in the wins/loss column.  But it won’t affect the playoffs.  So both teams decide to go with the back of their rotation for that series and whoever wins wins.  Then, their top 3 starters for both teams would face off in the post season.  The Braves chances against the Phillies top 3 are slim.

Yes, the Braves can beat the Phillies, they have done it on occasion.  In fact, this season, the Braves have beaten a Cliff Lee led Phillies team 3 times, April 8, May 6 and July 9.  They have also beaten a Hamels led Phillies team once, on May 8.  However, the rest of the matchups this season with the Phillies, the Braves have lost.  The most recent series, the Braves were swept by the Phillies in devastating fashion.

If you give the starters 4 days rest between starts, they should be the pitchers to go in the last series of the regular season.  Both teams could go with their top rotations for that series, because that’s just how it works out.  If that’s the case, the Braves are possibly in trouble and maybe in more ways than just losing to the Phillies.

Let’s say the Braves, get on a losing streak, hopefully that won’t happen, but let’s say it does and the Cards or Giants get on a winning one and the Phillies games at the end of the regular season, could determine if the Braves make the playoffs at all, even after winning 90 games.  That is a possibility too scary for Braves fans to ponder for very long.

So, let’s go with the Braves making the playoffs.  How long can they stay in them?  With the showing of the recent series against the Phillies, I would have to say not very long.  They had no answer for the Phillies in this series and unless they find one between now and the post season, it’s going to be a short playoff run for the Braves this year.

The Braves were blanked by Cliff Lee and the Phillies to the tune of 9-0 in the first game of the series.  Adding insult to injury, the Braves had a total of 5 hits for the game.

Derek Lowe didn’t have a good game at all giving up 8 hits, 7 runs with 5 earned, 4 walks and 4 strikeouts.  Not a good game at all.  Linebrink and Vizcaino both gave up runs in relief for the Braves.  Overall, it was not a good night for the Braves pitchers.

Cliff Lee pitched a complete game for the Phillies in the always playoff atmosphere of these games in Philly.  Needless to say, the Braves cannot love going to play there.  Facing Lee for 9 innings, just makes it that much harder to overcome the great pitching and the sold out home crowds.

The Braves are now 8.5 games back of the Phillies in the NL East and 4-6 over their last 10 games.  They are up 8.5 games over the Cards and Giants in the wildcard race.

Today it’s Hudson (14-8) against Worley (10-1) and Wednesday Beachy (7-2) against Oswalt (7-8).   Hopefully, the Braves can turn around these two games and come away with the series win, but given the showing of Monday night, I wouldn’t hold my breath on that one if you’re a Braves fan.

The Braves get the Phillies at home for the last series of the regular season.  Something to look forward to….or not depending on what team you’re rooting for.

The Braves love the long ball.  They regularly hit them to win games.  They regularly hit them to help win games.  They hit them with the middle of the lineup and the expected players, Chipper Jones and Brian McCann and they hit them with those you would least expect, Derek Lowe.

When the Braves are on, they are close to unstoppable.  The pitching is on.  The hitting is on.  The defense is on.  When they play that way, they are one of the best teams in the game, and on some nights they are the best team.  But when they are off, well they are really off.   Giving up 9 runs with one of your best pitchers, Jurrjens, to the Nationals – that’s an off night.  And the Braves do have them.  It is just part of their bipolar nature.

The team is still 7.5 games back of the Phillies in the NL East.  But they are so far ahead in the wild card race that there is almost no chance that anyone will get near them with it now being September.  They are 7-3 for their last 10 games, the same as the Phillies.  They are on a 2 game win streak at present and looking for more going into a weekend series with the Dodgers at home where the Braves are 43 and 26 on the year.

The Braves got back utility man Matt Diaz from the Pirates this week along with Jack Wilson from the Mariners.  While there is plenty of reason for Braves fans to be excited about Diaz, they know what he can do.  Wilson is more of an unknown commodity and currently an injured one.  However, when he is healthy, he can be an excellent off the bench addition for the team.  Another bat and more power.

The Braves pitching is performing overall very well and Kimbrel who just this week set a rookie save record.  The Braves bullpen is one of their greatest strengths and it is going to be what they have to rely on to get them past the Phillies come playoff time.  The Braves pen, if they play at the top of their game, could neutralize the Phillies left-handed hitters.  And they will have to if the Braves are to have a shot at getting past the Phillies in the post season.

The Braves have the Dodgers at home this weekend and then a 3 game series with the Phillies in Philly.  All eyes will be trained on those games and the Braves could certainly use a series win.  A Braves blast would certainly be a welcome sight in Philly.