Can the Braves Return to the top of the NL East? Atlanta Braves 2007 Season Preview...

Since 1991, the Atlanta Braves have won their division 14 years in a row and sooner or later, their amazing run was going to end.

2006 was the year.

For the first time in 2 decades, the Braves and their fans were for a change not atop of the NL East standings, but towards the middle of the pack. Although the Braves were in the wild card hunt for a while, their 79-83 record was a disappointment and in a way surreal to the baseball world.

Since John Schulerholz joined the Braves, he’s always managed to put a competitive team on the field, both at the big league level and the minors, no matter their financial situation and Atlanta being a mid-market franchise. As well, under the tutelage of Bobby Cox, the Braves were able only to muster one World Series win in that run, but he was able to bring all facets of the game together and much like the sun riding, the Braves always ended up atop of the NL East.

The Braves were able to score runs, but the pitching staff struggled. Pitching was usually a source of strength for the team; both the starting rotation & bullpen were subpar due to injuries and a bullpen that was largely inexperienced. As well, pitching impresario, Leo Mazzone left Atlanta for Baltimore, and the staff under the tutelage of Roger McDowell struggled and didn’t match the success the team has had in that department in 14 years.

Going into 2007, the Atlanta Braves have made quite a few changes from last season. Second baseman Marcus Giles was non-tendered and signed with San Diego, Adam LaRoche was traded for pitcher Mike Gonzalez, Horcio Ramirez was traded for Rafael Soriano, and pitchers Danys Baez, Chris Reitsma and John Thomson left the team via free agency. The team signed in turn, pitchers Tanyon Sturtze, first baseman Craig Wilson and second baseman Chris Woodward.

While the bullpen is greatly improved, the lineup and the starting pitching have questions going into 2007.

In light of the starting pitching performance of 2006, this upcoming season does show a lot of promise. At the top of the rotation is John Smoltz, the long time ace of the teamand potential Hall of Famer. As he is heading towards his 40th birthday, he was 16-9 with a 3.49 ERA and there’s no reason to believe that John Smoltz can’t duplicate the success he’s had for the next couple of seasons.

The probable second starter will be Tim Hudson. He will need to regain the form he had with Oakland in order for the Braves to do well. He was 13-12 in ’06, but however, his ERA was 4.86, well above what he’s allowed in his career. The team hopes he can bounce back and compliment John Smoltz.

The wild card in the starting rotation will be Mike Hampton. He missed much of 2005 and 2006, and the Braves are hoping he can bounce back. Before the injury, he was a durable pitcher for the team and you could count on him getting double digits in victories. However, 2007 will be a test for him, as he attempts to return after a long layoff. If he can regain some of his form, it will go a long way to helping the Braves contend.

Battling for spots to round up the rest of the rotation are Chuck James & Kyle Davies. Davies only went 3-7 with an ERA over 8 and he regressed from his rookie campaign in 2005. He’ll need to do better than that obviously in ’07. Chuck James on the other hand, had a great 2006 where was 11-4, with a 3.78 ERA in his rookie season, and he was a pleasant surprise for the team. The Braves are hoping he can parlay his successful season last year into 2007.

The bullpen for the team was an Achilles’ heel last season, and the Braves spent quite a bit of energy to fix it up this winter. New additions to the bullpen are Tanyon Strutze, young electric pitchers Mike Gonzalez, Rafael Soriano. Also, Tyler Yates and Macay McBride will return to the bullpen. The closer will once again be Bob Wickman who came via trade before the All-Star Break and had an ERA a tad above 1 and 18 saves for the team. The Braves will once again count on Wickman to close and hopefully repeat the job he did for the team in 2006 into next season.

The starting lineup should remain pretty much the same, although second baseman Marucs Giles and first baseman Adam LaRoche are no longer on the team.

The offense looks strong with long time veterans Andruw Jones and Chipper Jones returning along with Jeff Francoeur. Center-fielder and great all around player, Andruw Jones could possibly leave the team at the end of year, but the Braves once again look for big things from him in 2007. Although his power numbers were down from 2005, he still managed to hit 41 homers with 129 RBIs and the team hopes he can maintain the same level or perhaps be better.

Jeff Francoeur once again will man right field. He hit 29 homers with 103 RBIs, and at only 23, he’s not reached his potential yet. Although his stats look good, he’s still troubled by the fact he’s got poor plate discipline, and lacks patience. He’ll need to obviously be more patient at the plate, but he’s got a whole lot of upside as he’s still very young.

Left field will probably be manned with a platoon of Ryan Langerhans and Craig Wilson. Langerhans had a down season from 2005, as he only hit .241 and struggled against right handers, but he’s an asset in the field. Platooning with him may be a combination of Craig Wilson & Matt Diaz. Wilson may play against lefties, some first and serve as a pinch hitter.

The infield situation is in flux right now. With Adam LaRoche and Marcus Giles no longer on the team, both the first and second base positions are open. Taking over for Adam LaRoche will most likely be Scott Thorman, a player who excelled in the minors, who only hit .234 in 55 games. However, he did fairly well in the minors, so he might able to do well at the next level, but needs to obviously do better in ’07. If he struggles, Craig Wilson might be an option at first base as well.

In terms of second base, Marcus Giles also left the team, and the competition for the position includes Kelly Johnson, Martin Prado and Willy Aybar. Johnson and Prado did well in the minors, so either one of them will be the odd-ons favorite, although Willy Aybar may also get some time there or even win the starting job as he batted .280 with 4 home runs and 30 RBI in 79 games. He’ll most likely backup Chpper at third, but he could be a dark horse for second base.

Returning at shortstop will be Edgar Renteria, and although he hit .293 with 14 home runs, he struggled in the second half. His range at shortstop isn’t that good, but his track record shows that he’s always had a solid bat, and the Braves hope that he’ll keep up the success he’s had in previous seasons.

The wild card in the infield will be Chipper Jones. Although he spent a good bit of time with two trips to the DL, Chipper still managed to .324 with 26 homers 86 RBIs and was amazingly productive considering he was playing with a sore oblique muscle. He has missed a lot of time in 2 years, but still managed to be a key part of the Braves lineup. If he can stay healthy in ’07, he and Andruw will give pitchers fits, and he’ll compliment the Braves’ fairly good offensive lineup. Backing up Chipper will be Willy Aybar.

At catcher will be Brian McCann. He had an amazing year where he hit .333 with 24 homers and 93 RBI’s. Although Joe Mauer is considered the best young catcher in the game, McCann’s name too should be mentioned in the same sentence. Going into this third year, McCann hopefully will not regress and parlay his success from 2006 to ’07. He may not duplicate his numbers from 2006, but the Braves are hoping he’ll do well. He’s not known as a good defensive catcher, but he’s got a lot of upside, and his bat isn’t bad either. Serving as McCann’s backup with be Bryan Pena.

The Atlanta Braves hope that that the success that propelled them to 14 consecutive division titles can come back in ’06. The offense has the potential to score a lot of runs, and the bullpen should do well, but the starting pitching remains an issue. However, in light of the Braves’ failures in ’06, they were still in the Wild Card hunt for a while, and in the parity-filled National League, the Braves perhaps have an outside chance at the postseason.

In light of it all, the Braves play in a division the powerful Mets and Phillies, along with a young and talented Marlins team, so it may be hard for the team of Hotlanta to reclaim their spot at the top of the division.