Heyman On Braves, Tejada, Helton

I honestly dont think that the Braves NEED to acquire DeRosa.

By getting McLouth they now have a solid OF offensively. Garrett Anderson started out slow but is starting to get better at the plate and the platoon in LF is now VERY solid.

The only auto out they have in their lineup now is Frenchy. I think they now look at Frenchy how they looked at Schafer in that his bat can be lack luster as long as he keeps contributing in the field and his arm saves us some runs.

If Frenchy gets better at the plate then thats good but if not its not as bad as it was at the beginning of the year and if you think about it almost every team has a kind of automatic out in their lineup except teams that can afford to do that.

"John Smoltz told Heyman that he once turned down $53MM from the Yankees to sign with the Braves for $30MM. "

For anyone who dislikes the Yankees, this puts a smile on your face.

"Vazquez for Dunn?"

Nationals better be adding prospects with Dunn, because, right now, Vazquez is worth more than Dunn. Why would Braves get rid of one of their best pitchers, for Dunn?

BravesRed, i think they're pretty even right now. Dunn has 16 HRS, about a .400 obp and a higher average than usual, a .261. Vazquez has been pitching very good, not great. But like you said, they would want prospects, not a veteran pitcher.

Turned down the Yankees for $23 million less? John Smoltz is now officially my favorite player. That's one of the most satisfying things I have heard in a long time.

If I recall correctly Greg Maddux also turned down a more lucrative Yankees offer when he signed with Atlanta.

No where in Heyman's post does it say that the Braves cannot add anymore payroll.

Oh no, Smoltz made 30 million instead of 53 million. Cry me a river over that one.

By the time Dunns contract runs up Jason Heyward will be ready its a perfect fit.

Wayne gomes-
You're exactly right. Upton should actually be in the HR derby this year. He has a beautiful swing. He hit a HR up to the top of the Friday's Front Row in left field at Chase. Anybody who is familiar with Chase knows how ridiculously far it is to the top of that restaurant. I'm a HUGE Justin Upton fan, as I've said before on this site.

Will some one please give Smoltz a tissue so he can complain about the braves some more after wiping his million dollar tears away. Hey John The Braves and there fans were very good to you, even waiting years at a time while your fragile body healed and still paying you very good money. You took the money from Boston, not the Yankees so shut your crying up because we as Braves fans are quite tired of it already.

why would the nats want vasquez for dunn? if they trade dunn they'll want young talent back.

I still think the most reasonable target out there is Randy Winn.

Barves had serious interest in him last season.Winn was drafted by the Marlins originally when you guessed it Wren was there.

He's on the final year of his contract.

Like someone above mentioned Bobby has shown that McLouth is going to hit in the middle of the order.

Take a look at this.
1.Winn-RF
2.Esco-SS
3.McLouth-CF
4.Chipper-3B
5.BMac-C
6.Anderson/Diaz-LF
7.Kotchman-1B
8.KJ-2B
9.Pitcher.

I agree that Randy Winn is a good idea. I also think that Chone Figgins would be worth looking into. He is younger, cheaper, and more of a steal threat than Winn. Figgins wont hit as many home runs as Winn, but he can play any position on the field. Acquiring Figgins will also allow the Braves to trade Johnson or Prado when Infante comes back. The only downside of Figgins is he is a free agent at the end of the season I believe.

the two guys the Braves should be in on right now for RF are Josh Willingham and Cody Ross. Everybody wants a leadoff man who can steal but the fact of the matter is cox rarely steals anyways so it would be a waste. A 3-6 in the order of McLouth, Chipper, McCann, and Ross/Willingham gives us a solid lineup- just need to clear some salary (francouer)

"but most contenders see him as a third baseman and some don't like his bat anymore."

Huh? The line from the article actually goes like this:

"But some contending teams see him only as a third baseman, or a bat."

Then it went on to say ONE scout says he is pulling off the ball but is still hitting .350.

Some of the new writers here at MLBTR really need to re-read some of the articles before they most their thoughts on the site.

Yeah, Bravesfan23. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Or any at all, actually.

Doesn't make sense for the Rockies either, they have plenty of SP depth. The logjam in their OF can be solved by sending Dexter Fowler back to AAA.

I could see the trade between Boston Atlanta and Colorado.
Because of the Green Monster Francoeur is Right handed and pulls a good bit.

If Braves fans are ready to get rid of Vazquez now, just wait until the post season. hahaha, you guys haven't seen anything yet.

Colorado should be kicking themselves over not making the Helton-Lowell swap before 07. They could have let Lowell go after the season and added payroll but they got greedy by wanting Delcarmen as well. Thank god the sox turned away from this deal as they would be stuck with the Rockies albatross!