We’re talking about the GOLD GLOVE AWARD.  What third-baseman should be held up as the example of fielding excellence.  Brooks Robinson.  Clete Boyer.

Did Gold Glove voters consider Ozzie Smith’s hitting or base stealing abilities?  To not consider Mr. Felix for a Gold Glove because of his lack of hitting, or because nobody knows him, speaks of big-city / regional media bias.  Perhaps the Gold Gloves should be divided between the Yankees, Mets, Dodgers, and Red Sox!

Games played should be a factor, though it’s not as big a deal as when determining the MVP.  Perhaps it’s like having enough at-bats to qualify for the batting title.  Fielding percentage, range factor, great plays – yes, they all should be considered.  Errors are a valid statistic, certainly not antiquated.

The MLB rulebook concerning Official Scorekeeping addresses errors in section 10.12.  When it comes down to it, it says: “…in the scorer's judgment, the fielder could have handled the ball with ordinary effort, the official scorer shall charge such fielder with an error.”

While there may be minor differences in judgments of official scorers in different cities, those differences are minute.  Review each error?  I trust the scorers…they’ve attended tons of games just to qualify, many more than you or me.  You could review the errors to see how greatly they contributed to the outcome of that game.  The Mets had a losing record in games Wright committed an error.Great plays could be reviewed and tabulated as well.

Players make spectacular plays, but Zimmerman and Wright botched ordinary plays twice as often as Felix, Ramirez, and Jones.  For that reason alone the GOLD GLOVE shouldn’t be given to Zim or Wright.

We’re pulling each other’s chains here.  A bunch of words and pretty pictures aren’t convincing arguments, guys.  I’ve only been watching / studying / loving baseball over all other sports for 45 years, but I don’t know everything.  My oft-mentioned CPA friend is more of a student of the game than me.  He agrees that Wright shouldn’t have won.  Perhaps I can get him to render his opinion.  The last post gave the opinion of a veteran MLB beat-writer (who’s always respected Wright’s hitting), who was similarly perplexed. 

Upon further review, perhaps travesty is a strong word.  Between Zim, Wright, Felix, Ramirez, and Jones, there are numerous arguments and perhaps no clear favorite.  But using any quantifiable measure of fielding, what places Wright first?

I can't believe the Mets David Wright won the Gold Glove. He's known to be a hack in the field, and has often made errors that led to Mets losses. Chipper had another slick-fielding year, despite numerous injuries. Here are some comments from the AJC's David O'Brien, who thought the voters must've taken into account Wright's hitting:

"Wright had the fifth-most errors (21) among NL third baseman, and his .954 fielding percentage was fifth-lowest among NL third baseman, far behind the top three of SF’s Pedro Feliz (.973), Chicago’s Aramis Ramirez (.972) and Chipper (.971), who had nine errors in 126 games at third base.

The managers and coaches do the voting for Gold Gloves, and I told Chipper it wouldn’t be the first time their votes were swayed as much by a player’s hitting totals as his defense. Wright hit .325 with 30 homers and 107 RBIs in 160 games.

“When I find out [Wright won] I was speechless, for quite some time,” Chipper said. “Certainly the guys with the least amount of errors and best fielding percentage quite obviously didn’t win it.”

O'Brien continued: "This afternoon I was going over stats and started comparing. And it made me realize, again, just how potent Chipper’s bat has been whenever he’s been in the lineup the past two seasons.

Consider this: Wright had what was widely hailed as a terrific offensive season, batting .325 with 40 doubles, 1 triple, 30 homers, 113 runs, 107 RBIs, a .416 OBP and a .546 slugging percentage (.962 OPS).

Now consider this: Chipper played 24 fewer games than Wright, and Hoss hit .337 with 42 doubles, 4 triples, 29 homers, 108 runs, 102 RBIs, a .425 OBP and a .604 slugging percentage (1.029 OPS).

Wright killed him in steals (29 to 5), but otherwise Chipper’s numbers are all nearly equal or better than Wright’s, in 24 fewer games."

At least Jeff Francoeur won one. Andruw & Greg Maddux did too...perhaps the voters felt that was enough "Braves."

I like most baseball unis these days, though some are still better than others...

1. Giants…classic off-white unis.

2. Cardinals…timeless, great stirrups.

3. Red Sox…whatever happened to the striped stirrups?

4. Tigers…love the huge names on the back.

5. Yankees…timeless.

6. Braves…could be better with a few traditional tweaks: striped stirrups, off-white uni, number on front, big red names, dark tomahawk.

7. Pirates…classic look, except for the red vests.

8. Athletics…simple & traditional, but the team looks sloppy.

9. Phillies…simple and sweet.

10. Dodgers…several tweaks have downgraded a classic look. “LA” patch, etc.

11. Cubs…good, but see the Dodgers. Bring back the cubbie bear.

12. Orioles…great look, but it could be better.  “Baltimore” for starters.

13. Royals…simple.  Great to get rid of the black trim.

14. Mets…need to ditch all the black.

15. Astros…nice shade of red.

16. Mariners…they’ve kept a consistent look over the years.

17. Rangers…simple and clean.  I like the flag patch on the sleeve.

18. Reds…hate the new number font.  They did get rid of most of the black trim.

19. Padres…I like those sand road unis, and the blue is sweet.

20. White Sox…time for a change!  Bring back a past classic: blue or red.

21. Angels…simple but bland.  Red numbers on red jersey doesn’t work.

22. Indians…doesn’t stand out.  Nice caps don’t match the navy jerseys.

23. Blue Jays…nice colors.  Unis keep changing, but none stand out.

24. Devil Rays…I like the colors and logos, but the dark sleeves are weird.

25. Brewers…simple but bland.  Great throwbacks should be worn all the time.

26. Marlins…Ok uni, but leave the pinstripes to the Yanks.

27. Twins…same ugly unis for 20 years!

28. Rockies…too much black, weird “vests.”

29. Diamondbacks…nice shade of red, but the team name in front doesn’t look good.

30. Nationals…nice caps, ugly logo and numbers.

CPA: How many top starters did we see get traded anywhere today?  Starters are so scarce that they are overvalued, if that is possible… I think they got the most value for the pieces they gave up… Arroyo would have been nice, but not worth Salty/Tex…

After Ledezma gave up the HR to end the game on Friday, they showed Cox as he was throwing the lineup card against the dugout wall… I knew then Ledezma would not last the weekend… I believe Dotel has an option – either player or club – for next year – maybe at $8MM… it sounds like Dotel  is best in a set-up role… last night on BBTN, Gammons offered up the opinion that Wickman can still have a high save % if he comes in at the beginning of an inning; but since he is not a strikeout guy, and his stuff has diminished, he has trouble if he has to come in with runners on…they can send Dotel in with runners on and since he is a strikeout pitcher, he may have some success – that is a good theory, I thought…

DM:  These moves will hopefully lift spirits in the clubhouse, and darken moods at Shea and in Philly.  That starts the Phils got wasn’t anything special, was he?  Of course, Dotel has blown 3 of 14 saves…but he’ll be in a setup role this year.

Hear Kincaid not like the trade yesterday?  He thought the Braves needed pitching instead…but there were few pitchers being offered worthy of giving up Salty or Elvis for.  Interesting to have Bill Shanks on there…do you ever hear Dave O’Brien on 680…he’s been on at , like this morning.  Too late for me.8:30

Good interesting stat on the quality starts…yesterday the CPA was saying how only 3 starters were needed in the postseason.

Interesting chatter out there on Glavine.  The HOF now decides what cap the Honoree wears…it’s not like if the fans boo that he’d go in as a Met.  Boggs tried that in Tampa and it didn’t fly.  Interesting point by Rowland, that the fans love Julio…who did the same thing Glavine did.

I actually found out about the Tex trade while reading Rowland's Office...30 minutes after his
11:29 post.  Didn't have to give up Reyes...seems like everyone's happy.  I was wondering what would become of Thorman.

Great SB by Escobar Friday night...then later in the same inning a not bad try by Harris.  Hope Lang's dad saw it...he's one of those who thinks Cox isn't aggressive enough.  I did go to bed while the game was still tied...after Bond's last AB on ESPN.

DOB had it right about the lineup...to bad Cox won't drop Andruw behind McCann and/or JF.  But maybe he's heating up more as well.

CPA says: As good as the hitting has been (as it was last year), and as good as the bullpen has been, the lack of Quality Starts by anyone other than Smoltz or Hudson is an area of concern.  Bold prediction ahead:  This team is a strong #3 starter away from winning a World Series.  If Smoltz and Hudson keep pitching as well as they have, they are as strong 1-2 as anyone in the league.  This bullpen is one of the best we have ever seen here – and it will probably be better with Gonzalez/Soriano sharing closer duties instead of Wickman.  Yates and Pronto have also been very effective, though overshadowed.

We know how good the offense has been, and some guys might cool off, but Andruw will eventually get into a groove where he carries the team for a few weeks and Frenchy seems to have turned the corner to be the kind of player everyone thought.  With this team set up as it is, a decent # 3 starter will be the difference between making the playoffs and playing all month in October.

I believe that this team is actually set-up for BC to manage well in the postseason.  For whatever reason, BC has wanted to use a 3-man staff the last few years in the postseason.  On 3-days rest, it is hard to get more than 6-7 innings from your starter.  With Atlanta’s deep, quality bullpen, they will be setup to win those games, as long as you don’t have a #3 starter going out there, getting knocked out early and overworking  your pen that day.

If the Rainbow/PUSH coalition knew ANYTHING about JS, they would not have had to meet with him.  But now that they have had that meeting, JS may be inclined to offer Scott Thorman to the Phillies in an even swap for Ryan Howard.  Or maybe a package of Kevin Barry and Pete Orr to the Marlins for Dontrelle Willis.

My reply:  The results of the AJC poll on what the Braves should do were funny…overwhelmingly in favor of bringing in the best players possible.  JS couldn’t say how much cheaper it is to develop players in the Dominican than here.  Baseball in the USA appears to becoming a rich man’s game.  If you don’t pay thousands to play travel ball you’ll never make the high school team.  MLB is making token efforts to bring baseball to the inner city, but those leagues will produce few, if any, big leaguers.  The one black kid on Will’s travel team may be a good football player, but is way too mechanical in baseball…at the plate, on the mound, and in the field.  But he definitely has the family support.

SI.com ranked the Braves third in their power rankings this week.  Not bad, considering our starting pitching:  Hampton and Cormier out, Davies and James struggling.

Everyone is panicking about Chuck James, except Dave O’Brien.  Hopefully/probably this slump is just a bump along the way.  Yes, this appears to be a down year for many in the NL.  Since Andruw doesn’t like talk of moving him from the cleanup position, Cox will probably leave him there, considering it’s early May and we’re high in the standings.

Back in the mid 80’s even I was going to the Omni so much that I was beginning to recognize the ushers myself.

Lang had a good comment in his SI.com article this week…”The Braves took 2 of 3 from the Mets this weekend, restoring order in the NL East.” He knows how biased the media is for the Mets and against the Braves, so he gets his shots in as often as he can.

Too bad about Hampton…at least they have insurance…and Davies, Redman, and Cormier. Could be worse…look at the Phillies. Someone suggested we send them Tyler Yates. SIkids picked the Braves to finish third behind the Mets and Phils.

Not bad, taking two of three. Hopefully JF can continue dumping outside pitches to RF. It’s frustrating when he gets down 0 – 2 and you know he’s swinging at the next pitch, no matter where it is.

Callers after the game Sunday thought we were overloaded with starting pitching, wondering if JS would make a trade. Hampton’s situation didn't look good, Cormier isn’t back yet, Davies had just one good outing, Redman will at best just keep us in the game, James is in his first full season, Hudson has to pitch more to prove he’s back to his AL form, and Smoltz is in his forties. I like our situation, just not enough to trade a starter.

Another caller thought Andruw should be dropped in the order. Chip and Lemke squashed that one. Why mess with a winning recipe? Andruw will come around…it’s hard to hit in the cold.

Good stuff from the CPA: I am tired of hearing about Hampton , so at least this can go away for a while.  I think we are in good shape with 6 quality MLB starters available… in addition, I believe Villareal showed last year that he could give you quality innings as a 5th starter if need be…I think they are in better shape than most…

Friday night’s play on the field was too reminiscent of last year, so the turnaround on Saturday and Sunday was great…

Smoltz and Davies came up big over the weekend… as much as been made over the big 3 in the bullpen, the key all season will be the starters giving us Quality Starts… I think we have 4 so far (I believe James only pitched 5 innings on Thursday and Redmond was bounced in the 6th on Friday)…

I think we are going to see a lot of games this season, similar to the first week, where the game is 2-2 going into the 7th and once we get into bullpens, Atlanta will win the game there…the blowout Friday when McBride, Villareal and Yates came into the game did not bother me too much… for whatever reason, McBride seems at his best as a LH 1-batter specialist… if Villareal and Yates are in the game, the game is probably a lost cause, anyway…

I agree with you on Kelly Johnson… I remember early in 2002 the team was struggling and the talk around town was everyone wanted to move Giles and Furcal to the OF… it is funny that Giles and Maddox have ended up on the same team together – I thought that Giles had issues with Glavine and Maddux (or maybe it was just one of the 2)… It had something to do with the pitchers getting frustrated with Giles defense early in his career…

If Thorman gets 400 AB’s vs. RHP, he will back into enough mistake pitches to hit 20+ HR’s… not too bad for a 7th place hitter… I don’t care how well he hits every spring, Langerhans is a 4th or 5th OF ( I say that, but he will save the game with a defensive play tonight)… the organization does not seem to have much confidence in Diaz… I would feel better by playoff time if Thorman was playing everyday at 1B and Wilson was the regular OF, but there is little chance of that happening…

By the time I got home, changed, got Charlotte dressed and talked for a few minutes with the inlaws, we did not leave until 6:00… traffic was as bad around the stadium as expected – at 7:15 we were in line for the Orange lot… parking was permit only, so everyone sitting in front of me did not have a permit and were just waiting to go straight… I noticed a few cars pull into the reverse traffic lane and shoot over into the orange lot, so I did the same… as soon as I pulled in, an Atlanta cop was there and had everyone pulled off to the side and requested drivers license… she let everyone off with warnings…we made it to our seats in time for the first pitch… the wind walking through the parking lots was the worse part of the cold… we sat for 3 innings and then walked around for 2 more… we then went to the clubhouse store for a while, eventually leaving in the 7th (as people were still coming in)…

CPA says…It looks like the Mets are going to sign Jorge Sosa… I think a big issue for him last season, as opposed to 2005, was not having Mazzone AND Julio Franco in the dugout with him.

DMurphy…Uni-Watch had a copy of the Braves new BP caps…similar to several teams, including the Yankees.  His ESPN.com column ranked Atlanta next-to-last in cities with the best uniforms

…though he had the Braves above average, they were no better than the Rays!

…the Falcons unis of course drove down the ranking.

…the Hawks uni is unremarkable…average to me.  They’d look better if they’d win.  No extra credit for throwbacks.

…I think the Thrashers are ok, but I’m sure Uni-Watch only ranked the original six teams high.

…some cities got extra credit for quaint ballparks.  The Ted wasn’t mentioned, but points were taken away for the Dome.

I would’ve ranked them higher…more national media bias!

Interesting that Chan Gailey has been so popular on the interview circuit.  If he doesn’t land a job his popularity at GT won’t be helped.

Got to Orlando too late Sunday to go the only home Magic game, against the Celtics.  Monday night I watched the BCS championship.

Caught the second half of the GT win over Duke.  Every year there’s one game that captures my attention, then after that I’ll watch basketball the rest of the season…that GT game was it.

Will had baseball practice on Saturday and Sunday with the travel team he is a “fill-in” player for…the coach says he’ll want Will to play as much as possible.  Supposedly Will can’t “move up” to play on the Colt League team, which hacks me off.  Others want to move up as well, and they can’t let everyone.  Which means next year we may look harder at alternatives.

Talked to a guy for a while and it came up he’s been to the Braves Fantasy camp four times…knows Clint Hurdle and plays golf with Tom Pachorick.  Were it me I’d go to four different team’s camp…not that much into that these days, but it was fun.

CPA says…Ken Rosenthal wrote a column discussing the possibility of Glavine returning to Atlanta… even at a discounted $8MM a year, I don’t see how they could afford him – I ran my numbers and I came up with a current payroll of around $76MM without Giles and Ramirez, but I also straight-lined all of the back-end loaded deals (Hudson) and amortized all of the signing bonuses… I think Glavine could help you next season, but I think you sign him at the expense of Kyle Davies development – though I am not convinced Davies is going to be a quality starter… 

My reply…I’m not that crazy about Davies…Glavine would be expensive.  I’ll have to stay with Schuerholz and Cox wanting to go out with a ####.

Should they sign Glavine, they'd surely trade Ramirez, Hudson, Giles, and/or Davies to clear salary/roster space for a LF or 2B.

CPA says…I usually don’t fall under the same spell every year which generally curses the national media.  However, I thought this year was different, I thought their team (at least offensively) resembled the ’96 – ’00 teams.  Their top 3 starters should have been good enough to get them to the next round.  The Tigers remind me somewhat of the ’91 Braves with Verlander and Bonderman replacing Glavine/Avery/Smoltz and Rogers as a more effective version of Leibrandt… I think the Yankees are making a mistake bringing in Piniella, instead of Girardi…

I won’t even comment on the AL East until after the offseason… both the Yankees and Red Sox have a lot of perceived holes to fill – who knows what their teams will look like next season… I have never been a big Cards fan, but I guess I will have to pull for them in the NLCS (there has to no way the Mets could win a WS with that starting rotation)… the Tigers look to be like the D-Backs, Angels, Marlins and White Sox the last few years – mid market teams putting everything together for 1 season to win a WS…

And my reply…You’d think a more even-tempered Torre type would fare better there than the volatile Piniella, but imagine Girardi not talking to the NYC press!  Hate to see Joe go out this way, but that’s still going out close to the top…nine straight division titles, and 11 of the last 13 years…with four World Series crowns.  ESPN was running a stat of most consecutive years with 90 or more wins…13 or 14, I think…one more than the Braves and Cox.

You would’ve thought that the Yankee lineup could overcome any pitching shortfalls…similar to the Braves situation this year, except the Yankee lineup was one for the ages.  Who goes free agent this year…Sheffield?  With all the changes, the Red Sox could take the flag next year.  I think pressure had something to do with it as well.  Funny how the SI story last week was “Collision Course…is another Subway Series inevitable?”  Go Cards!

This postseason is interesting because no one left is really hot, unless it’s the A’s.  The Tigers limped home in September, as did the Cards and Mets.  So whoever heats up in October can run the table.  I won’t even rule out the Mets.

I had forgotten the Piniella – ARod connection.  Lou will manage the Yankees over the Marlins?  For Atlanta, it makes some sense that old hands Eddie Perez and Brian Snitker are promoted, to keep up the Braves winning tradition, as opposed to bringing in someone from another team.  That’s something to lose so much of your coaching staff.  I guess the Mets will want to keep Glavine, with Pedro missing so much of next year.

Perhaps now the I’m back to normal I can keep up with the playoffs better…the in-laws were here until Sunday as well…the GT – Clemson game on the 21st will be big, but no way GT wins without Ball.  I guess it’s good to win when the team comes out flat…I guess you can’t be up for every game…at my age/experience, I’d know I’d only get to play so many games, and treat each as special…easy to say anyway.  Without the two returns UGA really got beat…perhaps they should’ve gone to another QB.  Saturday night the in-laws wanted to keep tabs on the South Carolina game, so we were flipping between that, UGA, and baseball.

Busy week…Will has a game and a school project due.  Ceil is going out two nights, and Will has practice tomorrow and Thursday and church on Wednesday.  I signed up for a golf outing Thursday to hang out with the new boss, and tonight it's Talladega Nights with the guys...look out!

The CPA and I have been missing each other lately.  Last week I was in Florida, this week he's down there...he saw the Rays/Yankees game Saturday night.  Next week I'll be back down there.  Here's a note he's left us with...

The passage below comes from the notes on AtlantaBraves.com.  I think it is a testament to 1) Why Bobby Cox is such a good manager and why players have their best seasons playing for him and 2) the kind of person Francoeur is

"I take pride in the fact that they pay you to come to the park and play," Francoeur said. "Obviously, there were some days when I was going through some struggles, when it would have been nice to take a day to relax. But I like to be in there for Bobby every day."

Francoeur's desire to play on a daily basis has a lot to do with his aggressive personality and passion for the game. But at the same time, he feels he owes something to Cox, who kept him in the lineup while he hit just .216 in April.

"When I was having such a tough time early in the season, he stuck with me everyday," Francoeur said. "Now I want to say, 'I'll stick with you the rest of the season and give you everything that I've got.' It's nice to come here everyday and see your name in the lineup."

Me...The Mets better get it in gear, or they'll lose the NLDS.  Braves fans know all too well about cruising through September with a big lead, then getting run over by a hot team in October.  I would hate for that to happen to the Mets!

Not that I'm waving the white flag on 2006 just yet!

CPA: I finally read Glavine’s comment about possibly playing in Atlanta – similar to what he said earlier in the year,  there is no way the Mets pick up his option, thought I don’t know how much they are willing to sign him for – I still think Zito will be their #1 target… Glavine would fit in nicely with Smoltz, Hudson, James and Hampton… Thomson is a free agent – no option I believe… Reitsma is a free agent, having completed 6 years service time…I thought Baez would be a free agent, but his bio said he debuted in the middle of ’01, which would make him a 5th year Arb Elg… I don’t know if Atlanta will be willing to keep him for arbitration money…Thomson, Giles, Reitsma and Sosa combined to make $13.55 MM this year…

I have given up on Ramirez and I don’t think Davies is ready, yet… I think they will re-sign Wickman…. With Devine (I am hoping we see him pitch every other day coming down the stretch), Boyer and McBride setting him up… take your pick on the rest of your bullpen from the current holdovers….

They will probably let Pena back-up McCann – Pena has no pop, but can put the bat on the ball…

People will gripe all season about the offense, but 5.25 runs per game this year was very good and I think it can get better next year…. You will have LaRoche playing 1B for a full season… I think they will let Giles go for salary reasons (5th year arbitration), giving his job to Aybar – he has stayed under the radar so far, but a latin player who can draw walks can be valuable to your team…Renteria and Chipper back on the left side – hopefully Chipper can stay healthy next year, but remember your offense scored this many runs with him out of the lineup so often….I don’t think they will try to bring anyone in to play LF, since they will need to spend money on Wickman, Glavine(?) and LaRoche’s arbitration, so you may see the same combination of Diaz/Langerhans/Thorman/Kelly Johnson….if they don’t work out an extension, at least you will have Andrew motivated to perform in a walk year…. The haters are still griping about Frenchy, but look at his stats over the last 30 days – the kid is getting better…

DMurphy: Interesting tonight’s game is at 7.  We have small group.  Glavine was asked about returning to the Braves next year, and he said there were only two teams he’d want to play for next year…and he’s played for both of them already.  The Mets can pick up his option, but he can meet incentives to make next year 14 million.  Last night he won number 288, and he may just want to win 12 and get out. 

I was also noticing all the starters we’ll have next year.  This morning I was updating my Braves player spreadsheet…who were the major players this year, and today I added the 2007 column.  I wondered the same about Davies…perhaps they’ll trade him or Ramirez for a LF.  I remembered Boyer, and what you’ve said, that the bullpen will be better next year.  What is the contract status of Thompson and Reitsma…and especially Baez?  He may be better pitching in LA, the north, or a dome, the way he sweats.  Guess with MM, Boyer, and Devine, they don’t need to spend money on Baez.

Will’s first game is tomorrow, but that’s all that’s on tap this weekend.  Nothing good at the Picture Show, except the Lake House.

Mark Bradley has a good reminder for everyone today… ttp://www.ajc.com/blogs/content/shared-blo
gs/ajc/sportscolumns/entries/2006/09/07/tip_your_c
ap_to.html?cxntnid=sprt090806e

CPA says…All I heard Glavine say was the comment about ending the Braves streak – which, honestly, I would expect any competitive player in the division to think (though most might not say it)… the Mets need to enjoy their success while it is here… they have had a great year, but all I really see is 2 great young players (Wright and Reyes), 2 high priced veteran stars (Beltran and Delgado), some ageing high-priced pitchers (Pedro, Glavine and Wagner) and a bunch of average players who fit in nicely… I don’t see enough to build a dynasty on… I would expect them to sign someone like Zito… it is interesting that if you still had Smoltz/Glavine/Maddux together, you would still have a decent (although high-priced) rotation… We love the OK Café, but the last few times we have been there, the wait has been too long for us.  When we first met, it took me a while to get her to eat there, but after a few times, it became one of her favorite places…

I guess Dave O’Brien meant that the BRAVES should sweep yesterday’s DH. Guess we shouldn’t read too much into Glavine’s comments.  JS will make the decision, and Glavine would have to take a huge discount to come back.  Think the Mets will pick up his option…unless they’re other FA out on the market.

The Braves slim playoff hopes were all but snuffed out Wednesday.  Every year they have injuries, as do all teams.  I think with all the injuries they had this year, especially to the pitchers, makes winning 14 straight divisions all the more special.  No one else has done that, not even the Yankees…who   The Mets have had a high payroll for several years, and this is their first division win since 1988.  The Red Sox and Orioles are others with high payrolls but little to show for it.

The bats may have been silent Wednesday, but the pitching continues to be the problem.  They’ve run through tons of pitchers, and have made comparatively few moves with the position players, despite injuries to Giles, Chipper, Andruw, McCann, and Jordan.

If you’re going tonight you’ll miss the Columbus LL team…they’re appearing Saturday, I hear.  See them at the Tech game?

Saturday at First Baptist Woodstock at 10:30 am…SAFE AT THE PLATE with John Smoltz, Terry Pendleton, Greg Olson and Sid Bream.

Lang took his dad to a Yankees Tigers games last week…with nice box seats.  Reid said it was the first time he’d been to Yankee Stadium since seeing DiMaggio in 1949.  More from Reid…- Broadway musical "Tarzan"  - Edith was disappointed right away as we discovered Shuler Hensley was taking the night off…show was very good - music good - lots of movement - people swinging back and forth, and from the top balcony to the stage - walked to hotel…- Lang had a car take us to US Open - security check about same as airport - great seats at center court - weather perfect  with no sun - saw Phillppoussis vs (2 seed) Rafael Nadal and followed by Barrois vs ( 1 seed) Mauresmo…lunch in the Hospitality tent with free buffet plenty of delicious food - Wang vs Roger Federar (1 seed) and a little of Domingquez vs Serena Williams before leaving for Yankee Stadium by car.

I’m wondering if I want to drive from Orlando to Tampa and back the same evening just to see the Rays / Orioles game.  I’ve been to a Rays home game before…I may be lazy.

Brush with greatness…the summer before I turned 16 I umpired Little League.  Had a great time, got good at it.  My supervisor was Brannon Bonifay.  He got his kid brother to fill in some…Cam Bonifay…the Pirates GM, who kicked and played baseball at Tech.  We were sharing umpire stories here at work…Damon also umped as a teen.

Made it to the OK Café by 6:20, and there was no wait.  When we left shortly after seven, the waiting room was full, and it looked longer than the posted 20 minutes.  Ceil loved her vegetable plate, but Anna just poked at her mashed potatoes.

Beauty & the Beast was fine…Anna loved it, and we had good seats.  We left using the upstairs exit that goes down to Ponce de Leon, reminding me that we’ve seen the actors exit there in the past.  There we ran into Grover & Betty Swilley and Craig & Kay McKenzie.  Daughter Kate McKenzie had a featured part in the show, one of the five miked singers.  Years ago we had taught her in Sunday School.  As we talked, we saw most of the other actors leave.

With today being a school day, it was easier on Ceil if the boys didn’t spend the night, so I dropped the girls at the van at Eastside Baptist, and drove near Jim R Miller Park to pick up the boys…making it home at 12:30 am.

These days when I find the most recent NOLA Notes, the envelope has been opened, the stamp cut out, and any envelope inserts have been removed.  I’m lucky to find the cards or cutout somewhere else in the house.  We’re the world’s worst at hanging frames on the wall, but Anna has cutouts framed and on display in her freshly painted room.

No practice last night.  I hate it when the coach’s shirt says COACH MURPHY on the back.  Then everyone knows which one is my son…not that I’m not proud.  I’d rather be anonymous.  I’ve been digging deep into work lately.  My desk is cleaner, but I’m also making headway into some research projects.  I’m so scared these rookies are going to mess up the big Carrier account.  I’ve got to make sure all actual costs aren’t much greater than the costs we show on paper.  It’s different from our other large account, where so far we’re doing great...for a few years.

What a good idea to comment on the MLB choices for each team’s most outstanding player.  I have been casting my votes…here they are, along with some comments.  I’ll rank all five for each team.  First my favorite, the senior circuit…

Arizona:  Randy Johnson’s perfect game and Series championship beats out Gonzalez’s steady career.  Williams also starred for the Giants, Bell for the Pirates.  Why not Greg Counsell or Curt Schilling?

Braves:  (1) Aaron, no question. (2) Spahn is the all-time winningest lefty. (3) Niekro won 300 pitching for horrible teams. (4) Tie!  Chipper’s run of 100+ RBI seasons and Smoltz’s 150 wins and saves put them at Cooperstown’s doorstep…but how do you pick them over Maddux or Glavine?  Dale Murphy’s back to back MVP seasons also take a back seat, because the selectors must’ve wanted young voters to bleed votes away from Aaron.

Cubs:  Five fine choices…Ernie, Billy, the underrated Jenkins, Ryno, and Santo.  And I wore Sandberg’s 23 at the fantasy camp.  Yes, Sammie got the shaft.

Reds:  I’ve been voting for Bench instead of the tainted hit king.  Robinson had a great career, but it was so split between the Reds and Orioles.  Bench, Rose, Robinson, Morgan, Perez.

Rockies: Not much to pick from here, though Larry Walker was a five tool players before being slowed by injuries.  Career Rockie Helton tops, Walker, Coor’s Field stud Vinny, El Cate Grande (loved by all Braves fans), and Bichette.

Marlins:  With the revolving door swinging after each title, nobody has taken a foothold.   Dontrell becomes the Marlins all-time wins leader this year.  Then Series hero Beckett, followed by Castillo, Conine, and Nen.

Astros:  Tough call…I’ll pick Nolan over Biggio and Bagwell, then the Toy Cannon, and Dierker, who has done everything in the organization.  How about Ceasar Cedeno?

Dodgers:  Even tougher.  Jackie is tops, for all he went through.  Koufax’s short, excellent career is second, then Campy, Pee Wee, and Duke.  Tough to leave off Drysdale, Orel, and Fernando.  A step below are Garvey, Dusty, and Kirk.

Brewers:  Yount was great at the plate, at short, and center…beating out Molitor and Fingers, both of whom also starred elsewhere.  Then the under-rated Cooper and Gantner.

Mets:  As a Braves fan, perhaps I should be voting for Strawberry.  Surely Tom Terrific is tops.  The other guys pale in comparison.  (2) Strawberry tore it up while he was a Met.  (3) Franco’s long career tops (4) Series hero Tug and (5) Piazza, whose best days were in Dodger blue.  What about Dwight Gooden?

Phillies:  I’m taking Lefty over Schmidt, then Roberts, Klein (who I don’t recall), and Ashburn.  They outrank Luzinski, Bowa, and that great centerfielder (Elliot Maddox?).

Pirates:  Being old school, Honus barely tops the excellent Clemente.  Feared power hitter Stargell then beats Series hero Maz and Kiner.  Didn’t Pittsburgh have a skinny outfielder win a few MVP’s in the 90’s?

Cardinals:  Again the old school Stan the Man beats out the tough as nails Gibson, whom I still dislike for his stint as the Bravos pitching coach…trying to make Rick Mahler a power pitcher!  The Wizard’s illustrious career tops Pujols, whom I love…he could be the player of this decade.  Brock is no slouch, but brings up the rear of these five.

Padres:  Gwynn spent his entire career in San Diego, and boy could he hit for average…most of the time in pain.  That beats the amazing Winfield, whom I’m telling my boys about.  Winfield spent many years with other teams.  Hoffman has been quietly piling up saves for a mostly average team.  Jones pitched a no-hitter, and maybe Giles is the current favorite…what about the shortstop Greene?  Or Garry Templeton…or Ozzie?

Giants:  Say Hey Willie tops this tough five.  Perhaps if Bonds wasn’t so tainted and self-absorbed I would pick him.  Third is Mel Ott, who hit his 500 homers in a tougher time than Stretch…who stuck around past his prime to pile up homers.  Marichal was quite the competitor.

Expos/Nationals:  Whether Tim Raines?  Wasn’t his number retired?  And Ellis Valentine, or even Warren Cromarte?  Carter was not my favorite, but he beats le Grande Orange.  Write in time!  Soriano’s performance for the Nats this year puts him third, then Raines and Valentine.  Don’t the Nats have an above average closer?

Even after the sweep by the mighty Mets, the CPA says…Atlanta still has a chance to win the Wild Card.  The Reds are leading the Wild Card pack at 55-50 - a .524 winning pct.  That puts them on pace for a 85-77 record.  Atlanta is 48-56, and to get to 86 wins, they would have to go 38-20 – a .655 winning pct.  A .655 winning pct. is a 106 win pace, but over the course of only 2 months, it is more reasonable – especially considering that other than 6 games with the Mets, the rest of the schedule consists of mediocre NL teams..

In order to pull this off, every time through your rotation, you would have to get 3 Quality Starts.  Smoltz will give you one, but Hudson, James, Ramirez and Schiel/Davies would have to pitch much better than they have lately.  With Wickman and Baez, the bullpen should be settled down.  The offense has cooled down, but they are still 2^nd in the NL in runs scored.

I still say there is a chance.  And if they do get the Wild Card, then they would probably have a 1^st round matchup against a very beatable St. Louis team.  And then, 7 games against the Mets.

SI.com writer Lang Whitaker’s dad chimes in…Was listening to ESPN radio talk this AM and they were discussing records that would never be broken.  The one record that was pretty much considered unbreakable was an NBA player who averaged 48.5 min per game, playing 3882 total minutes out of a possible 3890, and also averaged over 46 min per game for 7 seasons.  I did not know the answer, but I'm sure you do.

Do you know any other record that will not be broken?  David Justice said Pete Rose's total hits would stand forever.

I correctly replied…That wasn't Wilt Chamberlain?  He would be the only one I would think would've come close, and I think that was the year he scored 100.  I don't think he ever fouled out - maybe once or twice (correct again, old school strikes again).

The pitcher who won 511 MLB games...I think that record is safe! Perhaps Rose's 4000-plus hits (4195?)  How 'bout winning 15 or more games in 16 straight seasons...Greg Maddux?  Will anyone ever beat Maravich's collegiate scoring records......over 40 PPG for 3 straight years?

I've heard people say that no one has broken Maris' 61 homes runs...without steroids!  Perhaps Pujols or Ortiz will challenge it soon.

The Braves did replace the injured Thompson, Jordan, and Reitsma, but they were a big part of the problem.  I haven’t been keeping with all the comings and goings, but they were grooming James to be a starter.  The tall Aussie and Thorman were both tearing it up in Richmond, earning their promotions.

Just when guys like McBride and Ray start looking good, they have a bad outing.  Cormier was the return for dumping Estrada’s salary, so if we were to get anything out of him, it would be a bonus.  Paronto and Yates were also cheap free agents with little downside…hopefully one or two would work out, like Ray.

No MLB has good middle relief, and only a few teams have excellent closers…the key is having the starters get you deep in the game, like Maddux and Glavine used to do.  Smoltz had the lead when he left the game Sunday…when you score seven runs you should win.  Perhaps this is the week Sosa is taken out of the rotation. 

They play Betemit, and his average has been dropping.  My friend thinks Giles could be gone after this year.  The Braves say Thorman will get some playing time at first base as well.  I don’t see what’s wrong with Diaz.

They seem to mostly use the same guys with the lead…currently that may be, in descending order…Ray (closer), Sosa ( 8^th and 9th), Stockman (I haven’t seen), Thompson (when he comes back…the pen?), McBride, Remlinger, Paronto.

Cooperstown!

Call me crazy, but I’m taking Will to play with the Shaw Park team at Cooperstown.  We’ll leave late Thursday or very early Friday and check in late Friday or early Saturday.  Saturday they have some events and meetings, and play two games a day Sunday through Wednesday.  The single elimination is Thursday, and we’ll come home Friday…perhaps with a stop in Philly or DC. 

I’m staying in the barracks with the team, kinda like a chaperone.  Basically Will is the hired gun to help bolster the team’s chances, though I hear the competition is competitive, with select teams with budgets in five (or six?) figures.

The other parents don’t seem to mind, since it’s helping the team’s chances.  They seem to be just as interested to traveling to NYC, four hours away.  I’ll stick with the Hall of Fame…after driving 15 hours, I don’t want to drive more!

Will needed rubber cleats, and he dug out the Nikes I wore ten years ago for my week at the Cubs fantasy camp.  They still had the polish from where they shined them every night.  The big difference between them and current Nike models is that these have the old NIKE above the swoosh, instead of the swoosh only.  He likes them.  He has a sore ankle, which is unusual.

Watched Glory Road last night.  Have you seen it?  About the NCAA final where Kentucky got beat by that small school in Texas.

Anna is at a knitting day camp this week.  Thursday Matthew is taking this class where they take raw wool and make a teddy bear.  Yesterday he went to the JFBC VBS.  He loves to make crafts and eat cookies, but he didn’t know anyone in his class, so it wasn’t his favorite.  This is the guy who like to play baseball for the teammates.

I’ve got to get to one of those Chickfila breakfast buffets…are they only on Saturdays?