Welcome back to Disney where this morning a scout was overheard saying, “I’ve seen enough of (Jair) Jurrjens this year.”  No, he was not affiliated with the Braves in any way, shape or form.

But it’s pretty safe to say that every member of the Braves organization would like to spend this afternoon watching Jurrjens look much different than he has in each of his first four exhibition starts.  On the way to producing a 10.13 ERA, Jurrjens has battled to find the confidence that his right knee truly is healthy.

While Jurrjens has not experienced any discomfort, scouts have spent this month saying, “he doesn’t look like the same guy to me.” There has been some indication that he has grown more comfortable as this month progressed and started pushing off the rubber with more aggression than he had during his first two exhibition starts.

Last week, I wrote that I was shocked that some fans were suggesting that Jurrjens should not be considered for the Opening Day start.  My thinking was that his tenured status and the fact that Tommy Hanson did not need to be rushed made him the only logical candidate.

But if Jurrjens struggles against the less-than-imposing  split-squad lineup the Astros have brought to Disney today, I think the Braves have to think about the possibility of asking him to make two more exhibition starts, eliminating his candidacy for an Opening Day start  This arrangement would set him up to pitch one of the split-squad games against the Astros on Friday and in a Minor League game on March 30.

If the Braves would choose to go this route, Jurrjens would be ready to make his first regular season start during the April 9-11 series against the Astros in Houston.   Don’t get worked up about the possibility of him facing the Astros three times in a span of four starts.  Many of the guys in today’s Astros lineup will not be in Houston when the regular season arrives.

Tommy Hanson is scheduled to pitch five innings against a group of Astros Minor Leaguers while his teammates (other than Jack Wilson) will enjoy a scheduled offday on Monday.   Hanson will make one more exhibition start on Saturday against the Tigers.  He would then be on schedule to make the Opening Day start if the Braves choose to go with somebody other than Jurrjens.

Either way, as long as Hanson does not experience any setbacks, it appears he will pitch during the opening weekend in New York.

Tyler Pastornicky will start at shortstop in a second straight game today.  There does not seem to be reason to make much of the decision to give him consecutive starts.  It still seems the Braves are debating daily whether to give the starting shortstop job to Pastornicky or allow Andrelton Simmons the opportunity to make the big jump from the Class A-Advanced level to the Majors.

Julio Teheran completed a pain-free 25-pitch side session on Saturday with what he estimated to be 75 percent effort.  Because he had experienced some upper arm stiffness after his last outing, the Braves opted to have him complete the side session instead of pitching in a Minor League game.   Teheran is currently slated to start one of Friday’s split-squad games against the Astros.

 

 

Chipper Jones will begin the final season of his career on the disabled list.  The Braves third baseman will undergo surgery on Monday to repair torn meniscus in his left knee.

Jones  missed a little more than two weeks after undergoing the same surgical procedure on his right knee after last year’s All-Star break.   He has told Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez that he hopes to return from this procedure in time to play the  April 13 home opener against the Brewers.

Jones announced he would retire at the end of this year during a Thursday morning press conference that was staged a little more than an hour after he hurt his left knee while running in the outfield.

With Jones sidelined, Martin Prado will begin the year as Atlanta’s starting third baseman.  If the Braves do not make any acquisitions, Eric Hinske and Matt Diaz will platoon in left field at the beginning of the year.

As Chipper Jones and I were at Osceola County Stadium talking about his beloved Florida Gators or some other forgotten topic about six or seven years ago, the conversation turned to a point where he said something like, “My mother is pretty guarded, it takes a long time to really get to know her.”

Like Mother, like Son.

When I started this gig for MLB.com in 2001, Jones was one of the game’s elite players and I was a 26-year-old kid who would learn over the course of the next 11 years that he did not know nearly as much as he thought he did back then.

More importantly, this span provided me the pleasure of getting to know Larry Wayne Jones. Somewhere along the line, he became a little less guarded and allowed me to know him as more than just the face of the Braves and one of the greatest switch hitters ever.

As an emotional Jones addressed his wife, Sharon, and three of his boys during Thursday’s press conference, I was reminded of those times when our phone conversations have been interrupted by the need to help one of the boys with their math homework or to simply tell them to take care of some household chore.

Jones will miss the camaraderie and the competitive thrill every long baseball season provides.  But as he said Thursday, it’s time for him to start spending more time with these kids, who have always had to share their father once the baseball season arrived on an annual basis.

But before going down, the sappy, “I’m going to miss you” road, we’re all going to have the fortunate of seeing Chipper’s talents over the course of an entire season.  There will be plenty of time for me to irk him again like I did six or seven years ago when I referred to him as a “part time superstar” as he was dealing with some injuries.

While that might have seemed like the right thing to say at that time, now seems to be the time to once again say that I feel blessed to have had the assignment to cover Chipper Jones.  If I have the fortune of doing this job for another 25-plus years, there is a good chance that I will never again encounter a player as talented and knowledgeable.  He has made this job so much easier for me and so many other reporters.

But like I said earlier, we’ll save some of the sappy stuff for September or October.

By now many of you have likely read all of the Chipper-related stories posted on braves.com after Thursday’s announcement.  Here are few quotes that did not appear in those stories:

“You would be hard pressed to find 25 other people who have played this game better than him or more consistently than him.  You’re talking about one of the 25 best players of all-time.  Being able to be a teammate with him for six-plus years, you can’t put words to it.”   — Matt Diaz

“I’m sure if I go 0-for-25 and strike out 20 times, they’ll probably express their displeasure.ut they shouldn’t be booing me.  They should be booing Fredi for putting me in there.   I’m joking when I say that.”  — Jones on whether the fans might give him a free pass this year.

“Bobby (Cox)took a flyer on me and I spent the past 23 years trying to make him proud and not make him answer questions about why he took some young punk with the number one pick. I was lucky enough to play 17 seasons under Bobby Cox.  He’s the greatest manager many of us will ever know.”   –  Jones

TODAY’S TIDBITS:  The Braves reassigned Joey Terdoslavich, Christian Bethancourt,Ernesto Mejia, Dusty Hughes and Adam Russell to Minor League camp…Manager Fredi Gonzalez said Tim Hudson is targeted to join the Atlanta rotation during the series against the Pirates (April 27-30)…Gonzalez said he is now open to providing Jack Wilson his wish to begin the season on Atlanta’s Opening Day roster.  Wilon has not experienced any recent problems with his previously-strained right calf.

 

 

 

Tommy Hanson deserves the same opportunity as any other pitcher to make whatever preseason preparations he needs to make without worrying too much about the results of a Grapefruit League game. But that still does not erase the reality that he provide the Braves a much-needed lift if he produces four solid innings against the Nationals this afternoon.

The Braves have been thrilled by what they have seen from Mike Minor and encouraged with the more aggressive approach Brandon Beachy took while attacking the strike zone in his last outing.  But the team now needs at least one of its seasoned starters to provide at least a little reason to be confident that they will be ready to produce when the regular season starts in two weeks.

If Jair Jurrjens had not struggled after last year’s All-Star break while dealing with his bothersome right knee, it might be easier to believe he could pull a reverse Jo-Jo Reyes by producing regular season results that do not come close to resembling those in Spring Training. But as he labored through each of his first four exhibition starts, the 26-year-old pitcher has simply added to the doubts surrounding him.

So 24 hours after watching Jurrjens allow the Tigers seven runs (six earned) in five innings, Hanson will look to give the Braves reason to believe he can serve as a veteran anchor until Tim Hudson returns.  At the same time with four solid innings today, he can provide himself further reason to believe he has distanced himself from the frustration he encountered when he suffered a concussion in a one-car accident on Feb. 20.

Having missed last year’s final two months with a sore right shoulder, Hanson could have certainly used a distraction-free, six-week stretch during Spring Training.  Still while he was pushed a little more than a week behind schedule, he seems comfortable with his slightly “altered delivery” and confident that he will be where he needs to be when he makes his first start during the regular season’s first week.

Going to have to admit, I have been shocked to see some fans question whether Jurrjens is still the leading candidate to get the Opening Day start.  It really should not matter what he has done during the exhibition season. As long as he is healthy, then he deserves the honor.

If Tim Hudson or Hanson were available to start the April 5 Opening Day game against the Mets, there might be some reason for debate.  With them out of the picture, Jurrjens should essentially gain this honor by default.  He’s  made 115 starts for the Braves or 64 more than Beachy and Minor combined.

BRAVES LINEUP

Bourn 8

Simmons 6

McCann 2

Uggla 4

Freeman 3

Heyward 9

Parraz 7

Sutton 5

Hanson 1

 

 

 

 

Braves bullpen coach Eddie Perez picked up the phone in the home dugout this morning to let a group of pitchers know that it was time to leave the bullpen to participate in a drill on the main field. As Perez relayed the message, it was apparent that he was surprised to hear the voice on the other end.

When he hung up the phone, Perez smiled and said, “That was Bobby Cox.”

With the Cardinals sending Lance Lynn to the mound to start this afternoon’s game against the Braves, I guess it’s important to point out that Cox heard the message clearly and made sure to send the right pitchers to the mound for that portion of the morning workout.

Barring any confusion, Lynn will be opposed by Randall Delgado, who is scheduled to pitch the first five innings of this afternoon’s game.  Julio Teheran is scheduled to pitch the final four innings.  It still seems too early to confidently know which of these two pitchers will begin the year in the rotation’s fifth spot.

Both pitched effectively before struggling in their fourth inning of work during their last start.  But it’s safe to say both have made the necessary strides since allowing nerves, Mother Nature and a potent Tigers lineup to serve them some humble pie during their exhibition season opener.

Like the Braves will continue to evaluate the battle between Teheran and Delgado, they will do the same with the battle between Andrelton Simmons and Tyler Pastornicky.  Simmons has obviously been the more impressive during the first two weeks of the exhibition season.  But it will be interesting to see what he shows with the bat now that starting pitchers going deeper and the games are starting to at least better resemble a normal game.

Braves general manager Frank Wren talked about the shortstop battled this morning Here is a tidbit from that interview

“I think you just have to not be quick to make decisions based on a small sample size or a week or two of games,” Wren said.  “Sometimes you see things the first two weeks and you’re saying, ‘Wow.’  Then another 10 days later, you’re going, ‘oh OK, that’s what we expected.’

Check Braves.com later for more thoughts about the battle between Pastornicky and Simmons.

While limiting the Mets to one hit over four scoreless innings on Saturday, Kris Medlen attempted to give the Braves more reason to consider putting him in the rotation to start the year.  But it appears, the versatile hurler did nothing more than provide the Braves even more reason to feel comfortable about moving him to a starting role if necessary.

Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said Sunday morning that Medlen’s next appearance will likely be a two or three-inning relief stint.  In other words, the club has stuck with the plan to stretch him out to four innings before beginning to use him in the relief role that he is projected to fill at the start of the season.

Even before Medlen allowed just one run through the first eight innings he has completed in the exhibition season, some of you believed he should be put in the rotation ahead of Randall Delgado and Julio Teheran.  Most of this was fueled by memories of him going 5-0 with a 3.86 ERA in 14 starts for the 2010 Braves.

If there was just one game or one series involved, there is no doubt that Medlen is the better option than Delgado and Teheran right now.  But as long as one of those young pitchers can at least prove serviceable in the rotation, Medlen provides greater value courtesy of the depth he provides a bullpen that has already lost Arodys Vizcaino.

Medlen’s presence should lessen the stress placed on Jonny Venters and Eric O’Flaherty.  His changeup gives him the ability to retire left-handed hitters and he can work multiple innings if necessary.

I know you’ve read those sentences 50 times over the past couple months.  So to quickly update you on the Medlen front: Nothing has changed.

Nothing has necessarily changed on the Andrelton Simmons/Tyler Pastornicky front either.  It is still too early to confidently say which will begin the year as Atlanta’s starting shortstop.  But Pastornicky seemed to make some strides in the right direction on Saturday, when he generated three productive plate appearances and admitted after the game that he was more comfortable than he had been over the previous couple weeks.

Nobody can argue against the fact that Simmons will always be the flashier more impressive option.  Click here to see the outstanding play the kid made against the Mets yesterday afternoon.  But he’s never faced pitching above the Class A level and has just one full professional season under his belt.  In the best interest of his future, it’s best that he spends a few months at the Minor League level.

One of the primary reason scouts and players began questioning whether the Braves should go with Simmons stemmed from the fact that Pastornicky did not look comfortable at the plate or in the field.  Pastornicky admitted yesterday that he has been pressing.  If he can relax and prove productive over the next couple of weeks, then the Braves can allow Simmons to make a more normal progression toward the big leagues.

If you have not had a chance, please check out the Jeff Porter story that was posted on Friday night.

 

 

 

 

Welcome back to Disney where a number of fans have chosen to wear green for this afternoon’s split-squad game against the Blue Jays.  Who knew this many people would jump on that Norfolk State bandwagon so soon?

Speaking of the NCAA tourney, one of Chipper Jones’ brackets was unblemished through the 16 games played on Thursday.   He was 8-8 with the Friday selections made on that bracket.  Figured I’d throw this out there since it had been at least five months since we’ve mentioned anything that could be related to the hot-hand fallacy.

Speaking of Jose Constanza, he is batting ninth and playing left field in today’s game against the Blue Jays.  With Opening Day less than three weeks away, it appears Constanza could be competing with fellow speedster Luis Durango and Jordan Parraz for one of the last available roster spots.   Parraz will play right field in today’s game at Disney and Durango will play center field in the split squad game against the Mets at Port St. Lucie.

As slap hitters with speed, Constanza and Durango both provide essentially the same thing offensively.  Defensively, Durango has the better arm and a little better range. Parraz is more multi-dimensional from an offensive perspective and  has the ability to play all three positions (despite what you might have seen with that long fly ball hit to center on Friday night).

Some of the Opening Day roster decisions will center around the status of Jack Wilson, who has not experienced any discomfort in his right calf over the past week.  Wilson believes he will be healthy enough to avoid beginning the season on the disabled list.  In fact, he hopes to begin compiling plate appearances in Minor League games next week.

But when asked about Wilson’s status late Friday night, Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez indicated the plan is to continue showing caution until the medical staff is confident the veteran infielder will not aggravate the calf strain like he did when he missed two months during the 2008 season.

If Wilson begins the season on the disabled list, Drew Sutton will likely begin the year as Atlanta’s utility infielder.

Brandon Beachy will be looking to show better command when he starts against the Blue Jays this afternoon.  The right-hander issued five walks against the Cardinals on Monday and has issued a total of seven through his first five innings of the exhibition season.   He also combined for nine walks in the 10 1/3 innings that encompassed his final two starts of the 2011 season.

After Beachy exits, Adam Russell, Cory Gearrin and Anthony Varvaro will continue to audition for one of the final bullpen spots.  Cristhian Martinez will attempt to strengthen his projected spot on the Opening Day roster when he also pitches in relief against the Blue Jays today.

Even if Arodys Vizcaino can once again avoid Tommy John surgery, he obviously will not be ready for the start of the regular season.

The projected Opening Day bullpen currently consists of  Craig Kimbrel, Jonny Venters, Eric O’Flaherty, Kris Medlen and Martinez.  The leading candidates for the final two spots are Jairo Asencio (out of options), Gearrin (if he can provide confidence he can handle left-handed hitters), Varvaro and Russell.

Medlen will start this afternoon’s split-squad game against the Mets in Port St. Lucie.  Sean Gilmartin is also scheduled to appear in that game.  Gilmartin has impressed teammates during his first big league camp.

TODAY’S LINEUPS

vs. Blue Jays

Bourn 8

Pastornicky 6

McCann DH

Uggla 4

Chipper 5

Hinske 3

Parraz 9

Bethancourt 2

Constanza 7

 

@Mets (no designated hitter)

Simmons 6

Prado 5

Heyward 9

Freeman 3

Diaz 7

Ross 2

Sutton 4

Durango 8

Medlen 1

 

 

 

Growing up, I remember looking often looking at the Grapefruit League standings with the hope of seeing that the Pirates were nowhere near the top.  There was nothing scientific about this mindset.  Just somewhere along the line of my childhood, I determined that Spring Training success often equated to regular season disappointment.

Over the course of the past two weeks, I’ve come to realize some of you do not share this mindset.

If you are a part of that small group who chooses to believe wins and losses are important within a (Grapefruit) League where teams can tie, I will say that the the 2-10-1 record the Braves carry into this afternoon’s game against the Phillies should be considered as meaningful as the 5-1 start the Braves could encounter while playing the first six games of the regular season against the Mets and Astros.

By the end of September, nobody will remember the first six games of the regular season.  But you will at least be able to recognize the guys playing in the late innings of those games.

There are a plethora of things more concerning right now than wins and losses.  Jason Heyward provided some comfort on Wednesday night when he highlighted a two-hit night with a home run off Stephen Strasburg. Hitting coach Greg Walker spent some time this morning talking about how good Heyward looked last night.  Check for a story later this afternoon.

Now the Braves need Jair Jurrjens to make his own strides against the Phillies this afternoon. While he has said his right knee has not been a problem, scouts believe he has been somewhat hesitant with his delivery during his first two outings. Today we’ll have a chance to see if he is able to push off the rubber with a little more confidence.

Another popular question recently has been whether the Braves will begin this season with Tyler Pastornicky or Andrelton Simmons as their starting shortstop.  You know my opinion over the past couple months was that it would be best to keep Simmons in the Minors for a least a few more months this year.

If you’re talking about choosing one of these guys for one game, one week or even just one year, Simmons is undoubtedly the guy.  He’s far superior from the defensive end and might be every bit as productive as Pastornicky would be in the eighth spot of the lineup.

But would rushing Simmons to the big leagues limit what he might be able to offer from the offensive end during his long-term future with the Braves.  This is one of the many questions general manager Frank Wren and his staff will continue to debate over the next two weeks.

A week ago I was still assuming Simmons would begin the year in the Minors.  Now it does not seem wise to assume anything in regard to this shortstop battle.

TODAY’S LINEUP @ Phillies

Bourn 8

Prado 5

Chipper DH

Uggla 4

Hinske 3

Diaz 7

Heyward 9

Pastornicky 6

Boscan 2

Chipper Jones admits saying, “I don’t know if I can make it through this year,” while talking to two national reporters after playing eight innings during Monday’s loss to the Cardinals. But during a telephone conversation today, he said the tone of his message has been completely misunderstood.

“Unfortunately, I said it around two guys who don’t know me very well and they didn’t realize I was kidding around,”  Jones said. “One of the guys asked, ‘You think you can make it through the season with your knees?’ I said, ‘Make it through the season, I don’t know if I can make it through tomorrow.’  Obviously, I’m joking.  That’s an obvious joke.  Really, I just came off the field after playing eight innings.  I’ve had eight at-bats all spring.  I was kidding around.

“It was tongue and cheek. I was kidding.  I just got done playing eight innings with three at-bats.  I was a little tired.  I wasn’t by any means suggesting I couldn’t make it through the season.  If I didn’t think that I could, I wouldn’t be out there.”

Nobody is gong to be surprised if Jones opts to retire at the end of this season. But with his 40th birthday a month away, he is not ready to put a specific timetable on the remainder of his career.

“If there was any question about whether I could make it through the season or not, I would not have come back (to play this year),” Jones said. “I will not only make it through tomorrow.  I will make it through this season with no problem.”

Check Braves.com and MLB.com this afternoon for more of Jones’ thoughts.

Follow me on twitter @mlbbowman

 

 

It seems pretty safe to erase any lingering concerns you might have had regarding Freddie Freeman’s right knee.  The 22-year-old first baseman is back in the starting lineup for a fifth straight day as the Braves prepare to host the Yankees this afternoon at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex.

With split-squad games against the Blue Jays on Sunday and a two-day trip to Jupiter beginning on Monday, Freeman will also likely play at least two of the next three days.  The Braves can only hope the supportive sleeve Freeman now wears will prevent his right kneecap from popping out of place like it did on Feb. 28.

Chipper Jones is also back at third base for today’s game against the Yankees.  Jones said his previously sore right leg did not bother him as he played seven innings during Friday’s loss to the Mets.

While Jones and Freeman now appear healthy, Arodys Vizcaino has not pitched since Sunday because of discomfort in his right elbow.  An MRI exam showed inflammation around the elbow.  The 21-year-old reliever will rest a few more days before being reevaluated.  But for now, the team does not seem too concerned.

Jason Heyward is getting a chance to rest after playing each of the past five days and enjoying a two-hit game against the Mets on Friday.  The 22-year-old outfielder wrapped around the double he pulled to right field in the second inning.  But he made solid contact with his seventh-inning single.

Likely Opening Day starter Jair Jurrjens will make his second start of the exhibitions season this afternoon against the Yankees.  Jurrjens said his knee was not a problem as he limited the Astros to two runs in two innings on Monday.  His fastball topped out at 90 mph and rested between 87-88 mph.  One American League scout thought Jurrjens was still being somewhat tentative as he attempted to throw his breaking ball.

BRAVES LINEUP vs. Yankees

Bourn CF

Prado LF

McCann DH

Uggla 2B

Chipper 3B

Freeman 1B

Pastornicky SS

Boscan C

Constanza RF