Atlanta Braves Morning Chop, News, and Box for Labor Day
Wanna know the difference between yesterday’s Morning Chop and today’s?
An Evan Gattis homer.
The Braves managed to eke out a 1-0 victory over the Miami Marlins – winning the series 2-1 – despite getting 11 hits and leaving 11 batters on base in the process.
Alex Wood was brilliant with shutout baseball for 8 innings, including a memorable sequence against Giancarlo Stanton and Casey McGehee to spoil a bases-loaded, 1 out threat by Miami in the 6th – the only real scoring opportunity for the Fish. Overall: 12 strikeouts and no walks for Wood, who improved to 10-10 on the year and lowered his ERA to 2.92 – 2.71 when starting.
‘Feelers out’ for new site if neighbors exit
The Braves have put out “feelers” about possible new sites for their spring-training home as two of the teams that currently train close to them seek to move southward.
The Astros and Nationals said last week they are “finalizing a joint presentation” of a proposal to move their spring camps to West Palm Beach. The proposal would require reaching a deal with local governments to build a two-team facility there.
Training at Disney’s Wide World of Sports in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., “would not be as viable if those two teams left the area,” Braves President John Schuerholz said in an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution after the Astros and Nationals released their joint statement.
“It would be more challenging for us. It would be a lot of hours on buses and less hours on the field working out and preparing our players. … We would not want to be left with too few teams (nearby) to have a workable schedule.”
The AJC reported in March that the Braves were considering other options for a spring home after their 20-year lease with Disney expires in 2017, largely because of the lack of teams training in central Florida. Schuerholz said the Braves’ stance is unchanged.
Minor League Playoff Situations
ALAN CARPENTER / TOMAHAWKTAKE.COM
The minor league regular seasons wrap up today, and two braves’ affiliates are already in the playoffs for their respective leagues, with a third club – probably the best of all – still in the running.
The Appalachian League Danville Braves finished up 38-30 and get the Wild Card nod in the East Division.
In the High-A Carolina League, the Lynchburg Hillcats are the Wild Card team in the Northern Division after a 34-34 record, second to the Potomac Nationals (39-27).
In the Southern League, the Mississippi Braves need some help. Despite having the best overall record in the entire league, they are 1 game behind the Jacksonville Suns (Marlins) with 1 to play. The Suns have won 9 in a row now, and face the Mobile Bay Bears this afternoon. The Braves have to beat the Huntsville Stars and have Jacksonville lose to win the 2nd half of the South Division (the Braves own the tie-breaker).
The Suns and Braves are clearly the class of the Southern League in the 2nd half of play, sporting 44-25 and 43-26 records respectively. Only 2 other teams (Mobile is one of team) is even above .500. The M-Braves get underway at 1:00 CDT today (2pm EDT), and can be heard on TuneIn radio.