A lot of speculation has arisen that Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann will be packing his bags and moving out of Atlanta next season. McCann is a free agent next season and, although being a local Georgia boy, many expect him to leave the Braves to go somewhere for more money. So what do you think? Should McCann stay, or go? Vote now and let us know what you think.
By Caleb Slagle A lot of speculation has arisen that Atlanta Braves catcher Brian McCann will be packing his bags and moving out of Atlanta next season. McCann is a free agent next season and, although being a local Georgia boy, many expect him to leave the Braves to go somewhere for more money. So what do you think? Should McCann stay, or go? Vote now and let us know what you think.
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We all know who Chipper Jones is. He will forever be regarded as one of the greatest hitters in the game, how he did it the right way, only playing with one team, winning a World Series title, an MVP award, a batting title, and so on and so on. The point is that a player like Chipper Jones only comes around once in a while, but the Atlanta Braves have the luxury of knowing they have a player that could be just as good if not better than Chipper.
Freddie Freeman is quickly becoming the next "Chipper Jones". Through 532 AB this year, Freddie Freeman has quietly put up some of the best numbers in Major League Baseball. Freeman is hitting .314, with 105 RBIs, and 23 home runs, compared to the presumptive MVP Andrew McCutchen his average is just .009 points off, but Freeman has 23 more RBIs than McCutchen, as well as three more home runs. One might say that McCutchen has meant more to his team, and that is rightfully so considering the Pirates will be in the playoffs for the 1st time since 1992, but Freeman has also been an anchor for a Braves team that has been plagued by injuries all season. Since coming off of the DL for a strained oblique in late April, Freeman has been a model of consistency for the Braves, as well as leader in and out of the clubhouse. Just like his predecessor Chipper Jones, Freeman has also been Mets killer. Against the Mets this year Freeman has put up a .338 average, with 17 RBIs, and 6 home runs. In fact his RBI and home runs numbers are the highest of season against the Mets compared to any other team Freddie has faced this season. The point of this story is simple; the Braves didn't just say goodbye to Chipper Jones after he retired last October, they also welcomed in his second coming in Freddie Freeman. With the end of the season upon us, we are starting to see the award winners make their moves to claim their titles. Here are a couple of contenders for each of the awards, vote on who you think should win.
As many of you know I cover a lot in minor league baseball especially the Braves organization but, I still try to cover a lot of other teams. One team I get a lot of 1 on 1 coverage with is the Chicago Cubs. Due to the point that their AA-affiliate is about 30 minutes from my house and let me say the future is very bright for the Chicago Cubs. I'm not saying this because of hometown favoritism because in minor league baseball I don't have a favorite I just cheer for all the players and all the teams. Most of the time I actually sit on the opposing teams side. With saying that I am going to tell you why I expect the Cubs to be a post season team within the next 4 years and possibly even a World Series Winner by 2018. Javier Baez, Albert Almora, Jorge Soler, and Mike Olt where all on the Baseball America Preseason top 30! And next year I would imagine Alcantara being up there after his big futures game this year.
In Major League Baseball many would say that 2012 was the "Year of the Pitcher". In 2012 there were 7 no-hitters, and 3 of them were perfect games. Now in 2013 it could also be the year of the pitcher with it only being July, but I am going to go ahead and declare it the year of the Rookies. Every season there is a numerous amount of rookies that come into the league, but this year they have not only come on to the scene, they have become superstars overnight. So I thought I would go through and break down some of this years top rookies that might not be a household names yet and give my picks for the first half rookie of the year for both the AL and NL. The 2013 MLB All Star game is a little over a month and a half away. The game will take place in the big apple for the 2nd time in the past 5 years this time at Citi Field making the New York Mets the Host. MLB has one of the best televised and marketed all star games out of all of the major sporting organization. The All-Star game is exciting, fun, and well played and a chance to see some of your favorite stars out there at one time. Also, the winner of the All-Star game gets their league home field advantage in the World Series. So they actually have a reason to play hard. As most of you know you can go on to MLB.com and cast your vote for who you think should be the starters of the 2013 MLB All-Star Game and if you haven't Click Here and go vote NOW!! Here are my selections and a brief reason why. I will also, post a list at the end of players I think should make the team.
First Base - (AL) Prince Fielder (NL) Joey Votto Prince Fielder is an out right choice in my opinion for the AL the only other player that could I think compete with Fielder would be the HR leading Chris Davis but he doesn't hold no where near the popularity that fielder has . Fielder so far this year is hitting .272, 9 HRs, and 42 RBI's. Joey Votto on the other hand was not unanimous. I think there are several players that could have get the start and a couple will be announced on the team but Votto is a league favorite and the most Veteran of the bunch. So far this season Votto is hitting .352, 10 HR, and 27 RBI's. Second Base - (AL) Robinson Cano (NL) Brandon Philips Robinson Cano is another unanimous there is no other 2B in the league that can stand next to the stuff Cano does. So far this year Cano is hitting .292, 13 HR, 35 RBI's Brandon Philips for the first time in several years has some competition at the 2B position but due to his outstanding year so far this year I gave him the nod. Philips is off to one of his best starts in his career. He is hitting .288, 8 HR's, and 43 RBI's. Shortstop - (AL) J.J Hardy (NL) Troy Tulowitzki For the first time in my 23 years of life there is not a complete obvious player for the AL shortstop position. In the past we have had players like Ripken, Jeter, Rodriguez as obvious write-ins but this year we don't and I am going with one of my favorites J.J Hardy. Hardy has had a great season so far with 10 HR's and 30 RBI's Troy Tulowitzki is one of the best SS in the game if not the best right now. He can do it all as long as he stays healthy. So far this season he is hitting .337, 12 HR, and 43 RBI's Third Base - (AL) Miguel Cabrera (NL) David Wright Miguel Cabrera is right now the best player in professional baseball. He is Mr. Triple Crown and is on repeat to do it again this year. Hitting .368, 15 HR, and 59 RBI's. its hard to put anyone else up there no matter how good they are playing. David Wright was a tuff choice I really wanted to go Ryan Zimmerman or Pablo Sandoval but due to Wright being the home town man I had to go with him. Catcher - (AL) Matt Wieters (NL) Buster Posey Matt Wieters is one of my favorite players in the game right now and he is very underrated. Wieters has been a consistent 20 HR hitter and 60+ RBI hitter the last two years and been atop of the American League catchers since entering the league back in 2008. Buster Posey much like Wieters is the Premier catcher in all of MLB. Coming off his 2nd World Series and MVP Award in only 2 seasons of playing Posey has pronounced himself as one of the most elite players in the game right now. Outfielders (not by specific position) (AL) Yoenis Cespedas, Mike Trout, and Jose Bautista, (NL) Justin Upton, Bryce Harper, Andrew McCutchen Cespedas has been one of the top outfielders since his rookie season. The Cuban defector has been very versatile and is a good all around hitter, Mike Trout, Mr. baseball; is one of the most dynamic and elite baseball players of era. Trout will be in the ranks of Ripken, Jeter, Mantle, Mays, and the many other greats. Jose Bautista was a tough pick I could of picked several other players especially after Bautista's rough first month but it seems that he is getting back in his grove and is putting up the numbers he is expected to put up. He is the face of the Blue Jays organization and will be selected to start the 2013 MLB All Star Game. Justin Upton made his impact with the Braves organization very quick as he started off with one of the best starts in Braves history putting up almost 10 homeruns in the first 20 games. Since then Justin has slowed down but I still believe he is a big enough crowd favorite to get the Vote. Mr running into a wall him self Bryce Harper.. As much as I want to dislike this kid for his sometime bad attitude I cant because the kid like Trout will be a symbol of our era and hopefully with time and age he will mature in to one of the best well rounded players of the next generation. Andrew McCutchen is another just great talent in the OF started the season off slow but within the past month has really picked up his game and helped the Pirates out tremendously. (AL) Designated Hitter (DH) David Ortiz After the Boston Bombing and Ortiz's speech he will be a automatic write-in for the All-Star game but he deserves it as well he had a 22 game hit streak early this season and is hitting over .300 for the season so far. Starting Pitchers (AL) Clay Bucholz (NL) Matt Harvey Clay Bucholz has been one of the premier pitchers this season and I must say its good to see him back in rare form. After his rough season last year im glad to see him where he is at and he is leading all of the MLB in the ERA category with a 1.73 Matt Harvey hasn't been the best pitcher in the NL this year but he has been one of the biggest suprises and has helped the Mets stay alive in the NL: East. I believe with the game being in New York we could see the young thrower get the nod. Out of all those players will still season plenty of other big name players make the team if I could pick 1 player from every league to make the team, not start but just be on the team. Then from the American League it would be Manny Machado from the Baltimore Orioles. He in my opinion is one of the most underrated players in all of MLB he is a great all around player and hitter but, he is overlooked due to the Miguel Cabrera and Evan Longoria's of the AL. For the NL I would have to give my vote to "El Oso Blanco" Evan Gattis of the Atlanta Braves. Just the kids story before the season never playing about AA-ball and then making the team out of spring. Then having the season he is having in a limited number of at bats. 1. Atlanta Braves - The Braves have had the best week in baseball winning all 6 games last week including a sweep on National League East rival Washington. The Braves have a 9 game winning streak going into their interleague opener today against the Kansas City Royals. The Braves have started the season 11-1 for the first time since 1994
2. Oakland Athletics - The Oakland Athletics have proven they were not a fluke last year winning 5 out of the 6 games last week and also having a 9 game winning streak before it was broken Saturday vs. Detroit. 3. San Francisco Giants - The reigning World Series Champs are back off to a good start. After dropping a game to the Cardinals to start the week they went on to sweep Colorado and take 2 out of 3 to the Chicago Cubs. 4. St. Louis Cardinals - The Cardinals continue to show dominance in the NL: Central taking 2 out of 3 against the Giants, Cincinnati, and Milwaukee. The Cardinals pitching staff has helped them tremendously 17 runs all week and 13 against the Reds in 1 game. They had 3 straight shutouts to end the week. 5. Boston Red Sox - The Boston Red Sox have stunned the world going 8-4 so far this season and posting great numbers. Although their week wasn't as good as week 1 they showed life at the end of the week by sweeping AL: East rivals Tampa Bay. 6. Detroit Tigers - The Detroit Tigers are doing exactly what we expected with them. They went 3-3 last week but won all three series last week beating the Yankees, Blue Jays, and Oakland. The Tigers climbed 1 spot from last week and don't be surprised for them to continue to do so. 7. Arizona Diamondbacks - The Dbacks had a great week 1 and had a decent week 2. They started week 2 with a sweep of Milwaukee and ended the week by winning the series against the Dodgers. The Dbacks though did drop 2 games to the Pirates which is why the dropped a spot from last week. 8. Washington Nationals - After sweeping the Marlins in week 1 of the season the Nationals got a taste of an actual Major League team by dropping 2 out of 3 to Cincinnati and being swept by NL: East rivals the Atlanta Braves. The Nationals dropped 6 spots to number 8. 9 - Texas Rangers - The Rangers are an interesting team they started the year by losing their season opener to the Houston Astros but, then went on to win 2-3 games against the Angels, Rays, and split a series with Seattle. The Rangers didn't drop because they where playing good. To me they just aren't as dominate right now as the other teams above them and, with weak schedule this upcoming week they could stay low but within the top 10. 10. Kansas City Royals - The Kansas City Royals are another team the has impressed early this year. With the young talent they have and the great pitching by James Shields they climbed 7 spots from 17 to 10. The Royals started the week by winning 2-3 against the Phillies and then went on to sweep Minnesota. The Royals are a team to watch this year and if they keep playing like this they could find their selves in a AL Wild Card spot. 11. Cincinnati Reds - The Reds dropped 6 spots this week by losing 5 out of their last 8 games. The Reds started with a big series win over the Nationals then went to drop a series against St. Louis and was later swept by Pittsburg to end the week. The Reds are obviously better than they played this week and have a good week to prove their selves facing Philadelphia and Miami. 12. Colorado Rockies - The Rockies had a good first week by winning 2-3 in Milwaukee and then going to sweep San Diego to start week 2 be swept by San Francisco and then sweep San Diego again to end the week. The Rockies still have a lot to prove but for now they will sit at number 12. 13. New York Yankees - With most of their stars sidelined the Yankees came out in week 2 to prove a point after starting the season 1-4 they improved in week 2 to 6-5 by winning both games against Cleveland and winning 2-3 against the Orioles. The Yankees still have a long way to go to get back to the Yankees everyone is used to and this week will be a good test by hosting Arizona and Toronto. 14. Seattle Mariners - The Mariners have potential to be a great team with King Felix leading the way and some great young bats. Though they struggled this week dropping 5 of the 7 games played and 2 to the horrid Houston Astros. The Mariners still have a chance to bounce back and prove they are here to fight. In week 3 they go up against the Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers. 15. New York Mets - The Mets are an interesting team. They didn't have very high expectations going into this year and with the help of some unsung heroes they have actually brought them self into the number 2 spot of the NL: East having 1 less loss than the Nationals. The Mets went 4-2 this last week winning 2-3 against Miami and sweeping Minnesota. 16. Los Angeles Dodgers - The Dodgers haven't lived up to their potential this year yet. Right now they have a 7-5 record and took a big hit this week when they lost SP Zack Grienke for atleast 8 weeks with a broken collarbone. The Dodgers could take a couple steps forward this upcoming week by facing San Diego and Baltimore. 17. Pittsburgh Pirates - The Pirates had them selves a pretty good week last week by winning 2-3 in Arizona and then raising the jolly rodger 3 teams as they swept the Reds. The Pirates will face a tough week in week 3 facing St. Louis and the red hot Atlanta Braves. 18. Baltimore Orioles - The Orioles are a young team that could be good and could be bad and right now they are showing that with a 6-6 record and things aren't going to get easier for the O's as they travel to Tampa and Los Angeles next week. 19. Philadelphia Phillies - The Phillies are another throw up team but they did pick up some defiantly needed NL: East wins winning 2-3 against the Mets and Marlins. The Phillies still stand as the only team to beat the 11-1 Braves. 20. Toronto Blue Jays - The Blue Jays still seem to not be able to find that groove. The star studded Blue Jays went 3-3 this week while dropping a series to the Tigers and winning a series against Kansas City. The Blue Jays have a long way to go to live up to their expectations they had to start the season. 21. Cleveland Indians - The Indians had a decent week this week after losing 2 games to the Yankees they went on to win 2 games against the White Sox. The Indians show they have the ability to score runs but pitching still seems to be a factor as they go along. 22. Chicago Cubs - The Cubs started off with a rough start of the week by being swept by the Braves. Then went on to drop 5 out 7 games. The Cubs have a long way to get back to the top of the NL: Central but, they are moving in the right steps when a fan attempted to break the curse of the goat by dropping off a amputated goat head off in a box at one of the front gates. 23. Minnesota Twins - The Twins struggled last week by dropping 5 out of the 6 games they played being swept by Kansas City and the Mets. The Twins did start the new week off good with a win over the Angels on Monday night. 24. Houston Astros - The Astros are... well the Astros. They did go 3-3 this week winning a series against the Mariners and winning a game against the Angels but, hey a dog does find its bone every once in awhile. 25. Los Angeles Angels - The Angels in my opinion are the laughing stock of Major League Baseball right now. With a star studded lineup of Hamilton, Pujols, Trout, Trumbo, Weaver and Wilson they somehow managed to only win 1 game last week. The Angels did start off to a similar slow start last year but, they need to get things going if they do not want to get laughed at anymore. 26. Tampa Bay Rays - After the Rays started the season off great winning 3 out of the first 5 games they as well managed to only win one game last week and as of right now are facing a 3 game losing streak. The Rays have potential to have a good week and rebound with a trip to Baltimore and a home series against Oakland. 27. Milwaukee Brewers - The Brewers like the last two teams before them only managed to win 1 game last week. The Brewers continue to struggle and it seems the acquisition of Kyle Lohse wont be enough to help them climb the NL: Central ladder. 28. Chicago White Sox - Im starting to see a trend here. The White Sox stuggles are back after starting the season 4-2 they have now went on to lose 5 straight games including being swept by Washington. 29. San Diego Padres - The Padres are another young team in the National League and with Chase Headley still out they continue to struggle they did manage to win 1 game against the Dodgers last week. Headley returned to action Monday 4-15 but I don't see him helping the Padres enough with a rough schedule this week hosting the Dodgers and Giants 30. Miami Marlins - The Marlins are a great AAA team they a rumored to face the Durham Bulls next week...... On a real note they did manage to sneak a win against the Phillies on Saturday. Now that baseball's back in full swing, we're going to start doing power rankings each week based on the teams we believe are playing the best baseball. Remember these rankings are based on the previous week of baseball, and the following weeks will be based on that plus overall performance throughout the season.
1. Atlanta Braves Minus a hiccup against the Phillies last Wednesday, the Braves are now off to their best start since 2007. Justin Upton has been scorching hot, hitting six home runs in seven games, and the Braves pitching staff accumulated a 2.29 ERA, which is second best in the league. If Atlanta keeps this up, it doesn't look like anyone can stop them from getting to the World Series. 2. Washington Nationals The Nationals have started this year the same way they did last year, winning. Despite struggling against the Reds over the weekend, the Nationals have enough fire power to remain as one of the top teams in the league. Stephen Stasburg and Gio Gonzalez have been solid in their season debuts, and Bryce Harper is showing the rest of the league why he should be the NL MVP. Harper has a .379 average, he's hit three home runs, and has 5 RBIs. 3. Texas Rangers Raise your hand if you had the Rangers off to a hot start? If you didn't it's okay because I didn't either. After brushing off an opening night loss to the lowly Astros, the Rangers have won five out of their last six, and now sit tied atop the AL West with the A's. Plus it does kinda help when Yu Darvish almost pitches a perfect game. 4. Oakland Athletics The A's are continuing to build off how they finished last season. With all the talk this offseason on the Rangers, Angels, and Mariners the Athletics have just fed off of the lack of attention and continued to perform on the field. 5. Cincinnati Reds The Reds are off to another solid start this season. With a healthy Joey Votto, and a dominant Johnny Cueto, the Reds are the team to beat in the NL Central. 6. Arizona Diamondbacks Without Justin Upton the DBacks were just going to sit around and twiddle their thumbs right? WRONG! The DBacks are off to a sizzling start, and are now tied with the Giants atop the NL West. If the DBacks can keep this kind of play up we may be looking at a three team race between the Dodgers, the Giants, and the DBacks for the NL West crown. 7. Detroit Tigers The Tigers aren't above .500 yet, but they are playing in one of the weakest divisions in the MLB. Just give this team a few weeks, I think we'll all see that this team is just as good as they were last year. 8. Los Angeles Dodgers With the payroll this team has,they have played right around where they should up to this point so far. Its a good start for the Dodgers, but it's going to take a lot more to push ahead of the Giants and the DBacks and win the NL West. 9. San Francisco Giants The defending champs got off to a rocky start but have now got into a groove and have won three in a row. It difficult for any champion to repeat, but if any team can do it the Giants may just be that team. Just think if they do it would be three titles in four years, talk about a dynasty. 10. Boston Red Sox No one had the Red Sox off to this hot start, and that includes me (see our Boston Red Sox article). If the Red Sox keep up this kind of play they may just be the surprise team of the season. 11. Colorado Rockies Speaking of teams that are surprises just take a look at the Rockies. They aren't playing great baseball, but they are winning and thats what counts. I do think this spot is way too high for the Rockies right now, but you never know, they may also shock the world. 12. New York Mets The Mets are off to a solid start once again this year. If the Mets can keep playing the way they are, they may become a thorn in Atlanta and Washington's NL East title hunt. That is if they can avoid the usual patented Mets let down that comes toward the middle of the season. 13. Chicago White Sox The White Sox are right where I predicted them to be during the preseason, the middle of the pack. This team has experience and could really make some noise if they, like a lot of teams, could put all of their pieces together. 14. St. Louis Cardinals I've learned over the years to never turn a blind eye to the Cardinals. Every time it seems that the Cardinals are down, they always find a way to prove everyone wrong. So I'm not sleeping on the Cardinals, not until atleast September that is. 15. Seattle Mariners If only King Felix could play every night, then the Mariners may have a chance. Despite his one loss Felix Hernandez has played very well to start this season. If the rest of his team steps up and plays well when he's not out, the Mariners may contend in the now loaded AL West. 16. New York Yankees Poor Yankees, your old, beaten up, and no one is giving you much of a chance. Now some might say that this is karma (I would), but you never know what can happen in a season. Plus this is the Yankees folks, something tells me they'll start doing something right soon. 17. Kansas City Royals Now this spot may be a tad too high for the Royals right now, but also as of right now they are the only team in the AL Central that is above .500. You combine that with the fact they are playing some decent baseball, they may keep moving up if they keep it up. 18. Baltimore Orioles Not a lot going for the Orioles early this season. But what else is new. This team showed us all last year that they don't play for right now, they play for October. One bright spot for the Orioles right now is Chris Davis. Davis right now is on fire and already has 18 RBIs so far. If he can keep that up and get the rest of the Orioles on board, they could make another push for the playoffs. 19. Minnesota Twins The Twins haven't been relevant in the last few years for a multitude of reasons. One of those may just be former AL MVP Joe Mauer. Maybe if he started focusing on leading his team instead of doing Head and Shoulders commercials the Twins would be in contention again. 20. Los Angeles Angels After becoming the greatest acquisition of this past offseason Josh Hamilton just hasn't lived up to his former AL MVP caliber. Right now Hamilton is averaging just .156 and isn't even a factor is most of the games for the Angels up to this point. Now all the blame can't be placed on Hamilton, Trout, Pujols, and Ianetta can all step it up too. 21. Toronto Blue Jays Toronto is another example of a team that isn't playing the way it should. I suppose unlike the Angels most of this team wasn't intact last year, but try telling that to Toronto fans. All I have to say is give it some time Blue Jays fans, Rome wasn't built overnight. 22. Tamp Bay Rays The Rays have all the pieces to contend in the AL East. They have a Cy Young winner in David Price, and a guy who knows how to win in Evan Longoria. If they can just put it all together they may be able to get back to where they should be in the AL East hunt. 23. Philadelphia Phillies What happened to the Phillies? Two years ago they were the most dominant team in baseball, and now if it wasn't for AAA Miami they would be dead last in the NL East. The good thing for the Phillies right now is that Ryan Howard is off to a hot start, and he keeps that up he may lead the Phillies back to where they used to be. 24. Chicago Cubs I just don't know what to make of the Cubs. They won two of three from the Pirates, got swept by the Braves, and now have split with the Brewers this week. If anything is true in this league it is that the Cubs are one of the most inconsistent teams in the MLB. 25. Pittsburgh Pirates The Pirates just don't have a lot of stars other than Andrew McCutchen, and right now he's not having such a good start. If the Pirates don't get someone to help out McCutchen they maybe just compete with the Cubs to see who wants to stay out of the NL Central dog house. 26. Cleveland Indians I honestly believed the Indians would have a better start than what they have had so far. With Terry Francona taking over and the Indians acquiring guys like Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher the Indians were a solid pick to contend with the Tigers in the AL Central. Hopefully this is just an early season slump, but then again, it is the Indians. 27. San Diego Padres The Padres youth just keeps kicking them in the butt. They have a few veterans, but overall this team is one of the youngest in the MLB. Until this team gains more experience, they will continue to stay at the bottom of the NL West. 28. Milwaukee Brewers The Brewers just haven't been the same team since Prince Fielder left. Although Ryan Braun has continued to be a presence, no one else has stepped up to help lead this team. Until that happens the Brewers might as well get used to battling the Cubs and Pirates for last in the NL Central. 29. Houston Astros Just when you think the Astros have something going for them, they prove they are still the same team we're all used to. After winning their season opener the Astros have dropped six in a row. It may take a miracle for the Astros to return to MLB relevance. 30. Miami Marlins This team is nothing more than a AAA team. Enough said. |