Tag: Atlanta Braves

NORTH PORT, FL – The past several months have not been good for Ozzie Alpes. The guy who threw him at first base left for Los Angeles. The man with whom he teamed up in the middle field left for Chicago. Somewhere in between, he lost 102 games including the playoffs due to injuries and had to watch from the bench as the Braves went from World Series champions to a first-round exit against the Phillies — enough to test the youngster’s perpetually positive spirit. “It was a little annoying,”…

NORTH PORT, FL. – After his first non-rehab regular season in three years, and countless hours of work to finally get back to the point where he was going to come to Braves spring training with no strings attached and vying for a job, Michael Soroka couldn’t believe it. The night before driving to Florida to go to camp early, my left hamstring hurt. This was after he flew to Atlanta from his home in Calgary, Canada, and played catch on February 12 with recently retired former Braves reliever Darren…

There is an old adage in football, “If you have two quarterbacks, you will have neither.” Whether or not it is accurate is now certainly debatable, but one thing is certain: This axiom does not apply to baseball players, especially in today’s game. At a time when many teams are itching for a top-notch catcher, the Braves had two, after trading Sean Murphy from Oakland in December to pair with returning veteran Travis d’Arnaud, last season’s first All-Star. In the new MLB Network rankings, Murphy is fourth and Darno seventh,…

For the Braves players, and for the many fans who grew up watching Freddie Freeman play first base in Atlanta for 11 seasons, it was hard to imagine the team without him. That is, until he left as a free agent at the start of 2022 spring training, just days after Atlanta rejected his agent contract demands and moved to starting linebacker Matt Olson, who was acquired by trade from Oakland. All the Braves did was win 101 games — 13 more regular season wins than the 2021 World Series…

Its 6-foot runway height seems generous, even on cleats. And listening to Spencer Stryder speak—low, thoughtful, philosophical, technical—or looking at him from the waist up offers no idea what he becomes when he steps on a pitcher’s mound. Totally dominant. Very confident. Punishing force, with some skill – that little spin on his landing foot as he kicks his right leg up and across his body on a floor he seems to know is a jab that won’t be hit. The Braves have more first-class pedigree, Cy Young and Hall…