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Who are these guys? There have been quite a few changes to the Braves lineup due to retirement, age and injuries. They started the season with a 12-1 run, including wins in the last ten games of that streak, before coming back to Earth a bit. A 1-0 loss to the Royals started their current stretch, during which they are 5-9, and they have one more game vs. Washington before the Mets come to town. Their offense is an odd mix of hitters who are killing the ball and guys who look like they should lose their jobs to Mike Glavine.
So who are these guys?
1B – Freddie Freeman is not the trombone player in the Miles Davis Nonet. He is a pretty good lefthanded hitter and, as a fielder, he gets to a lot of balls (1st in the league in range factor for 2011 and 2012) and makes a few more errors as a result. He missed 15 days with a strained oblique, but is back and should start all three games in the cleanup spot.
Freeman .300/1/12; OBP.386; SLG .400
2B - Dan Uggla is not the real name of the Swedish Chef. He is a mediocre fielding (being kind, here), low average hitter with good power who strikes out a lot. Same as he ever was. His BA is preposterous, but he walked over 90 times last year and is on a similar pace this year.
Uggla .163/4/8; OBP .287; SLG .314
SS – Andrelton Simmons is not a consulting firm that specializes in Six Sigma compliance. He is a terrific defensive shortstop who doesn’t hit much, doesn’t walk much, and rarely steals. He often hits second in the lineup, because somebody has to.
Simmons .231/2/9; OBP .287; SLG .319
3B – Juan Francisco is not the smooth talking sidekick to the somehow flawed detective in an ABC show from the 1970s. He is getting most of the time at third base since Chipper Jones was put out to stud, and is clearly not the biggest problem in the Braves offense. He often bats eighth, behind two guys hitting under .140. Chris Johnson, who is having an excellent season at the plate, may get a start here.
Francisco .284/4/11; OBP.314; SLG .478
C. Johnson .369/2/9; OBP .391; SLG .524
LF – Justin Upton is not a midfielder for Arsenal. He is crushing the ball this year, posting an OPS+ of 200. The trade that brought Upton and Chris Johnson over from Arizona has probably kept the Braves from being a .500 team this year.
J. Upton .299/12/19; OBP .400; SLG .722
CF – B.J. Upton is not a Page 3 girl who briefly dated Ed Sheeran. He is a recent free agent who signed a 5 year/$75 million dollar contract to play alongside his brother, and which is, in the early stages, proving to be an investment as savvy as sinking the family fortune into Amalgamated Inkwell stock. His average is ridiculous, he has fanned 34 times in 106 AB, and his real name is Melvin.
B.J. Upton .138/3/5; OBP .219; SLG .266
RF – Jason Heyward was not in the Moody Blues, but his performance this year is giving them to his manager. He is currently on the DL following an emergency appendectomy, and Jordan Schaefer and Reed Johnson will likely get the starts during the Mets series.
Heyward .121/2/5; OBP .261; SLG .259
Schaefer .300/0/2; OBP .432; SLG .333
R. Johnson .194/0/0; OBP .242; SLG .323
C – Evan Gattis is not a guy raised in the suburbs of Durham, NC making records about how country he is. He has gone through some severe drug, alcohol and depression issues and is doing a terrific job as the primary catcher in the absence of Brian McCann. This is his first major league stint at age 26, and he should hang on the roster once McCann returns.
Gattis .241/6/16; OBP .299; SLG .544
SP (game 1) – Mike Minor did not play the boyfriend on Petticoat Junction. Well, he did, but not this Mike Minor. Hell, he’d be 73 years old, even older than Scott Atchison. In any case, he has four pitches that he mixes in, one of which is a mediocre fastball. He has only issued five walks in six starts, and is death to lefties this year (2/23, 0 BB, 8K) despite no such split in years past. If this holds Ike may have a chance to look worse than he has been. He will be facing Shawn Marcum.
Minor 3-2, 3.13; 27 K; 0.98 WHIP
SP (game 2) – Julio Teheran is not the leading figure in the burgeoning Iranian Salsa scene. He is a 22 year old righthanded starter that has been getting hit around pretty good this season, yet has managed to slip the hook every time. He is 4-9 as a hitter, so there’s that. He will be facing Jon Niese.
Teheran 1-0, 5.08; 20 K; 1.66 WHIP
SP (game 3) – Tim Hudson’s brother was not married to Goldie Hawn. He only seems to have been around since the days of Laugh-In. Since he missed most of the 2009 season he has come back as a reliable, well above average starter. He is 15-10, 3.60 lifetime vs. the Mets, and his turn always seems to come up when the Mets and Braves meet. He is also a good hitter, and this season is 6/15 with a double and a home run. He will be facing Matt Harvey in one of the best matchups of the early season.
Hudson 3-1, 3.86; 24 K; 1.20 WHIP
Bench – Gerald Laird is the backup catcher, and he hits a bit. Chris Johnson, who filled in for Freeman during his absence, or Francisco will be available depending upon who starts at 3B. Schaefer (L) and Reed Johnson (R) will probably platoon in RF, so the other will be on the bench. Tyler Pastornicky and Ramiro Pena are backup infielders, and that’s enough about them.
Bullpen – Johnny Venters is on the DL, but the rest of the guys in the pen are having good seasons. Their ERA+ numbers tell the story – Craig Kimbrel (240, with 9 saves), Cory Gearrin (276), Eric O’Flaherty (261, with a 0.78 WHIP), Jordan Walden (240) Anthony Varvaro (326!) and Luis Avilan (150, the slacker). Somebody named David Carpenter is also out there, probably to carry the Hello Kitty backpack. He was just called up to replace Luis Ayala on the roster. Ayala was disabled with an anxiety disorder, which was probably not exacerbated by the thought of having to face the Mets.
Not pictured: Starters Paul Maholm and Kris Medlen will not likely be facing the Mets, barring injury or another 15 inning extravaganza.
Ex-Mets on the Braves: With Ayala on the DL the only ex-Met in uniform is pitching coach Roger McDowell. Dave Wallace is their Coordinator of Pitching, which probably means ‘guy to finish out the season should McDowell get fired.’
Ex-Braves on the Mets: Despite a long tradition of Mets-Braves overlap on the back of baseball cards, I don’t see a single occurrence. Ricky Bones played in Milwaukee, where the Braves used to play. That’s all I got. Please feel free to correct these skimpy lists should I have missed anyone.
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