The Braves Bullpen!!!!!!!!!! YIKES!!!!!!!! (COME BACK LEO!!!!!!!!!)

Trouble brewing in the ATL. Cris Reitsma is the worst closer in the history of baseball. Where is John Rocker when you need him!!!!!

its the first game, let it ride a bit...

No man. I have been watching Reitsma for 3 years. I dont understand why Bobby keeps throwing him out there time after time.

PublicsMoney said:

Dont think that we can blame Reitsma's ineffectiveness on Leo. It comes down to Schuerholz and he never made a move in the off season to take care of this problem. Its not Mazzones problem. Leo couldnt fix Reitsma's problems last year, why would it be any different this year? :drink:

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There is some truth to this post. I love Schuerhoz alot. He has always seemed to give the bullpen backburner type treatment. This is the one thing I fault him for in all the years he has been in Atlanta. Leo cannot fix Reitsma. You are correct.

There is a reason that he has been shopped from team to team. Think the Braves will try and get to the Midway point and then they will go after a closer. Saw this kid from the Tigers today throwing gas..........99 consistently...maybe they could do a trade with someone like this and bring the young fellow along. Im gonna look up the kids name......seriously this kid looked effortless and was hitting 99 almost every pitch.....raw talent.

Full Name: Joel Martin Zumaya
Born: 11/09/1984
Birthplace: Chula Vista, CA
Height: 6'3" Weight: 210
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
College: N/A
MLB Debut: ---

2005 Career Highlights: By Year: yyyy 2005 2004 2003 2002


Second among all minor league pitchers with 199 strikeouts for Double A Erie and Triple A Toledo...second among all minor league starters with a .189 batting average against, while he was third with 11.83 strikeouts per nine innings pitched...Tabbed to Baseball America's second-team minor league all-star squad...Selected to the Eastern League's post-season all-star team for his efforts at Erie -- led all league starters with a .187 batting average against and 11.99 strikeouts per nine innings, while he was fifth with 10.48 baserunners per nine innings...tied for the league lead with four balks...Named the best pitching prospect and rated as possessing the best fastball in the Eastern League by Baseball America...Earned a spot on the U.S. Team for the Futures Game held at Comerica Park prior to Major League Baseball's All-Star Game -- tossed a scoreless inning in relief...Compiled a 2-3 record and 5.66 ERA (35.0IP/22ER) in his first seven starts of the season for Erie April 8-May 10, before posting a 6-0 and 1.62 ERA (72.1IP/13ER) over his final 11 starts for the SeaWolves May 15-July 7... Earned the win at Akron on May 26 after fanning 14 batters in 7.2 innings to garner Eastern League Pitcher of the Week honors for May 23-29... Won his final six decisions for the SeaWolves May 26-July 7, posting a 1.21 ERA (59.1IP/8ER) and 77 strikeouts over the nine-start stretch...Fanned a season-best 15 batters in a win over Harrisburg on June 5...Garnered Tigers Minor League Pitcher of the Month honors for June after posting a 3-0 record and 0.78 ERA (34.2IP/3ER) in five starts -- fanned 43 batters during the month, while limiting the opposition to a .172 batting average (21x122)...Promoted to Toledo on July 17 -- after allowing six runs in 3.1 innings that evening vs. Buffalo, he posted a 1.55 ERA (40.21IP/7ER) over his final seven starts with the Mud Hens July 23-September 3... Made one start for Toledo during the International League playoffs, taking the loss after allowing six runs in two innings...Named the second-best prospect in the Tigers organization and 10th-best prospect in the Eastern League following the season by Baseball America...Rated as possessing the best changeup in the Tigers organization following the season by Baseball America.

I was impressed......only reason I heard about this kid was because believe it or not.....Im a closet Royals fan.

Pubs$

PublicsMoney said:

There is a reason that he has been shopped from team to team. Think the Braves will try and get to the Midway point and then they will go after a closer. Saw this kid from the Tigers today throwing gas..........99 consistently...maybe they could do a trade with someone like this and bring the young fellow along. Im gonna look up the kids name......seriously this kid looked effortless and was hitting 99 almost every pitch.....raw talent.

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I dont think the Tigers are interested in trading Joel Zumaya. The last time the Tigers traded a promising rookie to Atlanta his name was John Smoltz.

Is that the truth CHOP? I never realized thats where Smoltz came from. I knew he was a Michigan St. alum.....but never knew he was in the Tigers organization.

:modemman: :thumbsup2:

Pubs:money:

Tigers send John Smoltz to Braves for Doyle Alexander (Aug. 12, 1987)ESPN.com
Alexander was the perfect hired gun for the Tigers -- the 36-year-old righty went 9-0 with a 1.53 ERA in 11 starts for Detroit, and the Tigers won the AL East pennant (they lost the ALCS in five games to the Twins, a series in which Doyle was 0-2 with a 10.00 ERA). Alexander went 20-29 over the next two seasons for Detroit, then retired.Smoltz, of course, was one of the Braves' trio of great starters (Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux are the other two) through their incredible 1990s. In 1989, his first full season as a starter, he went 12-11 with a 2.94 ERA. He's been a four-time All-Star, won the 1996 Cy Young Award, and has gone 12-4 with a 2.72 ERA in 20 postseason series. After arm troubles in 2000 and 2001, he moved to the bullpen and has become baseball's most effective closer, on pace for 60 saves in 2002.

Wow 1987 - Smoltz has been around the block a time or two

Chop you are the man when it comes to digging something up.......good stuff......man.

The Smoltz trade worked out for the Tigers, getting them the 1987 division championship. People continue to knock them for that deal but they knew they were giving up a promising player in Smoltz.

steeser said:

The Smoltz trade worked out for the Tigers, getting them the 1987 division championship. People continue to knock them for that deal but they knew they were giving up a promising player in Smoltz.

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Talk about trading your birth right for a bowl of soup.

How come people always blast the Braves for winning the division and then losing but yet you praise Detroit for trading a Hall of Famer for a 2 month wonder only to get run in the first round of the playoffs?

I'm sure if they knew what kind of career that Smoltz would have that the Tigers would not have traded him. Prospects are a roll of the dice. Sometimes you get Smoltz sometimes you get Damian Moss

Can't wait to see some more Braves bullpen tonight!

CHOPTALK said:

Talk about trading your birth right for a bowl of soup.

How come people always blast the Braves for winning the division and then losing but yet you praise Detroit for trading a Hall of Famer for a 2 month wonder only to get run in the first round of the playoffs?

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Braves set the bar higher perhaps?

CHOPTALK said:

Talk about trading your birth right for a bowl of soup.

How come people always blast the Braves for winning the division and then losing but yet you praise Detroit for trading a Hall of Famer for a 2 month wonder only to get run in the first round of the playoffs?

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I never blast the Braves for winning division titles.

If the team you were fans with had a chance to win the division title by trading a prospect who may or may not pan out, you would do it too. Sure, if they knew they were getting run out of the playoffs in the 1st round you would never do it.

In those days winning the division gave you a 1/4 chance of winning it all. But chastising a team after the fact for making the trade, when it single handedly won them the division is very results oriented thinking.