This is tough to say. I've been a Braves fan since 1995 (when I was 7), and I have enjoyed quite a few successful seasons to date. You can call me a bandwagon-jumper if you want, but I was 7 and had brothers that were Braves fans. Anyway, over the past few seasons, I have watched the Braves fail, even though it had to happen at some point. However, everyone has been continually told that the Braves still have the team and the farm system to rebound effectively and quickly. So what happens, 2006 sees a team without a bullpen fall to 79-83, and last season saw a team without a 3, 4, or 5 starter finish 84-78. This season, Wren and the front office said everything was okay because we added Kotsay to play center, Glavine to help the rotation, and Mike Hampton would be back. Unfortunately, things haven't quite worked out as the Braves enter tonight at 32-32. Why? Well, let me tell you.
First the franchise is stuck in the past. In the 1990's, the Braves had Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, and John Smoltz leading a superb rotation, and unfortunately, in the late 2000's, the Braves are constructing the same rotation. Now, Smoltz I understand. He's been a horse since returning to the rotation, and he has been a definite ace. Yet, at age 41, you had to know that he wouldn't last forever. Unfortunately, he is now out of the season and probably the rest of eternity. As for Glavine, I was not extremely happy with the pick-up, but I understood it. So far this season, Glavine (except for the injury) has been as expected, but he won't go past 6 innings and usually not more than 5. Now, rumors swirl about Maddux coming back. The problem with getting Maddux and Glavine is that they won't help in the future, as this is probably their last seasons (Maddux might pitch more). In the 90's, they traded for Maddux because he was young and good, but in this decade, the Braves haven't really done that with the exception of Hudson (but they didn't have the good, young base to go with him like Smoltz and Glavine were for Maddux). I'm glad to hear the Braves are thinking about a young arm that they can control for a few years. As for Hampton, anyone who legitimately thought he could contribute was on happy pills. Now, he probably won't make it back. Truth be told, we should have bitten the bullet and released him years ago. He could have been someone else's problem. To correct this problem, the Braves need an impact trade to bring in a good, young pitcher with great stuff, not good (Harang, Snell, Francis, Greinke, Harden (if healthy)).
In the lineup, things look much younger, brighter. Players like McCann and Franceour give hope for things to come. Yet, this offseason, the Braves traded away a good young arm in Joey Devine for Mark Kotsay. Somehow, even if Kotsay had a career year, his year wouldn't have been a whole lot better than Josh Anderson or Gregor Blanco's, but chances are they would have been healthier. They also would have added much needed speed that would help in close games. The Braves are still stuck in the past where grabbing a cheaper veteran was better than giving a young guy a try. Now, the Braves are stuck with playing Blanco and Anderson, and they've done fairly well. As for the mediocrity, I am watching the Braves game now against the Cubs, and in the first two innings, they had men on third with less than two outs and didn't get him home (the first time they did, but they struck out twice before Greg Norton hit a home run). Why? Because Frenchy and Tex were trying to hit the moon. If you have a man on first and third with no outs in the first inning, hit into the double play and get the run home. It was lucky Norton hit the home run. I would rather get the run home and get two outs. All a strikeout does is put Tex in a tough spot. The Braves simply haven't been doing the small things (bunting, moving runners over, getting runners on 3rd home with less than 2 outs, making routine plays (KELLY!), etc.). I feel most of the players are waiting for Chipper (the 1999 edition) to take care of everything, and even though he's played extremely well, he still has a 36-year old body. The new kids and Teixeira have to quit expecting Chipper to take care of everything. Their play in no better word: mediocre.
Another thing that has led to their play is the bullpen. Honestly, I can't complain about the bullpen because it has been good until late. Yet, when the Braves trade Adam LaRoche, they get a reliever who will pitch at most 80 games (Mike Gonzalez pitched 18) instead of getting Ian Snell, who would help solve our starting pitching problems. Bullpens are generally inconsistent, and no one knows what will happen year-to-year with effectiveness and health. I think bullpens are the reason that dynasties are gone from the sport. It's why we see different World Series champions every year. To win, you need a good one to hold leads or keep the game close. Even though they only pitch 3-4 innings a game, a bad bullpen can ruin a team. Honestly, 3-4 innings is quite a chunk of the game especially as the modern day starter is content with getting through only five innings. Joey Devine, although he won't keep this up, is a great young arm with closer-type stuff that we shouldn't have gotten rid of for a broken-down center fielder that we had competent substitutes for anyway. Bullpen arms can be found throughout the farm system, and instead of paying a million or two for a decent bullpen guy is a bit much.
The Braves are still stuck back thinking on the glory days of Maddux, Smoltz, Glavine, Chipper, Javy, Galarraga, and McGriff. If you don't believe me, then why bring back Glavine and Javy? Why think about bringing back Maddux? It's because you think about the glory days and returning to them. Unfortunately, the only to return is to build a young, talented rotation (Reyes and Jurrjens are a good start; Morton should be next) and for the young position guys to take on more responsibility. The quicker we learn the quicker we can celebrate Chipper's retirement instead of dreading it. I hate saying this, especially with 90+ games left, but their play has left me with no choice.
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