We can forget the Atlanta Braves of old. The era of the Braves of '91 that won a championship with Sid Bream chugging round third and sliding into home have long since past. Pitching, defense, and timely hitting -- the cornerstones of this franchise for the last ten years -- have seemed to vanish in place of a weak lineup and lack of the hallmark great pitching.
After losing the first two games of the series to the Florida Marlins, the Braves have fallen to 4-8 at the bottom of the NL East Division with the third worst record in all of the National League. Now, I know it's early and baseball has a 162-game season, but this is an ominous start for any team.
For the past ten years, pitching coach Leo Mazzone has relied on a group of hall of fame starters like Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, and John Smoltz, as well as the fact that whomever else he plugged in always seemed to win as well. With Smoltz converted to the team's closer and Glavine, an 18 game winner, lost to the NL East rival New York Mets, suddenly the rotation is not as daunting. Factors such as trading 18-game winners Kevin Millwood and Damien Moss to the Philadelphia Phillies and the San Francisco Giants, respectively, make the Braves the first team ever to lose three 18-game winners from the previous year.
GM John Shurholtz signed and traded for ex-Kansas City Royal ace Paul Byrd, Colorado Rockies flop Mike Hampton, and the Giants' Russ Ortiz to sure up the gaping holes in the rotation. Byrd hasn't even made a start and currently resides on the disabled list while he undergoes surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow. He is expected to miss two to four months for his recovery.
Mike Hampton hasn't started either, after being placed on the 15-day disabled list, with a strained right calf. Russ Ortiz has been the only good addition to the team so far; leading the team in starter ERA and gathering the only win by a permanent starting pitcher.
Hall of Famer Greg Maddux and youngster Jason Marquis make up the remainder of the Braves once bona-fide rotation. While Marquis has been mediocre, Maddux has been outright horrible. This week Maddux was beaten up for the third straight start, bringing his season record to 0-3 with an 11.05 ERA. The team acted quickly last week and picked up Shane Reynolds, who the Houston Astros released earlier this year. Ultimately, if Maddux is not bringing it to the ballpark, there is no way Atlanta has a chance this year.
The demise of last year's stellar bullpen is also another reason to sense a dramatic drop-off for the Braves. Last year's bullpen is said to have been one of the best in history with Chris Hammond, 22-year old Tim Spooneybarger, Mike Remlinger, and Smoltz. Hammond pitched in over 60 games with a 0.95 ERA and Smoltz was in position to challenge the Major League saves record of 57.
All three setup men bolted during the off-season, with Hammond and Remlinger signing as free agents with other clubs and Spooneybarger being traded to the Marlins. Now Leo Mazzone is left to piece back together his bullpen with another bunch of journeymen and young players.
Not only is the team pitching poorly, but it is playing the worst defense in the year. The squad has committed a Major League-high 15 errors and holds the worst fielding percentage in all of baseball as well. Part of the problem is the new addition of Robert Fick at first base. Fick is a young hitter who was brought in to provide speed and offense to this rather old lineup and to replace Julio Franco as the starting first basemen. He has yet to find his way at the plate, but he has also committed two errors at first base, creating a dangerously error-prone infield.
Another team to fall from back down to earth this week was the Arizona Diamondbacks. After co-ace Curt Schilling's loss to the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday, the team was 2-9. Both Schilling and Randy Johnson have a record of 0-2 after three starts with ERAs of 5.40 and 8.31, respectively. The Schilling and Johnson duo could not last forever. This might be the year that both of these great pitching organizations crumble, especially if Maddux, Schilling, and Johnson do not get their acts in order.
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