Kuzul

If there’s a manager in major league baseball that can inspire a team to play above the negative energy that comes with losing a team leader, it’s Bobby Cox.

Since the season-ending injury to the Atlanta Braves’ sure-to-be Hall of Famer, Chipper Jones, the team has won six of their last eight games.

The long time Braves manager has his team playing tremendous baseball. They’re playing with a certain sense of motivation and swagger.

But don’t think for a second that Jones is pouting on the bench asking, “Why me?” He is surely giving his teammates any pointers and keen insight he may have on opposing teams and pitchers.

The Braves can’t replace Chipper Jones on the field. They can merely do their best to try to fill his shoes. And the effort is not going unnoticed.

The Braves, who lead all of baseball in walk-off wins, continue to get big hits in clutch situations, capping their most recent final-at-bat victory with a Jason Heyward RBI single.

Team batting average leader, Martin Prado, has returned from his DL stint without skipping a beat. Prado has a chance to capture the batting title at the end of the season.

The starting pitching staff continues to prove that they are one of the best rotations in baseball with a combined 3.53 ERA, including rookie Mike Minor.

Producing runs hasn’t seemed to be a problem as the Braves have outscored their opponents 43 to 17 in Jones’ absence. Their home record of 44-17 is the Major League best.

As if continuing to play consistent baseball isn’t enough, the remaining schedule is very favorable for the Braves. Of the 12 series they have left, only three of those teams have a record over .500.

Not enough can be said about the moves that GM Frank Wren has been making this season.

Newly acquired Brave Derrek Lee is sure to add some pop to the middle of an already solid Braves lineup. The former Cubbie favorite has been praised by former managers and players for his leadership, work ethic, and clubhouse traits, and will surely add a surge to a team looking to lock up the NL East.

Cox and the rest of the coaching staff have their work cut out for them if they want to find their way into yet another postseason, as the Philadelphia Phillies have been playing excellent baseball of late, trailing the Braves by only a couple of games.

Sure, the backbone of the Atlanta Braves might be broken, but the brain of the team hasn’t stopped the heart from beating.

Keep an eye on the NL East race. It’s going to be a doozy.

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With the news breaking on Thursday that Chipper Jones was done for the 2010 season and, potentially, his career with a torn ACL, the Braves found themselves without some sense of certainty at the hot corner for the first time in nearly sixteen years.

Mark Twain once said: “A round man cannot be expected to fit in a square hole right away.  He must have time to modify his shape.”

But, you know what?

The Braves don’t have any men that are really square enough to fit into the hole left behind by the veteran switch-hitter…no one’s had to be shaped into that mold with the stature of the 38-year-old Jones.

And they don’t have the time to allow one of their round pegs to modify their shape.

So, the question for the Braves right now is simple: Who is going to be thrust into the square hole at third base?

On the waiver wire, names like Chone Figgins, Edwin Encarnacion, and Jose Lopez would all have to pass through all of the American League and the majority of the National League before the Braves would have an opportunity to claim them (and, even then, trade partners would likely have pretty high demands since they would know the Braves’ desperation).

And since the options down on the farm don’t exactly scream “excitement,” (Brandon Hicks, though an amazing talent in the field, lacks the bat to play regularly in the Majors; Wes Timmons is a 30-year-old career Minor Leaguer with a .964 FLD% in 104 games at third in AAA; Freddie Freeman is an amazing option if Troy Glaus moves to third…but Glaus’ running is painful to watch, so I’d imagine that his defense at the hot corner would induce a similar effect; Joe Thurston has posted a .255/.303/.376 line at AAA with the majority of his time coming at 2B) we’ll focus on the three big names currently on the big league roster 

Brooks Conrad, despite his occasional defensive brilliance and title of “Captain Clutch,” is best utilized as a bench player (at least for the time being) and has struggled when given starting opportunities in 2010 (as would be expected from a guy that has a mindset of “hack, hack, hack”).

So I think we can eliminate him from the list of contenders right off the bat (although he will, in my opinion, be a valuable asset off the bench to fill in at 2B and 3B down the stretch in the scenario I will reveal momentarily).

So, that leaves Omar Infante and the soon-to-be activated Martin Prado as the two candidates for the hot corner (with the other playing second base…so we’ll run with this theory).

Prado has shown great improvement with the glove at second base with increased playing time, but UZR likes Prado as a third baseman (3.2) more than as a second baseman (-10.1)…that’s not to say that UZR is the be-all, end-all of all types of defensive profiling–it’s just going to be our base for comparison here.

And while UZR doesn’t love Omar Infante at second (-2.5), the way things would swing with Prado at third (where Omar is at 1.0), the Braves would be at their best defensively.

And by phrasing that last paragraph in the way I did…I’ll go ahead and cut to the chase and say that I think that Martin Prado should be the Atlanta Braves’ third baseman when he returns from the disabled list sometime at the beginning of next week.

So, that brings us to our next question concerning this new-ish (since Chipper has been on-and-off the DL for years now) issue: How does the line-up set-up now?

After all, the Braves just lost the guy that’s been batting third in the line-up since 2005 (the year after JD Drew left Atlanta) and no one, obviously, has much experience being “that guy.”

In that spot, you, ideally, want a guy that’s going to be hitting for a fairly high average with a ton of doubles and a ton of hard line drives to move guys first-to-third for the four- and five guys.

With the choices at hand, you have to like Jason Heyward and Martin Prado…Heyward for the ability to hit balls hard all over the field and Prado for his average and gap power.

With those two guys/thoughts in mind, this is the line-up I’d put on the field if I were a grumpy old man with a No. 6 on my back (joke):

Since four-through-eight here is largely unchanged, I’ll offer a fairly brief explanation of why I chose the 1-2-3 punch that I listed for the Braves.

By sliding Prado into the three-hole, even though Jason Heyward will likely have that spot in 2011, you give a nice doubles-hitter two very nice OBP guys in front of him and a pretty strong home run threat directly behind him. 

While the presence of Chipper Jones in the middle of the line-up was nice, this line-up loses virtually nothing in terms of offense (Chipper’s line for ’10 will go down in the books at .265/.381/.426) besides a name.

It’ll be sad if this is indeed the end of Chipper Jones‘ career, and the hole he (potentially) leaves behind pertaining to leadership and “plate presence” will be tough to replace.

But, even though the Braves are in the thick of a playoff race and will be forced to do some “on the job training” with whoever takes over the third base job, this team is equipped to move up, up, and away into the future.

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The 2010 MLB offseason definitely will be known as one of the busiest in terms of managerial moves and firings. Some the of the games best might call it quits and it will certainly be the end of an era in baseball. 

We’ve already had a pair of managers who seem very much safe in the Royals’ Ned Yost and Orioles’ Buck Showalter.

Come Opening Day 2011, we will have seen a 60 percent of the managers from the 2010 Opening Day, an amazing and shocking drop from 40 percent. 

The offseason will feature many moves and hirings that will be the start of new eras in ball clubs around baseball and here are those managers on the fringe:

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Matt Diaz deserves to be the every day starting left fielder for the Atlanta Braves.  His batting skills have earned it for him.  If he plays everyday in left, the Braves have a better chance to win the NL East. 

The Braves haven’t had a regular left fielder since the days of Ryan Klesko.  That’s so long ago Jason Heyward was in the second grade. Being a left fielder in Atlanta is about as safe as being the defense against the dark arts teacher at Hogwarts. No player has held down the starting position in left for 13 seasons. 

The one-and-done fill-ins have included the immortal likes of Garrett Anderson, Gregor Blanco, Ryan Langerhans, Kelly Johnson, Charles Thomas, B.J. Surhoff, Reggie Sanders, and Gerald Williams.  The only pseudo-stability occurred when they put a third baseman, Chipper Jones, in left from 2002-2003.  This was a complete disater, not only because of Chipper’s fielding but because Vinny Castilla provided nothing in his stead at third base.

Matt Diaz had the job for a spell in 2007, but injury prevented him form securing it again in 2008.  He deserves a second chance. 

The Braves acquired Diaz from the Royals in December 2005. Up to that point, Diaz had only played in 58 career games.  No one really knew what he could do.  Bobby Cox gave him a chance as a platoon player in the outfield.  Since then Diaz has done nothing but hit. 

In 470 games as a Brave, Diaz has produced a .314/.361/.466 batting line.  This includes two seasons in which he was injured and his production severely decreased.

In his three full seasons, Diaz produced an OPS+ of 114, 123 and 133 (OPS+ is a measure of how far above the league average OPS—set at 100—a player is). 

Diaz is clearly an improving, above average hitter.  He is certainly better than the Braves’ other left field prospects at this time, Melky Cabrera (.259/.319/.355) and Nate McLouth (.169/.282/.268).  Putting these two players in the lineup is not much better than having another pitcher hitting in the eighth spot. 

Since returning form the disabled listed on June 29th, Diaz has hit .378 with an OPS of 1.182.  He hit home runs in three straight games and has a hit in every game he’s started since returning. 

One knock against Diaz has been his fielding.  But Diaz has actually shown improvement in his fielding for four straight years. 

Baseball-Reference uses a formula to calculate the number of runs a player is better or worse than an average fielder.  Diaz’s last four years (staring in 2007) are -5, -2, 0 and 2.  The evidence suggests Diaz has worked diligently to improve his defense.

Bobby Cox uses Diaz in a platoon split, only allowing him to start against left-handed pitchers.  But in 2007, when Diaz got to play more in left because of injuries, he hit .318 against righties.  Diaz simply hasn’t had enough of a chance to establish himself against right-handers.  If given a chance to face them and adapt, he may well increase his batting prowess against right-handed pitching.

The same thing happened to Ryan Klesko in Atlanta.  He platooned and never started against lefties.  Then he was traded to San Diego, started everyday, hit just fine against lefties, and became an All-Star.

Allowing Matt Diaz to start everyday in left field gives the Braves the best chance to win.  He is much better than the current versions of Cabrera and McLouth.  Over his five seasons in Atlanta he has proven himself to be an accomplished hitter and an improving fielder.  He has earned the opportunity to provide Atlanta with some stability in left field.

I appreciate all feeback in the comments section or on “The Twitter” at twitter.com/ryanvooris.

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Two of the best managers in this era of baseball will be retiring at the end of this 2010 season—the Atlanta Braves Bobby Cox and the Chicago Cubs Lou Piniella.

Both managers were great beginning their careers around the same time in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Piniella with the New York Yankees and Cox with the Atlanta Braves.

Piniella or “Sweet Lou” as he was called both for his sweet swing as a major league hitter and facetiously to describe his demeanor less than sweet demeanor on the field. Piniella ranks 14th all-time on the list of managerial wins with 1,784-1,639 record. 

Piniella managed the Yankees (1986-1988), Reds (1990-1992), Mariners (1993-2002), Rays (2003-2005) and the Cubs (2007-2010). He was a three-time Manager of the Year in 1995 and 2001 with the Mariners and again in 2008 with the Cubs. Perhaps his greatest managerial accomplishment—winning the World Series with the Cincinnati Reds in 1990.

Lou was well known for his on-field antics, arguing with umpires too times to count.

While with the Mariners he led them to a record tying 116 wins in 2001 before the team was eliminated in the ALCS to the Yankees. Piniella was then “traded” to the Devil Rays after the 2002 season while the Mariners received outfielder Randy Winn as compensation.

Piniella managed the Rays to a then franchise record 70 win season.

Yet he eventually stepped down as the manager after the 2005 season making his return with the Chicago Cubs in 2007 after signing a three year contract in the 2006 offseason.

In his second season with the Cubs he led them to the playoffs with the best record in the NL only to lose in the ALDS to the Dodgers.

Lou Piniella will go down as one of the top managers in baseball history.

Bobby Cox began his managing career with the Atlanta Braves in 1978 replacing Dave Bristol just prior to the 1978 season.

Under Cox the Braves struggled the first two years but was able to finish about .500 in 1980 for the first time since 1972. Yet Cox was fired the following season after the strike.

He moved on to the Toronto Blue Jays helping the team to a first place finish in AL East only to watch his team lose the ALCS to the Royals in Game Seven.

Cox returned to the Atlanta Braves following the 1985 season as general manager but could not stay away from the field as he fired manager Russ Nixon in June 1990 and appointed himself as manager.

The 1991 season was a big turnaround for the Braves rocketing from last place in 1990 to first place in 1991, making the World Series only to lose to the Minnesota Twins.

The Braves continued to win 15 division titles in a row, a major league record for a manager.

The only disappointment for Cox during the stretch was his inability to turn division titles into championships. The Braves’ only World Series title came in 1995.

Regardless, Cox has been named Manager of the Year four times (1985, 1991, 2004, 2005).

Like Piniella, he was known for his on field actions as he leads MLB managers in games ejected.

Yet he is also the Braves all-time wins leader and is the fourth winningest manager in major league history. Cox is only trailing Connie Mack, John McGraw and Tony LaRussa on the career wins list as a manager.

Bobby Cox is arguably one of the top five managers of all time.

Both Cox and Piniella mangers will be remembered and missed by the game of baseball and the fans.

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The unofficial halfway point of the 2010 baseball season was culminated by the National League’s 3-1 win of the All-Star game on Tuesday night. In addition to the game acting as a celebration of baseball itself, the All-Star break often serves as an opportune time to reflect on a team’s position in the standings and what it can realistically achieve going forward. 

Which teams will be buyers or sellers at the July 31st trade deadline?

What prospects will be called up that can make a difference for their respective team?

How will major injuries play a role the rest of the way?

These are questions asked by all 30 teams this time of year.

Some teams have greatly overachieved—San Diego Padres—while others have  underachieved—Seattle Mariners.

As of July 11 (the last day of regular season games before the break) the Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, San Diego Padres, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, and Texas Rangers were all in first place of their respective divisions. The Tampa Bay Rays currently hold the lead in the AL Wild Card race while the Rockies sit atop the Wild Card in the NL.

Which of these teams are for real and which have the best chance of faltering down the stretch?

Let’s break each National League contender:

Atlanta Braves

Five Game Lead in NL East

Strengths: Starting rotation, Closer

With the return of Jair Jurrjens from a severe hamstring injury that sidelined him for most of the first half, the Braves starting pitching staff looks about as solid as it did since the days of Maddox, Glavine, and Smoltz.

While Jurrjens may not have been stellar in his first two starts back from the disabled list prior to the break, he rounds out the rotation in a way that makes Atlanta dangerous any day of the week.

Meanwhile, Tommy Hanson has proven that he will not be intimidated by the responsibility of being the ace of a staff. And at 9-4 with a 2.30 ERA, Tim Hudson is making a huge case to win the National League’s Comeback Player of the Year Award.

However, Hudson could be competing with teammate Billy Wagner for the award when all is said and done. Wagner has saved 20 games in 23 opportunities and currently holds a 1.21 ERA after returning from Tommy John surgery in the second half of the 2009 season.

Weaknesses: Lineup

While it seemed to be clicking during May and early June, the Atlanta lineup is too inconsistent to invest any true confidence in it.

Chipper Jones, who contemplated retirement earlier this year, has sadly proven that he is simply a shell of himself at this point of his career.

Troy Glaus, and the surprising Eric Hinske, have cooled off significantly since last month.

Melky Cabrera has proven that he is nothing more than a fourth outfielder. This comes as even worse news to the currently injured Nate McClouth who lost the job to Cabrera before suffering a concussion and being put on the disabled list in early June.

And while rookie outfielder Jason Heyward has had a solid year so far, batting .251 with 11 home runs and 45 RBI, even he has proven that the expectations set for him at the beginning of the year were simply unfair.

For Real?: Yes

Despite the inconsistency of the starting lineup, the starting pitching has to make one feel very good about Atlanta’s chances. In the analysis of the starting lineup, I also failed to mention the surprising production from second baseman Martin Prado and the continued leadership of catcher Brian McCann. Plus the recent addition of short stop Alex Gonzalez.

With a four game lead in the East coming back from the break, the Atlanta Braves could definitely hold on here in the second half of Manger Bobby Cox’s final season.

Cincinnati Reds

Half Game Lead in NL Central

Strengths: Lineup

This year’s Reds lineup has the people who constantly pick Cincinnati to win the Central year after year finally smiling.

Led by first baseman Joey Votto, who had a career first half (.314 AVG, 22 HR, 60 RBI), the Reds have become a sort of Murders Row of the Midwest in 2010.

Third baseman Scott Rolen and outfielder Johnny Gomes have each revived their ability to hit for power in the tiny Great American Ballpark, while second baseman Brandon Phillips seems to have found a home in the leadoff spot.

With complimentary players such as Orlando Cabrera, Jay Bruce (did anyone think Bruce would ever be considered a “complimentary player”?), and rookie Drew Stubbs filling the holes in the lineup between the big three power threats, the Cincinnati lineup is undoubtedly the most dangerous in the National League Central.

Weaknesses: Starting rotation

No offense to Bronson Arroyo, but I don’t see him as the ace that a team needs to be considered a legitimate playoff team.

While the Reds starting lineup may be enough to carry the team to the playoffs, great pitching is what wins championships. The St. Louis Cardinals (a half game the Reds in the NL Central) have a 1-2-3 punch in its starting rotation with Wainwright, Carpenter, and Garcia.

Johnny Cueto, Mike Leake, and Travis Wood may look nice in a starting rotation right now and almost certainly will be excellent pieces in years to come, but are the Reds going to be able to count on the three youngsters down the stretch as the pressure begins to build? Maybe. But most likely not.

Aaron Harang’s regression and the uncertainty of Edinson Volquez’s health don’t bode well for Cincy either.

For Real?: No

It is tough to say Cincinnati won’t make the playoffs when so much progress seems to have been made. But can the Reds really outlast the tested Cardinals for the rest of the season?

Inexperience and manager Dusty Baker’s mishandling of the bullpen will ultimately lead to Cincinnati’s 2010 demise.

San Diego Padres

Two Game Lead in NL West

Strengths: Bullpen, Starting rotation

The Padres have done it the right way so far. Their overall ERA at the break was at 3.25, while their bullpen ERA is down to 2.66. As a matter of fact, San Diego currently has only one pitcher in the bullpen with an ERA over 3.00.

Talk about amazing pitching.

And the Padres need every bit of it, because their offense is certainly nothing to speak of.

With 24 saves in 27 chances and a 1.88 ERA, Heath Bell has established himself as a leader of the team, despite trade rumors earlier in the year. However, those rumors have since ceased, as it appears the Pad’s may be buyers rather than sellers over the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, youngsters such as Wade Leblanc and Matt Latos have pitched very admirably while veterans such as Jon Garland and Kevin Correia have anchored the rotation.

It’s tough to say that Leblanc, Latos, and even Gregerson out of the bullpen will keep up this torid pace. However, it’s easy to say that it has been these pitchers that have gotten San Diego this far.

Weaknesses: Lineup

Think of the Padre starting lineup for a second.

Now, unless you live in southern California, can you name any starter besides All-Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez?

Exactly.

The Padres currently rank 12th in the National League in runs scored (376) and 14th in batting average (.250). Imagine how putrid those numbers would be without Adrian Gonzalez’s 56 runs driven in and .301 batting average.

To reiterate, pitching usually wins you championships. But that’s not taking into consideration an offense as weak as San Diego’s.  

Simply put, the Pad’s better trade for someone to protect Gonzalez soon or they will fall.

For Real?: No

Put an asterisk next to that “no”. The Padres are still very much a legitimate threat to make the playoffs, and very well may have enough gas in the tank to win the Wild Card.

But the Rockies seem to be getting their act back together. And since 2007, the Padres know all too well that their position in first place will be in serious jeopardy until the day they are playing Game One of the Division Series.

Colorado Rockies

Half Game Lead NL Wild Card

Strengths: Lineup

The Rockies currently rank second in the National League for both runs scored and batting average.

The recipe is simple when it comes to the offense—a lineup filled with young studs and sprinkled with experienced veterans.

In Colorado, former forces such as Jason Giambi and Todd Helton are there to guide the young bats of Troy Tulowitzki, Carlos Gonzalez, and Ian Stewart for a perfect combo of contact, power, speed, and defense.  

Weaknesses: Starting rotation

The Rockies currently rank in the middle of the pack for starting pitching with an average 4.12 ERA—that’s 10th in the National League. Certainly not good, but not terrible when you consider their offense.

However, if you remove Ubaldo Jimenez’s career year (2.20 ERA, 15-1, 113 SO), the team’s starting ERA shoots all the way up to 4.75. That would be 15th in the National League. In addition, the Colorado starters not named Jimenez have only accumulated 15 wins total. That’s the same amount of wins that Jimenez has himself.

The Rockies are rarely mentioned as real buyers when it comes to the July 31 trade deadline. However, unless Jeff Francis and Aaron Cook decide to really step up their game, or unless Jorge De La Rosa pitches to his perceived potential in the second half, Colorado must make a move to bolster that rotation.

For Real?:  Yes

The Rockies have something on their side that most teams currently vying for the NL Wild Card spot do not have—experience in pennant races.

We’ve seen Colorado pull off some pretty lofty feats before when it comes to making the playoffs. Despite the push from teams such as the Giants and Mets, expect Colorado to hold on and not only claim the Wild Card, but perhaps make a run at the National League West.

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At the end of the season, legend Bobby Cox will finally retire and hand the Braves over to another manager. The Braves would love to send him off with another World Series Title.

Last night in the All-Star game, Braves catcher Brian McCann could have helped them in a very crucial way.

As we all know, the game decides home field advantage in the World Series, and that’s what it is: an advantage.

After driving in three runs on a double, not only did he become the first person in All-Star Game history to bring in three runs on a non home run, but he also locked the home field for the National League.

That National League team in the World Series could be the Braves.

Heading into the second half of the season, the Braves are four games ahead of the New York Mets for lead of their division and have their eyes set on a World Series.

The team that won so many division titles in a row has struggled to get deep into the playoffs recently, but have high hopes for this October.

However, it won’t be easy.

With the Phillies and the Mets, both very talented teams, it’s going to be a tough ride to even get to October. If they plan to do so, Jason Heyward needs to come back from his injury and return to the great hitter that he was in the beginning of the season.

Heyward is a key player for the Braves as they plan to make a title run.

As for pitching, Atlanta is led by Tim Hudson and Derek Lowe, who both have nine wins this season.

The Braves do have the core of a team to make it all the way, and with McCann’s double last night, the seventh game would be in Atlanta.

A World Championship to cap off a legendary career by Bobby Cox. Sounds good to me.

Originally Written By Collin O’Connor on ( www.sportshaze.com )

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Originally posted at The Bravesologist

This season, the Atlanta Braves are in first place despite getting close to no offensive production from their shortstop and center-field positions.

Their rookie right fielder, while productive for the first two months, has been a weak spot since the beginning June when Jason Heyward first injured his thumb.

To top it off, the right-handed portion of their left-field platoon has been injured for a majority of the season.

Most teams would be buried if two talents like Nate McLouth and Yunel Escobar flopped in the first half, but not a Bobby Cox team.

With the Braves being hurt by injuries and poor play at many different positions, it is surprising that this offense can still be as potent as it is.

The key components to keeping the offense productive have been Omar Infante, Eric Hinske, Brooks Conrad, David Ross, and to an extent, Melky Cabrera.

Hinske has moved into the left-handed role in the left-field platoon, and although he has slumped lately, he has produced well.

The flexibility of both Infante and Cabrera has also helped in covering up the problems the Braves have faced in the outfield.

Cabrera’s best suited as a fourth outfielder and not everyday play.

Since being removed from everyday play in left field against righties, Cabrera has seen his production increase.

After having an awful May, Cabrera has been at least league average in on-base abilities since, which is all you can really ask for from a fourth outfielder.

Infante has played everywhere in the field and his play so far this month has made up for Heyward’s absence from the top of the lineup. Infante has had either two hits or two RBI in each of the Braves wins this month.

Last night, both shined in the victory and even hit back-to-back home runs to give the Braves the lead. As surprising as that is, it isn’t surprising that the Braves bench has been key in the first half of the season.

In the past, Cox has gotten Lonnie Smith, Brian Hunter, Deion Sanders, Charlie O’Brien, Tony Graffanino, Gerald Williams, Eddie Perez, Randall Simon, Wes Helms, Matt Franco, Julio Franco, Mark DeRosa, Eli Marrero, Wilson Betemit, Charles Thomas, and Ryan Langerhans to all provide offensive value from the bench during the Braves run of 14 straight division titles.

Those players never had much more production after, if any, in other places aside from DeRosa and, to a marginal extent, Tony Graffanino. These players weren’t the reasons for the Braves success, but their production gave the team a great boost, for sure.

The ability to have flexible players who can fill in and produce when called upon gives a team the ability to adapt when poor play or injuries do occur.

Baseball is a random sport.

Some players have off years when they are expected to perform well and the reasons vary from player to player. This has happened this season and it has happened in the past.

While the ’90s Braves avoided the injury bug for the most part, there were cases when players were called upon, and they performed even better than expected.

One thing Bobby Cox has always been able to do is get the most out of his fringe starters and bench players. I’ve stated this on numerous occasions in the past and even before this season.

Hinske, Matt Diaz, Ross, Infante, Cabrera, and Conrad make for a very productive group that are far from black holes when put into the lineup.

Each has a niche, whether it is plate patience, defensive flexibility, power, or the ability to hit a pitcher with a certain handedness well.

While it is easy to criticize some of Bobby Cox’s in-game management decisions and bullpen decisions, as I most definitely have done, he puts his backups in positions to succeed.

Infante’s career OPS+ is 87, but with the Braves it is right at 100 over 773 plate appearances. In 234 plate appearances over the past two seasons, David Ross has an OPS+ of 124 and has 21 extra-base hits.

Diaz was nothing until he came to the Braves, and now he has a 111 OPS+ over 1368 plate appearances.

The bench management is the most overlooked part of Bobby Cox’s game. The Braves won because of pitching in the ’90s, but what they also got great performances from unexpected players.

Cox knows how to utilize them the correct way and get more out them than any other manager. When looking back on Bobby’s career, there is probably nothing he did better than manage his bench players and fringe starters.

Regardless of whom he had on the bench, he made sure that they were ready to play and ready to produce, which has helped get the Braves to October in the past and certainly looks like it will help them get there once again this year.

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The end of the 2010 season will also mark the end of the managerial career of Atlanta Braves skipper Bobby Cox.

Cox has spent a total of 25 years as the manager of the Braves over two separate stints and has announced that this season will be his last.

Since 1990, Cox and the Braves front office have been the model of consistency among professional sports franchises.

Cox is fourth on the all-time list for managerial wins and has been named Manager of the Year four times, most recently in 2005. If the Braves finish first in the NL East this season, I wouldn’t be surprised if he adds a fifth.

His teams have won finished first in their division 15 times: once with the Blue Jays in 1985 and every year from 1991 to 2005 with the Braves.

Cox has one World Series ring as a manager that came back in 1995.

After this season, Atlanta will be faced with the task of replacing the iconic Cox: no easy task.

It’s almost impossible to think that the next manager of the Braves will be an outsider with no ties to the organization.

Therefore, all of the possible candidates I’ve chosen except one have either played or coached in the Braves organization.

Let me start with…

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When the Atlanta Braves signed Troy Glaus this past offseason, they hoped for an offensive spark that has been lacking at first base in recent years; they got much more than they bargained for. 

Glaus has been stellar this year, and last night was no exception.  Glaus hit a home run off Robinson Tejada on an 0-2 count to give the Braves a 5-4 victory over the tough-luck Royals Saturday night.

Glaus went 1-4 in the game, his homer being his only hit, and Brian McCann also homered to run the Braves’ winning streak to four games and send their home record to 23-7.  Billy Wagner worked the ninth to earn the win.

The Royals, under skipper Ned Yost, still struggle to compete in a mediocre AL Central.  Yost, who served as the Braves third base coach, bench coach, and bullpen coach during the 1990s, was hired to give the team a bit of a boost.  The boost hasn’t found its way to the diamond, and the Royals fell to 29-40 on the year, fourth place in the AL Central ahead of a lackadaisical Cleveland Indians club still holding out hope for Travis Hafner to return to his power days.

The Royals have some good players, such as Scott Podsednik and Jose Guillen, but just can’t seem to keep it together.

The Braves, whose win on Saturday pushed their lead to 1 1/2 games over the surging New York Mets, are trying to bring a championship to Atlanta; they last won it all in 1995.  Manager Bobby Cox is retiring at season’s end, giving the Braves tremendous motivation to win a ring.

Saturday’s game showed a typical example of what the Braves are doing right this year.  This team is clutch, with guys like Martin Prado (.310 with runners in scoring position and two outs), Troy Glaus (.424 with RISP and two outs), Eric Hinske (.357 with RISP and two outs), and Jason Heyward (.353 with RISP and 2 outs) leading the way.

This team does extremely well rallying with two outs and finds ways to win late in the game.  This tortoise out of the gate turns into the rabbit at the finish line, owners of the third best record in the majors and the best record in the National League.  Happy days are here again in Atlanta; can these Braves keep it up?  All signs point to yes.

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