Isn't it about time to free Gregor Blanco?

[Gman]

OK, McLouth is probably still woozy and personally I think he could use some time in AAA getting his swing fixed because it's a mess. Melky is looking like he's not going to stop killing worms any time soon. He's got a career high 54.5% ground ball rate and a career low 16% line drive rate. I think he needs a lot more time on the pine. That leaves Blanco for CF right now. He's been on the team since the end of May and I think it's time BC gives the kid another shot. It's not like he was woefully overmatched when he got all those at bats in 08. He had a .367 obp even though he only hit .250. That'd be pretty useful production out of CF compared to what they're getting. His patient approach fits right in with the bulk of the guys in the lineup so he'll be a plus even if all he does is walk a lot in front of the pitcher. Plus, he can run fast and steal bases, both of which are near non-existent in the Braves everyday lineup.

I don't remember his defense being atrocious or anything like that. I think he's earned the chance to get some steady at bats in the OF for awhile. Let McLouth go fix his swing in AAA. Nate is looking so bad up there. If you watch his swings, his face is almost square to the pitcher while his bat is going thru the hitting zone. And that's on almost every swing. How no one can see or fix that simple flaw is beyond my comprehension. But, the fact is it's been going on for much of his time with the Braves so he needs to go to AAA and fix it.

Anybody else wondering why Blanco hasn't gotten a shot out there since his call up. He's 2-for-2 with a walk for godzakes! Get him in there while he's hot!

[Gman]

Does Nate have options? Something someone needs to find out before this suggestion becomes plausible.

Good question. Not sure where you find that out. The Pirates brought him up once (and he stuck) and the Braves sent him down once last year for a 2-3 game tuneup. Based on that it seems like he should have options left but I'm not certain.

[Dreamscape]

Free Gregor Blanco? To do what, exactly?

I mean, I know McLouth is nothing special, but Blanco is extra nothing special. Regardless of what his OBP might be, there is more about baseball than OBP. I know, weird to see a stats guy say that, but when all you do is walk or single, you better be a super base stealer, which Blanco is not, or you have really no value in the starting lineup.

I'm on the Infante-in-center bandwagon for the time being. What we really need is for Jordan Schafer to rediscover his potential. I think right now, McLouth may even be happy to go to Gwinnett for awhile. He needs to clear his brain.

[KB 34]

Cot Contracts has a good option year explanation at the following link.
http://mlbcontracts.blogspot.com/2003/01/transactions-glossary.html

McLouth started the season with 4.056 years of service time so he's not above the limit there. The next question becomes how many of the three option years were used after he was placed on the 40 man roster. In 2005 an option was definitely used up. In 2009 an option year may have been used up. Don't quote me confidently on this but I believe this is the last seson the Braves can cleanly send him to the minor leagues, meaning they could send him to AAA in the same manner as they could Heyward, for example.

[I Come in Peace]

melky is the only guy on the club out of options so Nate can go down. I'm no Blanco fan but no reason to have three guys on the team who play centerfield, send down Nate and bring up another infielder like Thurston.

[BigWorm]

G-MAN,
I usually love your stuff, but to answer your thread question, NO. It will never be "time" for Gregor Blanco. Schaeffer might have a chance in the near future, but Gregor is just insurance and always will be.

[Gman]

G-MAN,
I usually love your stuff, but to answer your thread question, NO. It will never be "time" for Gregor Blanco. Schaeffer might have a chance in the near future, but Gregor is just insurance and always will be.

LOL ok....no love for Gregor. But, in his favor I would like to note that he's done everything you could want from a guy who came up and then got demoted after having a year that was better than what a lot of guys were putting up in the Braves outfield at the time. Looking at his numbers it looks like he might have sulked a bit last year but so would any of us. That's a huge career loss at the age of 25. At least he sucked it up had a good summer in the Dominican and was hitting really well at Gwinett this year.

If Melky righted the ship when I wasn't looking, then great. I was on Melky's bandwagon and got off cuz I got pretty tired of watching all those infernal ground outs. If he goes back to beating the ball into the ground then I hope they give Blanco some games. I'll take walks and singles 36% of the time out of the 8th hole hitter anytime. That means the pitchers will have more opportunities to bunt.

Nate needs to get out of the lineup and go down to a place where he can figure things out. He's really lost and running him out there is just making him press more. Maybe the knock on the head courtesy of Heyward will turn it around for him. I hope so because nothing could help this lineup more then having him finding his stroke and move back into the leadoff spot.

[KB 34]

Blanco wasn't the worst starting outfielder for the Braves in 2008, which helps explain why that was a 72-90 team. Blanco did have a chance last year with the Braves but he had a .488 OPS in his time with the Braves which simply won't cut it for a major league outfielder. To me what kills Blanco is his complete lack of power. He hits about 1 HR per season and doesn't have a large number of extra base hits either. I like high OBP hitters a lot but singles alone won't score enough runs to win games. That said Blanco will get some opportunities to play with McLouth on the DL for a little while. I'd like to see Blanco establish himself as another 4th outfielder option as someone who can pinch run and add some value as someone who can get on base to start a rally.

[quick]

I wonder if Gregor could play shortstop or 2d base? He's a fairly prototypical hitter, at least in the days before, ahem, special training methods, for those positions. He'd be excellent trade bait if he could be an "Infante in the Field".

[Freddy_Ballgame]

If hanging with an ML club, drawing an ML paycheck and seeing occasional action is being held prisoner....GIMME IT!

[Gman]

G-MAN,
I usually love your stuff, but to answer your thread question, NO. It will never be "time" for Gregor Blanco. Schaeffer might have a chance in the near future, but Gregor is just insurance and always will be.

But I was right!!! Blanco now 14 for 37 with 9 RUNS SCORED and 6 walks which equates to a .378 avg and a .477 OBP! He probably will slow down at some point but all I was saying was give him some at bats to see if he could throw off a spark or two. He sure is doing that. Getting that kind of stuff out of the 8 hole is beyond just "a nice lift". He's gotten starts in 5 straight games and over that span is getting on base at a .500 clip with 6 runs scored, out of the 8 hole. Great unexpected contribution from any backup OF, no?

Let's hear a little love for Blanco after bashing him so roundly in this thread ;)

[luvdembravos]

Gregor is doing a nice job...but I can't get over how high he chokes up on the bat..dude needs to hit the weight room or get a lighter bat;)

[Andy G.]

I like Blanco. In a way, it's going to suck to see him have to go back to AAA when our outfield is all healthy. He really enjoys himself out there, and I enjoy seeing him on the field and in the dugout.

[bravos4evr]

If nothing else he has increased his trade value!

[BigWorm]

you serve up the crow and I'll eat it because GMAN. It is Gregor time right now.

[Gman]

you serve up the crow and I'll eat it because GMAN. It is Gregor time right now.

"right now" are the operative words there. Lord knows how long it will last. But, it's been a massive boost just the way he's keeping the line moving in front of the pitcher and helping to clear the pitcher spot. In the NL having your pitcher make the last out instead of the first one is a great boost. It means 36-37% of the time the opposing pitcher is working from the stretch with no outs that next inning. I'm beginning to notice a lot of pitchers lose a little of their stuff when they have to go to the stretch or to the slide step. It's amazing what little nuances you pickup now that the steroid infused 3 run homer era is behind us.

I do wish the Braves had a really good base stealer in the OF. I wonder how cheap it'd be to snag someone like Coco Crisp for the 2nd half? His early injury caused Beane to lose that "sign-and-eventually-trade" gamble. So maybe Crisp can be had really cheap. He's one of those seemingly rare switch-hitters who hits better from the right-side which fits the Braves need. Plus he was really starting to develop into a true leadoff hitter with KC last year. His walk rate has been steadily climbing the last few years despite his propensity to visit the DL during that period.

[quick]

"right now" are the operative words there. Lord knows how long it will last. But, it's been a massive boost just the way he's keeping the line moving in front of the pitcher and helping to clear the pitcher spot. In the NL having your pitcher make the last out instead of the first one is a great boost. It means 36-37% of the time the opposing pitcher is working from the stretch with no outs that next inning. I'm beginning to notice a lot of pitchers lose a little of their stuff when they have to go to the stretch or to the slide step. It's amazing what little nuances you pickup now that the steroid infused 3 run homer era is behind us.

I do wish the Braves had a really good base stealer in the OF. I wonder how cheap it'd be to snag someone like Coco Crisp for the 2nd half? His early injury caused Beane to lose that "sign-and-eventually-trade" gamble. So maybe Crisp can be had really cheap. He's one of those seemingly rare switch-hitters who hits better from the right-side which fits the Braves need. Plus he was really starting to develop into a true leadoff hitter with KC last year. His walk rate has been steadily climbing the last few years despite his propensity to visit the DL during that period.

Blanco has learned to bunt and put the ball in play and has learned to quit hitting for the walls. He even could be the base stealer we need if he'd put in his film work--he's fast enough, but I don't think he knows MLB pitchers well enough to be good, yet. After a few weeks of intense film study? Maybe....

[Freddy_Ballgame]

Ordidamnarily, I'd say Cox doesn't use the stolen base anyway, so what's the difference? This year is looking more like an anomaly than in regular years, with Cox packing it in afterwards. He may be willing to allow guys to run, just to force the action and put pressure on the opposition. He seems to be pulling out the stops in his last year, so we may get to see some of the better baserunners getting the greenlight to run. I think it would add a new dimension of pressure on the opponents, which should help the hitters see a few more mistake pitches to mash. The second half should be a blast!

[tgm718]

Ive always been a big fan of Matt Diaz, I think he can fill the temporary hole in the outfield. But as mentioned we need another big bat in the outfield to make a serious run.

[Gman]

Blanco has learned to bunt and put the ball in play and has learned to quit hitting for the walls. He even could be the base stealer we need if he'd put in his film work--he's fast enough, but I don't think he knows MLB pitchers well enough to be good, yet. After a few weeks of intense film study? Maybe....

One of the bugaboos I have with the Braves minor league system is that they don't seem to teach effective base stealing. They've had some (not many but some) speedy guys who never seem to get a lot of chances to steal and/or their sb% never seem to be too impressive. Schafer and Blanco are very speedy guys but their minor league sb success rates are atrocious. I don't remember other names from the past but this seems like it's been all too common with the Braves. Why not hire a roving instructor who has the knowledge to teach the intricacies of successful base stealing and assign him to some of your speediest prospects every year? Seems like it would bring good value. Even a guy who has good speed vs. great speed can be an effective base stealer if he knows some secrets and has the right techniques (e.g. McLouth).

I don't think Cox dislikes the straight steal. I just don't think he has had the personnel to employ it like he did when he had Otis Nixon and Furcal. McLouth is a very effective base stealer but he hasn't run much because he had leg problems after they got him in '09 and issues with just getting on-base issues this year.