News/Notes/Rumors

wow, okay racist

 

Yeah, and we've seen what happens when teams haven't played in a while.

 

So now if we make the NLCS we don't have to deal with Chapman or Billy Hamilton.

 

per mlb.com...

Braves, Dodgers quite a matchup for NLDS
By Paul Casella / MLB.com | 10/2/2013 1:00 A.M. ET

Both the Braves and Dodgers spent the final weeks of the regular season nursing injuries to multiple key players, leaving each club with some question marks at certain positions entering their National League Division Series matchup.

Los Angeles will be hampered by injuries to key offensive players, while Atlanta is hoping some late-season rest will have its key starters ready to go on Thursday. Given some of the Dodgers' missing pieces, Atlanta is left with an edge at a number of different positions. Still, the Dodgers hope their starting rotation can help to pick up some of that slack and, in turn, notch an upset against the No. 2 seed Braves.

With all of that in mind, a panel of MLB.com experts weighed in to provide position-by-position analysis and ultimately determine, on paper, which team has the advantage at each spot heading into Game 1 on Thursday at 8:30 p.m. ET on TBS.

CATCHER
In what has seemingly become a routine season, seven-time All-Star Brian McCann eclipsed the 20-homer plateau for the sixth straight year despite being limited to 102 games. The Braves' veteran catcher has been dealing with tightness near his right groin muscle for the past week, but is expected to be ready for the NLDS. Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis hit just .207 after the All-Star break and recorded more strikeouts (17) than hits (14) in September.
ADVANTAGE: Braves

FIRST BASE
In a season in which Los Angeles was seemingly constantly dealing with injuries, Adrian Gonzalez provided some stability in the middle of the lineup. The veteran first baseman hit 22 home runs and reached the 100-RBI mark in 157 games. Even still, Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman will garner his share of MVP votes after hitting .319 with 23 homers and 108 RBIs, while also making his first All-Star appearance.
ADVANTAGE: Braves

SECOND BASE
Despite being the highest-paid player on the Braves' roster this season, Dan Uggla's struggles led to Elliot Johnson assuming second base duties. Johnson has played well in 32 games with the Braves since being selected off waivers from the Royals in late August, but Dodgers infielder Mark Ellis has the edge in experience and stability. An 11-year veteran, Ellis previously made the postseason three times (2002, '03 and '06) as a member of the Athletics.
ADVANTAGE: Dodgers

THIRD BASE
Chris Johnson did about as well as anyone could have expected in his attempt to fill the vacancy left by Chipper Jones. Acquired as part of the Justin Upton blockbuster deal in January, Johnson excelled at the plate and provided much-needed consistency at the hot corner to start the post-Chipper era. Dodgers veteran Juan Uribe brings two World Series rings (2005 White Sox, '10 Giants) to the table, but Johnson's consistency earns him the nod.
ADVANTAGE: Braves

SHORTSTOP
There is no question that Hanley Ramirez played a pivotal role in the Dodgers' turnaround and put up MVP-type numbers in the process. However, Ramirez's health is an ongoing concern as he spent the past month trying to avoid further irritating a sciatic nerve condition in his lower back. On the other side, Andrelton Simmons is simply the best defensive shortstop in the league right now and he is also coming into his own, offensively.
ADVANTAGE: Braves

LEFT FIELD
Dodgers veteran Carl Crawford has a superior edge defensively, but Braves rookie Evan Gattis is a potential game-changer at the plate. Taking the league by storm with his early-season heroics, Gattis seems to have once again found his swing after a midseason slump led to a brief three-game demotion. The 27-year-old returned to the Braves' lineup on Sept. 3 and hit six home runs with 18 RBIs in 25 September games.
ADVANTAGE: Braves

CENTER FIELD
Matt Kemp is out for the postseason and Andre Ethier seems unlikely to be able to serve as anything more than a pinch-hitter. Braves center fielder Jason Heyward, meanwhile, flashed his Gold Glove Award talents in taking over center field while doing a similarly remarkable job slotting into the top of Atlanta's lineup. Heyward provided a much-needed spark for the Braves, helping Atlanta to a 23-7 record in games in which he hits leadoff.
ADVANTAGE: Braves

RIGHT FIELD
It seems that Yasiel Puig could just as easily cost the Dodgers a game in this series with a fundamental lapse as he could win a game with his bat and unbridled enthusiasm. Yet Puig's high-risk, high-reward style of play just might bring the offensive spark the Dodgers need. Braves right fielder Justin Upton hit a team-best 27 home runs and makes this a near tossup, but "Puigmania" steals the spotlight on the big stage.
ADVANTAGE: Dodgers

BENCH
This category could come down to whether or not Ethier is available for the series, even on a pinch-hit basis. If so, that gives the Dodgers a dangerous bat to use off the bench in clutch, late-game situations. They could also have the veteran presence of Michael Young and a solid blend of speed and power. Atlanta's bench options will likely be highlighted by 2013 underachievers B.J. Upton and Dan Uggla.
ADVANTAGE: Dodgers

STARTING PITCHERS
Nothing against the Braves' rotation, but perhaps no other team boasts a 1-2 punch as dangerous as Los Angeles' Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke. A Game 1 starter on almost any other team, Greinke will give way to Kershaw, the National League Cy Young Award favorite, in the series opener. Being a five-game series, Atlanta will need to find a way to win at least one game against the daunting Dodgers' duo in order to advance.
ADVANTAGE: Dodgers

BULLPEN
Even with Jordan Walden's status up in the air, Atlanta's bullpen may just be its biggest weapon. Left-hander Luis Avilan and righty David Carpenter have been lights-out all season and rookie Alex Wood has been impressive during his limited time in the 'pen. Factor in veteran lefty Scott Downs and long man Anthony Varvaro and the Braves have a formidable reliefs corps to bridge any gap between their starter and the ninth inning.ADVANTAGE: Braves​

CLOSER
Kenley Jansen has been superb since assuming the Dodgers' closer role in mid-June, converting 28 saves while posting a 1.88 ERA. No closer, however, has been as dominant as Craig Kimbrel. The Braves righty posted a 1.21 ERA this season -- best among NL relievers -- en route to also leading the NL in saves for the third straight season with a career-best 50.
ADVANTAGE: Braves​

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KERSHAW NOT AFRAID TO REACH FOR NEW HEIGHTS
Left-hander's rise to elite status started in high school
By Ken Gurnick / MLB.com | 10/2/2013 12:27 A.M. ET

ATLANTA -- How did Clayton Kershaw get so good so fast?

Kershaw, the Dodgers' starter for Game 1 of the National League Division Series in Atlanta on Thursday night (airing live on TBS at 5:30 p.m. PT), is favored to win his second NL Cy Young Award this year at age 25. Sandy Koufax was 29 when he won his second of three Cy Youngs.

At age 18, Kershaw was selected by the Dodgers with the seventh pick in the first round of the 2006 First-Year Player Draft, so he was no secret even then. At age 17, Kershaw was an unpolished junior at Highland Park High School outside of Dallas, Texas. His visibility rose when he made USA Baseball's junior national team that summer.
NLDS

Entering his senior season, Kershaw was rated the 34th high-school prospect in the nation by Baseball America. He finished that season 12-0 and was the first prep pitcher drafted.

How did that happen?

"Talk to Skip Johnson," said Kershaw.

Johnson is now the pitching coach for Augie Garrido at the University of Texas. In 2005, Johnson was coaching at Navarro Junior College, and he got a call from a friend, J.D. Smart, who was sending a high-school pitcher to Johnson for private lessons.

Smart, whose agency will do the negotiating when and if the Dodgers lock up Kershaw this winter, then was "advisor" to the Kershaw family. He told Kershaw that to maximize his Draft value, he needed to work out some mechanical flaws and improve his consistency.

Kershaw accepted Smart's suggestions and worked with Johnson every Tuesday for almost three months in the winter of 2005-06.

"I'm not the best pitching coach in the world. All I did was give him a structured plan to work on his mechanics," said Johnson, who still records all of Kershaw's starts. "Suddenly, he was throwing 94-96 [mph]. His aptitude and athleticism make him what he is. He has the ability to repeat his delivery, and he makes adjustments fast."

Kershaw described the mechanical changes like this:

"Skip changed me from low three-quarters delivery to over the top," he said. "That helped me keep my weight back. That was actually the first real pitching lesson I ever had."

Smart said the improvement in Kershaw was dramatic.

"He used to drift down the mound before his hands broke [separating the ball from the glove]," said Smart. "He hadn't been using his lower half. So his arm was playing catch-up with the body. He was all arm. I knew that if he had the aptitude and was willing to work, he could be something special. Did I dream we'd see what we're seeing today? No.

"But after about six weeks, I got a call from Skip and he told me, 'You need to come to Dallas and see this.' What I saw was basically what you see now. Clayton picked up five miles an hour. He took the instruction and it clicked."

Coming into that season, the top-ranked pitching prospect in Texas was Jordan Walden, now a reliever for the Braves. But Kershaw became the state's dominant pitcher for Highland Park, a school with a legendary sports program in an affluent suburb of Dallas. The Kershaw family, however, was not affluent. Kershaw attended Highland Park because his mother, Marianne, a single mom working as a graphics designer, made sure he did.

"We didn't have a lot of money," said Kershaw, who has no siblings. "I don't know how she did it. I know those years of travel ball, it wasn't cheap. But keeping me in that school district, that was huge."

The only other Major Leaguer produced by Highland Park is pitcher Chris Young. The school is more noted as a football factory, graduating Hall of Famer Bobby Layne, Heisman Trophy winner Doak Walker and current Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford, whose center on the freshman team was Kershaw.

By his senior year, Kershaw was all over the Dodgers' radar.

"We had him as a one-to-three round follow going into the spring, but he showed early he was a certain one," said Logan White, the Dodgers' vice president of scouting. "I saw him three times down the stretch. In one of his last games in May before the Draft, he threw just OK. There were numerous teams there, especially those picking in front of us. This really helped us."

Kershaw had a 0.72 ERA that year, with 139 strikeouts in 64 innings. He was the Gatorade National Player of the Year and the USA Today High School Baseball Player of the Year, and he threw a true perfect game -- 15 batters faced, 15 batters fanned -- in a game shortened to five innings by a 10-run "mercy" rule.

No "mercy" rules exist where he pitches now, but maybe they should. Three seasons ago, Kershaw picked up a slider in one bullpen session with Dodgers pitching coach Rick Honeycutt, and a few months later, he won his first Cy Young Award. He's since added a changeup for a four-pitch repertoire that allows him to pitch effectively to both sides of the plate.

"He's come so far," said manager Don Mattingly. "He was a two-pitch pitcher, but in this league, it's tough to get the curveball called. Umpires miss it, and when that happens, hitters eliminate it. So he was a one-pitch guy on one side of the plate dominant. Now, he's just evolved with the slider and changeup to both sides. He's a totally different matchup for a hitter. You wouldn't recognize the pitcher then to now."

This year, Kershaw has been more spectacular than a 16-9 record appears. His 1.83 ERA led the league for a third consecutive season and is the first Dodgers sub-2.00 mark since Sandy Koufax's 1.73 farewell 1966 season. In Kershaw's nine losses, the Dodgers scored a total of 13 runs.

"If he's not the best, you have to sell me on who's better," Mattingly said. "If we had got the guy some runs, he might have won 25 or 26 games this year."

Kershaw pitched in the 2009 playoffs, starting and winning Game 2 of the NLDS, losing Game 1 of the NL Championship Series.

"I've learned how to pitch a little bit," he said of the difference in him from then to now.

Kershaw also has embraced wife Ellen's passion for the children of Zambia, raising funds to build an orphanage and making annual missionary trips there. He won the Roberto Clemente Award last year and the Branch Rickey Award this year, both for contributions off the field.

"He's very diligent and clinical in everything he does," said Smart. "It's been pretty remarkable and fun to watch. It's hard to say he'll improve from where he is, but I wouldn't put it past him."

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