Disclaimer: I would like to reiterate again, that I am the most pessimistic person on the planet. I’m the kind of guy that goes to Auburn games thinking that we will lose to directional Louisiana schools (oh wait, that only happens to Alabama).
The injury bug has riddled the Braves early into the 2008 season. I mean, REALLY bitten the Braves. It all started with John Smoltz starting out the year on the DL, and really grew steam with the injuries to Mike Hampton, Tom Glavine, Rafael Soriano, Yunel Escobar, Chipper Jones, Peter Moylan and, perhaps, Smoltz again. So, I pose this question…is there reason to be concerned?
The answer is no. This Braves team was constructed with depth in mind, especially to the starting pitchers, where the injury bug has bitten the organization the hardest. Of course, the Braves didn’t expect Moylan’s elbow to become an issue, and certainly didn’t think that Escobar would forget the fundamentals of bunting, but they are prepared for this. Moylan perhaps being gone for the year definitely hurts, but the bullpen was strengthened sufficiently in the off-season to compensate for that. Don’t forget, Mike Gonzalez comes back in a month or so. Escobar should be back. But, if he’s not, Martin Prado has shown that he is legit. Don’t forget, Omar Infante is down in extended Spring Training and will re-join the team soon.
The rest of the injuries don’t concern me in the least bit. The Braves planned accordingly for these things to happen. Did they expect them to happen all at once? Probably not. However, the fact that the Braves are still hovering around .500 and have had this many injuries is a good sign for this team. They are legit. They will be back in the playoffs. And, for reference on how much that means coming from me, please refer back to the disclaimer above. Good day.
Barrett Sallee has worked professionally in the Atlanta sports market in various aspects for over 7 years. He can be reached at barrettsallee@hotmail.com
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