the deadline

So... here we are a few days before the non wavier deadline, one of my favorite times of the year. It seems no matter how good our team is that every year we need a piece or two for the August and September stretch run. It would appear that the 2012 Braves need about three pieces to make a deep run into October, and with Greinke gone and Dempster unlikely; it looks like the front office will have to make do with two of the three. The starting pitcher will have to come from the current forty man roster

Many of us Braves fans have been wanting Kris Medlen in the starting rotation all year and it would seem that will be the case on Tuesday. Through out his career with the Braves we are 14-4 behind him when he starts, which is a whole lot better than we can say for some of the guys that have pitched for us this year (Jurrjens). Chris has one of the best change ups in the game today and has been a solid bullpen guy all year. With his return to the rotation we are able to keep all of our young arms with in the system and not spend twenty million per year on a guy like Greinke. All in all a good move for the 2013 through 2018 clubs.

The hangup with 54 moving to the starting five is we have to find a lock down bull pen arm. This year we have not enjoyed the same seventh, eighth, and ninth as we did last year. Kimbrell has been all but untouchable, and O'flaherty has been pretty solid, but we can't count on Venters like we did last year. So we  find the largest whole of the Brave's ball club in the bull pen.  If we are not able to make some sort of move before Tuesday to fill the hole in the bullpen I believe we are going to have a tough time down the stretch.

We also have to replace Matt Diaz, who is sidelined for the second time in his career with with splinters from a palm tree. Yea, you read right, splinters from a palm tree. the top of our line up is strong: Bourn, Prado, Heyward, Jones, Freeman, and McCann, but they can be a little suspect when facing a top lefty. The obvious answer is a right handed bat that can come off of the bench. I don't know who that might be, but the less obvious answer... wait for it...  TRADE UGGLA. If we could get a contact type of left fielder for old Dan and move Prado back to his natural position if think that would extend the line up enough to make a run into the post season.

Please understand that I don't have Frank Wren's job for a reason, but I'm trying to think out of the box a little. The Braves might be able to fill two needs by moving Uggla. He should be worth a bull pen arm and a left fielder. All I know is we have to do something before Tuesday.  

GO BRAVES!!!

200 meters

Wrecked is the best word I have to portray how I am feeling tonight.  My shoulders, back, and quads are all shot to hell. Some of that is from today’s “Dirty Thirty”, but I really broke them down on Monday; all in the span of two hundred meters.

For a moment allow your mind’s eye conjure a football field. The distance from goal post to goal post is about 100 meters, a seemingly innocent length. Most anyone can sprint the span of goal post and back with no problem, but try covering 200 meters with a walking lunge followed by a 200 meter sprint.  At this point in the program your legs really aren’t working well which really makes a sprint a little changing.  Following a two meter sprint, two hundred meter walking lunges, and a second two hundred meter sprint; comes a two hundred meter bear crawl (if you aren’t familiar with this use Google).  Remember two hundred meters is goal post to goal post and back, and by now two hundred is not looking so innocent.  So let’s do another 200 meter sprint with no legs or shoulders now, and then proceed to broad jump burpees (Google here if needed).  By now the football field might as well be two miles, and these are excruciating when your body is fresh. Try them after all  this and they are damn near impossible.  Finish up with one more sprint.  43 minutes 13 seconds from start to finish and you are left with a depleted shell of a body, and that is before the soreness sets in the next day.

Don’t get me wrong I’m really not complaining.  I was out there doing this with a bunch of crazy ass crossfitters that really made it an enjoyable afternoon workout.  And after all, we do stupid stuff like this daily.  Tomorrow it’s one rep max clean and jerks, a 3 round “wod”, and rowing for extra conditioning. I don't think the wrecked muscles have any relief in sight. ...sucks for them

strength and doubt

Sometimes I crave quiet; there are nights when I couldn't buy five minutes of quite with a hundred dollar bill. Tonight though, with only the sounds of a summer storm for company this old house seems like it needs a few kids and a wife running around making noise and playing with the damn dog. But they aren't here, and I guess this is what it’s like to miss some one, but that's really not what I'm wanting to elaborate on tonight.

Webster’s Dictionary defines strength as follows: " the quality or state of being strong : capacity for exertion or endurance." I'm not sure that old Webster gives the word's meaning justice. Strength is a rare gift that is not given, it is earned. It's not something people need every day, but when hard times come there is nothing more valuable. In the last few weeks I have leaned heavy on not my physical strength, but the kind that is built into a person's insides. The kind of strength some folks call grit. Without it I would not have been able to look my wife in her eyes and say "We are OK." I would not have been able to say good bye to old friends and walk away with the relationships and dignity in tack.

I have learned from countless hours at the gym that the problem with strength is that there is only so much of it. There comes a point when there is no more to call on. So what then? When all of it is gone will there be enough grit to push through? This inevitably leads me to doubt.

Doubt (noun):  uncertainty of belief or opinion that often interferes with decision-making (Websters Dictionary). HOLY COW THAT SOUNDS BAD!!! If there ever was an emotion that a person in my kind of situation can't afford, it has to be doubt. Walking into an unknown future alone is tough enough, but I'm walking into it with a wife a two kids. This is no time for anything that interferes with decision-making. I have never been short on confidence nor I have ever been one for wondering what might have been, but things are a bit different these days. Even before any decisions have to be made, I am forced to wonder if the one I make will be the right one. I know that my little family will go wherever I ask them to go. I know that they will support me no matter what, but knowing that does not lessen the pressure to make the right decision.

Apparently, for now anyway, doubt will be part of my life. But I haven't run out of strength yet either. I'm hopeful that I will be able to find a place inside where strength and doubt intersect. That should be a healthy place to move forward from. Ya'll wish me luck.


Tonight's post is inspired by a song call "Strength and Doubt" by Son Volt. (its a good song)