Atlanta Braves Clippings Wednesday, January 13, 2016 Braves.Com
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Atlanta Braves Clippings Wednesday, January 13, 2016 Braves.com Prospect Smith could break into bigs in '16 Speedy center fielder shares thoughts while attending Rookie Career Development Program By Mark Bowman / MLB.com | @mlbbowman | January 12th, 2016 ATLANTA -- Despite the fact that he had never played above the Class A level before attending his first Major League Spring Training last year, Mallex Smith exuded a genuine sense of confidence that seemed to benefit him as he spent the summer completing successful stints with Double-A Mississippi and Triple-A Gwinnett. While attending the Rookie Career Development Program in Leesburg, Va., with some of baseball's other top prospects this past weekend, Smith, the Braves' No. 17 prospect according to MLBPipeline.com, shared some thoughts about his future with MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo. In the process, he did not blink when he was asked which Major League pitcher he is looking forward to facing. "Madison Bumgarner," Smith said. "He's real good. I want to face the best. That's what I signed up for. If I can hit him, I should be able to hit anybody. Him or [Clayton] Kershaw. If I can hit him, I'm good." Since acquiring Smith from the Padres in 2014, the Braves have gained a better sense of how good he might become. The speedy center fielder batted .306, compiled a .373 on-base percentage and recorded 57 stolen bases (70 attempts) over the 126 games he played for Mississippi and Gwinnett. "I'm never satisfied," Smith said. "I had a good 2015, but I'm preparing for an even better 2016. You can't necessarily get comfortable with what you did last year, or you will lose sight of what you're trying to do the next year." Before the Braves acquired Ender Inciarte from the D-backs on Dec. 9, Smith was projected to join Atlanta's roster before the All-Star break. Inciarte's presence in center field might delay that arrival, but there's still reason to believe that Smith will make his Major League debut at some point this year. "I'm trying to break into the Major Leagues and make my mark in Atlanta," Smith said. After hitting .340 with a .418 on-base percentage in 57 games with Mississippi, Smith was promoted to Gwinnett in June. He immediately saw the need to recognize how he was being approached by the more experienced pitchers at the Triple-A level. Smith batted .214 with a .256 on-base percentage through the first 29 games he played for Gwinnett. But once he made some adjustments and got back to recognizing his tremendous speed as an asset, he found a groove and hit .325 with a .394 OBP over his final 39 games. "As much as I don't like when people say, 'He's a speedster' or 'He's a slap hitter,' I utilize my speed 100 percent," Smith said. "That opens up the field for me. So when I was going through my struggles, I thought about what I was getting away from, and that was utilizing my speed. So to get back, I was thinking, 'Let's use your best tools.'" Atlanta Journal-Constitution Smoltz: Radar guns not good for youth sports By Mike Luck - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Former Braves pitcher John Smoltz is in the Baseball Hall of Fame, so he knows a good bit about pitching. He also underwent several elbow and shoulder surguries during his career too so he also knows a lot about protecting a pitcher's health as well. On Tuesday, he spoke at the Youth Sports Health Symposium in Windermere, Fla., and called for a ban on radar guns being used in youth sports to gauge the speed of pitches. He believes the radar guns are causing youngsters to frequently throw the ball as hard as they can, potentially causing long-term damage to their arms. “I would call for every organization, maybe not high school and definitely probably not scouts are going to do this, but I would eliminate the radar gun. Let the pro scouts use it, no one else," said Smoltz, who is the only pitcher in baseball history with 200 wins (he had 213) and 150 saves (154). "I would ask every organization to put it away, quit using it for social media, quit using it for guidelines for kids to see how hard they throw. To me, if you abolish the radar gun and only let the true scouts dictate what that is, I think you do the sport a service for the young kids who are trying to throw as hard as they can. I think that would help." The purpose of the symposium was to share information on injuries and health issues that impact young athletes. A celebrity golf tournament, The Diamond Resorts Invitational, is Thursday and Friday at the Golden Bear Golf Club. Smoltz will participate, along with former Braves teammates Tom Glavine, John Smoltz and Brian McCann. Other current and former pro athletes in the field include Josh Donaldson, Jose Bautista, Justin Verlander, Jerry Rice, Marcus Allen, Reggie Jackson, Roger Clemens, Eric Dickerson, Sterling Sharpe, Joe Theismann and Brian Urlacher. Video gives public first look at bridge to SunTrust Park By Dan Klepal - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Cobb County Commissioners on Tuesday got their first look at the bridge over Interstate 285 to SunTrust Park — through an animated video that shows the concrete structure with brick pavings, planters, light poles and a brief stretch of canopy over the center of the 1,100-foot span to give fans a respite from the sun or rain. The county’s bridge consultants also gave an update on the project, saying it will cost about $10 million in total — an amount that does not include purchasing right-of-way, engineering, or an estimated $3.5 million to reinforce a Galleria parking deck into which the bridge will tie. The county had previously estimated right-of-way costs at $2 million, although Wilgus said Tuesday that it could be lower. The Cumberland Community Improvement District, a coalition of self-taxing businesses in the area, voted last week to provide $5 million in funding toward bridge construction. Interim Transportation Director Jim Wilgus told commissioners that the Braves will pay $380,000 and the rest of the construction will be covered by the county’s annual allocation of Federal Transit Administration funds. Wilgus said contracts could be let for the project this Spring, and that the bridge could be open for the first pitch in SunTrust Park, in April 2017. It connects the stadium with the county’s convention and performing arts center, and is considered critical for pedestrian safety in the area, including for Braves’ fans on game days, during special events, or just patrons trying to get to the team’s mixed-use development. The bridge has two lanes — a 16-foot pedestrian way on one side and a 12-foot lane for the circulator bus the county is planning to initiate. The two lanes are separated by a four-foot buffer of planters and decorative lighting. There is protective fencing on each side that will be covered by aluminum panels that will reduce noise and eliminate the view of the interstate. The bridge appears to have been scaled back from initial concepts — there are no misters included in the design, for example. Commissioners could approve the bridge Jan. 26, although Commissioner Bob Ott expressed concern that it is unclear who will pay the $3.5 million for parking deck reinforcements. Commission Chairman Tim Lee had previously announced that the project would not be ready for the team’s inaugural season in SunTrust Park. Fox Sports Braves' 2016 bobbleheads feature Chipper Jones-Freddie Freeman ATV rescue The Atlanta Braves are pulling out all the stops in their final year at Turner Field, rolling out a bobblehead lineup that includes Chipper Jones' ATV rescue of Freddie Freeman and Andrew Jones' Spiderman catch. By Staff Chipper Jones made national headlines when he took his four-wheeler into a 2014 Atlanta snowstorm to rescue his former teammate, Freddie Freeman, who was stuck in the city's traffic gridlock. Now, he and Freeman will receive a bobblehead commemorating their experience. The Atlanta Braves announced their 2016 promotional schedule on Tuesday afternoon, highlight by a laundry list of creative bobbleheads to celebrate the franchise's final season at Turner Field. Joining the Jones-Freeman ATV rescue will be a talking bobblehead of famous calls from longtime broadcasting crew Skip Caray and Pete Van Wieren, the "Spiderman catch" from former Gold Glove center fielder Andruw Jones and Chipper's home run during the 2000 All-Star Game held at Turner Field. The final one of the series will be Hall of Fame manager Bobby Cox being carried off the field after his 2010 team clinched a wild-card berth. Here's the complete bobblehead schedule (more to be announced): April 23: Caray-Van Wieren “Famous Calls” Bobblehead May 28: Chipper Rescues Freddie ATV Bobblehead Movie Night Aug. 18: Andruw Jones Spiderman Catch Bobblehead Sept. 10: Chipper Jones 2000 All-Star Game Bobblehead Sept. 17: Bobby Cox Carried Off Bobblehead Sports Illustrated Winter Report Card: Braves' off-season teardown gets good results BY CLIFF CORCORAN With less than six weeks before pitchers and catchers report to spring training, we're checking in to see how each team has fared thus far this off- season while acknowledging that there's still time for that evaluation to change. Teams will be presented in reverse order of finish from 2015.