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Braves Clippings Wednesday, January 13, 2016 Braves.com

Prospect Smith could break into bigs in '16

Speedy 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 '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 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 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 - ATV rescue

The are pulling out all the stops in their final year at , 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 , the "Spiderman catch" from former Gold Glove center fielder Andruw Jones and Chipper's during the 2000 All-Star Game held at Turner Field.

The final one of the series will be Hall of Fame manager 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 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. Now up: the Atlanta Braves.

2015 Results

67–95 (.414), fourth place in East

Key Departures

C Christian Bethancourt, CF Cameron Maybin, RHP Shelby Miller, SS Andrelton Simmons

Key Arrivals

SS Erick Aybar, UT Emilio Bonifacio, IF Gordon Beckham, C Tyler Flowers, CF Ender Inciarte, RHP Jim Johnson, UT Kelly Johnson, RHP Casey Kelly, LHP Ian Krol, RHP Bud Norris, RHP Jose Ramirez, LHP Evan Rutckyj+, SS Dansby Swanson

(+Rule 5 draft pick)

Off-season In Review

When the Braves began to rebuild after the 2014 season by trading away the walk years of and Justin Upton and multiple team-controlled seasons of closer Craig Kimbrel and Evan Gattis, their goal appeared to be a quick turn-around that would yield a contending team for the first year of their new ballpark in '17. This off-season, however, Atlanta continued to ship out young, team-controlled major league talent, suggesting that the club is taking an even longer view than we all thought.

Of the players the Braves traded this winter, Cameron Maybin will be 29 in April and is a free agent after the coming season; he woudn't have been a part of Atlanta's next contending core anyway. But startng pitcher Shelby Miller is 25 and has three team-controlled years remaining; Andrelton Simmons is 26 and has five years remaining on the extension he signed prior to the 2014 season; and catcher Christian Bethancourt, who was once considered the Braves’ catcher of the future, is 24 and has five less expensive team-controlled years remaining. A team hoping to contend by 2017 doesn’t trade all of those players.

Assuming Atlanta is taking a longer view of its rebuild, however, it did well with those moves. Most significantly, Miller brought back a fantastic package from the Diamondbacks, led by shortstop and Georgia native Dansby Swanson, the top pick in the 2015 draft and an elite college player who could move quickly through the Braves’ system; he has the potential to be the face of the franchise in the next decade. Included with Swanson in the Miller deal was slick-fielding centerfielder Ender Inciarte, who is 25 and has five team-controlled years remaining. Inciarte combines a league-average bat with an elite glove, and he has been worth 5.8 Wins Above Replacement (baseball-reference.com version) per 162 games in parts of two major league seasons. The Braves also landed righthander Aaron Blair, a starting prospect with mid-rotation potential who will battle for a major league job in camp this year.

Simmons, who was sent to the Angels in November, netted veteran infielder Erick Aybar and pitching prospects Sean Newcomb and Chris Ellis. Aybar will turn 32 this week and is entering his walk year, but Newcomb, a big college lefty drafted with the No. 15 pick in 2014, could be a front- end starter if he can improve his control. Bethancourt, who was shipped to the Padres, brought back Casey Kelly, a former top pitching prospect with the Red Sox who got sucked into San Diego’s Tommy John vortex of recent years. Kelly has struggled since returning to action but is still just 26 and has four team-controlled years remaining. Maybin, meanwhile, was dealt to Detroit and brought back lefty reliever Ian Krol.

The net result of all of that is a big upgrade in center with Inciarte, a potential long-term upgrade at shortstop with Swanson and an impressive collection of near-ready starting pitching talent in Blair, Ellis and Newcomb—and all five of those players will be under team control through at least 2020. Blair, Ellis, Newcomb and Swanson will also all be in major league camp this spring, though only Blair is likely to be seriously considered for the Opening Day roster.

As for the 2016 team, the Braves’ re-signed catcher A.J. Pierzynski for his age-39 season and brought back veteran utility infielders Kelly Johnson and Emilio Bonifacio and reliever Jim Johnson to prop up the major league club. They also added busted first-round pick Gordon Beckham, now 29, to help fill in the infield, and righty Bud Norris, 31 in March, to eat innings in whatever role he’s needed. None of those veterans, all of them on one-year deals worth $3 million or less, are going to be impact players or long-term solutions. Slightly more compelling are young relievers Jose Ramirez and Evan Rutckyj, a righty and lefty, respectively. Both are originally from the Yankees’ system, the latter coming over as a Rule 5 pick in December. The two have thrown a combined 17 2/3 major league innings, all Ramirez’s.

The Braves’ most underrated move this off-season, however, was the two-year, $5.3 million contract given to Tyler Flowers six days after he was non-tendered by the White Sox. Once a big hitting prospect with Atlanta whose ability to remain at catcher was in doubt, Flowers (another Georgia native) was traded to Chicago in the December 2008 Javier Vazquez deal. He returns as the inverse of the player he was then: an average hitter (.240/.296/.378 over the last two years compared to the .232/.295/.383 line for catchers this past season) but an elite pitch-framer who led the American League in Baseball Prospectus’ Framing Runs in 2015, saving more than 1 1/2 wins by stealing strikes for his pitchers. Flowers will turn 30 later this month and is under contract for just the next two years, but he could prove to be instrumental in bringing the Braves’ young pitchers along. In the meantime, he should be a significant upgrade for the major league team, provided Atlanta gives him enough playing time behind the plate in place of Pierzynski, who was nearly a win below average in pitch framing last year.

Unfinished Business: None

While there was a lot of chatter throughout the winter about the Braves dealing their best remaining young assets—first baseman Freddie Freeman and starter Julio Teheran—both players are signed through at least the 2020 season, and both are coming off down years; it would have made little sense to trade either one. Of course, the same could have been said about Simmons.

Preliminary Grade: A

Trading Simmons, arguably the best fielder in baseball and signed to a long-term extension, didn’t make much sense at first, but replacing him in the system with Swanson changed the appearance of that deal dramatically. The Miller trade was a major coup and could come to represent the turning point in Atlanta’s rebuild, and signing Flowers was an outstanding low-level move.

No, the Braves aren’t likely to be any better in 2016 or to contend in '17, but their long-term outlook is much brighter now than it was a year ago. That’s a successful off-season for a rebuilding team.

Marietta Daily Journal

I-285 bridge to cost $9.87M

By Ricky Leroux

CUMBERLAND — The proposed multi-use bridge spanning I-285 to connect the Cobb Galleria with the new Atlanta Braves stadium finally has a firm cost estimate: $9.87 million.

Representatives from AECOM Technical Services, the firm the county paid about $804,000 to design the bridge, presented an update on the project at a meeting of the Cobb Board of Commissioners Tuesday morning. The update includes a final recommended design and the cost to build it.

Cobb Chairman Tim Lee said he has asked county staff to put together an agenda item for commissioners to consider at their next meeting on Jan. 26 that, if approved, would allow the county to seek bids from construction firms for the project.

Lee called finalizing the design and cost of the bridge a milestone for the project.

“This is a project that has been on the table since the first announcement (of the Braves’ move to Cobb County) back in 2013. It is an important, if not one of the most important, infrastructure improvements in the entire area,” Lee said.

The county plans to use $5 million the Cumberland Community Improvement District agreed to provide for the project last week along with $4.5 million from a Federal Transit Authority grant and $380,000 from the Atlanta Braves to fund the bridge’s construction.

The CID’s recent decision to help fund the bridge project as well as the new information from AECOM has Lee hopeful the bridge will be open when the Braves new stadium, SunTrust Park, opens in spring 2017.

“It’s feasible,” Lee said. “No one will absolutely guarantee it because it may rain for three days. … We have Opening Day in April of 2017. That’s going to be the target. … The hopes are that we will have it done — the intent is to have it done for first pitch and we’ll work toward that goal.”

The $9.87 million price tag does not include the cost of purchasing right of way, the small tracts of land the bridge will be built on, because those costs have not yet been determined, according to Lee.

“They’re doing that this week. One of the things they’re doing this week, this week and next week, is they’re going out (and determining that). They’ve got a pretty good idea of how much they’ll need. They’ll need some on the Galleria side, obviously. They’ll need some on the north side,” Lee said. “The Braves, they’ve already indicated they’ll donate their right of way to us.”

Lee said the agenda item would also contain a contingency: For the bridge project to move forward as currently designed, the county needs approval to use a parking deck owned by the Cobb-Marietta Coliseum & Exhibit Hall Authority, the quasi-government body that also owns the Cobb Galleria Centre, the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre and holds the deed to SunTrust Park.

The current design for the bridge uses this parking deck adjacent to the Galleria as one of its landing points. The 32-foot wide bridge would then span about 1,110 feet across I-285. According to information presented by AECOM, the bridge would be divided into two sections: a 16-foot wide pedestrian path and a 12-foot wide lane for transit shuttles with a four-foot buffer between them.

On the north side of I-285, the shuttle lane would descend and connect to Circle 75 Parkway while the pedestrian lane would continue into the Braves mixed-use development being built adjacent to the ballpark.

The Exhibit Hall Authority’s board, which Lee serves on by virtue of his office, is scheduled to meet Feb. 2 to discuss the project.

Bob Voyles, a member of both the Exhibit Hall Authority and the Cumberland CID boards, said while the Exhibit Hall Authority’s board “keeps its own counsel,” he is “confident that they’re going to make the right decision” on whether to allow the deck to be used.

The $9.87 million estimate also does not include the cost to retrofit the Galleria deck to allow for a transit vehicle to use it, which is currently estimated to be $3.5 million. Where the money for these changes will come from has yet to be identified, Lee said, because it is dependent upon the Exhibit Hall Authority’s plans to build a hotel adjacent to the Galleria Centre.

The hotel may require other changes to the deck, so work done to retrofit the deck to allow for the shuttle may be undone a short time later, Voyles explained.

“We felt it was not prudent for the county or the authority to spend $3.5 million today on a parking deck solution that might in itself get torn up when we go do the hotel project,” Voyles said.

Lee said while the bridge is designed to accommodate a shuttle vehicle, the county did not plan to use the bridge for the shuttle initially. This means the bridge can be built and open for pedestrians without first retrofitting the deck, Lee said.ridge can be built and open for pedestrians without first retrofitting the deck, Lee said.

‘This is just the beginning’: Lee ties county’s achievements in 2015 to SunTrust Park ‘halo effect’

By Ricky Leroux

CUMBERLAND — During his annual State of the County address Monday, Cobb Chairman Tim Lee touted the county’s accomplishments in 2015, from lowering property tax rates to an increased investment in public safety, and credited the Braves’ move to Cobb as the reason the county is moving in a positive direction.

Speaking to a crowd of about 550 at the Cobb Galleria Centre, Lee described the impact the Braves’ decision to build SunTrust Park, the ballclub’s new stadium in Cumberland, and the adjacent mixed-use development is having on the county.

“Because of the halo effect of SunTrust Park, Cobb’s experiencing economic growth at a record pace. … Our economic growth is unprecedented. While companies and jobs are moving from the suburbs to the urban core in most parts of the country, the opposite is happening here in Cobb,” said Lee, who is up for re-election this year.

By way of examples of this growth, Lee pointed to the county’s 5 percent unemployment rate, the lowest since 2008, and the $300 million private companies invested in the county in 2015.

“In fact, the Cumberland Community Improvement District predicts more than $1.2 billion of investment in just five years,” Lee said. “This growth and these smart investments all point to a bright future with endless opportunities.”

Lee also responded to critics who questioned how the deal with the Braves was negotiated and agreed upon, a deal which prompted three ethics complaints against him, all of which were either dismissed or dropped.

“I can tell you today I sleep well at night knowing I did the right thing for Cobb County,” Lee said, a line which drew a round of applause from the crowd before he continued. “I want to make it very clear today that I am proud of the actions that I and the entire Board (of Commissioners) took to bring the Braves to Cobb County. You know, we’ve mentioned it: the Atlanta newspaper is never going to get over it, but the economic prosperity of Cobb County cannot be overstated. This partnership has and will change the future of Cobb County forever for the better.”

In 2015, the county lowered its general millage rate from 7.32 mills to 7.12 mills after seeing the total value of taxable property in the county grow from about $25.6 billion in 2014 to about $26.4 billion in 2015. The county is also making a $196 million investment in public safety in the coming years, recruiting more police officers, offering incentives for officers with advanced degrees and building a new headquarters and training facility.

To help pay for these expenses, Lee said, the county had planned on taking 10 percent of the county water system’s revenues, about $20 million, to help balance its fiscal 2016 budget. However, using surplus revenue from the previous fiscal year, the county was able to reduce the transfer to 6 percent, or about $13 million, which Lee called the lowest transfer in 15 years.

The county is also re-examining issuing bonds to raise money for the purchase of parkland, an initiative approved by voters via a referendum in 2008 but put on hold due to the flagging economy.

Lee said there is one factor that allowed the county to make so much progress in 2015.

“So, how are we able to buck the trends, lower taxes, reduce the water transfer and make large investments in public safety and greenspace?” Lee asked. “Two words: SunTrust Park. And this is just the beginning. Revenues to Cobb have already exceeded projections, and we are still a year away from Opening Day (in 2017).”

While introducing Lee, Ben Mathis, a former chair of the Cobb Chamber of Commerce and founding partner at the Freeman Mathis & Gary law firm, praised the county chairman for his accomplishments.

“The time that we’ve been dealing with during his tenure have been tough economically, a lot of problems that had built up over the years had to be addressed, and we’ve got a commission chairman who has done that. … He has done this in the face of some really strong criticism,” Mathis said.

Atlanta Business Chronicle

Here's what it will cost to build bridge over I-285 to Braves stadium

Carla Caldwell - Morning Edition Editor - Atlanta Business Chronicle

Cobb officials now know what it would cost to build a proposed multi-use bridge over Interstate 285 to connect the Cobb Galleria Centre with the new Atlanta Braves stadium – and they say construction is feasible in time for Opening Day 2017.

The cost estimate for the bridge to SunTrust Park is $9.87 million [excluding the cost of land acquisition, which has not yet been determined], representatives from California-based AECOM Technical Services said Tuesday at a meeting of the Cobb Board of Commissioners, reports Marietta Daily Journal.

Funding is expected to come from $5 million the Cumberland Community Improvement District agreed to provide along with $4.5 million in a Federal Transit Authority grant and $380,000 from the Atlanta Braves, the paper reports.

The bridge design has the structure divided into two sections: a 16-foot wide pedestrian path and a 12-foot wide lane for transit shuttles with a four-foot buffer between them.

The $9.87 million estimate does not include the cost to retrofit the Galleria deck to allow for a transit vehicle to use it, which is currently estimated to be $3.5 million, the MDJ reports. The County Commission is expected to consider the matter when it meets Jan. 26. If approved, the county would likely begin to seek bids from construction firms.

There is a catch – the bridge needs approval to use a parking deck owned by the Cobb-Marietta Coliseum & Exhibit Hall Authority. The current design for the bridge uses a parking deck adjacent to the Galleria as one of the landing points.

The organization plans to build a hotel next to the Galleria Centre and officials are looking into whether the hotel might require changes to the parking deck at a proposed bridge landing point.

The Exhibit Hall Authority board is expected to discuss the matter when it meets Feb. 2

NPR Atlanta

Cobb County Chairman: Braves 'Halo Effect' Boosting Coffers

By MICHELL ELOY • JAN 12, 2016

Cobb County Board Chairman Tim Lee gave a rosy outlook in his state of the county address.

Speaking to the Cobb Chamber of Commerce on Monday, Lee said last year's highlights included restoring the property tax rates to pre-recession levels and increasing investments to public safety.

In 2016, Lee said he plans to build on the latter by implementing a new anti-gang initiative. He said, overall, the county's finances are increasingly healthy.

He attributed that to the "halo effect" of the Atlanta Braves' impending move to Cobb County.

“Many have questioned and criticized how I handled the Atlanta Braves Project,” Lee said. “I can tell you today I sleep well at night knowing I did the right thing in Cobb County.”

Lee faced an ethics complaint for hiring an outside attorney to conduct secret talks with the Braves and using a private email account to get around open records laws.

The complaint was ultimately dismissed.