You've Not Seen the Last of Tim Hudson

Anybody who has been around sports in any capacity for any period of time can tell you this: sports are cruel.  Last night that reminder hit the Atlanta Braves and their star pitcher Tim Hudson head-on when he was lost for the season due to a broken ankle that will require surgery.  Hudson was pitching his best game of the season and had been Atlanta’s best starter for the past two months.  With one out in the bottom of the eighth inning and two runners on, what should have been a routine play turned into the heart and soul of the team lying at first base in agony, only to be followed moments later by a stretcher, a cart, and an ignominious exit.  Yes sports fans, we follow a cruel, unjust spectacle that oftentimes leaves us feeling vacant and unrewarded.

But we only have an emotional tie to the event and last night Tim Hudson had the physical reminder of the random viciousness that befalls a professional athlete.  It was a type of play that Hudson had made thousands of times in his career and is a basic that is covered in spring training relentlessly year after year.  The pitcher MUST cover first base on a ball hit to the first baseman so the first baseman can toss it to him instead of trying to outrun the runner to the base.  Last night, a perfect storm occurred on what could have been a routine play.  First, a sharply hit ball by speedy base runner Eric Young, Jr. takes a bad hop and hits first baseman Freddie Freeman in the chest and trickles away.  Even with a runner on first and second, Freeman is playing in close out of respect for Young’s speed.  Second, Hudson makes a mad dash for the bag trying to beat the speedy Young and be in position to catch a toss from Freeman.  Third, Hudson doesn’t have time to grab the bag and position himself to receive a throw.  His foot landed on the foul side of the base which he stabbed at blindly because the throw from Freeman was already on its way.  Fourth, Young arrives at the base a split second after the ball arrives but accidentally lands on Hudson’s leg; and as close-up replays have shown us many times, legs and ankles aren’t made to bend like that. 

Just like that, Hudson’s season had come crashing to an end.  It was obvious that the injury was serious when Eric Young, Jr. came running back to the base to check on Hudson and you could tell he was visibly upset that he had injured him.  (This is a good time to point out that Young did nothing wrong.  It was a freak accident  and there was nothing he could do but it is refreshing to see an opposing player have that kind of compassion toward another player.)  The whole Braves team on the field huddled around first base out of concern for Hudson, a man well-respected in the MLB community and who has the longest tenure of any current Brave and by far the most experience in the clubhouse.  You could tell the wind had gone out of the team’s sails.  Mets superstar David Wright even came out on the field to check on Hudson and stood fraternally beside Braves catcher Brian McCann until the cart arrived and Hudson was carried away.  As Huddy, the affectionate nickname bestowed upon Tim by his teammates, was loaded onto the cart, Young took a moment to apologize to Hudson and you could see Hudson telling him it was ok.  As Young walked back to the dugout, it appeared that he was wiping tears from his eyes with his jersey.  Tom Hanks may have famously said, “There’s no crying in baseball!” in A League of Their Own but it was apropos last night.  When the cart finally began to drive off the field, the New York Mets fans, a rabid fan base that is infamous for booing anyone with a pulse (they have booed Met first baseman Ike Davis so much this year that he said he feels like an away player when he plays at Citi Field), stood and respectfully cheered Hudson’s exit.  In a footnote, the Braves held on to win the game 8-2 and Hudson was credited with his fourth straight win.

There are two cruel ironies (one I will mention now, the other will come later) that come from Hudson’s season-ending injury, the first of which is getting the win last night made him 8-7 on the season and ensured that he would finish the season with a winning record for the 15^th consecutive year.  Even in 2009 when Hudson returned from Tommy John surgery, he only started seven ballgames but still finished the season with a 2-1 record.  This remarkable streak seemed to be in danger a month ago when Hudson was sitting at 4-7.  To grasp the magnitude of this feat, it has only been accomplished by one other pitcher in the history of baseball: Grover Cleveland Alexander, who never had a .500 or worse season until his 20^th  and final frame. 

Hudson is 38 years old and it is too early to say how long recovery on a surgically repaired ankle may take.  Just ask Derek Jeter; it’s not easy for a player of that age to make a speedy recovery.  He has been in Atlanta since 2005, just missing the heyday of the franchise.  In that time, he has won 113 games in nine seasons, good enough to rank him fifth on the all-time Atlanta Braves win list (not franchise wins, just since moving to Atlanta in 1966) behind one Hall of Famer (Phil Niekro) and three probable HoFers (Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux, and John Smoltz).  But beyond his accomplishments on the field, he is the unquestioned leader of the clubhouse and a man who is highly regarded by teammates and competitors alike.  He is a tenacious competitor on the field who rarely loses his professionalism and according to those who have played with him, he is a pleasure to be around off the field.  He and his wife are even very active in the Atlanta community and have their own foundation to serve children in need as well as being visibly active in other charity projects as well.  All in all, they just don’t make them any better than Tim Hudson, which brings me to another cruel aspect of the game: business. 

The business side of the game is a necessary evil, one that fans would like to forget about if they could but I guarantee Braves GM Frank Wren woke up this morning with many more questions than answers.  A month ago, the team was in great shape and many guys were beginning to recover from injuries.  The starting rotation was in tact and it appeared as if they may have a surplus of arms to get them through the season.  The only need was in the bullpen where three guys have fallen victim to TJ surgery but the need was not glaring.  But all that has changed in the last few weeks and has been put under a microscope after last night.  It may seem cruel to be thinking about the business side of the game so soon after a devastating injury but that is Frank Wren’s job.  Here are just some of the questions that he and Braves face moving forward.

1)      Who fills the spot in the rotation?  Well, the answer to that may just be the second cruel irony that I mentioned earlier.  Brandon Beachy was to make his final rehab start last night on his road back from TJ surgery that ended his great start to last season.  The question had been who gets bumped from the rotation.  The likely candidates were either Paul Maholm who has been atrocious in road games this year or Kris Medlen who has been unable to repeat his miraculous season of a year ago.  The Braves also have planned to insert highly touted prospect Alex Wood into the rotation at some point giving them seven arms for five slots.  One thought was to move Medlen back to the pen where is has proven he can succeed.  But now Maholm hurt his wrist and will likely be placed on the 15-day disabled list and Hudson is out for the season.  That means the most experienced starter in the rotation is Mike Minor who has made 73 career starts compared to Hudson’s 426 and Maholm’s 236.  The young rotation of Minor, Teheran, Medlen, Wood, and Beachy (combined 187 career starts) may be the way to go.  Funny how things tend to have a way of working out, isn’t it?  But there is another possibility.

2)      Are the Braves now in the trade market for a starting pitcher?  One, and possibly the only, fortunate thing about the Hudson injury was the timing.  The trade deadline is just six days away and if this injury had occurred a start or two later, a decent trade would not have been a viable option.  The major holdback is there just aren’t many quality starters, or players for that matter, on the market.  The Rangers put the ball in play pulling the trigger on the Matt Garza deal.  The three other most talked about names are Jake Peavy, Bud Norris, and Ervin Santana.  The Braves know firsthand from seeing Peavy handle them last week in Chicago that he still has very good stuff…when he’s healthy.  Health has been a concern for Peavy since being traded to the White Sox in 2009.  Peavy is also more than just a rental as he is under contract for $14 million next year.  Bud Norris, the man who would be the Astros ace if you had to declare one, has only won 34 career games and has not even had a sniff of the postseason.  Ervin Santana has been a solid pitcher over the past six or seven years but he is strictly a rental and while he does have postseason experience and has won over 100 games, is he worth giving up prospects for? 

3)      What will happen to Tim Hudson after the 2013 season?  His contract is up and it is speculated that the Braves will not be able to re-sign him especially when they have so many young arms already in their stable.  Some of that may depend on how long it takes Hudson to recover from the injury.  There will be a market for a man of his experience and talent but at what cost?  The Braves have shown in the past that they are not afraid to let veterans go to save some cash and if they are in a situation where they can only sign either Brian McCann or Hudson, I imagine they would go with McCann because of his age.  In a perfect world, Hudson would rebound flawlessly from this setback and sign a lower than market rate one-year deal to stick around in Atlanta.  If for no other reason, doing so would allow him to have a much better final image as a Brave than being carted off the field, an image we all wish we could erase.  But that happening is highly unlikely. 

One thing we do know for sure is that Hudson will handle this adversity with great class and professionalism.  In a week where there has been so much negative attention on MLB (thanks Ryan Braun and A-Rod), it would be a nice change of pace to hear more about the truly good guys of the game.  It’s a shame that it takes a freak injury for everyone to realize that there are still great guys in the league.  So, here’s to you Tim Hudson and all that you have done (and hopefully will continue to do) in an Atlanta Braves uniform and as a beacon in your community!  Good luck and God bless, #15.

MLB Midterm Review

Now that the MLB All-Star game has been played, it is time to take a look back on what has happened thus far in the 2013 season.  On opening day, I made several predictions (and if you want to check them out you can just click here http://bit.ly/YWPdDP), and to be honest not too many of them were very good.  The worst prediction I made was that the Angels and Blue Jays were going to be the cream of the crop in the American League.  Boy was I wrong about that!  Both teams have been subpar.  I successfully jinxed both of my Cy Young winners; Jered Weaver suffered a freak broken elbow in his non-pitching arm and Stephen Strasburg has been pretty good but still has a losing record at the break.  Joey Votto was once again an All-Star but is hardly having an MVP season and Mike Trout is having an MVP season but it is for the most disappointing team in baseball.  The Rookie of the Year race in both leagues is up for grabs but the talent seems to be all in the National League where Evan Gattis, Shelby Miller, Julio Teheran, and Dodger phenom Yasiel Puig seem poised for an exciting finish whereas the lackluster AL rookie battle can conceivably be won by a player who has less than 20 RBI at the break.  It’s like Joaquin Andujar once said, “You can sum it up in one word: You never know.”  Without further ado, here are my most pleasant surprises and most disappointing ones for the first half.

Most Pleasantly Surprising Team

NL-Pittsburgh Pirates: How can anyone not root for these guys and this franchise that has not had a winning season in 21 years?  I am not completely surprised that they are having a great season but I am surprised that they have the second best record in the NL thus far.  They have a nice mixture of young talent (Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte, Pedro Alvarez) and some strong veteran leadership (A.J. Burnett, Russell Martin, Francisco Liriano), not to mention what may be the best story in MLB this season in closer Jason Grilli.  Grilli has converted 29/30 save opportunities and has an ERA less than 2.00.  Not bad for a 36-year-old guy who only had five career saves coming in to this season. 

AL-Cleveland Indians: It is hard to imagine that the Indians are only one game behind the Detroit Tigers for the Central division lead.  Seriously, who does this team have?  Well, they were aggressive in the offseason getting guys like Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher, they have made great trades over the past few years acquiring Justin Masterson, developing young talent like Jason Kipnis and Carlos Santana, and going to the scrap heap to revive the careers of guys like Mark Reynolds and Scott Kazmir.  Oh yeah, they also brought in some guy named Francona to manage them.  Supposedly he broke some kind of curse in Boston or something.  Maybe he can do the same in Cleveland, a town that has not won a professional sports championship since 1964. 

Most Disappointing Team

NL-San Francisco Giants: To think that the team that has won two of the last three World Series is twelve games below .500 at the All-Star break is unfathomable, especially when you consider it is pretty much the same group of guys.  The starting rotation still includes Cain, Lincecum, and Bumgarner and the lineup still has Posey, Scutaro, Pence, and Sandoval.  Bruce Bochy hasn’t forgotten how to manage.  So what’s the problem?  Some of it has been injuries but most of it has been lackluster pitching combined with mediocre hitting.  I believe the Giants will get things turned around but they have too far to climb to be a contender this year.

AL-Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: The Blue Jays made a million trades in the offseason and were poised to have the best rotation in the AL if not all of baseball so the fact their pitching has been atrocious (and that may be a kind description) makes perfect sense, right?  And the Angels have spent billions of dollars the past two offseasons getting arms and bats so it just stands to reason they are only mediocre.  What else can you say about these two teams other than there is no reason they should be a combined nine games under .500 at the break.

Pleasant NL Youth Movement

Young arms have emerged and dominated in the National League this year.  The hapless Mets have a young stud in All-Star Game starter Matt Harvey and they have another waiting in Zack Wheeler, whom they received at the trading deadline two years ago in the Carlos Beltran trade with San Francisco.  These two could the cornerstone of the Mets rotation for the next decade.  Shelby Miller has been a rock in the St. Louis Cardinals rotation.  It seems the Cardinals have an endless abundance of starting pitching just laying in the weeds.  No wonder many analysts say they have the best farm system in baseball.  Patrick Corbin has been phenomenal this year for the first place Diamondbacks.  He has more wins that Harvey and the same ERA but gets much less hype due to playing in the desert.  And there are some young bats, too.  Evan Gattis, Jean Segura, and Yasiel Puig will make the highlight reels for many years to come.

Disappointing Veteran Free Agents

It doesn’t get more disappointing than B.J. Upton and Josh Hamilton.  Upton signed the largest free agent contract in the history of the Braves organization and has been an utter embarrassment at the plate through the first 95 games.  Upton has amassed 8 HR and 20 RBI in the first half.  His brother, Justin, who the Braves traded to get in the offseason, had those numbers three weeks into the season.  Josh Hamilton signed a mega-deal with the Angels much like the one that Albert Pujols signed after the 2011 season.  At the break, Hamilton has 14 HR, 39 RBI, a .224 AVG, .696 OPS, and 95 Ks in 339 at-bats.  Braves rookie Evan Gattis has 14 HR, 37 RBI, a .246 AVG, and an .873 OPS in 167 at-bats while making the major league minimum. 

All-Surprise Team : )

NAME                        TEAM             POS     HR      RBI     AVG  
Evan Gattis                 Braves             C         14        37        .246
Paul Goldschmidt       D’backs           1B       21        77        .313
Matt Carpenter           Cardinals         2B       9          45        .321 (NL leading 72 runs)
Jean Segura                Brewers           SS        11        36        .325(27 Stolen Bases)
Josh Donaldson          A’s                  3B       16        61        .310
Domonic Brown         Phillies            LF       23        67        .273
Carlos Gomez             Brewers           CF       14        45        .295 (21 SB)
Yasiel Puig                  Dodgers          RF       8          19        .391 (1.038 OPS, 38 Games)

                                                                        W-L     ERA    K         SV/OPP

Matt Harvey                 Mets                SP        7-2       2.35     147
Patrick Corbin              D’backs           SP        11-1     2.35     109
Shelby Miller               Cardinals         SP        9-6       2.92     112
Jason Grilli                   Pirates             CL                   1.99     63        29/30

All Surprise Team : (

NAME                         TEAM             POS     HR      RBI     AVG
Miguel Montero          D’backs           C         8          33        .224 (16/87/.284 2011-12)
Ike Davis                     Mets                1B       5          18        .165 (32/90/.225 2012)
Danny Espinosa          Nationals         2B       3          12        .158 (19/61/.242 2011-12)
Starlin Castro              Cubs                SS        6          29        .243 (12/72/.296 2011-12)
Mike Moustakas          Royals             3B       6          17        .215 (20/73/.242 2012)
Josh Hamilton             Angels             OF       14        39        .224 (34/111/.291 2011-12)
B.J. Upton                   Braves             CF       8          20        .177 (25/79/.244 2011-12)     
Josh Reddick              A’s                   RF       4          32        .218 (32/85/.242 2012)

                                                                        W-L     ERA    K         SV/OPP

Matt Cain                    Giants              SP        5-6       5.06     103
Josh Johnson               Blue Jays         SP        1-5       5.16     67
Mark Buehrle              Blue Jays         SP        5-6       4.89     77
R.A. Dickie                 Blue Jays         SP        8-10     4.69     92
Fernando Rodney        Rays                CL       3-2       3.79     56        22/27

Triple Crown Watch

Now that it has happened in my lifetime, I have come to expect someone to win the Triple Crown every year.  The best candidate to do so is, shockingly, Miguel Cabrera.  Coming off his 2012 Triple Crown MVP season, Cabrera only became the first player in MLB history to achieve 30+ HR and 90+ RBI at the All-Star break; all while batting a cool .365.  He could be on his way to becoming the first man ever to win the Triple Crown in back-to-back seasons.  (And let’s not forget this cat just turned 30 in April).  To accomplish that feat, though, he will have to surpass Baltimore’s Chris Davis who has 37 HR and only trails Miggy by two RBI.  I’ll say the odds are pretty good that Cabrera doesn’t repeat, but wouldn’t it be something if he did?

All in all, the first half of the season has been amazing and I see no reason why the second half won’t be even better.  The trading deadline is in two weeks and many teams will be looking to make moves.  Hold on tight, baseball fans!  It’s going to be a fantastic ride to the finish line. 

A Night to Remember

This past Friday night was a dream come true for me.  As you all know, I am a lifelong Atlanta Braves fan but I had never been to a game at Turner Field.  I had checked into going many times but it just never seemed to work out.  So when I found out in January that the Braves were going to be retiring Chipper Jones's #10 (check out my ode to him from September http://bit.ly/TCxILE) and he was going to be inducted into the Braves Hall of Fame on June 28, I knew I had to make every effort to attend and as luck would have it, the timing worked perfectly into our vacation schedule.  And what made it even more special was that I was going to get the share the experience with my wife, my three kids, my father, both of my brothers, three nephews, and a niece. 

During the day on Friday, I got to walk around Turner Field and my wife, Kristy, took several nice pictures of the stadium and the monuments in the plaza outside the stadium.  I was able to walk around and spend time enjoying the stadium instead of being rushed like it usually is when we go to a ballpark.  Of the four Major League parks I have now been to, (the others being Great American in Cincy, PNC in Pittsburgh, and Comerica in Detroit) Turner Field ranks as the second nicest behind PNC. 

The icing on the cake for the day, however, was the most unexpected surprise I ever could have imagined.  I knew I was going to get to see the jersey of my second favorite Braves player of all time get retired but I had no idea that I was going to get to meet my childhood hero and get his autograph.  You could have knocked me over with a feather when I found out I was going to have the opportunity to meet Dale Murphy (see why he belongs in the HOF http://bit.ly/USlOLA) and get him to sign a baseball.  I felt like I was eight years old again.  We made a mad dash to the autograph session where Murphy was signing as soon as the gates opened so we could get our place in line.  Even though I am almost thirty-five, I must admit that I got a little star-struck when I shook Murphy's hand and got my ball signed by him.  My son, Brayden, was so excited by meeting Dale Murphy that he decided to put his signed ball in the case we had just bought him for his game ball the he received a few weeks earlier during his youth baseball season. 

The euphoria of meeting my childhood baseball hero had not worn off by the time we made it to our seats to watch the jersey retirement ceremony.  As I sat there watching the presentation on the field and the unveiling of the #10 on the ring around the stadium, I couldn't believe how great the day had turned out to be.  The first pitch had not even been thrown and I had already had the greatest sports spectating moments of my life.  What could have been better?  Oh yeah, the Braves actually winning the game, which they did 3-0.  Back in January when we ordered the tickets and you would have asked me what the perfect night for June 28 would look like, the story I would have told you would not have even come close to the perfection of the reality of that night.  I guess sometimes reality is more unreal than a lifelong dream.