Friday, June 17, 2005
Braves ink Brower
ARLINGTON -- With Atlanta's record dropping precariously close to .500, the organization searched for some relief.
The club found it in former San Francisco Giants pitcher Jim Brower.
On Wednesday, the Braves announced the signing of Brower through the rest of the 2005 season. Brower was released by the Giants on June 13, after appearing in 32 games this year, compiling a 2-1 record out of the bullpen.
"We've always liked him in the bullpen out there," manager Bobby Cox said. "We don't see that team that often, and sometimes you miss some of their pitchers when you play them only three games. He's a kid that would help set up for [the Giants], pitched in the middle, and even closed occasionally."
Brower is expected to join the club when it begins a four-game series in Cincinnati on Thursday. A corresponding roster move will be announced at that time.
The Braves hope Brower will help solidify a bullpen that has been up and down all season. Going into Wednesday's game, the Braves pitching staff ranks third in the National League in ERA, and is riding an eight-inning scoreless streak.
Before those eight innings, the 'pen had allowed 13 runs in its last 12 1/3 innings, dating back to the first game in the Oakland series. Jorge Vazquez, who was the most recent pitching callup, made his season debut in a relief role Monday against the Rangers, surrendering two runs and two walks, while striking out three in 2 1/3 innings.
Brower has a career 32-29 record with five saves and a 4.36 ERA. He was with the Giants for two years.
"He's got a good track record and threw some good innings with San Francisco," said Braves reliever Chris Reitsma, who hasn't allowed a run in his last 10 innings pitched. "He's a workhorse. He gets a lot of games in, and they obviously weren't afraid to use him."
According to Cox, nine different teams were looking at acquiring Brower after his release.
"Everybody's looking for bullpen help right now, so there was a lot of interest in him," Cox said.
Quotable: "He threw one changeup. We're trying to get him to throw the changeup more. He's got a pretty good one, but he just doesn't trust it. He threw one, and the guy hit it out of the ballpark in the first inning, so that was the end of the experiment with the changeup for him." -- Cox on Jorge Sosa's one mistake in Tuesday's start.
Injury report: Rafael Furcal sat out his second consecutive start Wednesday, nursing a nagging shoulder injury. Cox also pulled Furcal halfway through Monday's opener, after the Rangers had the game in hand.
"It's the same thing he had all spring, and has had all season," Cox said. "It doesn't get much better, and it doesn't get any worse. It's just always there.
I'm just trying to give him a couple of days off, give him a breather, and see if it wouldn't help. I'll talk to him today to see how he feels about playing the opening game in Cincinnati."
Wilson Betemit replaced Furcal in all three games. Betemit went 2-for-6 in the first two contests against the Rangers, with one run and one RBI.
Tim Hudson and Johnny Estrada are also feeling the effects of their recent injuries. Hudson was pulled out of his start against Los Angeles due to cramping, and woke up the next day with soreness. He made his next start in Texas, but his control suffered. Hudson's status for his next scheduled start Saturday is still unknown.
Estrada played in his first game Monday after a week off from a concussion. He battled through five innings before Brian McCann replaced him. Estrada played all nine innings of Tuesday's game, but did not start in the series finale.
"Johnny wants to play, but I've got to watch him a little bit," Cox said. "I noticed a couple of times when he took pitches and swung last night, you could really see the grimace on his face. He's still sore. The first night he got lightheaded, and that scared me."
Briefly: Cox had seven rookies in his starting lineup for Wednesday's game, marking the first time Atlanta has had at least seven rookies in the same lineup since the last game of a 93-loss season in 1978. ... A pair of 21-year olds, Kyle Davies and McCann, started as the Braves battery for the second time this season Wednesday. The duo represents the first pitcher-catcher combo under 22-years-old since the Mets' Dwight Gooden and John Gibbons in 1984.
Coming up: John Smoltz (5-5, 3.22 ERA) will take the mound after tossing his first complete game in more than six years against Oakland on Saturday, a 5-3 Braves win. He has thrown six or more innings in each of his last four starts, while giving up at least three runs per game during that stint, registering a 2-2 record.
Source: http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/
The club found it in former San Francisco Giants pitcher Jim Brower.
On Wednesday, the Braves announced the signing of Brower through the rest of the 2005 season. Brower was released by the Giants on June 13, after appearing in 32 games this year, compiling a 2-1 record out of the bullpen.
"We've always liked him in the bullpen out there," manager Bobby Cox said. "We don't see that team that often, and sometimes you miss some of their pitchers when you play them only three games. He's a kid that would help set up for [the Giants], pitched in the middle, and even closed occasionally."
Brower is expected to join the club when it begins a four-game series in Cincinnati on Thursday. A corresponding roster move will be announced at that time.
The Braves hope Brower will help solidify a bullpen that has been up and down all season. Going into Wednesday's game, the Braves pitching staff ranks third in the National League in ERA, and is riding an eight-inning scoreless streak.
Before those eight innings, the 'pen had allowed 13 runs in its last 12 1/3 innings, dating back to the first game in the Oakland series. Jorge Vazquez, who was the most recent pitching callup, made his season debut in a relief role Monday against the Rangers, surrendering two runs and two walks, while striking out three in 2 1/3 innings.
Brower has a career 32-29 record with five saves and a 4.36 ERA. He was with the Giants for two years.
"He's got a good track record and threw some good innings with San Francisco," said Braves reliever Chris Reitsma, who hasn't allowed a run in his last 10 innings pitched. "He's a workhorse. He gets a lot of games in, and they obviously weren't afraid to use him."
According to Cox, nine different teams were looking at acquiring Brower after his release.
"Everybody's looking for bullpen help right now, so there was a lot of interest in him," Cox said.
Quotable: "He threw one changeup. We're trying to get him to throw the changeup more. He's got a pretty good one, but he just doesn't trust it. He threw one, and the guy hit it out of the ballpark in the first inning, so that was the end of the experiment with the changeup for him." -- Cox on Jorge Sosa's one mistake in Tuesday's start.
Injury report: Rafael Furcal sat out his second consecutive start Wednesday, nursing a nagging shoulder injury. Cox also pulled Furcal halfway through Monday's opener, after the Rangers had the game in hand.
"It's the same thing he had all spring, and has had all season," Cox said. "It doesn't get much better, and it doesn't get any worse. It's just always there.
I'm just trying to give him a couple of days off, give him a breather, and see if it wouldn't help. I'll talk to him today to see how he feels about playing the opening game in Cincinnati."
Wilson Betemit replaced Furcal in all three games. Betemit went 2-for-6 in the first two contests against the Rangers, with one run and one RBI.
Tim Hudson and Johnny Estrada are also feeling the effects of their recent injuries. Hudson was pulled out of his start against Los Angeles due to cramping, and woke up the next day with soreness. He made his next start in Texas, but his control suffered. Hudson's status for his next scheduled start Saturday is still unknown.
Estrada played in his first game Monday after a week off from a concussion. He battled through five innings before Brian McCann replaced him. Estrada played all nine innings of Tuesday's game, but did not start in the series finale.
"Johnny wants to play, but I've got to watch him a little bit," Cox said. "I noticed a couple of times when he took pitches and swung last night, you could really see the grimace on his face. He's still sore. The first night he got lightheaded, and that scared me."
Briefly: Cox had seven rookies in his starting lineup for Wednesday's game, marking the first time Atlanta has had at least seven rookies in the same lineup since the last game of a 93-loss season in 1978. ... A pair of 21-year olds, Kyle Davies and McCann, started as the Braves battery for the second time this season Wednesday. The duo represents the first pitcher-catcher combo under 22-years-old since the Mets' Dwight Gooden and John Gibbons in 1984.
Coming up: John Smoltz (5-5, 3.22 ERA) will take the mound after tossing his first complete game in more than six years against Oakland on Saturday, a 5-3 Braves win. He has thrown six or more innings in each of his last four starts, while giving up at least three runs per game during that stint, registering a 2-2 record.
Source: http://atlanta.braves.mlb.com/
