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Braves didn't stand pat during off-season

With spring training just over a month away, most teams are putting the finishing touches on a busy off-season. In the NL East, the goal is to close the gap on the three-time defending champion Phillies.

Chipper Jones is one of few veterans on a Braves roster that has seen much change. (John Amis/AP file photo)
Chipper Jones is one of few veterans on a Braves roster that has seen much change. (John Amis/AP file photo)Read more

With spring training just over a month away, most teams are putting the finishing touches on a busy off-season. In the NL East, the goal is to close the gap on the three-time defending champion Phillies.

Perhaps the busiest team in the division has been Atlanta. The Braves, despite trading away their ace pitcher to the Yankees, will try to build around what has the potential to be one of the finest starting rotations in the majors. Atlanta has a relatively young core of players and added a handful of veterans during the off-season.

Gone is Javier Vazquez, who won 15 games for the Braves last season. Here's a breakdown of what else Atlanta has been up to:

2009 record: (86-76, third place, 7 games back - 735 runs scored, 641 runs allowed).

Last season in 140 characters or less: Still not the Braves of old, but a 14-win improvement from '08 and a trio of young guns keep Atlanta in the race until October.

In with the new:

RHP Juan Abreu, RF Mitch Jones, RHP Scott Proctor, CF Melky Cabrera, LHP Michael Dunn, RHP Arodys Vizcaino, RF Brent Clevlen, 3B Joe Thurston, C Orlando Mercado, RHP Jesse Chavez, RHP Takashi Saito, LHP Billy Wagner, 1B Troy Glaus.

Out with the old:

LF Garret Anderson, LHP Mike Gonzalez, 1B Adam LaRoche, 1B Greg Norton, LHP Boone Logan, RHP Javier Vazquez, 2B Kelly Johnson, RF Ryan Church, RHP Rafael Soriano.

Biggest move:

Dec. 22, 2009 - Traded LHP Boone Logan and RHP Javier Vazquez to New York Yankees for RHP Arodys Vizcaino, CF Melky Cabrera, LHP Michael Dunn, and cash.

Atlanta had a glut of starting pitching so something had to give. Trade rumors persisted all off-season about Derek Lowe, but it was Vazquez who was moved. Braves GM Frank Wren has taken some flak for the package he received for Vazquez, who finished fourth in last year's Cy Young voting.

Wren is counting on Cabrera to bring some pop to the Atlanta outfield. He will most likely replace the departed Anderson in left field. Cabrera's OPS was nearly 50 points better than Anderson's last season, but Cabrera will have to adjust to a bigger ballpark and a new league. Nineteen-year-old Vizcaino is a big-time prospect but far away from the majors.

Underrated move:

Dec. 3, 2009 - Signed free agent RHP Takashi Saito.

Gone from the bullpen are Gonzalez (with his mound dancing) and Soriano. Replacing them are Wagner - he's three for five in the NL East - and Saito. Atlanta will go into 2010 thinking Wagner is the closer, but chances are that doesn't last the entire season. So Saito, who was signed a day after Wagner, becomes an important piece.

Remember, he saved 81 games in three seasons for Los Angeles before going to Boston last season, where he served as a setup man. His walks were way up last season, but a return to the National League may serve Saito well. Even with some control issues, he had a 2.43 ERA for the Red Sox in 56 games.

Riskiest move:

Jan. 5 - Signed free agent 1B Troy Glaus.

The addition of Glaus gets the nod over Wagner. The Braves are putting a lot of faith in Glaus, who has played 382/3 innings at first base over his 12-year career. The 33-year-old managed just 32 plate appearances last season with St. Louis. A bad shoulder kept him out until September. He has played 149 games or more in just three of the last seven seasons.

He came cheap, at $1.75 million (with incentives), but the Braves have little behind Glaus at first base. "It's a calculated gamble," Wren told reporters. The Braves also signed Eric Hinske to a one-year deal. Hinske is primarily a pinch-hitter at this point in his career, but he could be used at first.

Projected starters:

C Brian McCann - The last of those Baby Braves, who were supposed to mark a new generation. He's still one of the game's elite catchers.

1B Troy Glaus - Can he hold up? Glaus says playing first shouldn't differ too much from third.

2B Martin Prado - He'll take over for Kelly Johnson. Prado hit .307 in 128 games last season.

3B Chipper Jones - At 37, this could be the last hurrah for Larry, who batted a modest .264 last season and posted his lowest OPS since 1995.

SS Yuniel Escobar - In a division blessed with great shortstops, Escobar is a very promising player.

LF Melky Cabrera - The pressure's on the Melk Man, who was the cornerstone of the Vazquez deal.

CF Nate McLouth - He's a midseason acquisition who failed to live up to his breakout 2008 with Pittsburgh.

RF Matt Diaz - With Jordan Schafer and Jason Heyward waiting in the wings, Diaz needs a good spring.

Projected rotation:

RHP Jair Jurrjens -

A breakout season for the 23-year-old, who was unhittable at times with a 2.60 ERA.

RHP Derek Lowe - He won 15 games in the first year of a four-year contract, but allowed 232 hits in 1942/3 innings.

RHP Tommy Hanson - He was hailed as a stud and looked every bit of it by winning 11 out of his first 21 major-league starts.

RHP Tim Hudson - Started just seven games late in the season after rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.

RHP Kenshin Kawakami - Lost 12 games, but limited his walks and finished with a 3.86 ERA.

Key bullpen figures:

LHP Billy Wagner -

Even if he's healthy, how much is left in his tank?

RHP Takashi Saito - He has closer's experience.

RHP Peter Moylan - The Aussie has turned into a legit middle-innings guy.

LHP Eric O'Flaherty - The soon-to-be 25-year-old pitched in 78 games last season as top lefty option.

The Skinny:

It's Bobby Cox's final year as manager before he retires, and he is blessed with perhaps the best rotation in the majors. But scoring could be a problem, especially if the outfielders struggle. Wren made some risky moves during the off-season, and it's debatable how much Atlanta actually improved.

Keeping Pace

This week, Inquirer staff writer Matt Gelb will be analyzing the off-season moves and changes of the Phillies' competitors in the National League East.

Today: Braves

Tomorrow: Mets

Friday: Marlins

Saturday: Nationals

Stay connected to the Phillies all year long on The Inquirer's Phillies blog, The Phillies Zone, at http://go.philly.com/sports.EndText