TalkingChop 4 hours ago
2019 Atlanta Braves Pre-season Top 30 Prospect List: 1-6
We have arrived at the top six prospects in the Braves’ farm system....at least according to us. Welcome to the fifth and final installment of the Talking Chop 2019 pre-season top 30 Braves prospects list. For those of you who have been following along so far, we thank you sincerely for making it this far. The sheer amount of support you have given us over the years is remarkable. I can honestly say that we couldn’t have continued to do this without all of your support and it means far more than you know. For those of you who missed the first few installments, fear not....here are some...
Kris Willis / TalkingChop 6 hours ago 
Talking Chop Roundtable: What will Atlanta’s outfield look like on Opening Day?
Who will join Inciarte and Acuña in Atlanta’s outfield? One of the biggest points of contention for many fans this offseason is that Atlanta has yet to fill their outfield vacancy. There is still time mind you, but several free agent targets have come off the board and a trade has yet to materialize. So today’s roundtable topic is. What will the Braves’ outfield look like on Opening Day? Who will be Atlanta’s starting outfielders on Opening Day? Ivan: Ender Inciarte, last year’s National League Rookie of the Year, and of course, the real question is about the third spot. So...
Kris Willis / TalkingChop 9 hours ago 
Braves News: Rotation outlook, revamped NL East, Prospect list and more
Atlanta Braves News Around the Horn: Folty tops uncertain rotation Unless there is a move made between now and the start of the season, Atlanta’s rotation looks pretty set 1-4 with an open competition developing for the fifth and final spot. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman takes a closer look at the Braves’ rotation as things stand currently. 2019 Atlanta Braves Pre-season Top 30 Prospect List: 7-12 Our pre-season Top 30 prospects list countdown continued on Thursday with No. 7-12. This is a good group of players that reminds you that Atlanta still has a number of guys in the minors that could...
TalkingChop Jan 17, 2019
2019 Atlanta Braves Pre-season Top 30 Prospect List: 7-12
We are in the home stretch of our 2019 pre-season prospects list which includes Welcome to the fourth installment of the Talking Chop 2019 pre-season top 30 Braves prospects list. For those of you who have been following along so far, our condolences. For those of you who missed the first few installments, fear not....here are some links to get you caught up. Part One: Prospects 25-30 Part Two: Prospects 19-24 Part Three: Prospects 13-18 The way the rankings are determined is that each member of the Talking Chop minor league staff (in this case, that means Eric Cole, Garrett Spain, Gaurav...
Kris Willis / TalkingChop Jan 17, 2019 
Talking Chop 2019 Pre-season Top 30 Prospect Rankings
The way these rankings are determined is that each member of the Talking Chop minor league staff (in this case, that means Eric Cole, Garrett Spain, Gaurav Vedak, Matt Powers, Aaron Huston, and Wayne Cavadi) submitted their own personal prospect rankings. From that, we make a composite and see how that looks. More often than not, we all agree that the final composite is good to go and ends up being the final list once ties are resolved and the math is double-checked. We have made adjustments in the past to account for weird outlier cases, but that is the gist. A few notes about the list...
Kris Willis / TalkingChop Jan 17, 2019 
Talking Chop Roundtable: Where do the Braves’ stand in a revamped NL East?
Have the Braves done enough to keep up? Our roundtable series continues today with a look at the NL East division. The Nationals and the Mets have been two of the more aggressive clubs this offseason. Washington added Patrick Corbin to a rotation that already includes Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg. The Mets picked up Robinson Cano and one of the best closers in the game in Edwin Diaz added them to a mix that already includes Noah Syndergaard and Jacob deGrom. The Phillies have been relatively quiet so far but are threatening to spend “stupid money” and are favorites to land one of...
TalkingChop Jan 17, 2019
Braves News: Roundtable, prospect lists, interviews, and more
Another day of silence for the Braves, but not for Talking Chop. We have content regarding the offseason, an interview with Patrick Weigel, and the latest installment in the TC prospect list. BRAVES NEWS Talking Chop Roundtable: Thoughts on the Braves’ offseason so far The Talking Chop staff all shared their thoughts on the proceedings of the offseason, with the general consensus being that we still have to wait and see what moves are to come, but with obvious excitement about the acquisition of Josh Donaldson. 2019 Atlanta Braves Pre-season Top 30 Prospect List: 13-18 Check out the...
TalkingChop Jan 17, 2019
Talking Chop Podcast Episode 149: The mildly warm stove
TC’s Scott Coleman joins us. It’s mid-January and, while the stove isn’t quite lit, there are at least some rumblings of activity surrounding the Atlanta Braves. With that as the backdrop, Episode 149 of the Talking Chop Podcast is here and TC’s own Scott Coleman joins the program for a fun show. Topics include the following:” The Braves had a bit of a scouting shake-up and we discuss both the fallout and the interesting timeline involved Arbitration results are in and, while there are no big surprises, the drama isn’t necessarily over Atlanta will, in fact, have two first...
TalkingChop Jan 16, 2019
An interview with Braves pitching prospect Patrick Weigel
Patrick Weigel is on the comeback trail from Tommy John surgery and is still considered to be among the better prospects in the Braves farm system. He took the time to chat with us about his recovery and offseason. One of the most heartbreaking things for us here on the minor league side at Talking Chop is to see players we like both as people and as players suffer setbacks in their development. Rough seasons and/or injuries happen all the time in the minor leagues and many chalk it up to “just the way it goes”, but these are real people with real dreams and to see their careers...
TalkingChop Jan 16, 2019
2019 Atlanta Braves Pre-season Top 30 Prospect List: 13-18
The third installment of our Top 30 features a trio of 2018 draftees and a pair of pitchers that you have gotten to know well over the last few years. Welcome to the third installment of the Talking Chop 2019 pre-season Top 30 Braves prospects list. For those of you who have been following along so far, Ivan promises to post a picture of his cat in the comments section (probably). For those of you who missed the first two installments, fear not...you can view part one here and then read the second installment right here. The way the rankings are determined is that each member of the Talking...
Kris Willis / TalkingChop Jan 16, 2019 
Talking Chop Roundtable: Thoughts on the Braves’ offseason so far
Have the Braves had a good offseason? This is the first of our roundtable series which will be running through the remainder of the week. Our first question centers on the offseason to date. Atlanta struck early with the addition of Josh Donaldson but has been essentially quiet since. Here is what our writers had to say about what has turned into an excruciatingly (at times) slow offseason market. What are your thoughts on the Braves’ offseason so far? Ivan: From the entirety of last offseason and the first part of this one, it’s really clear to me that the Front Office either has...
Kris Willis / TalkingChop Jan 16, 2019 
Braves News: Josh Donaldson’s impact, free agent rumors, prospect lists and more
People seem to be forgetting that the Braves already made one significant move this offseason. Atlanta Braves News Braves reluctant to part with draft pick in free agent signing, per report Reports suggest that Atlanta still has money to spend on the free agent market and they have been linked recently to free agent outfielder A.J. Pollock if his demands drop. However, Ken Rosenthal of the The Athletic reports that Atlanta is reluctant to part with draft pick compensation for a signing like Pollock in wake of the sanctions that were levied against them by Major League Baseball last...
TalkingChop Jan 15, 2019
Braves continue to have interest in Sonny Gray, per report
The Braves apparently still have their eye on the Yankee’s righty. Other than a bit of a kerfuffle last night where for about two minutes we thought that Marwin Gonzalez was going to be a Brave, the Braves have been relatively quiet since signing Josh Donaldson and Brian McCann. However, throughout the offseason, one of their stated goals, other than to find someone to play in the outfield, has been to upgrade the rotation. This has led to a lot of fans dreaming of acquiring Corey Kluber or signing Dallas Keuchel, but one name that has continued to crop and apparently will continue to has...
Kris Willis / TalkingChop Jan 15, 2019 
Braves reluctant to part with draft pick in free agent signing, per report
A.J. Pollock makes a lot of sense for the Braves but the team may be reluctant to part with a draft pick as part of compensation for signing him. The Atlanta Braves made a splash early this offseason with the additions of Josh Donaldson and Brian McCann but have been pretty quiet since. They are still in search of an outfielder for the upcoming season but have yet to pull the trigger on a trade or a free agent signing to replace Nick Markakis. Recently the team was linked to free agent A.J. Pollock who is the best outfielder currently available not named Bryce Harper. However, Atlanta has...
TalkingChop Jan 15, 2019
An interview with Braves relief prospect Corbin Clouse
Braves minor leaguer Corbin Clouse took some time out of his busy schedule to sit down with us again to talk about his development and what his goals are for 2019. One aspect of a team’s farm system that is often overlooked is their reliever prospects. Some of that is due to the fact that it is assumed, often incorrectly, that a team’s best relief prospects are actually starting pitching prospects that are either crowded out of a starting pitching role or have some sort of flaw that pushes them to the bullpen (delivery issues, lack of a third pitch, etc). However, there are a ton of...
TalkingChop Jan 15, 2019
2019 Atlanta Braves Pre-season Top 30 Prospect List: 19-24
The next six players on our Top 30 list includes a pair of relievers, one of whom made his surprising big league debut in 2018. Welcome to the second installment of the Talking Chop 2019 pre-season Top 30 Braves prospects list. For those of you who have been following along so far, you get extra bonus points. For those of you who missed the first installment, fear not...you can view it right here. The way the rankings are determined is that each member of the Talking Chop minor league staff (in this case, that means Eric Cole, Garrett Spain, Gaurav Vedak, Matt Powers, Aaron Huston, and...
TalkingChop Jan 15, 2019
Braves News: New Unis, Prospect Lists, and False Rumors
There was plenty of news on Monday, though the most important “news” of the day proved to be false. BRAVES NEWS Braves set to unveil “refreshed” uniforms at Chop Fest 2019 The Braves rarely make substantive changes to their uniforms, but the club announced on Monday that they intend to reveal a “refreshed” uniform at Chop Fest this Saturday. This Saturday, the Braves are having their annual Chop Fest event at SunTrust Park and The Battery. As usual, there’s going to be plenty of stuff for fans to do at the all-day event but the most interesting moment will happen at around...
TalkingChop Jan 14, 2019
2019 Atlanta Braves Pre-season Top 30 Prospect List: 25-30
Welcome the 2019 pre-season edition of the Talking Chop Top 30 Braves prospects list. We do two editions of this prospect list each year and it is always a huge undertaking, but a rewarding one. The way the rankings are determined is that each member of the Talking Chop minor league staff (in this case, that means Eric Cole, Garrett Spain, Gaurav Vedak, Matt Powers, Aaron Huston, and Wayne Cavadi) submitted their own personal prospect rankings. From that, we make a composite and see how that looks. More often than not, we all agree that the final composite is good to go and ends up being...
TalkingChop Jan 14, 2019
Braves set to unveil “refreshed” uniforms at Chop Fest 2019
The Braves will have a new look for the 2019 season. Will there be a major change involved as well? This Saturday, the Braves are having their annual Chop Fest event at SunTrust Park and The Battery. As usual, there’s going to be plenty of stuff for fans to do at the all-day event but the most interesting moment will happen at around 11:30 AM EST on Saturday. That’s because the Braves are going to reveal what they are calling “refreshed” uniforms for the upcoming season and beyond that. #ChopFest Announcement: 2019 Uniform Showcase Braves will unveil the refreshed uniforms for...
Kris Willis / TalkingChop Jan 14, 2019 
Braves Mailbag: Send in your questions now
The offseason is slowly moving on but we did have a bit of news last week as the Atlanta Braves avoided arbitration altogether as they reached an agreement with all seven of their eligible players. Those agreements are non-guaranteed so that does leave the team a bit of wiggle room but it checks off another box on the offseason. If you have a question for this week’s mailbag you can leave them below in the form of a comment or you can email them to talkingchop [at] gmail [dot] com. We will leave this open through the end of the week with the answers likely going up sometime this weekend....
