Not Sure What's Left to Prove

On and on and on we go
Where we hit the ground well no one knows
The game, the rules have changed and everyone is on their own
I've seen the real and it is good
It's made of mountains, gold, and burning wood
The time is right for you to open up and go right through the door
Everything-“The Real”

Unfortunately Braves pitcher/icon/“The Real” John Smoltz had to shut it down for 2008 to have his fifth surgery in his career and he turns 41 later this year. For any normal man, this may mean the end of a career. But John Smoltz is no normal man. He has already put out on the record that he would love to resume his historical career next season so that he might go out on his own terms. And I don’t just throw the phrase “historical career,” out because he is the face of my favorite team. He is the only pitcher in history to have racked up more than 200 wins with more than 150 saves and more than 3000 strikeouts. Yep the guy is simply amazing. Throw in his Cy Young award and his postseason victory totals and you have a bonafide Hall of Famer here in Atlanta. He even has a World Series ring that he could wear around town if he really wanted to.
Which is why he should walk away! I could understand if Smoltzie didn’t have a ring and he wanted to earn that piece of championship hardware to his impressive resume. He does though and if he is worried about leaving a gapping hole in Atlanta rotation, well any Hall of Famer’s retirement would, but the team seems to have found a new Ace in Tim Hudson and though Smoltz is without a doubt the team’s greatest closer of all-time, Mike Gonzalez and/or Raphael Soriano seem to have that job taken care of. Not that he is not needed, he certainly is, but the rotation seems to be getting younger with Jo-Jo Reyes coming into his own and Jair Jurrjens pitching well and Charlie Morton on the horizon, and the bullpen seems to replenish itself every so often with youngsters, trades and retreads.
If Smoltz wanted to walk away to a life of golf, he could. The Braves would miss him and they might want to consider naming the bullpen after him, but they could manage. And if Smoltz thinks that he is the missing piece for this team winning a championship next season, he is mistaken. This team isn’t going to win a title next season, maybe a division, but the Phillies are pretty good, as this past weekend proved. This team is more than a few pieces away, and to be honest, the 10-14M his salary would eat up MIGHT be better spent on an outfielder that can produce with the bases loaded (Frenchy!) or a first baseman that won’t refuse to go the other way like he is capable of when the infield has given him the Ryan Howard shift (Teixeira!).
This team will certainly miss John Smoltz if he decides not to come back, but the Braves will go on. And I am certain that Braves fans would rather see a John Smoltz able to still golf and greet fans with both arms rather than the guy go through a fifth surgery only to need another and possibly not be able to hug his kids or lift his grandkids down the line. There’s nothing left to prove Smoltzie. Hang it up, get your speech ready for Cooperstown and enjoy a round of golf for me. You deserve it!

The time is right for you to open up and go right through the door.

PS this is my weekly article for 790TheZone
PS#2, I also tweaked the lyrics just a tad, but two words for the purposes of this article. I would have asked the guys from Everything if that was OK, but they weren't allowed to take a break from their shifts at Home Depot to take my calls.