Time to refocus the Goals

Note: This originally appeared on the scoreatl.com website last week.
As the Braves get ready to begin the “second half” of the season and the Braves sit 6.5 back of New York and Philly, it MIGHT be time to refocus the goals for Atlanta. That is NOT to say that it is time to give up, but let’s just readjust the goals from the preseason. Personally, I had the team taking the division, winning the pennant, then taking the Cleveland Indians down in six games in the Series, ala 1995. MAYBE I should take a step back.
The first goal is to develop the young pitching. With Glavine out for a while and no more Smoltz for the rest of the season, Roger McDowell and Bobby Cox should keep trotting those youngsters out there. Charlie Morton can get ahead of schedule and be a major player come NEXT season instead of two years from now. Keep giving him the ball every fifth day. Jo-Jo Reyes can become a solid number 3 for years to come as he is putting together large stretches of outings. It took the young lefty a few years and he has FINALLY put the pieces together, which is nice to see. Finally, Jair Jurrjens is making a push for Rookie of the Year with 9 wins on the season and has been a pleasant early surprise in that swap with the Tigers.
You have FINALLY found your closer in Gonzo, now put EVERYONE else in their roles. You won’t have Soriano for a while, but Gonzo is man enough for that spot which SHOULD relax everyone else into roles they are more comfortable with.
Frenchy won’t hit the 40 homers I called for, or even 30 for that matter, but he CAN improve his RBI total, especially with runners in scoring position. He was struggling earlier in the season, but maybe he does finally make a worthwhile contract push.

Bottom line, with a +38 run differential, this team is better than the sub-.500 record indicates. True they are 6.5 back, but with the lineup FINALLY getting healthy again, this team showed in San Diego what they are capable of doing. Taking a look at the early second half schedule, the Braves could and should get out of the blocks early. The team welcomes in baseball’s WORST team in the Nationals. Then the Braves hit the road for Miami to take on Florida. Believe it or not, the Braves have a winning record against the Fish this season. After stopping in Philly, the site of the team’s only win against Philadelphia this season, they will come home for St. Louis and Milwaukee. That homestand will be important since the Braves trail BOTH of those teams in the wild card hunt. Luckily the Braves won’t play baseball’s hottest team in New York for a while, though the Braves have won 7 of 9 games against the Mets this season. Atlanta will likely have to win the division to make the playoffs. Maybe the 24 straight one run road losses will end and the team can start a run. One run may be all this team needs.