The Braves Can Be Competitive This Year, Barring Setbacks

This afternoon at 1pm, the Atlanta Braves will head to Lakeland, Florida to take on the Detroit Tigers in their Spring Training opener. Sophomore sensation Jair Jurrjens will face his former club as he makes the start.

There are plenty of new faces in the clubhouse after a flurry of activity this offseason. With new acquisitions comes new expectations for a Braves team now three full seasons removed from the playoffs. While the general idea of Frank Wren's moves was to bridge the gap between the present and the highly-talented future, he's managed to shape a club that has a chance to be competitive now - in the National League's toughest division.

Let's rundown what must happen if the Braves have any chance of becoming a winning franchise once more:


Starters Must Eat Innings. New guys Derek Lowe, Javier Vazquez and Kenshin Kawakami were brought in mainly because of their reputation as innings eaters. With little to no injury history for any of them, at least two-hundred innings pitched is a reasonable expectation. Last season as one starter after another fell to injury, the bullpen had to pick up the slack and fill in those middle innings early in the season. By August they had no arms left. This year it'll take four healthy starters (Jurrjens should be a 200+ IP guy too) to keep the fragile bullpen from breaking down.

Relievers Must Stay Healthy. Speaking of the bullpen, the final three innings look rather menacing if Moylan, Soriano then Gonzalez take the mound. But that's a huge "if". Soriano's string of injuries and health problems seems to get more ridiculous and neverending (his upper-respiratory problem this spring doesn't bode well). Moylan is ten months removed from Tommy John surgery, so don't expect him to pitch until May - but even then, he likely won't be 100%. Gonzo says he's in the best shape of his life, and I don't doubt him. He looked great last year, and its safe to assume that the farther removed from his Tommy John operation, the better he will be. All that said, the Braves have an opportunity to line up three dominant-closer-like pitchers at the end of every ballgame. Game over.

Someone Must Drive in Runs. Yunel, Chipper and McCann are going to get on base, there's no doubt. But who's going to drive them in? The biggest knock against the Braves this offseason is who is going to drive in runs (besides the All-Stars)? We lack any true power hitters now, bundling together a group of solid 15-25 HR guys. While driving the ball over the fence may come at a premium, landing one in the gap will be quite common. This is a doubles team. The question becomes whether Francoeur can overcome a terrible 2008 and step up with runners on, whether Garret Anderson can continue being a top-tier run producer in a new lineup, and whether the top of the order can get on base in front of Chipper and McCann. Gone are the days of waiting for the big home-run from Andruw or Tex, its time for the Braves to play small ball, move runners over, and sustain rallies.

Prospects Must Live Up to Potential. Jordan Schafer might come out of Spring as the starting center-fielder, Tommy Hanson might be in the rotation come July, and the future of the lineup rests on the bat of young Jason Heyward. These top prospects and others (see Freddie Freeman, Gorkys Hernandez, Kris Medlen, etc.) have to live up to their potential if the Braves stand any chance at sustaining a winning franchise. All of the new faces this year will serve as the bridge until the young guns can be called up. If they're brought up and disappoint, it's back to the drawing board for the front office.

The Battery Must Work Together. Brian McCann leaves this weekend to start practicing with his USA World Baseball Classic team (along with Chipper Jones). That leaves the three new starting pitchers with two to three weeks of not practicing with their everyday battery-mate. Derek Lowe has spoken out that its a big adjustment for new pitchers and catchers to get on the same page. McCann's decision (and the Braves' decision to let him) to play in the WBC greatly limits his ability to establish a report with his new pitchers. Even worse is the addition of Kawakami, who likely will need to establish an elaborate series of signs and key phrases that both players will understand (unless McCann already knows Japanese). If there's any lack of strong communication between the battery mates going into the regular season, it might lead to setbacks in making the pitchers comfortable.

Legends Must Retire as Braves. Though not directly impacting the wins and losses, the fans of Atlanta deserve to see their local legends retire as Braves. After John Smoltz jumped ship for Boston, its become more apparent that the fanbase needs its heroes to stay in town. Chipper is beginning negotations on a long-term extension that should keep him here until he retires. Tom Glavine signed a one-year deal to return home, for likely his last season. Should 2011 come around and Chipper, Glavine, and Hudson are all gone (through either retirement or free agency), fans are going to need reasons to stick with the team. Player loyalty breeds fan loyalty, and Frank Wren did a good job of repairing the damage caused by Smoltz's departure. Let's hope the front office realized what it means to keep our heroes in a Braves uniform in the future.

I know Braves fans are hesitant to jump back on the wagon, expecting another down season for their hometown team. But things are looking up, and barring a few setbacks, this could be a surprising year for Atlanta. Despite the Phillies, Mets and Marlins standing in our way, its not out of the question to be playing meaningful games come August and Septemeber.