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The Scout's View: Braves
Posted: Tuesday October 12, 1999 11:29 AM
Sports Illustrated asked major league scouts who have closely followed the playoff teams
to help prepare these reports on the four participants in the League
Championship Series. The scouts were promised anonymity in exchange for their
candor. Here's what they revealed.
Lineup
Gerald Williams LF
Susceptible to
breaking balls.
Has made himself a better
hitter, mostly because he's
better with two strikes.
Likes to turn on fastballs. A
good fielder who throws
well.
Bret Boone 2B
Will chase pitches up in the
strike zone. Has a little hitch
with his hands, so you can
spoil his timing by
changing
speeds and moving the
ball
in and out, up and
down.
Chipper Jones 3B
More power from the right side
this year, but he's still a better
hitter from the left. Make him
hit righthanded whenever
possible, then challenge him
with fastballs. Lefthanded, you
must change
speeds.
Brian Jordan RF
Hand injury seemed to cut
power, though he has come on
strong lately. Likes to hit to all
fields and likes the ball over
the plate. Tough with runners
on. Pound him inside with hard
stuff, testing the hand.
Ryan Klesko 1B
Made himself a better
hitter
with improved plate
coverage.
Also not as susceptible to
chasing pitches but still
goes
after high fastballs. Get him
to
chase those and mix
in
breaking balls on his
hands.
Andruw Jones CF
Susceptible to pitches up and
out of strike zone. Will also
chase sliders away. Get him to
expand the zone. He's a streak
guy with a lot of holes. If he's
hot, it doesn't matter what you
throw him. The best defensive
outfielder in baseball, though
sometimes he takes his ability
for
granted.
Jose Hernandez SS
Likes to hit the ball out of the
park, but big swing gets him
into trouble. Has a tendency to
expand the zone. Keep the ball
away from the middle of the
plate to take advantage
of
long swing.
Eddie Perez C
Keep it simple -- in and out, up
and down, with sliders
away.
Has a tough time getting
to
good fastballs in.
Defensively
he throws O.K., but Rickey
Henderson and Roger Cedeño
should be able to run on
him.
Bench
INF Keith Lockhart isn't afraid to hit with
two
strikes and make contact. He's the best lefthander off the bench. C Greg
Myers likes the ball from the middle in. Lefthanders get him out fairly easily.
INF Walt Weiss replaces Hernandez at shortstop whenever manager Bobby Cox
goes to his best defensive team with a late
lead.
Rotation
Greg Maddux, RHP
Make him throw as many pitches as possible. Don't swing early in the count, unless he's getting the
calls on the corners. Likes to run the fastball back over the inside corner
on lefthanders. Righthanded batters should look for anything that sinks.
Don't try to pull him. Just take what he gives you. Has shown that he's
human in the
postseason.
Kevin Millwood, RHP
On top of his game. A strike machine who changes speeds from
90 to 94 mph with his fastball and throws it at the knees and up in the
strike zone. Has a good overhand curve and slider. Throwing with a high level of
confidence right now. Held Mike Piazza to just two hits in 16 at bats this
year.
Tom Glavine, LHP
Tries to get the outside part of the plate with his fastball
and changeup. Will show a curve once in a while that is good but not great.
Fields his position very
well.
John Smoltz, RHP
Made amazing transformation this year by changing angle of his
arm during delivery. Slider is particularly nasty on righthanders, thrown at
more of an angle, like a Laredo pitch, than before. Fools around with a
knuckleball. A veteran who knows how to
win.
Bullpen
LH closer John Rocker comes on very
aggressive.
Will attack with a fastball that rides up on hitters. Throws strikes. Has a good
cut fastball as well as a good slider. LH Mike Remlinger is the perfect setup
man in front of Rocker. Throws strikes, doesn't walk people, throws two- and
four-seam fastballs in 90-93 mph range. Has some deception to his delivery.
Also has a good breaking ball. Has matured as a pitcher and found his niche. RH
Russ Springer throws his fastball 90 to 94 mph. Has pretty good sink on his
heater, and his breaking ball is between a slider and a curve. Hides the ball by
throwing slightly across his body. LH Terry Mulholland could be very valuable in
a short series. Has a good fastball that he can make sink and can throw for
strikes. Complements heater with excellent breaking ball. Can give you one
inning or four or five. Gives Bobby Cox great flexibility. RH Kevin
McGlinchy has an above-average fastball with power up in the zone and a hard
splitter.
How To Beat Them
The Braves' lineup has holes, and they don't run a lot of big bats at
you. If the Mets' starters have their stuff, they can avoid major damage. Look
for Henderson to disrupt the Braves by going deep into counts, stealing bases
and getting hit by pitches when Atlanta gets mad at
him.
Issue date: October 18, 1999
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