Welcome to Atlanta Sports Central
Your daily source for what's going on with the Braves, Falcons, Thrashers, and (unfortunately) Hawks
3/23/2007
McCann Inks 6-year Deal
The Braves made perhaps their wisest move of the offseason yesterday, inking catcher Brian McCann to a 6-year extension through 2012 worth at least $27.8 million. According to the Braves' website, McCann will make $1 million in signing bonus and have a club option for 2013 that could extend the deal to $41.8 million. Considering the history of thriftiness in the Braves organization, this is a fairly unprecedented move for a player with only a single full season of major-league experience. However, you won't hear anyone arguing that they made it too soon, even if they gave their precocious catcher the largest contract ever for a player with fewer than two years' major-league experience.
This was a move the Braves had to make, and at roughly $4.5 million per year, McCann will end up being a relative bargain compared to some of the big-name catchers in baseball. McCann's defensive skills are rapidly improving, and he remains one of the best game-callers, especially for his age, that the Braves have ever had. Though his offense may not remain at such a high level his entire career (eventually the wear and tear of the catcher position will slow down his bat), the stability that he provides behind the plate, mentally and physically, makes him a worthy investment even at this stage of his career. This is my opinion as to why McCann receives this long-term deal before Jeff Francoeur, a great defender but a lot less stable as player because of inconsistency offensively. I can't guarantee that Francoeur will get that deal in the middle of this season, but expect to see it well before he is up for arbitration in 2010.
Not that there was any question that McCann was the Braves' starting catcher for the long haul, but this contract once again brings into light the future in Atlanta for stud prospect Jarrod Saltalamacchia. After a miserable start at AA Mississippi last year, "Salty" managed to step it up late in the season and should have a chance to make the big-league club this season. However, barring significant injury to McCann, he won't have the opportunity to start in Atlanta behind the plate, and Braves' officials continue to emphasize his development as a catcher, with no immediate plans to switch him to first base or outfield. If his offense improves even more this season, though, I can't see why the Braves wouldn't at least consider giving him some time at first; while I love Scott Thorman, a great energy guy with good power, I can't see him as the long-term stalwart at first. This may be the year that Salty is either traded or given the opportunity to switch positions.
-Tony Pena drilled a 3-run homer in the Braves' 7-1 win against the Mets on Thursday, then was traded to the Royals Friday for right-handed Minor Leaguer Erik Cordier. Cordier, 21, has a very long history of injury problems but has been clocked at 98 mph on the radar gun. Pena would have been sent to waivers were he to not make the 25-man roster this year (a long shot), so this is a good move to get some value for him.
-The other Pena, Brayan, had a home run in the seventh inning Friday as the Braves beat the Phillies 7-4. Kyle Davies pitched six innings and allowed one run, his start pushed back a day than was reported in Thursday's blog.
-The Braves will play two split-squad games on Saturday, one against Cleveland and the other against Detroit. Tim Hudson takes the mound against the Tigers in Lakeland, FL.
-The Falcons filled Matt Schaub's void quickly, signing former Ravens starter Chris Redman to back up Michael Vick. Former Bears defensive tackle Ian Scott is in talks with the Falcons as we speak.
-Schaub signed a 6-year, $48 million deal with the Texans, who released QB David Carr and RB Domanick Williams (formerly Davis).
-An update on the Michael Vick water bottle incident! Apparently the secret compartment was to hold jewelry, which Vick has been doing for years because it apparently gets sold frequently out of his hotel room. I don't really want to talk about this anymore; personally, we all know he has character issues, but this incident doesn't particularly affect the team if he isn't arrested or suspended in any way. This water bottle story isn't big news if it's not Vick or any other high-profile athlete with questionable character.
-The Thrashers ran into another hot team on Thursday, absorbing a 5-1 shellacking at the hands of the Sharks. The Birds are two points up on Tampa Bay for the division lead with 7 games to play. The puck drops at noon on Saturday as the Thrashers take on Pittsburgh.
-To add injury to insult, forward Jon Sim suffered a broken facial bone last night in a fight with San Jose's Mark Bell. He'll have surgery on Friday and could miss the rest of the season.
-The Hawks take on the Portland Trail Blazers at Philips tonight at 6:30.
That's it, I'm now going to Sam's to watch the ‘Dores take on the mighty Hoyas. While Kevin Stallings is taking his customary "us against the world approach," I've seen many pundits (Doug Gottlieb, Bill Plaschke, and Woody Paige to name a few) actually pick Vanderbilt to win this game and maybe even get out of the East region. Go ‘Dores!
