Watch Out For These Braves Rookies 

Love Billy too-I was shocked he exhausted his rookie eligibility last season-didn’t feel like he played that much

@@theleftycatcher Travis was out for a little bit and he started a lot of games because of that

I’m always going back and forth who I think will win ROY. Harris has been outstanding but then Strider goes out and has the best pitched game I’ve ever seen from a Braves pitcher

But would he beat The Freeze?

@@theleftycatcher Good question

although NO ONE thought he had this kind of power, that bomb was an "okay... they've already got 'em to kneel/bow before them, now they're forcing the poor Natty-lites to lick their boots to a polish before they turn on the mercy and let them go home." The HR was the the capper right before the _final_ capper that turned an 8-2 'big win' into a 10-2 'laugher' before Ozuna, who has been rounding into form in his own right (batting 17 pts higher in July so far than June, and 29(!) pts higher than a very forgettable May), gave WSH the Iron Sheik "You are a gayy... you are a F-GJIT!! So I make you HUMBELLL!! I will FOX you in de ARSE!!' treatment in the 8th inning 2-RBI hit with 2 outs... and I know EXACTLY why he did it. The game's over with, everyone should be gentlemen, go through the motions as fast as possible to rest up for game 2. It's the 1st game of the series, so, typically it's another one of those 'unwritten ... things" (not rules) in baseball that when you've thrown in the towel, especially in a game 1, you just put some position player out there with the bare-minimum threshold of being able to underhand-lob it within 3 feet of the plate at anything above 35-40mph. Well... this motherf**ker Dave Roberts is playing a--hole games with a team nearly 30 games under .500. He tasks an _actual_ one of their relief pitchers, Erasmo Ramirez, out there as, idk... a parting, highly unsportsmanlike "F you," probably because how friggin terrible Atlanta has to this point, and will end up making the Natty lites and he look by the when all 16 are written and etched, that's all the WSH front office will be playing on a loop in their heads when they fire him soon enough... but THAT's where the rub comes in. Ramirez is a guy with a cutter that rides flat @ ~91 a Sinker that can reach mid-90's and a 4-seam that avg's 94-95 and gets to 97-98 when he rears back and leans into it. Friggin' Roberts sends him to the mound, and after Arcia pats a soft single on the back on a 93 sinker, runs a full count on Harris II with _everything_ mid-90's, finally taking a 94mph cutter for a magic carpet ride on a moon shot. He strikes out Acuna on "standard" stuff between an 83- off-speed 94, and then although it's annoying as hell that they're spiteful enough to put in a guy to throw wayyyyy inside to Acuna bc it gets him pissed off (no sh**, Professor Dave... let's recap: getting plunked with hardball 4-seamers by professional flamethrowers that have only one command and direction with the game completely out of hand and that is to be a hired hitman and launch deadly weapons at the player that has made a fool of you for years running and will also have a credit in the byline section of your pink slip)... so it gets stupid when Ramirez starts lobbing Chris Rock/Gary Del'Abate-esque [anti]-ceremonial first pitches to Swanson and then Riley. I've seen Eephus pitches before, and they've never been _NOT_ pathetic, but this wasn't even that. This was my girlfriend, after being tasked with such a ceremonial first pitch, being forced by her debilitating hyper self-conscious nature and paralyzing fear of failure, especially in public performance(s) to do as many pushups as possible (~10 max) every morning for a month just to be able to give it an insane enough arc to _JUST_ get it *barely* to that 60'6" mark at a _cool_ 42mph to the plate and breathe a sigh of relief. Well, didn't originally intend to get that rant off my chest, but it is cathartic. God Roberts, his fake 'tough guy' BS that's below what you'd discipline a 5th grader for just piss me off to no end and I love that they're in the dumpster and he's probably bye bye. The point I _ACTUALLY_ (originally) wanted to make is that that particular homer, while it had the "WOW!"... it's *much* easier to cock back and really cork into one when it's 8-2 and you're riding higher than high. I loved so many of his other hits so much more because this kid is (this is objectively speaking, I've actually really racked my brain on this) the *most clutch* player I've seen in *years,* and I struggle to comprehend that he's got super-freeze ice in his veins at the plate. It took Mariano Rivera until his >8th year to become who he was. Derek Jeter didn't become a legendarily clutch HOF'er until year 10. He's the youngest f***ing player in the entire MLB... it's insane to think about it even as I type it. I think of what a complete mess bundle of nerves I was just for my stupid, meaningless HS graduation speech... that 2-RBI double early to make 1-0 into 3-0 in the game when the game was still in the balance that ended up being HUGE because Morton gave up 2 runs the very next 1/2 inning. But holy sh**... we didn't end up winning the game but in that game 3 against the Reds where McHugh spoiled a Morton pitching grandmaster class where Snit took him out after 7 spotless and 94 pitches and getting better... Marcell hits a surprise dinger and then Ice-Harris-Tray came up to the plate and I saw "it." There wasn't a molecule, a proton, a friggin QUARK of anxiety within at least a few time zones of Harris' orbit. Down to the last out and he wasn't messing around with some 7-8+ pitch tango slow dance. I was watching with my kid and they zoomed in on his stance and we just both turned and looked @ each other, no words spoken. It was _ALWAYS_ going down. 1st pitch a swing that looked like you could have just video-shopped Ken Griffey, Jr. onto the screen and not a could would bat an eye. That one was only 10 ft shorter than the recent one everyone is oogling over. After 425 you didn't need 435 to confirm his power, but _EVERYTHING_ else about the circumstances of that 9th inning 2-out shot to tie it and honor your ace's efforts (and there have been sooo many other big hits prior in *such* an insanely early stage of his career) immediately disqualifies anyone that continues along any narratives irrationally skeptical or overly critical as people who people will laugh at for making the dumbest take just because he/she just never wanted to like the dude from minute 0.

Didn’t think I might have to update this video because they called up another young rookie but here we are

When I made this I had an inkling the power would come on. He had the exit velocity, but not the lift. But clearly he’s got 30-30 stuff now

Looks like it, doesn’t it? I keep waiting for Vaughn to cool a little and he just wasnt

I think I’ll make a short on Grissom-he’s just been too good

Was underestimating my favorite team’s ability to continue juggernauting

Let’s hope (there hasn’t been a repeat in over two decades)

Ha yeah I did-hey I’m a Braves fan and while Acuña has great speed and a fantastic arm, he takes some weird routes

@@theleftycatcher exhibit A top of the 9th against the Nats today. 0 excuse to not catch that ball.

@@theleftycatcher that doesn't change the fact he's elite on defense. He'll be a multi time GG winner before it's done.

@@donjon1179 huh? He didn't catch that ball because of how deep he was playing, dude.

Thanks so much! Hoping to have some more content out late this week

Alas I am not (but I can’t speak for the rest of the writing team on our blog).

@@theleftycatcher ah it’s a pity there are so few of my rare kind

If anything it aged perfectly

@@theleftycatcher and added one more lol

Not sure how you could watch this and come to that conclusion-Strider’s BB%, which was a concern of mine, was elevated thanks to his April, but he’s continued to manage that and is like a top fifteen starter in baseball by FIP. Harris has continued to make adjustments since I made this video and his power really took off afterwards, which was my hope when I made this video. If anything, I’m too high on these guys

Strider has Degrom like stuff. If he continues to locate and works in his two secondary pitches he will be the best in the league. They say that what he’s said he wants so let’s see what happens next. He bested the Dodgers gave them nothing. He basically did the same to the Cardinals giving up that fluke run. Now here come the Mets.

Charles Thomas never hit a 439 foot tank. Harris is far better and younger than Thomas was in 2004