Braves set to shine

It’s impossible not to be excited for this run of the Atlanta Braves, no?

The lineup is as good and as deep as any in either league.

Ronald Acuña could be a very real threat to become the fourth player in MLB history to join the 40-40 club. Heck, He’s one of three Braves — Ozzie Albies and Michael Harris being the others — who very much could be in the 30-30 club before college football preseason practice starts.

Plus, the major changes in the game that will dominate the headlines and the conversation for the season’s first month —seriously, who has watched enough spring training games over the last few weeks to be comfortable with the new rules — truly will help the Braves, especially early.

The elimination of the shift will help several dudes in the Atlanta order, including the aforementioned Acuña and Albies, as well as Austin Riley and Matt Olson.

(Side note: Lord, if Matt Olson continues the run he has been on this spring— he has eight homers in 44 ABs and is slashing a ridiculous .423/.519/1.542 — Morgan will replace Freddie as the most popular Freeman in the A-T-L by June.)

We already referenced the team’s speed and the limited pick-off attempts and bigger bases — as well as the wisdom imparted by Braves assistant and former MLB base-stealing whiz Eric Young — will mean the Braves will be among the league’s leaders in steals and could join the 1996 Colorado Rockies as the only team to hit 200 homers and steal 200 bases in a single season.

Conversely, those same rules will make catcher the most critical defensive position on the field by a wide margin. And if you think that fact was lost on Braves front office ace Alex Anthopoulos, well, you clearly have not been paying attention or ever watched new Braves catcher Sean Murphy throw to second base.

Everything is in place for the Braves to contend again. Will it be a good season like 2022, which ended with a division title but an all-too familiar fall fade for the Braves and their fans? Or will it be the magical march of 2021 that ended with the Atlanta’s second World Series title?

Not far enough

OK, so we are ready for baseball season.

And yo be honest, while it’s likely prudent to have some reservations about the new rules that have been hustled to the books and quickly put into effect, part of me thinks the biggest of the changes that must be addressed was simply ignored.

MLB, it’s time to address your umpire problem. And this is not just about the automated strike zone, though I do believe that robo-umps should be calling balls and strikes.

Heck, this side of putting a chip in an NFL football for spotting and forward progress and breaking the plain for TDs or first downs, the technology to have a universal and automated strike zone would be magical and transformative for the game.

But beyond that — and this is not just a baseball issue because this crosses over almost all of big-time sports from the major college levels to the high-pressure moments of Super Bowls and the World Series — the guys charged with making the calls need to be better.

First, let’s get this out there. The refs are not necessarily worse than before. We just get so many more replays from so many more angles that the mistakes are immediately seen and magnified in today’s 24/7 news cycle.

Mistakes will happen for everyone in sports — by players, coaches, media folks and umpires/refs, you name it — and always will. Humans are involved.

But as MLB slow-walks the automated strike zone, we assuredly need better reviews, scrutiny and potential ramifications for umpires and referees.

Because moments like this umpire ejecting Phillies catcher JT Realmuto for a perceived slight is purely nonsensical and should come with some sort of repercussions for said ump.

Period.

School shooting

We are not talking politics today. Let’s be clear on that.

But when folks ask me how the 5-at-10 got started and where the name came from, my go-to answer is “It’s five things I’m thinking about that gets posted at 10 a.m.”

And it’s impossible not to think this morning about the lives lost and the families forever wrecked by the shooting tragedy at a Nashville school Monday.

I don’t have an answer. I’m not sure anyone does, because in truth the problem is so much bigger than just “gun control.”

As Joel Barker wrote on Twitter in the aftermath of the news out of the mid-state Monday: “We have a gun problem. We have a mental health problem. We have an anger problem. We have a sin problem. We have an education problem. We have a governmental/political problem. All of these things are absolutely true. God help us.”

I also saw this from ESPN’s Ed Werder, which I thought was well stated, too.

“I’m open to any idea from either political party that might protect school children from being murdered — whatever it is. I’m not for doing nothing, which is what’s been done. I value people. All of them. Especially the young and innocent.”

The details of this are horrifying. The sorrow is devastating.

Yes, they need our prayers. But parents and kids and educators and everyone needs our actions at some point, too.

Finding that right path of action though is difficult, and regardless of party or persuasion, does anyone have any trust in the collection of our elected officials to implement noble, effective and responsible change?

Man, J-Mac was right, staying out of the political discourse these days is not easy.

This and that

— Speaking of betting, we split (again) with Monday’s Plays. It also was a harsh reminder of waiting until all the details are available. To that end, we picked against Dallas because Luka Doncic got his 16th technical of the season over the weekend. The Rasheed Wallace rule says when you get more than 15 you are suspended for the next game. Well, the NBA on Monday afternoon canceled Doncic’s most recent T, which allowed him to play. Yeah, that would have been some helpful intel.

— We also offered some MLB futures in Monday’s Plays of the Day email. We risked a quarter unit on each of the following: the Braves over 94.5 wins this season; the Braves to have the most wins among NL East teams at the end of April (plus-185), Ronald Acuña to win NL MVP (plus-850) and Shohei Ohtani to win the AL Cy Young (plus-1200). That last one has lofty odds, but in retrospect, the increased price for a superstar of Ohtani’s stature likely includes the very real wrinkle of Ohtani — who will be a $500 million free agent after the season — being traded at some point this year.

— Side note: If you want to sign up for my aforementioned afternoon Plays of the Day offering, you can do so here and scroll down to the Plays box. And it’s free, which is like winning. And like Nuke told Crash, “I love winning … it’s like better than losing.”

— Man, these two fishermen truly caught the heavy end of the judicial system. They plead guilty to a felony — and forfeited their boat — for cheating in a tournament by putting weights in the fish they caught. Couple of thoughts. One, “cheating” is a felony in Ohio, which makes me wonder when Urban Meyer will be charged for his time in Columbus. Two, this puts a whole new spin on the phrase “by hook or crook,” no?

— Friday’s TV numbers for the NCAA tournament were less than impressive. The numbers for TBS jumped significantly compared to last year, but CBS plummeted. Total, the two networks combined 9.66 million viewers in the early window Friday and 9.18 million in the later window, according to SportsMediaWatch.com. Those numbers were down 25% and 19% respectively from the same Sweet 16 Friday night windows from 2022, and Friday represented the two least-watched Sweet 16 windows since 2016. Here’s betting Saturday and Sunday will be very similar.

— You know the rules. Here’s Paschall with some UT football intel about some defensive line discourse.

— You know the rules. Here’s Hargis on the Tyner Rams getting their state championship rings last night. Good for them.

Today’s questions

True or false, it’s a Tuesday. Happy spring, Ernie.

True or false, grown men have no business getting 15-plus technicals in a season.

True or false, Braves win the NL East.

True or false, you like the new rule changes for MLB.

True or false, umpires should be suspended for hi-jinks like what happened to JT Realmuto.

True or false, you own a gun.

True or false, I stayed clear of talking politics above.

You know the drill. Answer some T or Fs, leave some T or Fs.

As for today, March 28, let’s review.

Vince Vaughn is 53 today. So there’s that. Baby all growed up.

Lady Gaga is 37.

Jim Thorpe died on this day 70 years ago. Dude could ball.

On this day 90 years ago, the first SEC basketball tournament final was played. Kentucky beat Mississippi State 46-27. Spy, how was the media spread for that one?

Rick Barry is 79 today. Rushmore of top father-son NBA tandems. Go.