Atlanta Braves news and links: Coppy sends Twitter into a tizzy for a moment

BRAVES NEWS

The latest #AskCoppy gets real for a bit

Yesterday, John Coppolella took to Twitter for another session of #AskCoppy. These are normally fascinating sessions, and for the most part, Wednesday’s session was no different. It’s always interesting to see a GM be frank and transparent on social media, and he definitely had plenty to talk about when it came to the various moves that the Braves have made this offseason.

With that being said, the most noteworthy moment came from this particular answer.

Of course, this caused a bit of a stir — it would’ve been difficult to not cause a stir if you’re telling someone who’s looking for a job to basically ignore the money part. With that being said, this isn’t really a Coppy problem. Instead the finger should be pointed at how baseball organizations basically pay minor leaguers and other employees in peanuts when compared to the big leaguers and people in the front office. That’s another story for another day, and it was still refreshing that Copy kept it real in this regard.

Braves named as one of the most tech-savvy teams in sports

Sport Techie recently released their rankings of the most tech-savvy teams in sports, and Atlanta sports teams were well-represented in these particular rankings. The Hawks finished in third place, and the Braves came in sixth place out of 25 teams across MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL, MLS, and European soccer. Sport Techie cited SunTrust Park’s technological advances as a big reason as to why the Braves landed so high on this list.

Starting with the 2017 season, the Atlanta Braves will call SunTrust Park home, in what will be one the most technologically advanced stadiums in the world. Through a deal with Comcast, the new ballpark will include an all-fiber network and help fans stay connected as they text, Tweet, Snap, share, post and stream video across social media and online.

TC Roundtable: Will Mallex Smith be on the Opening Day roster?

In other news, our major league crew got together again and decided to discuss Mallex Smith and whether or not he’ll be on the Opening Day squad as the Braves enter the SunTrust Park era. It’s clear that he appears destined to be a 4th outfielder if he makes it, but is that the proper role for him this season?

TC Prospect ranking list gets up to No. 11

Meanwhile, our minor league crew is still rolling through their prospect rankings list, and they’ve reached the point where we’re starting to read about guys like Travis Demeritte, Dustin Peterson, and Alex Jackson. If you haven’t been paying attention to the rankings, then no is as good of a time as ever to get into it.

Bartolo Colon is going hard in offseason training

Here’s a video of Bartolo Colon exercising. I am so happy that this man is on the Braves, now.

MLB NEWS

Phillies and Odubel Herrera agree to contract extension

The Phillies have solved their center field situation for the foreseeable future, as they’ve locked down Odubel Herrera with a five-year, $30.5 million contract extension. This is an extremely team-friendly deal for the Phillies, and if Herrera continues to improve then this could end up being a bargain for Philadelphia by the end of the contract’s life.

Through his first two seasons with the Phillies, Herrera has a slash line of .291/.353/.419 (111 OPS+) in his age 23 and 24 seasons—he’s only 24!—all while acquitting himself to centerfield after moving through the Rangers organization primarily as a second baseman. He’s already been named to an All-Star team and been a Gold Glove finalist. According to Baseball-Reference, he’s been worth 8.0 Wins Above Replacement.

Loria is willing to sell Marlins for $1 billion

In other NL East news, the owner of the Miami Marlins is at it again. In his latest quest for a big cash grab, Jeffrey Loria is having delusions of grandeur when it comes to the value of his baseball team. According to Forbes, Loria believes that he can make up to $1.7 billion on a potential sale of the Marlins. According to R.J. Anderson of CBS Sports (and anybody who even has a rudimentary understanding of baseball economics), the Marlins will probably not be sold for ONE BILLION DOLLARS.

Forbes has valued the Marlins at $675 million -- or a bit over a third of Loria's rumored asking price. For more perspective on the absurdity of that ask, consider the Los Angeles Dodgers were sold in 2012 for $2 billion. The Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres have been the only other teams sold for more than $800 million -- and neither broke the billion mark.