BRAVES NEWS
Jim Bowden is impressed with Braves rebuild so far
In his latest ESPN Insider ($) column, Jim Bowden shared his thoughts on various rebuilding teams and their efforts so far. The Braves are still in rebuilding mode, but Bowden has been impressed with what they’ve done and believes that it won’t be too long until Atlanta is back in postseason contention again. You’ll need a subscription to read it, but if you want to hear glowing comments about the Braves and their rebuild, then it’s definitely worth checking out.
Mayo: “Maitan set to make “huge jump” in 2017 prospect lists”
MLB.com Pipeline writer Jonathan Mayo recently posted a Q&A inbox session for the aforementioned website and while it’s always nice to keep an eye on the latest prospect news across baseball, it’s even nicer when they talk about Braves prospects. The one in particular who Mayo mentioned was Kevin Maitan, who could potentially open some eyes across baseball if 2017 goes well for him.
Eric Cole makes guest appearance on Fox Sports South’s Chopcast
Eric’s been super-busy this month when it comes to covering the Braves and their talented crop of prospects. In the wake of TC’s prospect rankings, Eric recently made an appearance on Fox Sports South’s Chopcast, and you can listen to the entire thing right here.
MLB NEWS
Pirates re-sign Ivan Nova
After the Yankees traded him to Pittsburgh and he saw out the rest of the 2016 season with the Pirates, conventional wisdom had many people around baseball believing that Ivan Nova was going to sign a decent-sized contract in the offseason. As it turns out, he’ll be returning to the Pirates on a three-year, $26 million deal. It’s a very good deal for the Pirates, and the crew at Bucs Dugout shared their thoughts about the deal once the numbers were finalized.
Why did Nova agree to a three-year deal at such a modest price? If his agent determined that demand for him was lower than anticipated, he could have bet on himself, taking a one-year deal to prove his 2016 stretch run was no fluke, then hit the market again.
One possibility is that Nova really wanted to return to the Pirates (a team for whom he said he liked playing), and this is just what the Pirates were offering. If so, good for him for recognizing there isn't a huge difference between being extremely rich and monstrously rich. But it's rare for ballplayers to leave as much money on the table as it looks like he did here.
In any case, if we're thinking about a deal this way, the simpler possibility is that it's just a really good deal. Good for the Pirates, who get the veteran for their rotation they badly needed.
Who’s in line for a contract extension in 2017?
We’re currently in the season of giving, so naturally the good people over at CBS Sports have decided to take a look at the top players across baseball who could potentially be in line for a contract extension during 2017. There are some big names like Bryce Harper and Jake Arrieta in this list, so it’s worth taking a look.