B.S Report: Braves gearing up for 2017

MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Spring training in now winding down, and we are days away from Opening Day – one of the best days on the calendar year.

The Braves are so much better now than what they were a year ago. There is no managerial controversy this year. They have acquired the power hitter they needed. They have stabilized the rotation with a few veteran pitchers. It certainly seems like they are ready to carry over that 20-and-10 finish they had from last season and be a winning team this year.

However, we still need to be patient with this team. It would be great if they could go from worst to first, as the Braves did back 26 years ago. Let’s just hope they can be a winning team, and hope the Braves are at least in contention for the wild card spot into the month of September. The Braves have said all spring they want to win the division. They feel they are that much better than they were both at the beginning and at the end of last season. They should be that optimistic.

Like manager Brian Snitker has said, if they don’t have that attitude, they might as well go home. He’s right, but let’s remember that in April this team will be on the road for 17 of the first 24 games. They are moving into a new stadium, and that transition is why they have so many road games and it could be a challenge. Let’s not panic if the Braves are under-.500 in April. This team may need a while to get its feet under it, but there’s no reason it can’t be a winning team.

The Braves’ lineup is so much better now than it was a year ago. It has stability, and Snitker plans to keep he same lineup in place – for the most part – on a daily basis. At the beginning of last year, second base was a revolving door. There was no main catcher, or a main third baseman or left fielder. Now, the Braves lineup is set. The rotation is so much better.

Sure, the old guys must prove they still have gas left in the tank. But remember the mess in the rotation late last season? The Braves were winning, going 20-10 in the final 30 games, but they used nine different starting pitchers. The stability will be a key for this team. There may be times when the team struggles, and we wonder if it’s sliding backwards, and there may be times when the Braves are really good and we drink the Kool-Aid a little bit.

There may be ups and downs, but there’s no reason the Braves can’t be a winning team this year. I just don’t want to go overboard and think they’re going to go from 68 wins to 90 wins. My projected win total for this team is 83, which would make them four games over .500. That just seems safe for me – it’s an improvement that we should not complain about, and yet not unrealistic.

Either way, we should see a natural improvement in this rebuilding process. The future is bright for this team, with the best farm system in baseball. But the future is now, and the fans are ready for a winner.

They’ll get one, but let’s all be patient and be realistic as the Braves take that next big step.