The Atlanta Braves ain't playin

In a span of a few hours the Braves made the following moves:

(1) Released Tom Glavine
(2) Announced that Tommy Hanson will take Kris Medlen's Sunday start
(3) Traded Jeff Locke, Charlie Morton and Gorkys Hernandez to Pittsburgh for Nate McLouth.

I've thought for the past few weeks that the Braves are so close to contention. They have Derek Lowe, Javier Vazquez, Jair Jurrjens and Kenshin Kawakami. That's a very solid starting 4. They have a solid infield that represents defensively and in OBP. They have a great backstop, and a decent pen. But the offense is weak, and they had Tommy Hanson rotting in AAA striking out ridiculous amounts of minor leaguers.


But as of today, the Braves have announced that the intend on contending hard for the NL East crown. The Mets and the Phillies have been hurt by injuries and poor decision-making by management (especially the Mets), and the Braves sense their opportunity. While they did give up a lot (A LOT...Gorkys and Locke? yeesh), I have to respect the straight up gansta of Frank Wren. I hope it pans out for my favorite NL team.

Oh, and all hail Tommy Hanson!