The Atlanta Braves' Characters in the Next Chapter

When Jeff Francoeur arrived in July 2005 and promptly crushed a three-run homer to put the finishing touches on an 8-4 win over the Cubs at Turner Field, most thought it would be the first of many magical moments in a long career of a player that Sports Illustrated would later call "The Natural".

While Frenchy has had some of those moments, this season has certainly been a disappointment. But many broadcasters and scouts from organizations around the major league still marvel at how Bobby Cox, John Scheurholz, and the rest of the Atlanta Braves' front office have prepared young players coming up through the Braves' minor-league affiliates to play the game the right way and be productive after arriving in the majors.

Some arrive and make immediate impacts. Others get traded to other organizations for major-league talent or other prospects. Still others have injuries or inconsistencies end their careers before they get to ever play in a stadium with a dozen TV cameras and 40,000 fans.

A quick look at this year's Braves roster tells you that Atlanta has been great at producing major-league talent. However, the talent hasn't led to consistency, which is the reason the Braves sit in fourth place, 7.5 games back of the New York Mets and six games under .500.

Even though the Braves squandered leads this weekend against the Phillies, the future looks bright, despite 2008 looking like the third straight year that Atlanta will fail to reach the playoffs.

For most of the season, the only players who didn't come up through the Braves' system that had a big role in the lineup were Mark Kotsay and Mark Teixeira—both players are free agents this year, and whose spots in the lineup might have to be filled by players from within.

What might the Braves' roster look like three or four years from now? Perhaps not much different.

Brian McCann is signed through 2013 and won't be going anywhere for a while. He's been the star the scouts that evaluated him thought he might become. Three All-Star appearances in three full MLB seasons is proof enough.

Jeff Francoeur's struggles this year can't be overlooked. However, he won't be a free agent until 2010 at the earliest. If he produces his full-year averages from his first call-up through the end of the 2007 season (.280-26-102), he should still be an anchor in right field for years to come.

If not, the Braves have an enormous amount of outfield depth in the minors. We've already seen Gregor Blanco take to the leadoff spot in the order and play stellar defense in either right or left, in the absence of Matt Diaz. Speaking of Diaz, he's not a free agent for a couple of years either.

Also this year, we've seen Brandon Jones, Josh Anderson, and Jason Perry. Jones had good power numbers in the minors last year (19 HR, 100 RBI) but his power has tailed off at Richmond, and Perry is the one with 18 HR so far this year.

The best outfield prospects in the Braves' system are still a couple years away. Gorkys Hernandez is currently at A-ball in Myrtle Beach, after being acquired from the Tigers in the Edgar Renteria trade. Even if he doesn't pan out, they still have Jair Jurrjens.

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