38-year old closer Billy Wagner maintains that he is going to retire after this season. He has pitched in 55 games (0 starts) for the Braves this year and he is 7-2 with 30 saves, a 1.68 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP. Wagner has only given up 32 hits in 53 2/3 innings this season while whiffing 77 batters showing that he is still very much on his game. Wagner is #5 all-time saves in major league history with 415 of them. He is 9 saves behind John Franco who has the most saves in history as a lefty. Wagner would like to ride out into the sunset along with Bobby Cox after winning the World Series. Only time will tell if that happens or not.

The Braves have placed 33-year old righty swinging 1B Troy Glaus on the D.L. with a sore right knee. Glaus has played in 115 games for the Braves this year and he is 95 of 397 (.239 avg, .749 OPS) with 51 runs scored, 16 homers and 70 RBIs. When Glaus is ready to go out on a short rehab assignment he will go back to playing 3B with the idea of him helping the team in September.

The Braves have acquired 34-year old righty swinging 1B Derek Lee from the Cubs for 19-year old righty starter/reliever Robin Lopez, 23-year old righty reliever Tyrelle Harris and 22-year old lefty reliever Jeffrey Lorick. Lee played in 109 games for the Cubs this year and he was 105 of 418 (.251 avg, .751 OPS) with 63 runs scored, 16 homers and 56 RBIs. He has now played in 1,790 games in his 14 years in the majors and he is 1,806 of 6,398 (.282 avg, .865 OPS) with 1,009 runs scored, 309 homers, 995 RBIs and 102 stolen bases. Lee will be a huge improvement defensively for the Braves at 1B and he will also provide better offense too as Troy Glaus has been slumping as of late.

Robinson Lopez came into this season as the Braves’ #16 ranked prospect according to Baseball America. Lopez pitched in 24 games (16 starts) in A-ball this year for the Braves and he was 3-8 with a 4.37 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP. Tyrelle Harris pitched in 30 games (1 start) for the Braves this year in A+AA-ball and he was 1-2 with 6 saves, a 2.90 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. He whiffed 60 batters and only allowed 38 hits in 49 2/3 innings this year showing what kind of stuff he has. Jeffrey Lorick pitched in 27 games (4 starts) for the Braves in A-ball this year and he was 3-6 with 4 saves, a 2.24 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP.

These were not cream of the crop type of prospects for the Braves so I really like this move for them as they are pulling out all the stops to try to send Bobby Cox out with a ring.

Shortstop Alex Gonzalez, outfielder Rick Ankiel and righty reliever Kyle Farnsworth are new to the Braves but they aren’t helping them much as of yet. Gonzalez has played in 30 games for the Braves so far and he is 26 of 108 (.241 avg, .719 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 3 homers and 14 RBIs. Rick Ankiel has played in 15 games for the Braves and he is 9 of 47 (.191 avg, .543 OPS) with 7 runs, 0 homers and 3 RBIs. Ankiel has already whiffed 19 times in only 47 ABs for the Braves. Kyle Farnsworth is also pitching below par since coming to the Braves. He has pitched in 6 games (0 starts) for the Braves and he is 0-1 with a 9.64 ERA and a 1.93 WHIP. There is still plenty of time for Gonzalez, Ankiel and Farnsworth to turn things around.

26-year old righty swinging 2B Martin Prado has returned from the D.L. but he’s moving to 2B with Omar Infante staying at 2B. Prado has played in 102 games for the Braves this year and he is 141 of 443 (.318 avg, .847 OPS) with 78 runs scored, 13 homers, 45 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. It is very smart of the Braves to move Prado to 3B as he should be able to replace Chipper Jones without much of an issue. This also allows the Braves to play Omar Infante, a N.L. all-star everyday at 2B.

The Braves have released 28-year old lefty swinging outfielder Josh Anderson. Anderson played in 19 games in AAA-ball for the Braves this year and he was 10 of 53 (.189 avg, .440 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 1 RBI and 3 stolen bases. He has now played for three different organizations this year and they have all given up on him. He has played in 53 games in AAA-ball this year and he is 27 of 142 (.190 avg, .448 OPS) with 19 runs scored, 3 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. The Braves didn’t like what they saw out of Anderson this time around so they let him go. No big loss here.

The Braves have lost starting 3B Chipper Jones for the rest of the season due to a torn left ACL. He will need surgery and it will take him around six months to recover. Jones played in 95 games for the Braves this year and he was 84 of 317 (.265 avg, .806 OPS) with 47 runs scored, 10 homers, 46 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. The Braves will likely turn to Omar Infante, Eric Hinske and Brooks Conrad at 3B the rest of the year. Infante has played in 86 games for the Braves this year and he is 89 of 270 (.330 avg, .764 OPS) with 34 runs scored, 3 homers, 29 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Infante could slide to 3B when Martin Prado is ready to return from his broken finger. Eric Hinske and Brooks Conrad will probably share 3B until Prado gets back. Hinske has played in 95 games this year and he is 58 of 225 (.258 avg, .810 OPS) with 31 runs scored, 9 homers and 41 RBIs. Conrad has played in 73 games for the Braves this year and he is 24 of 101 (.238 avg, .808 OPS) with 21 runs scored, 6 homers, 23 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. The Braves will miss Jones because he is a better all-around player than any of his replacements but Infante, Hinske and Conrad are decent ballplayers.

40-year old righty reliever Takashi Saito is showing no signs of slowing down for the Atlanta Braves. Saito has pitched in 44 games (0 starts) for the Braves this year and he is 1-3 with 1 save, a 3.14 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP. He has only given up 35 hits in 43 innings this season for the Braves while whiffing 53 batters. Saito has been outstanding just like most of the Braves bullpen and they need him to finish the season strongly.

28-year old Nate McLouth began this season as the starting CF but he’s in AAA-ball right now due to his awful bat. McLouth played in 62 games earlier this year for the Braves and he was 31 of 185 (.168 avg, .544 OPS) with 22 runs scored, 3 homers, 14 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He has now played in 146 games in his two years with the Braves and he is 118 of 524 (.225 avg, .692 OPS) with 81 runs scored, 14 homers, 50 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. He is showing some signs of life in AAA right now. He has played in 14 games in AAA-ball this season and he is 16 of 57 (.281 avg, .845 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 4 homers, 7 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. It’s possible that the Braves could recall McLouth on September 1st if he continues to play well in AAA, but he has been a huge disappointment since coming to Atlanta.

The Braves have lost 24-year old starter/reliever Kris Medlen for the year due to a partial tear of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. He will likely need Tommy John Surgery which will also end his 2011 season. Medlen has pitched in 31 games (14 starts) for the Braves this season and he is 6-2 with a 3.68 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. The Braves will call up 22-year old lefty starting pitcher Mike Minor to replace Medlen in the starting rotation on Monday. Minor was the Braves’ #4 rated prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. Minor has started 20 games in AA+AAA-ball this year and he is 6-7 with a 3.49 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP. Minor has whiffed 144 batters while only giving up 92 hits in 118 2/3 innings in the minors this year giving you a glimpse of what kind of stuff he has. Minor has now pitched in 24 games (all starts) in his two years in the minors for the Braves and he is 6-8 with a 3.19 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. 35-year old righty Kenshin Kawakami is going to be the unlucky guy demoted to AAA to make room for Minor on the pitching staff. Kawakami has pitched in 16 games (15 starts) for the Braves this year and he is 1-9 with a 4.75 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. Kawakami will likely come back to the Braves when rosters expand in September.