We wasted no time moving on. Before any proverbial shed tears that could’ve possibly be wept over Hampton’s departure to Houston could dry, the pieces are put together for Javier Vasquez to join Atlanta and boost the starting rotation.

Braves trade for Javier Vazquez | ajc.com

The Braves have acquired veteran starting pitcher Javier Vazquez along Boone Logan, a left handed reliever from the White Sox in exchange for  Brent Lillibridge, Jon Gilmore, Santos Rodriguez, and Tyler Flowers.

As many of you know, Mike Hampton just signed a 1 year 2 million dollar deal plus another 2 million dollars worth of incentives with the Houston Astros yesterday and pending a physical will be under their control until 15 days after next year’s World Series. I was personally disappointed that Mike Hampton didn’t give the Braves a chance to sign him after all he put the organization and their fans through. To recap: Hampton was traded to the Braves in 2003 in what was the most complicated trade in MLB history. Hampton made 60 starts for the first two years he was with the Braves, nearly a full load, but made a total of 25 during the next 4 seasons. Hampton was injured for all but 12 starts in 2005, all of 2006, all of 2007, and all but his final 13 starts in 2008. Hampton was one of the highest paid players on the Braves’ team for the entire time. It would seem like Hampton owes the Braves for helping them through the worst time in his pitching career and getting him back on his feet. Regardless, he chose to sign with the Astros, probably because he wants to be closer to his children. I can’t blame him for that; I would choose family over club loyalty any day. However, for my purposes today I would like to look at this deal from the standpoint of the Astros Front Office.

It’s Tuesday, it’s December, but the fun is just getting started.

All you Mike Hampton haters can forget about the idea of seeing Hampton’s comeback completed in Atlanta. He’s gone.

Hampton returning to Astros | MLB.com: News

It didn’t end with a trip to the ACC title match to be played in Tampa, but Paul Johnson’s first regular season with the White and Gold was capitalized today on a high note… a VERY high note thanks to a beautiful win in Athens today.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. With the Winter Meetings rapidly approaching, much speculation exists about what would happen should certain scenarios play out. What if the Braves trade for Peavy? What if the Braves trade for Dye? What if the Braves trade for Cain? Well, we’ve played those scenarios out to wits end. One scenario I want to play out is, “What if the Braves make no trades this season?” What if they do nothing at all?

Home teams in crimson.

Your #1, undefeated, SEC West Champion Alabama Crimson Tide 37, Alabama Polytechnic 15
LSU 30, Arkansas 28
Ole Miss 28, MSU 13
Georgia40, Georgia Tech 34
USC 24, Clemson 14
Florida 51, FSU 24
Wake Forest 24, Vandy 15
Kentucky 24, Tennessee 9

2008 Major League Right Fielders, worst slugging percentages:

SLG SLG
1 Jeff Francoeur .359
2 Kosuke Fukudome .379
3 Ichiro Suzuki .386
4 Mark Teahen .402
5 Jeremy Hermida .406
6 Randy Winn .426
7 Jose Guillen .438
8 Brian Giles .456
9 Corey Hart .459
10 Alex Rios .461

In 2008 Jair Jurrjens and Jorge Campillo both had very sufficient seasons. Jair Jurrjens was shipped to Atlanta in the Edgar Renteria trade before 2008 and going into spring training, Jurrjens was not expected to make the starting rotation. By the end of the season Jurrjens was the ace of the staff. Jorge Campillo didn’t even make the opening day roster in 2008, but was called up when Chuck James was sent to AAA after giving up 6 runs in 3 innings. Jorge Campillo spent a month in the bullpen before even making a start for the Braves and ended the season as the number 2 starter. They certainly conjured up great seasons. However, many people wonder if these seasons were “lucky” or a “fluke”. I am here to try and provide some insight on this subject.

Home teams in italics.

Florida 93, Citadel 6
Arkansas 28, MSU 14
Ole Miss 31, LSU 17
Vandy 23, Tennessee 8