Open thread, 4/16, Braves vs. Shawn Sedlaceks

It’s sure to be an emotional homecoming tonight as the Braves welcome back legends Ned Yost, Bruce Chen and a certain RF whose name rhymes with manure.

Jeremy Guthrie toes the slab for K.C, who’ve won seven of nine on the backs of their pitching. The Royals have been limp offensively, managing just 4 HR as a team  – or as many as Evan Gattis.

Heralded prospects Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas, who slumped badly in 2012, are off to uninspiring starts, combining for just 3 XBH in 67 AB’s. Watch out for catcher Salvador Perez, a force behind the plate and at it, and hard-throwing closer Kelvin Herrera, who has 11 K’s in 5-1/3 IP.

Guess who just signed Blaine Boyer?

Dayton Moore never disappoints, signing yet another discarded Brave on Thursday. Blaine Boyer will presumably compete with Anthony Lerew, Bruce Chen, Kyle Davies, Horacio Ramirez, Juan Cruz and Roman Colon for a spot in the Omaha Storm Chasers bullpen.

Time to give Dayton a call

According to the Boston Herald’s Michael Silverman, the Royals may be willing to deal prized prospect Wil Myers, a right-handed hitter with immense potential.

It would take a lot to get him, perhaps even Julio Teheran AND Randall Delgado. So be it. The Braves have pitching to spare and Myers would be a perfect fit in the line-up, filling a major hole with a minimum salary. That would give FW the option to overspend on Bourn — he’s going to overspend on someone, after all.

He split last year between Double-A Northwest Arkansas and Triple-A Omaha, batting a combined .314 with 37 homers and a .987 OPS.

Paul Assenmacher w/ a bad attitude

Actually, that’s not fair to Assenmacher, who was better than Al Hrabosky, at least as a Brave. And he was more affordable than the Mad Hungarian, signed to a ridiculous (at its time) 5-year, $2.2 million contract prior to the 1980 season.

Geno flopped as the Braves closer in ’79, but Hrabosky wasn’t much better for the Royals. He had a 1.662 WHIP and saw his strikeouts drop from 60 to 39. But Ted liked personalities and was willing to overspend to get one.

Unfortunately, jerks don’t sell tickets, and neither do middling set-up men. Three Braves had more saves than Hrabosky in 1980, including the late Larry Bradford. Hrabosky was released halfway through his contract and never pitched in the majors again.

His two most memorable moments as a Brave say it all: