Bravoyeur

With the inconsistency the Braves have shown this season, or rather their consistency in inconsistency? For the first time I’ve been watching their Farm League fairly close.

During March, while watching Braves Spring Training, it was hard to not take notice of the smaller kid with a bigger swing. Braves no. 1 prospect Jordan Schafer was turning heads and rumors of him serving as the team’s center fielder in 2009 started circulating.

April 8, right after the season had commenced, Schafer made headlines once again, but this time in a very negative, HGH-tinted light. At the time Schafer was playing with AA-Mississippi and was suspended for 50 games.

The problem with the story ever since has been that Schafer never tested positive for HGH. According to the AJC Schafer was reported via the League’s new anonymous hotline. Which appears overly convenient to me. In addition, with a gag rule placed over Schafer’s head all the public was told of his side of the story was “It’s not what it seems…you don’t know the whole story…” Well truly then, feel free to share.

Yet it doesn’t seem like fans are going to hear that story for a while still. At the end of April Schafer was portrayed as a downtrodden and forlorn individual when speaking out for the first time, once again printed in the AJC.

It makes me want to know “…the rest of the story” as Paul Harvey would say. I hate to quote something without the backup but I can’t find it now (go figure), in a blog there was speculation that Schafer became a target for refusing to “out” one of his fellow teammates. Yet, I find that so outrageous. The day I start watching Japanese baseball religiously is the day the MLB starts creaming good talent for political matters.

But off my tirade, May 31 will be Schafer’s first eligible day to return to the ballpark. Currently Schafer is not with the MIssissippi Braves, and throughout the month of April his father commented that they weren’t sure what they were going to proceed in doing. All I know is confidence he showed in Spring Training might be a little lower now.

I’m still eager to see what he has, and if the performance he had in 2007, in the Arizona Fall League, and in Spring Training will continue. I mean, good grief the kid spent $90,000 of his $320,000 signing bonus on a ProBatter Sports high-tech pitching machine. In the April edition of ChopTalk magazine Schafer gave readers an indepth look at his work out which included a variety of different types of bats, and hours and hours of time.

Maybe all the hardwork wasn’t paying off fast enough, or maybe his 176 hits (leading Minor League baseball last season) and the 49 doubles, 10 triples and 15 homers weren’t enough?

Whatever it was , whether we get the full story or not I believe the performance of Schafer when he returns will tell fans all they need to know. Either Schafer will crumble with lost confidence or he will just keep shining

I’m pulling for the latter, personally. (Even though he does look a bit like a tool in the picture.)