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February 18, 2009

Team Health Reports

Atlanta Braves

by Brad Wochomurka

ATLANTA BRAVES Team Audit | DT Cards | PECOTA Cards | Depth Chart

Head Trainer: Jeff Porter
Player Days Lost: 1,286
Total Dollars Lost: $41 million
Injury Cost: $40.4 million

Trend: Neutral. Based simply on the large increase in days lost in '08 over the previous year, the Braves took a step backward, but I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt on a few points. First of all, Chipper Jones had no business being on the field on many of the days that he played, yet Porter and his staff not only kept him healthy enough to play through his nagging hurts, they got him out there often enough for him to win his first NL batting crown in the process. Secondly, Mike Gonzalez' successful return from Tommy John surgery in just a year's time was a big plus. Finally, many of their days lost were due to older pitchers like John Smoltz, Tom Glavine, and Mike Hampton dealing with significant injuries very late in their careers. This year's challenges are many, and they include keeping the three bullpen arms mentioned in today's "Big Question" healthy, monitoring Tim Hudson as he rehabs from Tommy John surgery, making sure that Jones is on the field so he can defend his batting crown, carefully monitoring Jair Jurrjens' workload, and the (possible) impending duty of trying to keep Ken Griffey Jr.'s 39-year-old body intact. With that many large concerns, Porter and his staff actually have enough work on their slate that they could still have a successful year even if the Braves end up with another high number of days lost to injury.

The Shape of the Season: