The Morning Shift on 92.9 The Game
Jim Duquette: 2024 Braves season "has a vibe of 2021".
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Visit purple.com to find the perfect purple for you and enter code podcast 10 to get 10% off. Now with the MLB app, you can get baseball your way. Pick your favorite team, your favorite players, and get customized highlights, stories, and breaking news right on your home feed. Follow the action with Game Tip, where 3D replays add another dimension, plus notifications can keep you connected to every pinch, every hit, every game, the MLB app. Baseball your way. Download it now for free from the App Store or Google Play. Blackout and other research and supply major league baseball trademarks used with permission. We are back here on the morning shift and going straight to the way forward.com hotline. That is where we find former GM of the New York Mets in Baltimore Orioles and now analysts of MLB network and MLB network radio in Series XM, Jim DuCette joining us this morning. How's it going, Jim? Hey, good morning, guys. How are you? Good. Good. Good to have you with us. Yeah. Appreciate you guys having me on. Jim, I'm going to start right off the bat. You know, we've seen AA, Alex Enthopoulos here in Atlanta seem to have this knack for finding these reclamation projects, right? I mean, Josh Donaldson early, Chris Sell, we're not all Lopez's starting careers as starter. I mean, he even kind of did it with the outfield where he retold it in '21. How is he so good at finding these guys? And then how are they so good at just knowing what they need to get them back to that form? No, I mean, you could throw Jared Kellnick in there, right? Reclamation. Excellent season. I can't even believe Rosario's back. He doesn't hit anywhere else, but with the Braves. Like, come on, what is going on here? You know, so the Alex, Alex is one of the best general managers in the game. Yeah, he doesn't get a lot of attention because he's a really humble guy. He gives credit to so many other people rather than taking it himself. I think he's also one of those guys who realizes if you do well and you win, there's going to be enough credit, you know, for everybody. And so, you know, that part of it is good. I think also, you know, listen, organizationally, they're set up really well. You know, being on the Mets and been in the Mets front offices all those years. I mean, the Braves, it feels like always have done this. I know they went through a little stretch there where they weren't, but I mean, it's like every year they seem to find the right players. They thought they really focus on makeup, which some lot of teams don't don't play, put as much attention on makeup matters. And you see it with Braves teams almost all the time. And that's what you have to I really appreciate from afar is, you know, they get talented players, but they have the right mix in the clubhouse. And I think all that kind of plays into why the Braves are so consistently good year after year. Jim, along those lines, what do you think they need to address? What position should they address for the deadline? Yeah, you know, Tiffany, I think with them, more than anything, it's offense right in outfield, more than more than more than anything else, too. I mean, listen, I think, you know, when Michael Harris comes back, I don't know his timetable, but that will obviously help a ton, you know, and hopefully get him back on track. But, you know, I'd like to see Duvall more into that guy, you know, the fourth outfield role where he can play multiple, you know, positions kind of move around in the outfield, give a guy a day off or two, match him up against lefties and righties. And he's been good. Don't get me wrong. But just giving some more, some more depth out there would be, would be number one. I know that bullpen's been been really good here lately. I think they've given up like two runs over the last two weeks or so. So, but as we saw in 21, you know, they've rolled out those four relievers all the way to the World Series. And I think if they found one more reliever, you know, impactful guy, I don't think you got to do much more than I know. I know the offense hasn't been perfect, but like they're showing signs of picking it up this month, you know, especially with Riley swinging it well, and that hopefully also will get going. So, I don't know, this has a has a vibe guys of 2021. I don't know if you guys feel that way too, but it does from afar, your answers were excellent, but you don't know what you've done here because both of you are patting himself on the back. He's like, well, you're right. No, don't ever say those words. You just became my favorite guest, Jim. You're our favorite guest. Once a week, we got to have Jim on. Yeah, right. All of a sudden, I'll be on once a week. Oh, my goodness. Well, you talked about the deadline and look, I enjoy the Moneyball movie. It's fun to watch. It's entertaining, but I don't, for the life of me, believe that that's the way the trade deadline. I don't think Brad Pitt starts having his secretary call. As a guy that's went through that, what is that like? I mean, how early do you start these discussions on players and availability and price and all of that? Yeah, by the way, Moneyball, great movie, totally unrealistic. I mean, the A-team, they had three really good starters and a shortstop, I think, was MPP that year, and they don't even get barely mentioned in the movie. Anyway, all right, so the trade deadline, for me, is one of those. I mean, it's why you enjoy the job as much because the adrenaline, the days go by fast, the adrenaline rush is there. It's a grind. Don't get me wrong, but you know, and more so, I think, over the last few years, a general manager can make a huge impact, more of an impact on the team than I think ever, just by bringing in guys to that clubhouse. And it's changed a little bit over the last couple of years because you can't make the waiver claims that we used to do in August. You can't do those any more. You can pick up guys that have been released, but that's generally players that have been struggling. So the impact is now, and it really starts at the beginning of June, the phone calls, but because of the way the wild card is structured and the number of teams that were in it, there hasn't been a lot of separation for postseason buyers and sellers until recently. So I think we saw a trade last night with the Mets in a relief pitcher. We saw one last week with a starting pitcher with the Brewers getting Aaron Sobali from the Rays. Rays have made two moves. And so it's starting to percolate. It's still not going to really get active until after, I think, the all-star break next Tuesday or Wednesday. Yeah, I've always been curious for that. And yeah, you know, it's funny that you said that money ball. I actually was on yesterday and I was I was tuning in and I see Tahata and I'm like, oh, yeah, you forget he's on that team. And he, Brad, it was like, hey, Timmy, throw this one. I'm like, yeah, I'm sure he was talking to much. And you mentioned, you mentioned Riley's heating up. And he is, I think he's got like nine home runs in some middle of June, Jim. And you mentioned Matt Olsen. I remember sitting here last year and we were around this time, we were talking about the Braves and how good they were offensively. And I remember saying you go through the lineup and everyone's having a career year seemingly. And now it's not that case. And other than Kellnick and Ozuna, is this kind of realistically what this offense is more of or are they just been figured out a little bit on how to pitch this lineup? I'm just searching for answers when people ask me, Jim. No, no, listen, it's a really good question because you go through these ups and downs as a hitter in the sport, we've seen it a lot. And Kellnick is a great example. He didn't really take off until he got to Atlanta. And so, but I generally, the guys that type of track records, even if they'll go through, they might go through a first half that is a struggle, but they figure it out eventually. Very, really do you see really good players have a full season of a decline significantly worse than their career averages? That's why it's like, you've got to almost pick a certain time of the year. You picked with Riley. For me, he went back and rest in peace, Mike Brumley, he worked with Mike Brumley recently, his old hitting coach. And I think he got him on track before Mike passed away tragically. And Riley, I think you picked that date from there to the end of this season. I'm guessing his numbers are going to be very close to what he was last year for as good a season as he had. And so, because of the length of this season, there's a lot of valleys as hitters in really the mental part of the game matters as much trying to get yourself out of those valleys as quickly as possible. And maybe not make of as deep, right? And so, I think that's where we are with Riley in particular. I'm not so sure. Olsen's always had a lot of swing and miss in the game anyway, but I think Olsen's power is starting to come too. So, you know, Alby just had a good couple, at least the last week, so as do Vols. So, as long as you get three, or Zoom is carried, as you guys know. So, I think if you have three or four carrying them, and usually they're different, you can kind of get through a season with a guy or two that have below average seasons. Jim, great insight. We appreciate you joining us. And hopefully, you got it. All right, you got it. Are you our new favorite guest, Jim? I'll talk to you later, but I'll see you guys. 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