The case for Jason Heyward hitting second in the Braves lineup

Unless the Atlanta Braves choose to delay Jason Heyward's Major League debut until June in order to delay his eligibility for arbitration, one has to believe barring injury or some other unforeseen event that he will break Spring training camp on the opening day roster for the Atlanta Braves. That leaves the Braves with the question of how to best utilize and develop Heyward in their lineup. This Spring, Bobby Cox has moved him around in the batting order in an effort to see where he feels Heyward will be best suited while also trying to get him plenty of plate appearances against Major League quality pitching. Heyward for his part has made the most of those plate appearances in the ten games he has played this Spring by hitting .455 with ten hits in twenty-two official at-bats. He has also posted a .625 on-base percentage by showing his patience at the plate and taking a team leading nine walks. Heyward's discipline is also evidenced by his having recorded only three strikeouts.
These stats coupled with his ability to hit line drives leads one to believe that Heyward would be best utilized as well as protected in the second spot in the batting order. Some may argue that the second spot in the lineup would create a great deal of pressure on Heyward to produce immediately but he has shown that he is capable of handling pressure and attention during his time in Braves' camp over the last few weeks. By hitting in the second spot Heyward would be protected in the lineup likely by Chipper Jones in the third hole and Troy Glaus in the cleanup position. Assuming both of those threats enter the season healthy, teams would be less likely to try and pitch around Heyward. His on base percentage, patience at the plate and ability to drive the ball seem to be a perfect fit for the second spot in the Braves' lineup and a great place for him to start his Major League career. If the Braves start Heyward lower in the lineup as Cox has done some to this point, they run the risk of having opposing teams pitch around him in order to face less threatening hitters. Heyward's patience at the plate could be tested in this scenario and he might begin to try and force things to happen by swinging at bad pitches which could lead to bad habits at the plate. For the reasons discussed here it only makes sense for Jason Heyward to start the season in Atlanta hitting in the second position in the batting order. Of course Bobby Cox and others may see it differently but Jason Heyward brings a bunch of potential with him and if he comes anywhere close to reaching that potential, he can only be good for the Braves this year and the years to come.

Hard not to think of wrestling when you hear Tony Schiavone

Today's radio broadcast of the Atlanta Braves spring training game against the Florida Marlins featured Tony Schiavone doing the play by play. Schiavone of course is synonymous with professional wrestling during the eighties and nineties but has since moved on to currently hold a number of jobs in sports radio including that of the play by play announcer for the Gwinnett Braves. It was interesting to hear Schiavone's voice calling something besides professional wrestling but his play by play talent was readily apparent during the broadcast. His rapport with Leo Mazzone, former Atlanta Braves pitching coach and color commentator for today's game, was entertaining and their familiarity with the Atlanta team and the game as a whole made the broadcast informative as well. Schiavone, according to other reports, has a passion for the game and that passion combined with his talent is what makes Schiavone an excellent announcer that could easily find himself calling games at the Major League level in the future.

ETSU Men's Basketball team to face Kentucky in first round of NCAA Tournament

The ETSU men's basketball team is set to face the University of Kentucky Wildcats in the first round of the NCAA tournament, Thursday night at 7:15 PM in New Orleans. On the surface the Bucs look to be out manned going into this game versus the very talented and deep Wildcat team. Kentucky's height advantage alone will present significant match up problems for the Bucs. If the height advantage alone is not enough, the size of Kentucky's big men presents yet another problem as Isiah Brown will be giving up 60 pounds to Demarcus Cousins or 25 pounds to Patrick Patterson depending on which one of the two Brown is battling. Kentucky's relative inexperience on this stage may be one of the few advantages that ETSU takes into this game having played Pittsburgh close for most of the contest in last year's opening round NCAA tournament game. While ETSU's chances of victory appear to be slim, there is a reason of course why they play the games and anything could happen in New Orleans on Thursday night when the Bucs and Wildcats take the floor.

ETSU Men's Basketball team returning to NCAA tournament

The ETSU Men's Basketball team is returning for their second consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament after winning the Atlantic Sun tournament last weekend. This will mark ETSU's ninth trip overall to the NCAA tournament and its eighth trip in the last twenty-one years as well as its fourth tournament appearance in the last eight years. This year's tournament appearance is however the most unlikely of any in recent memory. Trouble for the Bucs started long before the season when rising sophomore Seth Coy was tragically killed in an automobile accident in Kentucky while on his way home to Indiana in July. Coy was expected to see additional playing time this season in the post with the departure of Greg Hamlin to graduation and the need for his height and physical presence inside. ETSU would likely have benefited from his contributions on the court this year but his presence was missed most off the floor and in the locker room where his positive attitude and outlook on life kept his teammates loose and laughing. He seems to have been a friend to all and was there for his teammates anytime they had a need. That sort of presence is hard to replace and ETSU missed Seth Coy the person as much or more than they missed Seth Coy the basketball player.

With Seth never far from their thoughts, ETSU began their season only to have returning starter and team leader, Mike Smith, go down with a leg injury which would eventually result in him being sidelined for the remainder of the season. Without Smith or Coy the Bucs pressed on through their season with moderate success. There were moments during the season when the team seemed to put it together and play well while at other times they seemed lost and with little hope of repeating their NCAA tournament appearance. Tommy Hubbard was one of the few bright spots for the Bucs throughout the season as he elevated his offensive game and became one of the few consistent scorers that the team could look to while continuing his fine defensive play and work on the boards earning him second team all conference honors. Others like Justin Tubbs and Micah Williams showed signs of their potential offensively at times during the season but never became consistent threats for the Bucs. ETSU finished their regular season with a record of 17-14 and posted a conference record of 13-7, good enough to be one game back of a four way tie for the conference championship.

That left the Bucs seeded fifth in the Atlantic Sun Conference tournament playing a Campbell University team in the first round that had beaten them by twenty-two points less than two weeks before. The Bucs did however enter the tournament having won three straight and knowing that they were only three more victories away from another trip to the NCAA tournament. The experience of those who played on the previous year's championship team proved valuable as the Bucs marched through the tournament. Micah Williams started the tournament with a career game scoring thirty-two points and Hubbard added eighteen of his own in an eight point victory over Campbell. In the semifinals ETSU faced Kennesaw State, who had pulled off an upset of their own by beating number one seeded Lipscomb. Micah Williams poured in another twenty points and Hubbard again added eighteen as the Bucs escaped with a five point victory over the Owls. J. C. Ward's play down the stretch in that game was also big as he hit a critical shot in the last minute of the game that helped to secure the win. That win in the semifinals set the stage for a match up with Mercer on their home floor for the tournament championship. The Bucs had lost to Mercer twice during the regular season including a game in Macon in which they trailed by as many as twenty before cutting the final deficit to five. In the final ETSU had five players score in double figures including another thirteen points from Williams and were led by Justin Tubbs with eighteen as the Bucs were able to defeat Mercer by six winning their second consecutive tournament championship. For his efforts Micah Williams was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament while Hubbard and Tubbs joined him on the All-Tournament team.

The post game ceremonies were emotional for many as Seth Coy was honored by the team as they cut down the nets. Coy's roommate and friend, Adam Sollazo, who changed his number to Coy's 43 this season, discussed how he talks to Seth before every game and how he felt his presence with him during the tournament final assisting him with free throws. Despite all that this team has suffered through during the last year, ETSU now has the opportunity to once again make their presence felt in the NCAA tournament. Seth Coy's presence will be right there with them every step of the way.

A short message to the UVa Basketball team

I want to take this opportunity to say that I believe in this team. Your performances this season have shown that you are capable of playing with anyone in the ACC or the country for that matter. There is still a great deal of basketball left to be played this season and there is no reason why this group of young men cannot put together a run of victories and capture the ACC championship next week. I want to let the team know that many fans are still behind you and wish you nothing but the best during the remainder of this season and those to come. Keep your heads up and keep working hard. Go Hoos!

ETSU men's basketball team looks to build on win over Campbell

The ETSU men's basketball team bounced back from their loss to Belmont by taking a fifteen point win over the Camels of Campbell University on Wednesday night. The Bucs used predominantly man to man defense to hold Jonathan Rodriguez, the league's fourth leading scorer, to only twelve points on the night and limited him to four of fourteen shooting from the field. Most of the few easy layups that Rodriguez was able to get were a result of the Bucs switching to a zone defense and Rodriguez being able to find open space alone under the basket. The Bucs did need a three point shot by Jocolby Davis from well beyond the arc with the shot clock running down to stem the tide of a Campbell run that had cut an eighteen point Buc lead early in the second half to four points with just under three minutes to play in the game. On Campbell's ensuing possession, the Bucs' Isiah Brown grabbed a steal and Justin Tubbs hit a three pointer off of the turnover to put ETSU back up by ten. That sequence of events changed the momentum of the game as the Bucs added to their lead from there to reach the final margin.

With the win Wednesday night ETSU pulled itself into a three way tie for the conference lead with Jacksonville and Campbell at the midpoint of the conference season. The three conference leaders maintain only a half game advantage over Lipscomb and a game and a half advantage over Rick Byrd's Belmont Bruins team. Murry Bartow and his team must now turn their attention back to the Nashville duo of Lipscomb and Belmont as those teams make their way to Johnson City for games with the Bucs on Saturday and Monday respectively. These games give the Bucs an opportunity to further distance themselves from those perennial Atlantic Sun contenders while trying to keep pace with their conference co-leaders. The Belmont game will certainly be one that Buc fans point to as a measuring stick for this team and its aspirations for a conference championship but Lipscomb is first up on the schedule and Adnan Hodzic and company will certainly present a tough challenge again.

ETSU was able to escape with a win at Lipscomb just this past Thursday on a three point shot in the final seconds by Jarvis Jones. In that game the Bucs were able to hold conference leading scorer Adnan Hodzic to only thirteen points on four of eleven shooting from the field. The Bisons however were able to shoot 48% from three point range over ETSU's defense while shooting less than 40% from the field as a whole and kept themselves in the game with their ability to hit the three point shots. Little has of course changed with Lipscomb's team since the first meeting a week ago. The Bisons have split two games in the interim with a loss to Campbell and a win over Belmont. In each of those games Josh Slater has scored well over his season average with twenty-six points in each game including a twelve of thirteen performance from the free throw line against Belmont. Lipscomb however as a team shot no more than 40% from three point range in either of those games. Were it not for the last second heroics of Jarvis Jones for the Bucs and clutch free throw shooting in the final half minute by Junard Hartley and Jonanthan Rodriguez of Campbell, Lipscomb could very easily be 9-2 in conference play and alone atop the standings.

The keys for the Bucs in winning this upcoming contest with Lipscomb will be to again limit the contributions offensively from Hodzic and Slater, while also reducing the opportunities that Lipscomb has to take open three point shots. Offensively ETSU needs to continue their approach from the Campbell game and use a combination of dribble penetration and inside play to balance their own three point attack. Coach Bartow limited his substitutions in the win over Campbell as several players played well over their average minutes. Davis for one played the entire forty minutes of action after having averaged only just over sixteen minutes per game coming into the contest. This smaller more well defined rotation is likely to continue unless the conditioning of the team dictates otherwise. A convincing win by the Bucs over Lipscomb would provide some much needed momentum and set up an always important game with Belmont on Monday evening.

Bucs back in action on Wednesday

The East Tennessee State University men's basketball team will be back in action again on Wednesday at 7 PM in the Mini Dome. The Atlantic Sun Conference leading Camels of Campbell University will come to town as the Bucs try to pull themselves into a tie with the Camels for the conference lead. Both teams spent the weekend in Nashville playing conference foes Lipscomb and Belmont. ETSU and Campbell were both able to knock off Lipscomb but the Bruins of Belmont began to turn their season around as they gained victories over the Camels on Thursday night and the Bucs on Saturday afternoon. The Bucs trailed by as much as thirty-two points during the course of the Belmont game but were able to close the margin to eleven by the end. In the Bucs' contest with Lipscomb, ETSU needed a last second three point shot by Jarvis Jones to win that game by two. Jonathan Rodriguez and Campbell had to battle Lipscomb right to the wire just like the Bucs and were able to secure the four point win with two free throws from Junard Hartley in the closing seconds. The Camels, unlike ETSU, were able to play close with Belmont for the majority of the game and closed the gap to one point with under two minutes to play but gave up four turnovers and missed one shot on their next five possessions to allow Belmont to escape with the win. During Campell's game with Belmont, Jonathan Rodriguez became the Camels all time leading scorer with 1948 points over the course of his collegiate career. He added another twenty-six points to that total in the win over Lipscomb. The Camels come into Wednesday night's game having won four of their last five games while the Bucs have been able to win only two of their last five.

In addition to Jonathan Rodriguez who is averaging 19.1 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, the Camels are led by Junard Hartley, the conference leader in assists, with 5.9 per game. Hartley also leads the league in steals and assist to turnover margin. Rodriguez will likely play an important role in this game but the key for the Bucs' may be in controlling Hartley to prevent him from being able to get his teammates involved on offense as well as protecting the ball from him so that he is unable to key the Camels' offense by creating turnovers. The Bucs are averaging just under fifteen turnovers per game while the Camels come into the game leading the conference and ranked sixth in the country in steals with 10.6 per game as a team. For the Bucs protecting the ball and limiting mistakes and turnovers on offense in this game should be a point emphasis.

For the Bucs, after splitting the pair of games in Nashville, this game looms even larger on the schedule. A loss to Campbell would drop the Bucs into a tie for third with Lipscomb and Belmont with rematches against those teams scheduled for the coming Saturday and Monday. If ETSU does not bounce back from the loss to Belmont, they could easily find themselves deep within the middle of the pack in the Atlantic Sun standings by the time Monday's game with Belmont in Johnson City is over. A sweep of these three games would enable the Bucs to put some distance between themselves and much of the rest of the conference pack.