Received Chipper Jones for Jorge Cantu.  My offense if fine, but could use help mostly in AVG and despite his current slump Chipper should help in that area.  Even if he misses a few games here and there (more like when) I still would rather have Chipper over Cantu.  I also have Aramis Ramirez on my DL, so I'll be able to put one of the two at CI or UTIL when he comes back.

I was getting some serious interest in Zack Greinke. Aside from Greinke my starting pitchers consists of Jon Lester, Yovani Gallardo, Matt Cain, Edwin Jackson, John Danks and Max Scherzer.  As you can see, pitching is pretty solid.  Since the offers were coming back fairly aggressive, I decided to see how high I could sell on Greinke as I have already had a half seasons worth of great production.  The deal ended up like this...

My team traded: Zack Greinke, Shane Victorino and Frank Francisco

My team received: Alex Rodriguez, Matt Kemp and Chad Qualls

The way I see it: A-Rod has started to find a little groove.  While I don't think he'll be the A-Rod of old for the rest of the season, he should be a great addition to Chipper/Aramis at 3B/MI/UTIL and makes one of them expendable should I want to try and deal for another position.  To me Matt Kemp>Shane Victorino.  They are the same type of player, but Kemp has more power and more speed.  Frank Francisco for Qualls is basically a wash at this point.  Francisco has not looked sharp since returning from the DL and Qualls is a low end closer.  My other closers include Jose Valverde, Kevin Gregg and Kerry Wood.  Not the best closer group in the world, but it's holding me above water. 

All in all these are the players I gave up and received:

I got:

Chipper Jones

Alex Rodriguez

Matt Kemp

Chad Qualls

I gave up:

Jorge Cantu

Zack Greinke

Shane Victorino

Frank Francisco

How do you think I did in my day of wheeling and dealing?

P.S. have a great 4th of July weekend!!!!

3 That's the number of Pelicans who were informed following the game they have been promoted to the Atlanta Braves double-A affiliate in Pearl, Miss. First baseman Freddie Freeman, outfielder Jason Heyward and lefthanded pitcher Tommy Palica are all moving up to the Mississippi Braves. They are being replaced today by three players from low-A Rome.

For our second introduction in as many days, allow me to present the other winner of the writing contest, Tom Gieryn. I'll let him take it away from here!

Greetings, Chop-n-Change denizens...my name is Tom Gieryn, and I'll be the other new guy joining the estimable C-n-C blogging team. Many of you know me as "Tom" from the comments, and I look forward to bringing the same objective perspective to the front page.

One of the things we're going to try to start over here (now that we're fully staffed) is a nightly recap of the day in BraveWorld. We'll always start our evening tour in the lovely city of Atlanta, but we'll also make stops across the Southeast, in beautiful destinations like Pearl, Mississippi and Danville, Virginia to visit the various Braves minor-league affiliates and see what they've been up to. 

First things first: the big club. Every night, we'll of course give you the score, but as you expect from C-n-C, we don't stop at the easy stuff. We're also going to try to glean some game-by-game insight by looking at FanGraphs' excellent win probability data.

(To get us started, a little primer on Win Probability Added; if you've seen this drill before, skip down below. WPA is a metric that measures each player's direct impact on the team's chances to win a given game. Based on years of play-by-play data, we have matrices that show the probability that a given team will go on to win a given game depending on the situation -- which is defined by the inning, the number of outs, the score, and how many runners are on which bases.

In the simplest example, in the top of the first with no outs, no runners and a 0-0 score, each team has a 50% chance to win. If the leadoff guy hits a home run, we go look back at all the games where that situation has come up (top 1, 1-0 score, no outs, no runners), and see how often the team leading 1-0 actually went on to win the game: that gives us a probability that either team will wind up victorious. And baseball is a zero-sum game -- i.e., as good as that homer is for the team that hit it, it's equally bad for the other team.

So, we attribute the change in probability to the hitter and the pitcher. If the team's chance to win goes from 50% to 60% because of the leadoff homer, then the hitter gets a +0.10 and the pitcher gets a -0.10. This is going to give major credit for hitting or pitching in clutch situations; a pitcher who throws nine shutout innings to win 1-0 is going to have a far higher WPA than a pitcher who tosses a shutout but gets tons of run support. As a result, WPA is not--repeat, NOT--a metric to evaluate future performance, since obviously those two hypothetical shutouts require equal talent from the pitcher. But if you're trying to look back at which shutout was more valuable, obviously the "clutch" shutout is.)

So, with that out of the way, here's what info we'll bring you after every game:

MVP: This will be the player with the highest WPA total for the game. Whose contributions did the most to help the Braves win? Even in a loss, we'll look at whose fault it wasn't.

LVP: This player had the lowest WPA total for the game. For a win, we won in spite of this guy; for a loss, he's to blame the most.

MIP: This stands for Most Important Play. This is the single play with the highest change in win probability. This play was the one that did the most to help one team or the other put the game away, and there will be some surprises sometimes. In a 1-0 game, you'd think the single run would be the biggest factor, but sometimes you'll find that the MIP was a time when the losing team, say, grounded into a double play with the bases loaded and one out.

UotG: I really need a better acronym for this (suggestions welcome). This is "Unit of the Game," for lack of a better term. For this, I split the team into offense, starting pitcher, and bullpen. I total up the WPA for each of those groups, and name the unit who contributed most to the result (in a win, who was best; in a loss, who was worst). This way we'll be able to look at trends across many games, and identify strengths and problem spots.

Then we'll go around the minors, and I'll give a tidbit or two from each minor-league team that played on any given night. I see no reason to give scores, as what I'm most concerned about is the commentary: who played well or didn't? 

So, without further ado...

Around BraveWorld June 30^th:

Braves 5, Phillies 4 (10 inn.)

This one was a roller coaster, folks. Braves took a 3-2 lead into the eighth after a solid six innings from Derek Lowe, but the Phils got back-to-back solo shots from John Mayberry Jr. and Pedro Feliz to put the Phillies up 4-3.

MVP: Martin Prado. The guy had a WPA of .668 for this game. In every game, the winning team has a +0.5, and the losers get a -0.5, so a 0.668 figure means that Prado not only did enough to win the game by himself, but his contributions were enough to also erase the negative contributions of some of his teammates.

Prado went 4-for-5 and drove in four of the Braves' five runs: a third-inning RBI single to tie the game at one, a fifth-inning solo homer to tie the game at two, an eighth-inning, two-out RBI double to tie the game at four after the Phillies had taken the lead in the top of the inning, and the walk-off RBI single off the indomitable Chan Ho Park in the tenth. That's about as impressive of a performance as you'll ever see -- the Braves kept trying to give the game away, but Prado just wouldn't let them do it. Even as big of a KJ fan as I am, we need to find a way to get this guy's stick into the lineup more often.

LVP: Mike Gonzalez. Took a 3-2 lead into the eighth and gave up a pair of home runs to put the Phillies ahead. (With his WPA of -0.427, he nearly lost this game single-handedly. He owes his teammates a drink for covering his back.)

MIP: Prado's RBI double with two outs in the eighth, tying the game at four. Remember what I said about surprises? The MIP is not the walk-off hit, because that came with no outs in a situation where the Braves didn't have to get a hit right then. But in the eighth, with two outs and down a run, the Braves had their backs against the wall, and Martin delivered.

UotG: Offense. For all the grief our offense has taken lately, they came to play tonight. Pitchers kept giving the Phillies runs, but the offense kept getting them right back. 

Before I start rambling on and on with numbers, claims, and cultural references, I think it is important that I introduce myself. My name is James Piette and I have been an avid Braves' fan since back in the days when Fred "Fire Dog" McGriff was just acquired and the Tomahawk Chop was still intimidating.[1] My current occupation is a 3rd year PhD student in Statistics at the Wharton School of Business, which makes me one of the worst kind of people. My focus, which regrettably is not the most respected in academia, is entirely on sports, whether it be basketball, cricket, or hockey, but my true passion is in baseball.

Somehow, I impressed Alex and Kristi[2] enough to give me a shot as a writer for Chop-n-Change. I plan to post relatively frequently focusing mainly on developing stories surrounding the Braves', players who are under/over-performing, specific issues related to the team's strengths and weaknesses, and anything in between. Due to my incredibly geeky nature, these posts will inevitably be full of tirades lambasting and praising trades, players, front offices, etc., via statistical evidence, along with a little (hopefully) witty rhetoric. I plan on devoting ample time to each post's comments, as well. If I start becoming too obscure and out-of-touch, feel free to bring me back down to Earth through your hate.

As this is my first post, I feel it is appropriate to write about the question that I most often get asked when I explain to Northeners that I am not a Sox/Yankees/Mets/Phillies fan: What chance do you give the Braves to make the playoffs? Before looking at existing computer predictions, let's take a look at the standings. At 35 - 40, Atlanta is 5.0 games back of the Phillies. While plenty of teams in baseball's history have made more impressive pushes to get into the playoffs, our chances would appear to be dwindling fast.

One might suggest we have gotten unlucky, but that does not appear to be the case. Our luck score, or our current number of wins minus the Pythagorean-formulated number of wins[3], is 0 this year, compared to last year when it was -6. If luck isn't the case, is it simply the Braves' are not good enough to win the division title?

My next step when evaluating this question is to look to Baseball Prospectus' postseason odds, a page with computer predictions of postseason odds for every team. They list three sets of probabilities for each team making the playoffs, breaking each down into the expected number of wins and losses, the actual winning percentage of each team, and the chance of being crowned the division champion or wild card. I've decided ELO-adjusted is completely out of their mind[4] and the original version is not adjusted for current roster[5], so I am sticking with the PECOTA-adjusted odds.[6]

You'll note that our current chance of getting into the playoffs is about 25.6%, which breaks down into 20.9% odds at winning the division and 4.7% probability of winning the wild card. That is pretty good, considering the lead Philadelphia has. I would have pegged it around 20% myself, but I suppose this is why I am the eternal pessimist. However, this is not the most surprising number on the page. The Braves' Pct3, or the expected winning percentage, is 0.546, which, relative to the rest of the NL, is the 2nd best such number behind the Dodgers at 0.582. That is, the Braves' have the 2nd highest expected winning percentage, a higher value than any other team in the NL East. I'll let that sink in before continuing on.

Perhaps this doesn't come as a surprise to most of you. Kudos to you. For those of you who are in my shoes banging your head against the wall every time our outfield fails, this should come as a sigh of relief. I specifically remember this wasn't the case a month ago, but with all of the injuries to the Mets and the ineptitude of Philly pitching, it does not seem like too much of a stretch. Because I am a complete nerd, I decided to see what our chances of winning the division would have been if each team in the division started with their current Pct3 (i.e. for 6/29). After running 1,000,000 simulations[7], where I consider each team to have started the season with June 29^th's posted, PECOTA-adjusted, expected winning percentages and play out 162 games, I got the following results for the approximate probability of each team winning the division[8]:

Braves: 0.463
Phillies: 0.397
Mets: 0.098
Marlins: 0.042
Nationals: 0.000

To have a 46.3% probability of winning the division title is a huge accomplishment for any team. While the Phillies would still have a substantial chance of taking the crown, considering how close 0.541, the Phillies' Pct3, and 0.546 are, it is a big discrepancy. Of course, this isn't even taking into account the wild card, which I did simultaneously using the same simulations.[9] The wild card was won by the Braves' 11.6% of the time; this is fairly often when conditioning on them being eligible to win it (i.e. did not win the division).[10] Thus, according to my simulations, the Braves' playoff chances if we were to flashback in time to April 5th, but using current rosters and player progressions, then we have a 57.8% probability of making it to the playoffs.

While that whole venture into exploiting PECOTA's abilities was exhausting, it puts up a few good points that I will end with. The first being that the Braves pitching depth is great, while the Phillies and the Mets are really suffering from their respective garbage they picked up this summer. Second, the Braves are still in this playoff race. With Tim Hudson coming back soon after the All-Star break and a front office that is almost always engaging in positive dealings, I think it's safe to say that our expected winning percentage will only go up. Lastly, if you work/live with any Phillies/Mets fans, a feeling I can relate to so well being in Philadelphia, then the next time they bring up Atlanta's fortune this year, you'll know that your team is the best team, right now, in the NL East. Unless either team acquires a star player. In that case, just cry loudly and they'll leave you alone.

First, I'd like to provide you with my baseball playlist.  I created this before I left to drive down to Spring Training this year have listened to it before every game I've attended this year.  Just really gets me in the mood for some baseball!  I welcome all suggestions for additions to the playlist, as I'm sure I've missed some good ones!

1.  Centerfield by John Fogerty (THE classic baseball song after Take Me Out to the Ballgame)

2.  Cheap Seats by Alabama (another natural choice)

3.  Taking Care of Business by B.T.A. (Does anyone else remember the Taking Care of Pittsburgh spoof that was done back in '91 by Fox 97 here in Atlanta?  I have it on tape and have been trying to acquire the technology to upload the song for you all!)

4.  Fortunate Son by CCR (just seems to come on a lot at games)

5.  Rock'n Me by the Steve Miller Band (again, seems to come on a lot at games)

6.  Start Me Up by the Rolling Stones (another classic played at games)

7.  You Shook Me All Night Long by AC/DC (yet another classic played at games)

8.  Crazy Train by Ozzy Osbourne (I'm sure most of you know Chipper used this song for years as his at-bat song)

9.  What I Like About You by The Romantics (again, played at a lot of games)

10.  Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond (a tribute to the Red Sox, my other love)

11.  Hells Bells by AC/DC (a tribute to John Smoltz and his days as the Braves closer, although I still never understood why that was his song because it doesn't really seem to fit him)

And in other randomness, here is my guide to eating at The Ted:

Peachtree Pizza: found all over the stadium, this is the most recent version of pizza available at the stadium.  I could seriously eat pizza everyday, so I've tried every version of pizza available at the stadium over the years and this ranks in the top two.  They have huge slices and they're pretty good as long as you get them when they're fresh.

Chick-Fil-A: my favorite Atlanta staple finally made it to The Ted, replacing a fledging Moe's on the 100 level close to the plaza.  Although a bit more pricey than the ones you find around town, the quality is the same.  If you want fries, nuggets or wraps, you'll need to hit the one on the 100 level just off the plaza going towards the first base side of The Ted.  If you're only looking for the classic sandwich, you can find that on the 200 level not too far from home plate in a tent, on the 400 level around first base or being sold in the stands. 

The Chop House: a full-service restaurant located just off the plaza above right field, The Chop House has become a huge fan favorite at The Ted.  My brother goes for the hot wings and my friends love to stand against the railing and watch the game while grabbing a beer.  Some fans never make it to their seats, instead choosing to watch the game from the railing.  You'll need to arrive early if you want to grab a spot with a view from The Chop House for the game.  As far as the food goes, it's fairly good although pricier than your other concessions. 

The 755 Club: featuring a buffet, a sports bar and a menu you can order from, the 755 Club is a members-only restaurant above left field with floor to ceiling glass windows overlooking the field.  If you get there early, there are also tables out on a patio overlooking the field.  Don't let the members-only part scare you off - there are always plenty of passes for sale on eBay and Craigslist if you want to try it out!  I'm more of a baseball traditionalist though and prefer to grab something from the concession stand to eat in my seat while I watch batting practice.  I have had some delightful meals at the buffet in the past though.

Smokehouse BBQ: formerly Skip & Pete's BBQ, this is located right in the plaza and features ribs, pulled pork, pulled chicken, beef brisket and turkey legs along with accompanying sides.  It's not really my style, but my father frequents it.  I hate that they renamed it after Skip passed away and Pete retired, but maybe it's what those guys wanted.

Tomahawk Tavern: last but not least, if you're looking for a frozen adult beverage, hit up Tomahawk Tavern at Sections 120, 122 or 235 for a Tomarita.  They also feature a variety of beers and wines.

Other concessions around the park have the usual ballpark fare.  If you're one of those who doesn't care for the footlong hotdogs you may have trouble locating the "normal" size ones at Turner Field.  We canvassed the ballpark for them this week and located them just outside Section 412.  As an added bonus, these shorter dogs are Hebrew National hotdogs for those looking for a kosher dog.

I hear there are some non-traditional selections in the Lexus Level if anyone wants to comment on those.  Personally, I don't like to sit in the Lexus Level and haven't done so in years, so I can't provide much guidance there.

I'm interested to hear other opinions and suggestions for Braves game-related traditions, treats or other interesting facts!

Beckett is now 9-3 with a 3.48 ERA and 94 Ks. He also owns a .239 BAA and has walked 32 batters in 98.1 innings. But he's been especially dominant in June, going 4-1 with a 1.51 ERA, 35 K's to just 4 walks and a .195 BAA.

Justin Verlander has also been stellar in June and Roy Halladay is back from injury this week, but Josh Beckett has become the new front runner to start the All Star game and is he keeps this pace through July he should be a lock.

The Sox put four runs on the board on Friday night, but it was Beckett's performance that won the game. Then the bats really went to sleep...

On Saturday the Sox managed just one run and the pitiful Box Score above when Tim Wakefield out-pitched Javier Vazquez in a 1-0 win over the Braves. Wake won't start the All-Star game but he should be on the list of invitees now that he has 10 wins on the season - tying him with Halladay, Slowey and Grienke for the most in the majors... and with 6 shutout innings on Saturday, his ERA is down to 4.18 on the season.

Wake also tied Roger Clemens for the most starts by any Red Sox pitcher:

"Just being mentioned with the names I'm being mentioned with is pretty cool," said Wakefield, who made his 382nd start for Boston. "I'm thankful I've been here as long as I have."

Mark Kotsay, who started in left field to give Jason Bay a rest, was the offensive hero thanks to a 2-out RBI single that score Youkilis in the 6th inning. After Pedroia and Drew were retired Vazquez walked Youk and Ortiz and Kotsay made him pay. The Sox had six hits on the day and Youkils has two of them.

On Sunday, the Sox weren't as lucky. Brad Penny held the Braves to just two runs on six hits through six innings of work, but rookie Tommy Hanson shut down the Sox through six Jason Varitek's RBI single in the 9th was too little too late. Penny took the loss, but lowered his ERA to 4.79... the offense however, managed just five hits and one run and most of that came from Jason Varitek alone (2-3, BB, RBI).

The Sox are still 17-7 on the month and 4-2 on the road trip, but the Yankees have won five in a row and are just three games behind the Sox in the East. We'll play three more in Baltimore to start the week and then get a week and half at the Fens before the Break to extend that lead...

Bottom Line: Interleague play is over and we're headed home at just the right time.

...the medical staff believes that they're beyond the recurrence stage. Bursitis is a painful condition, but once corrected it tends not to recur. It's just the "getting ahead of it" that often takes something like a DL stint or even minor surgery to help.

http://baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=9075

Aaron Hill keeps on mashing.  19 homeruns now on the year. 

Brad Lidge allowed 1 hit (bunt single) and one walk, but did not allow a run to score in his action since landing on the DL.  He got the save, but his stuff and control, slider in particular, did not look so sharp. 

Tommy Hanson ran the NL East two headed monster this week and came out 2-0.  The strikeouts are not there yet, but his stuff looks very good.  I don't think he's going to make quite the impact the pre-season hype built up, but he should be a solid option the rest of the way.

Brad Penny matched up fairly well against Hanson, but was struck by the long ball twice (Chipper Jones and Garret Anderson).  I'm not a believer in Penny, but maybe Mark from Fantasy Baseball Hot Stove can convince me otherwise. 

Zack Greinke gets it done again, though he is clearly not as dominant as when the season started.  I would actually be fine with selling high on Greinke for a top-notch hitter right now.  After all Greinke did rank number 11 on Razzball's 20 Risky Pitchers for 2009.  Also, strikeouts trending down.

Since I said buy low on Wieters he has gone just about o'fer everything.  Killing me Matt, killing me. 

B.J. Upton had a 5 star day.  A homer, stolen base, 2 runs and an RBI.  Can you say HUGE second half?

Alexei Ramirez added his 10th homerun of the season yesterday.  He now has 10 homeruns and 11 steals.  More importantly "The Cuban Missle" has raised his AVG to .267.  Ramirez started out very slow last season as well.  Does his game rise with the summer heat?  I'd buy low to find out.

Brandon Inge hit a game winning homerun off of Jose Valverde.  It was Inge's 18th of the season.  I have to admit, I sort of liked the guy after his hot start to the season, but I never would have thought he'd be approaching the all-star break with close to 20 bombs.  His K/BB rate is pretty much the same as it was last season, but his HR/FB rate is through the roof. 

Matt Gamel batted leadoff yesterday.  That's interesting if it sticks.

Was this the turning point for Francisco Liriano?  Throwing 92-95 with a slider in the high 80's yesterday.  I'm still not convinced, though he kept the ball down nicely yesterday.  His last two starts have come against National League foes.  His next start against the Tigers will be a big one.

Aaron Cook continues to pull a 2008 on us.  Despite allowing 9.1 hits per 9 IP and a 1.61 K/BB rate, Cook continues to put the ball on the ground and get outs.  Look, at this point you ride em till he bucks ya. 

Jaun Rivera: 44.7% owned in ESPN leagues and 43% owned in Yahoo! Leagues.  That's up from 5.3% in ESPN and 4% in Yahoo! On June 9th, but still,  .305, 12 HR, 41 RBI...Those numbers are scary close to Carlos Lee right now. 

I am going to mention Clay Zavada for 2 reasons.  1) He's awesome. 2) Shout out to Dave from Goose Joak for this sweet 1971 Topps retro card upon request. 

Jose Lopez is now 8 for 12 in his last 3 games.  He should be in for a nice second half.

As I passed along the other day, it looks more and more like Adrian Beltre will not play through the pain much longer. 

Matt Kemp was actually able to fight off Juan Castro for the 7th spot in the Dodgers lineup yesterday.  He hit his 10th homer of the year.  I bet Mitch Kemp would bat higher than Matt Kemp if it were up to Joe Torre. 

Francisco Rodriguez had an embarrassing outing last night.  He walked three and allowed one hit, but the bases loaded walk to Mariano Rivera was the kicker.  Come on Mets fans!  I've watched Frankie pull this kind of stuff for years in Anaheim!  Consider yourself lucky he hasn't done it more often in 2009. 

Luis Castillo has reached base in all but one game since June 22nd.  So why not move him (.279 AVG, .375 OBP) to the 8th spot and hand leadoff duties to Daniel Murphy (.248 AVG, .316 OBP)?  Can a Mets fan please help me understand the wacky mind of Jerry Manuel?  

How about that Chad Gaudin fella?  One hit, 9 K in 8 1/3 innings against the slugging, albeit slumping, Rangers offense.  His strikeout numbers are huge over his last 3 starts.  His next few starts come against NL West foes.  Go ahead and ride him out. 

But his performance yesterday on the mound wasn't bad for an off day.

Hanson dominated Boston pitching six scoreless innings yielding just two hits, two walks and two strikeouts. The Braves bullpen cleaned up the rest for Hanson as Mike Gonzalez picked up his ninth save of the season.

Brad Penny gave up a pair of homers - both solo shots - to Chipper Jones and Garrett Anderson. Jason Varitek singled home Boston's only run in the top of the ninth inning.

Goat of the Game - No one?

Hanson was filthy yesterday.

Next Game - 6/29 vs. Baltimore Orioles - Jon Lester/Jason Berken

Boston has to do damage in this series to keep their lead in the A.L. East.

The Rising: Casey McGehee - What do we know about this mysterious character from the Brewers farm system?  Well, we know he's on fire.  McGehee is currently hitting .344 with 4 HR for the Brewers in 96 at bats.  He also caries eligibility at 2B and 3B.  Is he for real?  In a word; no.  One glance at his minor league numbers would be about the last time you would do so.  In 2577 minor league at bats McGehee hit .279/.31/.409 with 54 HR.  This past offseason he was selected off of waivers by the Brewers form the Cubs.  What he has done at the Major League level this month is mostly smoke and mirrors.  The AVG is being extremely helped by a .394 BABIP as well as his spot in the batting order.  Opponents felt they could pitch to him with Braun and Fielder to follow in the order.  Once opposing teams find his weakness and exploit it there will be a big fall off in any type of production from McGehee. 

The Falling: Juan Pierre - His impact immediately following the Manny Ramirez suspension was nothing short of amazing.  However, when Manny returns his fall from fantasy grace will be equally as amazing.  Over the last months worth of games for the Dodgers, Pierre has only hit .259 with 9 SB.  There is no way he replaces Matt Kemp or Andre Ethier in the lineup anyway.  Your chance to sell Pierre for anything at all is nearing its end.  Besides, it's not as if he was doing anything different than what Scott Podsednik was doing. 

Brett Greenfield, fantasyphenoms.com:

The Rising: Fernando Nieve - With injuries to Oliver Perez and John Maine, the Mets were forced to look for alternatives within their farm system. The 27-year-old Nieve has stepped up and been a savior for a battered Mets team. Fernando has made three starts and currently holds a 1.31 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP.   In twenty innings he's struck out 13 batters, which isn't terrible. Jerry Manuel has indicated that Nieve will remain in the rotation for the foreseeable future. Proof that he's been pretty good is in the teams he's faced: The Yankees, The Rays and The Cardinals. He has provided the Mets with a quality start in each of the three starts, has gone at least six innings and has given up fewer than three runs in each. He's still available in many leagues but is worth taking a flier on when you consider the ballpark he'll be pitching in and the potential offense behind him once healthy.