Atlanta Braves News : Baseball Reigns Supreme in Atlanta

https://tomahawktake.com/2021/11/03/atlanta-braves-news-baseball-reigns-supreme-atlanta/

by Brandon Brosch, October 3, 2021

 Braves are World Series Champions for the first time since 1995, defeating the Astros 7-0 in game 6 in Houston.

The 2020 season ended in heartbreak for the Atlanta Braves, falling just one game short of a trip to the World Series to the Dodger.  Expectations were high before the 2021 season started, but the Braves lost key pieces and could not even break through the .500 mark for most of the campaign.

Losing players like Acuna, Ozuna, and Soroka had many in Braves country wondering what the rest of the season would look like, but against all odds, the Braves turned it around in late August and stayed hot all throughout the postseason.

Even so, nobody gave the Atlanta Braves a chance in the World Series against the Astros:  after all, Houston had been to three finals in the last five years, but the Atlanta bullpen — probably the strongest point of the Braves — held the dangerous Astros at bay throughout the series.

Game one saw the Braves ace of the season Charlie Morton exit early after suffering a fractured right fibula, which had everyone in Braves Country wondering what else could go wrong this season, but exceptional showings from Ian Anderson, Max Fried and Tyler Matzek showed just how resilient this team is.

Max Fried took the mound in game 6. Fried got off to a shaky start through little fault of his own, which included a big scare at first base when Michael Brantley stepped on his ankle during an awkward play.  For a few moments, we all feared Max had suffered a Charlie Morton repeat.

Fried seemed to actually get angry after that, quickly found his form, and was locked in for the remainder of his night, allowing no walks and striking out 6 through six full innings.

Matzek came in and continued his postseason dominance before Will Smith came in and slammed the door on the Astros.

This was the Braves first World Series appearance since 1999 and their first World Series championship since 1999.

Soak it all in, Braves Country! All the heartbreak throughout the years and the “almost had ’em’s” is what makes this victory so sweet.  Baseball is once again supreme in Atlanta.

Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate

REALTOR®, Lic. Broker #BK3284964

West Villages Realty LLC

19503 S West Villages Pkwy

Stes A2 (by Appt)

Venice, Florida 34293

Office: 941-460-3179

Atlanta Braves World Series schedule

https://tomahawktake.com/2021/10/24/atlanta-braves-world-series-schedule/

by Alan Carpenter, October 25, 2021

Yes, the Atlanta Braves were the host team vs. the Dodgers, but that doesn’t matter for the World Series.

Still dealing with the euphoria:  our Atlanta Braves are going to the World Series!  They will face Troy Snitker and the Houston Astros starting on Tuesday, October 26th at Minute Maid Park.

Snitker — yes, the son of Braves manager Brian Snitker — is one of the hitting coaches for the Astros.  Somebody has already wondered aloud on twitter whether Brian’s wide is going to get one of those ‘split jerseys’ to pay allegiance to both.

But… about that game schedule:

TUESDAY OCT 26.  8pm EDT.  Braves at Astros; Minute Maid Park, Houston.

WEDNESDAY OCT 27.  8PM EDT.  Braves at Astros; Minute Maid Park, Houston.

Travel Day

FRIDAY OCT 29.  8PM EDT.  Astros at Braves; Truist Park, Atlanta.

SATURDAY OCT 30.  8PM EDT.  Astros at Braves; Truist Park, Atlanta.

The obligatory “if necessary” games:

SUNDAY OCT 31.  8PM EDT.  Astros at Braves; Truist Park, Atlanta.

Travel Day

MONDAY NOV 2.  8PM EDT.  Braves at Astros; Minute Maid Park, Houston.

TUESDAY NOV 3.  8PM EDT.  Braves at Astros; Minute Maid Park, Houston.

All games will be broadcast on the “Big Fox” network (yes… we’re done with Ron Darling for the year… thank heaven above).

After meeting the Astros in the post-season for what seemed every year in the 1990’s, it’s been quite a while since these clubs have even played at all… 2017 to be exact.

That year, of course, was the season of Houston’s tainted championship — though as it happens, most of the members of that club are no longer with the team:  only Altuve, Bregman, Correa, and Gurriel are still there.

But after some 700+ games between these teams, this will be their first matchup for the whole enchilada.  The World Series.

We will have much more to say about this event in the coming days, but I will go ahead and get this on the record now:  Braves take the series in 5 games…. 6 tops.  Lets git ‘r done.

Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate

REALTOR®, Lic. Broker #BK3284964

West Villages Realty LLC

19503 S West Villages Pkwy

Stes A2 (by Appt)

Venice, Florida 34293

Office: 941-460-3179

The Atlanta Braves Win the NLDS over the Milwaukee Brewers

https://tomahawktake.com/

by Trent Dickeson,   Oct 13, 2021

The Atlanta Braves defeat the Milwaukee Brewers 5-4 and advance to the NLCS for the second straight season.

The Atlanta Braves elected to start Charlie Morton on short rest for game 4. Morton gave the Braves a solid 3.1 innings allowing 2 runs on 4 hits, 1 walk, and striking out 5.

Maybe Morton went an inning too long, but regardless, he gave the Braves a solid start in a pivotal game. Morton on short rest is better than most options, and there was always Max Fried on regular rest in game 5 if necessary.

Jesse Chavez came in for Morton after the starter yielded one run, though one of his inherited runners scored to give the Brewers a 2-0 lead.

In the bottom half of the 4th inning, the Braves tied up the game thanks to a pinch-hit two-run single from Eddie Rosario to score Austin Riley and Travis d’Arnaud.

The 5th inning was just as eventful, as Huascar Ynoa allowed a two-run home run to Rowdy Tellez to push the Brewers lead back to two. However, a Joc Pederson RBI fielder’s choice and d’Arnaud RBI single tied the game up again at four apiece.

The Braves bullpen slammed the door on the Brewers at this point. A.J. Minter, Luke Jackson, and Tyler Matzek combined for 3 perfect innings with 5 total strikeouts.  One could feel the momentum shift thanks to these efforts.

But the game was still tied.

The Face that Runs the Place Comes Through

The Brewers elected to go to their lockdown closer Josh Hader in the 8th inning in an effort to shut down the Braves offense.

On the season, Hader had a 1.23 ERA, 2.18 xERA, 1.69 FIP, 2.35 xFIP, and a 2.6 fWAR. He struck out 45.5% of the batters he faced during the year… including his first 2 hitters tonight.

What he hadn’t done this season was execute a multi-inning save.  In 60 regular season appearances, he had never even been called upon for even a 4-out save… much less 6 outs.

Nonetheless, Hader has a strong case to win NL Reliever of the Year and manager Craig Counsell had every reason to be confident in his guy to shut down the Braves offense.

There was only one problem: Freddie Freeman.

It only took one pitch.  Freeman gave the Braves a 5-4 lead with his 8th inning Home Run off of Hader… who still has not pitched a multi-inning save.

Freeman did what superstars do. He pulled through in the clutch when it was needed most, something he has done time and time again for the Braves.

Will Smith then entered in the 9th with a chance to save the game and send his club to the NLCS.

After a leadoff single from Eduardo Escobar, and a pop-out bunt attempt from Kolton Wong, Willy Adames and Christian Yelich both struck out to end the game.

The Atlanta Braves are back in the National League Championship Series and will face either the Dodgers or Giants.

In a season where the team did not get over .500 until game 109 on August 5th, they will now play for a shot to get to the World Series. What a year, what a team.

Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate

REALTOR®, Lic. Broker #BK3284964

West Villages Realty LLC

19503 S West Villages Pkwy

Stes A2 (by Appt)

Venice, Florida 34293

Office: 941-460-3179

Venice Challenger Baseball returns to action on new ‘Field of Dreams’

https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/2021/09/20/venice-challenger-baseball-returns-action-honors-rich-carroll/8315613002/

Earl Kimel, Sarasota Herald Tribune, Sept 20, 2021

 VENICE – Almost three dozen Venice Challenger Baseball athletes got their introduction to the fall baseball season via Les McCurdy Saturday afternoon at the new Challenger Field of Dreams baseball complex. 

“Challenger baseball at its best,” McCurdy said, shortly after thanking the Venice High School Chorus for singing the National Anthem. “Who cares about NCAA football, we’ve got Challenger baseball. That’s right, we’ve got the players right here ready to go and you’re going to get to meet each and every one of them!” 

McCurdy, owner of McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre – where he hosts the Special O’Laughics – and a huge proponent of both Challenger baseball and the Special Olympics, went on to introduce every player, complete with a little background that covered their favorite food and hobbies and offered them a chance to say something to the audience. 

One of McCurdy’s Special O’Laughics vets, Jonathan “J.C.” Chace, was ready for his turn at the mic and made the most of it. 

“I want to give a big shout-out to my buddies David Jones and Meredith Michaels at 107.9 WSRZ and a big shout-out to everybody at iHeart Media in Sarasota and Tampa,” said Chace, who is visually impaired but often opts to use the traditional Challenger ball instead of a special beep ball mode. “And I’m going to hit a home run tonight that will knock the radio towers out of the county.” 

 Gianna Falbo and Jonathan Chace run to first base after hitting during a Venice Challenger baseball game Saturday afternoon in Venice.  DAN WAGNER,SARASOTA-HERALD TRIBUNE

Chace went on give a shout-out to his buddy, Coach Rich – Rich Carroll, the founder and driving force behind Venice Challenger Baseball and its mission to serve all athletes, as well as its quest for the two-field complex, which is at 920 Gulf Coast Boulevard, tucked in behind the Robert and Joan Lee Boys & Girls Club.

Carroll died in July at age 72 but did get to see a livestreamed practice game of athletes playing at the complex, which features a specialized rubber field that’s better for wheelchair athletes. 

Chace went on to talk about his favorite foods, which are carrot cake, barbecue ribs and chicken wings, as well has his favorite part about Challenger baseball. 

“My favorite part about Challenger Baseball is getting a pretty girl to help me around the bases,” Chace quipped. 

At that McCurdy shot back, “The only thing is, there’s no pretty girls to help you run the bases – I have to do it. 

“Sorry J.C.” McCurdy continued, then added, “OK, we’ll find a pretty girl.”

Chace actually had at least one and sometimes two young ladies buddy up with him for his time on the base paths. 

Nancy Carroll threw out the ceremonial first pitch. 

“And I think Rich would want you to throw a curve-sinker,” McCurdy coached. 

Nancy Carroll threw an easy strike to catcher/coach Tony Spahn. 

“My pitch, it was right on, that’s what they said,” she said afterwards. 

Saturday marked the first time that athletes for Venice Challenger Baseball were able to take the field since the March 2020 COVID-19 pandemic shutdown cut short their season, when the league was still playing on Chuck Reiter Field in Venice. 

“We couldn’t have played at Chuck Reiter, we’d have been rained out, it would have been muddy,” Price noted. Typically, the players would have been split into more teams, with the older players using the traditional field with a clay infield. 

Instead, partly because of the recent rains, all of the athletes used the clay field.

Izabella Lupia challenges the pitcher during a Venice Challenger baseball game Saturday afternoon in Venice. DAN WAGNER, Sarasota -Herald Tribune

Friday night, at a special thank-you ceremony for Venice Challenger sponsors who helped either through financial or in-kind contributions to build the new complex, incoming Venice Challenger President Mike Beaumier said the league had to be especially cautious because many of the athletes were in high-risk categories for contracting COVID-19. 

In historical terms, Mia Affeldt, representing the west dugout team, got the first hit on the new field – a sharp single past pitcher/coach Steve Price – and later came around to score on the next hit.

That happens a lot in Challenger baseball, along with aggressive baserunning and inside-the-park home runs – accompanied by buddies for added safety – laughs and cheers. 

The Sunset Chevrolet scoreboard had the west dugout team doubling the run production of the north dugout team, with an edge of 32-16. But the north team never got another turn at-bat because the hamburger and hot dog feast prepared by volunteers from One Christ Won City was ready. 

Nancy Carroll was heartened by the turnout. 

“Incredible how many kids have showed up, so many kids – new kids,” she said. “Unbelievable; Richard would be proud.” 

Jonathan Clark, 22, one of those new athletes, signed up Saturday after seeing the league in the newspaper, his mother Ruth Morgan said. 

“He loves it,” she said. “We actually live up near Bradenton and our in-laws live here in Venice. 

They were taking part in the Venice Presbyterian Church “Buddy Break” when they learned about the local Challenger Division, but he had also played in leagues in North Carolina and Michigan. 

The Venice Challenger Division operates under the auspices and insurance of Venice Little League, as other Challenger Division programs do under their parent Little Leagues.

After the game Price, who will succeed Carroll as coach and also serves as the program’s chaplain, gathered the athletes together for a post-game prayer, team-led pep talks and a final cheer that after a one-two-three countdown is usually “Challenger.” 

They changed it Saturday; on the suggestion of the players, it was changed to “Coach Rich.” 

So, on the count of three, they all cheered “Coach Rich!” 

“That was pretty good,” Price said. “One time was good enough.” 

Before he died, Rich Carroll requested that the field not be named in his honor but, as McCurdy noted in his opening talk, he will forever be intertwined with the ballpark. 

“His legacy lives on every time one of these kids hit this field,” McCurdy said. “And that’s going to be happening for 100 years.”

Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate

REALTOR®, Lic. Broker #BK3284964

West Villages Realty LLC

19503 S West Villages Pkwy

Stes A2 (by Appt)

Venice, Florida 34293

Office: 941-460-3179

Braves Path to the 2021 Postseason is in Their Hands

https://tomahawktake.com/2021/08/23/woodbridge-wines-video-contest-adam-jones/

by Jake Mastroianni Sept 3, 2021

With all the turmoil the Atlanta Braves have had in 2021 they still have all their goals within their grasp as they enter the final month of the season. 

It’s honestly crazy to even write that headline with where this Atlanta Braves team was even a month ago when they were third in the NL East.

Since then they’ve held as much as a 5.5 game lead in the division before seeing that dwindle down to two games.

Still, entering the final month of the season and the last 29 games, their path to the postseason is pretty clear — win and you’re in.

And while the road ahead isn’t easy, it’s also not that difficult.

They just got done playing the hardest teams left on their schedule in the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers. And while they lost all five of those games, there is some solace in knowing three of those games were one-run games and they weren’t overmatched in any of them.

This team is capable of competing with the best teams in baseball.

Braves remaining schedule

They’re in the middle of a four-game series in Colorado where the Rockies have been one of the best teams in baseball. But the Braves got off to a good start with a comeback win on Thursday.

Braves remaining schedule

They’re in the middle of a four-game series in Colorado where the Rockies have been one of the best teams in baseball. But the Braves got off to a good start with a comeback win on Thursday.

If they can win two of the next three they’ll be in good shape coming home where they face a terrible Nationals team, the Marlins, and the Rockies.

Then they have to go back out West to face the Giants, Diamondbacks, and Padres.

The Giants are coming back down to Earth a little and are beatable. The Padres are crumbling, and the Diamondbacks are one of the worst teams in the league.

Finally, the Braves finish up at home with a huge series against the Phillies and end with the Mets.

Certainly not the easiest schedule down the stretch, but with the way this team has played since the trade deadline I feel like they’re more than capable of winning all of those series.

Braves’ Math for Holding Off the Phillies

And the Braves essentially have to win every series the rest of the way in order to stay ahead of the Phillies who have the easiest schedule down the stretch.

After some tough games against the Marlins and Brewers, they play the Rockies, Cubs, Mets, Orioles, Pirates, Braves, and Marlins.

Let’s do a little math and see how many games the Braves need to win.

The best month the Phillies have had this year was in August when they went 17-11. They’ve had double-digit losses in each month.

I could realistically see them going 19-10 or even 20-9 the rest of the way.  That’s likely the best-case scenario for the Phillies, but also really possible with their schedule.

That would put their overall record at 88-74.

And I honestly think the Braves could go 19-10 the rest of the way with their schedule, and that’s predicting a series loss to the Giants and a four-game split with the Padres.

That’s also predicting a series win at home over the Phillies, which will be a big series.

The best month the Braves have had this year also came in August when they went 18-8.

As I said earlier, I definitely believe this team is capable of going on a similar run in September to clinch the division.

If they can win two of the next three they’ll be in good shape coming home where they face a terrible Nationals team, the Marlins, and the Rockies.

Then they have to go back out West to face the Giants, Diamondbacks, and Padres.

The Giants are coming back down to Earth a little and are beatable. The Padres are crumbling, and the Diamondbacks are one of the worst teams in the league.

Finally, the Braves finish up at home with a huge series against the Phillies and end with the Mets.

Certainly not the easiest schedule down the stretch, but with the way this team has played since the trade deadline I feel like they’re more than capable of winning all of those series.

The path for them is clear, just take care of business and win the series that you should and perhaps sweep a series or two. Either way, I hope fans enjoy this final month of the regular season and what this team has had to overcome to put themselves in a position to win the division a fourth straight year.

 Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate

REALTOR®, Lic. Broker #BK3284964

West Villages Realty LLC

19503 S West Villages Pkwy

Stes A2 (by Appt)

Venice, Florida 34293

Office: 941-460-3179

Braves: Ronald Acuna Jr. Comes out on Fire in Spring Training

 https://tomahawktake.com/2021/03/02/braves-ronald-acuna-jr-comes-fire-spring-training/

by Jake Mastroianni  March 3, 2021

Atlanta Braves superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. got his first action of Spring Training on Monday and gave us a taste of what we can expect in 2021. 

You could see this coming from a mile away if you’ve been paying attention all offseason. I’ve been trying to warn the rest of the league, but Ronald Acuna Jr. is about to go off for the Atlanta Braves.

And this isn’t an overreaction to one Spring Training game where he went 1-for-3 with a double and a run scored. This is something he’s been building towards all offseason.

If you follow Acuna Jr. on Instagram (I created an account just to do so), then you’ve seen the workout videos and how motivated he’s remained.

He sees the Fernando Tatis Jr. contract and everyone saying that Tatis and Juan Soto are the best young superstars in the game. And while it’s certainly not a competition in the clubhouse, but he watched his teammate Freddie Freeman win the NL MVP last year and knows it’s his turn.

Ronnie wants to be the best, you can see that fire in him, and now he knows what it takes to be the best.

And I’m not just talking about the best young player in the sport, but the best player in all of baseball — that’s what Ronnie is shooting for in 2021.

Again, we’re not overthinking one game, but he showed that fire on Monday.

In Ronnie’s first at-bat he laced a ball off the wall in the left. A ball hit so hard that he was almost thrown out at second — and probably should have been with a good throw and tag.

And then Ron Washington gave him the windmill coming around third to score on a close play at the plate. The left fielder — J.D. Martinez, who doesn’t have the best arm — had the ball before Acuna was even to third base.

The play at the plate still wasn’t all that close.

You could just see the aggressiveness that Acuna wants to play with and how hungry he is to succeed — and help his team succeed.

In his next at-bat, he was on every pitch and just kept fouling them off before finally grounding out to third, and the throw only got him by a step as he hustled down the line.

I know, it’s one Spring Training game, but I really love what I saw from Ronnie and hope more than anything that we get that from him over 162 games this season.

If we do, the Braves will have another NL MVP winner.

Other Notes from the Braves Second Spring Training Game:

– Cristian Pache had one of the more impressive swings of the game, squaring up a baseball to the right-center gap. The right-fielder robbed him of a home run over the short wall out there, but it was a really pretty swing.

– Huascar Ynoa and Touki Toussaint were about the same as they’ve always been for me. Great stuff, but can they control it consistently. They combined for 8 strikeouts — most coming on breaking balls, which hitters aren’t ready for this time of year — but they both also walked two batters each. I need to see more improvement from them if they want to be starters.

– Just going off of looks, Jake Lamb looks like a dude. He had a solid hit his first time up, and being a lefty, I’m starting to really like his chances to make the Opening Day roster. He’ll be a solid lefty off the bench and could even work his way into a platoon role with Austin Riley (if Riley struggles).

– I really love what I saw from William Contreras at the plate. He’s the best choice for the back-up job, but they may choose to send him to Triple-A so that he gets everyday at-bats. One thing that kept bothering me though is balls kept popping out of his mitt — very reminiscent of Tyler Flowers. Not sure if that happens with him a lot or if he’s breaking in a new glove, but hopefully that doesn’t become a thing.

The Atlanta Braves will be back in action on Wednesday against the Minnesota Twins with Ian Anderson making his Spring debut. It was announced that Drew Smyly will pitch on Wednesday and Bryse Wilson on Thursday. Freddie Freeman will also make his debut on Friday.

 

Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate

REALTOR®, Lic. Broker #BK3284964

West Villages Realty LLC

19503 S West Villages Pkwy

Stes A2 (by Appt)

Venice, Florida 34293

Office: 941-460-3179

PRESERVING OUR HERITAGE

 https://www.wellenparkjournal.com/articles   February 17, 2021

BY ROBIN F. DEMATTIA,  Wellen Park Journal Correspondent

“Twenty-six heritage oak trees, including the one above, are being relocated to areas of Downtown Wellen Park.”

Future Downtown Wellen will feel well established thanks to an investment by developer Wellen Park, LLLP.

“The developer is making the investment to relocate 26 heritage trees along the boulevard entrance and throughout the mixed-use development to give Downtown Wellen a sense of maturity.”

“This was the right thing to do both from a conservation point of view as well as creating a sense of place,” says Christine Masney, vice president of marketing for Wellen Park. “These trees are beautiful and worth saving, plus they will allow us to create a truly special environment at the entrance to Downtown Wellen and throughout the mixed-use project.”

The 26 live oak trees vary in size from 14 inches in diameter to one with a trunk that is 96 inches. Some of the younger trees are about 15 years old, and one is close to 90. Most are 60 to 80 years old.

They are growing on the old Taylor Ranch property, which means they need to be moved anywhere from a quarter-mile to almost a mile.

Most of the trees in the relocation program are 60-80 years old, and one is close to 90. STEVE LINEBERRY / WELLEN PARK JOURNAL

Eleven will be showcased at the Wellen Park entrance from U.S. 41 and along Preto Boulevard. The others will bring shade and provide color around the stores, restaurants and businesses around Downtown Wellen.

The project, which Ms. Masney calls “a labor of love,” cost $1 million, which was paid for solely by the developer.

Almost two years ago, Wellen Park engaged the services of Environmental Design, a national leader in tree transplantation, and Kimley- Horn, a nationwide planning, engineering and design firm, to help select the trees.

“It was determined by the team that a major investment in the relocation of mature oaks and trees into the new downtown was something that would really help set Downtown Wellen apart from other new master-planned communities by utilizing the existing vegetation and natural resources on the property,” says Chris Cianfaglione, a landscape architect with Kimley-Horn. “The design of the downtown is organized around those relocated trees as the predominant feature. Every important space is anchored by the relocated trees.”

Wellen Park is bearing the entire cost of about $1 million for moving the trees to their new homes. 

Once the trees were identified, preparation for their eventual move began.

Staff from Environmental Design dug a trench around each tree, pruned each tree’s root ball to encourage new root growth and then backfilled the trench. The staff have monitored and watered the trees daily to ensure a successful transfer. “Oak trees can live for hundreds of years,” says Paul Cox, a certified arborist and eastern division vice president for Environmental Design. “Root pruning has a rejuvenating effect on older trees, giving them additional lifespan. The trees will be there way after all of us and our grandchildren aren’t.”

Environmental Design has a patented process for the actual relocation process.

Each root ball will be wrapped with burlap and wire fencing to make it stable. Pipes will be pushed under the root ball in a grid-like fashion, and those platforms will be tied together with proprietary hardware.  

The company’s ArborLift system uses a series of inflated pneumaticbladders with extremely low ground-bearing pressure that roll around each other for minimal disturbance to the trees.

“The beauty of this method,” Mr. Cox says, “is that in the past, you had to use gigantic and expensive cranes. It was labor intensive and dangerous to the people involved. This method takes root ball deflection out of the equation, is low to the ground, safer and more cost efficient.”

It’s a slow process, rolling about 100 feet per hour. It takes 10 hours to move 1,000 feet.

Mr. Cox expects to start moving Wellen Park’s trees in March. The effort should take up to 16 weeks.

Wellen Park residents will be able to see photos and a time-lapse video of the tree relocation at http://www.wellenpark.com and on social media @WellenParkFL.

Mr. Cox says Environmental Design has a 98% success rate in moving trees. His firm will conduct post-transplant maintenance for a year, paying particular attention to soil moisture management.

“Because of the soil condition and forgiving nature of the environment, I suspect that once the irrigation is fine-tuned, we will be on autopilot with oversight,” he says.

The relocated trees will do more than provide beauty and shade for Wellen Park residents.

Mr. Cianfaglione says the mature trees will minimize runoff of rainwater and remove thousands of pounds of carbon dioxide from the air annually.

The trees are part the sustainability strategy that Wellen Park is creating around the grand lake, which serves as a stormwater basin and focal point for the downtown.

“We trying to create a more urban setting and be more efficient in the use of the land,” Mr. Cianfaglione says.

Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate

REALTOR®, Lic. Broker #BK3284964

West Villages Realty LLC

19503 S West Villages Pkwy

Stes A2 (by Appt)

Venice, Florida 34293

Office: 941-460-3179

Atlanta Braves 2021 Spring Training Guide for Fans

https://tomahawktake.com/2021/02/11/braves-need-know-spring-training-dates-attendance/

By Jake Mastroianni Feb 11, 2021

We are just one week away from Spring Training starting for the Atlanta Braves. Use this as a guide for dates and attendance information. 

It’s been another long offseason for the Atlanta Braves who came up just short in 2020, and then fans had to wait three months for Alex Anthopoulos to make a big splash in free agency bringing back Marcell Ozuna.

But now the time has come, the trucks have left the station and are heading down to Florida to prepare for Spring Training.

Or at least, that’s the plan for now. With COVID, and the situation in Florida, things could change at any moment.

But here is what we know for now about how spring training will work for the Braves and fans.

Braves Report Dates:

Pitchers and catchers are expected to report at CoolToday Park in North Port, Fla. on Thursday, Feb. 18. Most likely they will actually arrive the day before to begin going through COVID protocols.

The team’s first full-squad workout will happen on Tuesday, Feb. 23.

Recently agreed upon health and safety protocols (paid subscription required) will make things a little different.

Spring training will be rolled out in three phases to help keep players and staff socially distanced.

The Roster

On Friday teams will need to announce the 75 players and staff members that they will be taking to Spring Training.

Teams can add and remove players to that list throughout, but can never exceed the maximum amount of 75 players and 75 staff members.

How Braves Games Will Work

Games early in spring training could be as short as five innings. From March 14 on games could either be nine innings or seven innings depending on the players available that day.

The league is currently working on a new schedule for spring training where teams in southeast Florida will exclusively play each other, while the east coast teams play each other.

 Ken Rosenthal Tweet, Feb8, 2021  "MLB in process of finalizing revised Grapefruit League schedule, placing teams in separate “pods” on east and west coasts of Florida, sources tell me and @MattGelb. West-coast teams in FL will play 28 games and east-coast teams 24, making up rest with intrasquad-type matchups."

Rosenthal followed up that tweet by saying that teams “will handle any adjustments necessary with tickets.”

So if you already had your spring training trip planned, you might want to reconsider.

Another thing to note for fans potentially attending games, the back fields will be off-limits. I know that’s a bummer as that’s where most fans usually go to get an up-close look at their favorite players and maybe grab an autograph.

Of course, as of now we don’t know if fans will even be allowed to attend spring training games. The way things are going in Florida I kind of doubt it, but I hope some fans are allowed in.

As we get more information with the updated schedule and fan attendance we’ll be sure to share that with you here at Tomahawk Take.

Ali H. Johnston, MBA in Real Estate

REALTOR®, Lic. Broker #BK3284964

West Villages Realty LLC

19503 S West Villages Pkwy

Stes A2 (by Appt)

Venice, Florida 34293

Office: 941-460-3179