These guys will be formidable again in 2019." recapsChicago Cubs minor leaguesChicago Cubs essaysChicago Cubs game threadsWrigley Field renovationsFull archiveLibrary Bleed Cubbie Blue Community GuidelinesCurrent time in ChicagoBCB Specials & Site InfoWinter 2019 music threadsCubs StoriesScheduleRosterStatsYahoo Cubs newsYahoo Cubs team pageYahoo Cubs reportYahoo Cubs depth chartYahoo Cubs transactionsYahoo Cubs photosOdds Shop About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub now your enemyKnow your enemy: Atlanta BravesNew Randal Grichuk Jersey ,4commentsThese guys will be formidable again in 2019.CSTShareTweetShareShareKnow your enemy: Atlanta BravesChampion Stadium in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, spring home of the BravesAaron Doster-USA TODAY SportsAfter a couple of down years, the Braves roared right back into the postseason picture with a N.L. East title, provided mainly by guys from their own system: Ronald Acuna Jr., Ozzie Albies, Mike Foltynewicz and Sean Newcomb.They added to that a fine season by Nick Markakis, who they retained at a far-below-market rate on a one-year deal for 2019. The Braves have also made some shrewd trades over the last few years, acquiring a couple of No. 1 draft picks from other teams. Starting shortstop Dansby Swanson came over in a deal that sent Shelby Miller to the Diamondbacks, and another deal with Arizona brought Touki Toussaint, who is expected to be in the Atlanta rotation. If you’re keeping score, that’s two straight No. 1 D-backs picks (Toussaint Jose Bautista Jersey , 16th overall in 2014, Swanson, 1st overall in 2015) who are now key members of the Braves. Arizona has no one left from either of those deals.So give a lot of credit to the Braves in putting together a winning ballclub just a couple of years after they were among the worst teams in the National League. Acuna was the N.L. Rookie of the Year after hitting .293/.366/.522 with 26 home runs and 16 stolen bases in 111 games — at age 20, one of the best seasons ever (4.1 bWAR) for someone that age. Albies, who just turned 22, hit .261/.305/.452 with 24 home runs and 14 stolen bases and played an outstanding second base.In one eight-game stretch in August, Acuna hit .471/.514/1.235 (1.749 OPS, 16-for-34) with eight home runs, so many homers that Marlins pitcher Jose Urena threw at him, apparently intentionally, in the first inning of this game, inciting a bench-clearing incident [VIDEO].Your browser does not support HTML5 video.The “old man” of this team (apart from Markakis) is Freddie Freeman http://www.bluejaysfanproshop.com/authentic-curtis-granderson-jersey , a perennial All-Star who finished fourth in N.L. MVP voting last year and who’s all of 29. Freeman’s been around so long that one of his teammates in his September call-up year (2010) was Kyle Farnsworth. (No, I am not making that up.)The N.L. East is a tough division, but I see the Braves winning it again.The Cubs will get a look at the Braves early, as they will visit Atlanta for their second series of the year, April 1-3-4 (the first date is the Braves home opener). The Braves will visit Wrigley Field June 24-25-26. HOUSTON (AP) — Felix Hernandez vowed Saturday that his first-ever stint in Seattle’s bullpen won’t last long.“I’ll be a starter before the end of the year,” Hernandez told The Associated Press. “No question about it.”The struggling Mariners ace has made 398 career starts in 14 seasons, never once pitching in relief. He was bumped from the rotation on Thursday night, the latest setback in a tough year in which he has a career-high 5.73 ERA and is 0-4 in his last five starts.For the longtime face of this franchise, it was difficult to digest the team’s decision to have him pitch in relief and he said it took him a couple of days to come to terms with it. Conversations with family and friends and encouragement from his wife Sandra, who he has been with since he was 14, helped.“My wife is here. She flew here,” Hernandez said. “We had a good conversation. And she told me: ‘Just go out there and be the leader that you’ve been all these years. Be you. Be you.'”And that Marcus Stroman Jersey , Hernandez said, is exactly what he plans to do. Though the 2010 AL Cy Young Award winner sees this only as a temporary setback, he’s prepared to embrace his new role for the good of a team that’s in contention to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2001.“I’m just part of the team and I’m going to do whatever’s possible to help the team,” he said.The 32-year-old Hernandez is 8-10 with a 5.73 ERA in 23 starts for a Mariners team chasing a playoff spot.Hernandez, who has the fourth-most starts in MLB history without a relief appearance, has spent two games in the bullpen, but has yet to appear in a game. He shared his first impressions of the experience.“It’s boring. I’m telling you,” he said with a laugh.Both nights he’s trotted with closer Edwin Diaz to the bullpen in left-center field at Minute Maid Park, where the Mariners are playing the AL West-leading Astros. Hernandez said he’s picked his brain about relieving, but he’s far from the only one he’s reached out to for advice on the move.“I’ve been talking with everyone in the bullpen him, Alex Colome, everybody Devon Travis Jersey ,” he said. “(They said) just go out there and have fun.”Hernandez pointed out that he’s appeared in the All-Star game several times out of the bullpen, but admitted that he “might need some time” to get warmed up to enter a game.He said the team didn’t tell him anything specific that they need to see from him for him to get his starting job back, but he knows that he’ll have to improve his fastball command to turn things around.“The problem is my location of the fastball,” he said. “If I locate my fastball, I’ll be good because I’ve got many weapons to go out there and have good games so I have to locate my fastball.”Hernandez said he believes the problem is mechanical and said he’s trying several different things to try and get back on track.When facing reporters following his recent tough starts, including his last one against Texas in which he allowed a career-high 11 runs — seven of them earned — he seemed discouraged and a bit down.It was a different Hernandez who spoke on Saturday. It wasn’t quite the King Felix who threw a perfect game in 2012 and led the AL in ERA in both 2010 and 2014. But there were unmistakable notes of the swagger and bravado that were hallmarks of the presence he had on the mound when he was one of the game’s most dominant pitchers.He smiled easily and cracked jokes, his glossy ringlets bouncing around as he laughed. He said instead of getting mad about the move or letting it hurt his feelings, he’s using it as motivation.“All it does is encourage me to get back,” he said before flashing one last smile.