Remember how lucky manager Bobby Cox and general manager Frank Wren felt all winter and spring to have so much pitching depth? Well, look where they are now.
As unappetizing as the Braves' record is, the problems have not been with the pitching. It's the offense that has failed time and time again. On the other hand, not all of the starting pitchers now at Class AAA Richmond appear to be ready to perform at the major league level in the place of right-hander John Smoltz and left-hander Tom Glavine, although Charlie Morton, called up Saturday to make his major league debut, held down the fort in his first game.
Jorge Campillo has contributed as a starter beyond anyone's expectations except his own, but he is still building up innings, which requires the bullpen to step in. Same with right-handers Buddy Carlyle and Jeff Bennett when they are pressed into emergency starting duty. And Bennett is supposed to be the long guy; he can't pitch three innings every day.
Wren hasn't sat still since the day he became general manager, so one could reasonably expect a trade for starting pitching. A caveat: If the Braves continue to lag behind the Phillies and the prospects for the wild card stay as unlikely as they are now, Wren may not want to give up a lot of his pitching prospects for another starter.
A more logical move would be for Cox to shake up the lineup, since it is the lack of hitting at key moments and the lack of execution all around that has the Braves where they are today.
ANGELS 2, BRAVES 0: Right-hander Jorge Campillo pitched a terrific complete game -- eight innings -- giving up only two runs on a fifth-inning homer on a good pitch that Casey Kotchman golfed out of the park. The Braves' offense sputtered after wins Friday and Saturday.
