John Schuerholz held a conference call today to discuss the recent trade with the Pirates.  Here is a brief report on what he said:

Pitching:
First off, my first impression is that he was just gushing about this deal.  And when someone asked him what he liked about Mike Gonzalez, he chuckled, stated, "He gets most of the hitters out."  And then, he rattled off his career stats, including ERA, hits allowed, homers allowed , and strikeouts (all in the context of innings pitched).  Also, "Any hitter you talk to who has ever taken a bat to home plate against him has said he is dominant."

Shuerholz described several steps in the process to ascertain the health of Gonzalez, and is "very comfortable with the medical reports on Gonzalez."

"I think our pitching staff in total is now much stronger. ... [the relievers] will give Bobby more flexibility as to how he will use starters."  This was a commentary on the off-season moves which have been made to bolster the bullpen.

First base:
Obviously, the big concern to Braves fans is the loss of LaRoche's offense.  And while not disrespecting Adam LaRoche, Schuerholz expressed a lot of confidence in Scott Thorman's ability to step in and play 1b at a high level.  "We believe it's time for another young player to matriculate - if you will - into everyday responsibility."  He noted that Thorman's AAA coach, Brian Snitker (who will be the 2007 3b coach in Atlanta) has the view that Thorman has every bit of the potential to help the Braves like McCann and Francoeur did.

As to whether Wilson and Thorman would platoon, Schuerholz simply noted that decisions about how to use players are Bobby Cox's decisions.  He applauded the versatility of Wilson to play LF, 1b, and that he has performed well as a PH.

Middle Infield:
Reportedly, Kelly Johnson has been working daily with Glenn Hubbard to improve his defense at 2b.  Hubbard is credited with turning Giles into an excellent defensive second baseman.  While not stating that Johnson would be the starting 2b, the comments made it sound like he has the inside track, as he "may be able to lead off and play 2nd."

Prado and Aybar were also mentioned as options at 2b, presumably if Johnson doesn't cut it in ST.

There is a lot of optimism about the middle-infield situation in the organization, in general.  Schuerholz noted, "We've got a lot of depth in that area, and depth of quality."  He rattled off the names of the 2b/ss in the system, and made it clear that even if there weren't jobs for all these guys, they'd be very valuable in trade discussions for other needs.

"We like him a lot!" was what Schuerholz had to say about Lillibridge.  He raved about his defense and his 53 stolen bases, in addition to his hitting ability. 

In summary: Are you comfortable going into Spring Training with this roster? "Absolutely.  Yes."