Braves' McGuirk: Team headed in right direction

The Braves, after slipping to fourth in the National League East with a 72-90 record in 2008, took an 80-70 record into Tuesday night’s game against the New York. They were tied with Florida for second place in the East, eight games behind Philadelphia with only 12 to play.

Once a perennial division champion, the Braves in recent years have been just another team scrapping for a wild-card postseason berth in September. They were five games behind wild-card leader Colorado before Tuesday’s play.

It’s likely that Atlanta will be without postseason baseball for the fourth year since the Braves ended an unprecedented run of 14 consecutive division titles. But McGuirk, who runs the team for corporate owner Liberty Media Corp., said this season has been a step forward for the Braves.

“We’re very pleased with the progress this year,” said McGuirk, watching batting practice before an 11-3 win Monday against the Mets. “Who knows what the last 12 games bring us; and there are mathematics that get us [to the postseason]. But I’d say the optimism for spring training is very high, with the class led by [top prospect Jason] Heyward and others coming in to start the ball rolling again.

“And [pitcher Tommy] Hanson will have another year on him; he’s really done brilliantly as a rookie. We have the basis of a lot of optimism with the overabundance of pitching that we have. And [general manager] Frank [Wren] will be doing his normal great job at maneuvering the pieces.”

The biggest question on the minds of many Braves fans: what about Bobby Cox? The 68-year-old Braves manager is not signed beyond this season and hasn’t said if he wants to continue. Wren says only that he and Cox will talk about it when the season is over.

The fourth-winningest manager in history, Cox will be invited to work for the Braves in an advisory or front-office position once his managing career ends. When that will be is unclear.

McGuirk said Monday: “We’re not prepared to talk about that right now. Bobby is beloved by this organization and we hope to have Bobby with us, with all the wisdom he brings, as long as he cares to — and hopefully forever.”

Officials of Liberty Media Corp., which purchased the Braves from Time Warner in 2007, do not have direct involvement in day-to-day operations of the Braves. McGuirk oversees the operation and his continued involvement — along with president and former general manager John Schuerholz — was among the points cited by major league commissioner Bud Selig when sale was approved.

Another point was a commitment by Liberty Media to retain ownership at least for the current collective bargaining agreement, which runs through the 2011 season. McGuirk said he believes Liberty Media is “enjoying” ownership of the team so much that it might keep it for years beyond that. (There is also the current state of the economy, which hasn’t helped in the asset appreciation of sports teams.)

The Braves were once one of baseball’s biggest spenders, with payrolls in excess of $100 million in the early part of the decade, at a time when only the Yankees and one or two other clubs operated in that realm.

While the Yankees kept spending and blew right past $200 million, the Braves pulled back five or six years ago. Their payroll this season was in the $92- to $95-million range.

McGuirk said the Braves have found what he considers a “sweet spot” in payroll — a level that allows the team to sign or trade for experienced performers such as pitchers Derek Lowe, Javier Vazquez and Kenshin Kawakami, who were added last winter, while also requiring the organization to maintain a strong farm system that produces players who are relatively inexpensive early in their careers.

While the Braves aren’t likely to raise payroll significantly — it’s probably not going to $100 million soon — McGuirk said it could increase some if team officials agree that’s necessary.

“When we cut the payroll, it was because we were in, I thought, a very bad place in 2003, where we had a very high payroll and the performance was going down,” McGuirk said. “The fans were disinterested in what was being put on the field. In about 2004, we started going with a more youthful team with a little more enthusiasm and exuberance, and fans warmed to it immediately.

“Attendance immediately started going up. That wasn’t the only reason that change [lowered payroll] was made, but certainly it was a great byproduct.”

Attendance at Turner Field is projected to be down about 200,000 this season, to 2.3 million, the second consecutive decrease after several years of increased gates.