Notes on 755 Hank Aaron Dr

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

The Escobar Trade

So, a few months ago, I said that Yunel Escobar was the second best player on the team. And now he’s a Toronto Blue Jay, replaced by one of the Alex Gonzalezes. Why?


The easy, and obvious, answer is that he wasn’t hitting. But I think that’s probably a bit too simple of an answer. The other easy answer is that he was a problem in the clubhouse. But I doubt that he was any more of a problem this year than last. And the Braves aren’t a team in the habit of overreacting to a poor month or three. Especially with a young and talented player. So, what gives?

I think that the Braves had just decided that they couldn’t count on Escobar as a key part of the team going forward. Perhaps if he had displayed more maturity, or continued to produce like he had, or in the best case, done both, he would still be in Atlanta. But like Jeff Francoeur, it was time to go.

And perhaps the Braves front office under Frank Wren prefers to remove the temptation to believe in a guy, after they’ve decided they can’t believe in him. After all, if you decide in July that Escobar (or Francoeur) can’t be relied on, it might be better to get them away, so you can’t be swayed by a hot few weeks. I’m reminded of a game during Bobby Cox’s first go around with the Braves, where he started Gene Garber in the outfield, batting third. It was a road game, so he pinch hit for Garber in the first inning. The reason? He wanted to ensure that he gave Garber the night off, and this way he couldn’t be tempted to use him.

At least now the Braves know, without a doubt, that they are in the market for a shortstop this offseason. Worst case, Alex Gonzalez gets his option picked up, and holds the job for another year. The free agent list isn’t overly exciting, although there are a few names that might be interesting.

(And yes, I know the trade was two weeks ago.  Look, I just posted the 2010 outfield preview last night.  And the pitching staff hasn't been covered yet....)

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Tuesday, July 27, 2010

2010 Outfield

Yeah, as usual, not a lot of posts here...  So this will be something between a preview and a review, I guess.

Melky Cabrera started out even worse than I expected, and has managed to progress all the way to "almost useful baseball player".  To be fair, the "almost" is probably not necessary, but he just doesn't look like he should be even useful, so...  He looks like he's out of shape, and doesn't hit enough for that to work.

Eric Hinske has ended up playing a lot more left field than I would have expected, but he's been useful, nothing more.  Omar Infante has also gotten a few games in the outfield.  As to why there have been infielders getting significant playing time in the outfield...

Matt Diaz was hurt, tried to play through it, and then spent most of the first half of the season recovering from thumb surgery.  Since he came back, he's been doing what I would have expected him to do.  That's good.  Unfortunately, Nate McLouth started off even worse than Melky did (really!), got a concussion, and then came back worse than ever (really!).  He's just been sent to AAA to try to work things out.  I'm not optimistic, but after seeing him answer questions about the demotion, I am definitely pulling for him.

Jason Heyward has been everything that could have been realistically hoped for, and then some.  Of course, he missed a few weeks as well, with a thumb injury.  And worse, he had tried to play through it, and hurt the team while that happened.  I had my doubts about starting him in Atlanta this year (I preferred the idea of him going to AAA for a month or two), but the Braves were right about that.

With the injuries, Gregor Blanco has had an opportunity to ressurect his career.  He'll never be a full-time player, but he does have skills.  Somehow, despite a complete and utter lack of power, he can get walks...

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