Or Matt Holiday....
After coming close to a Wild Card in 2008, the Atlanta Braves may just be two or three moves away from reaching the playoffs after missing out over the last four seasons. That ticket to the playoffs though will likely have to be of the Wild Card variety again though as the Philadelphia Phillies, the two-time defending National League Pennant winners still reside in the NL East.
But what do the Braves need to do to have a shot at playing in late October? Simple: add a bat. That move though is easier said than done. The Braves offense really seemed to take off after Adam LaRoche arrived but he is a free agent and not likely to return for anything less than a three-year deal and the team won't want to block Freddie Freeman, who might make his full-time debut Spring 2011.
Payroll will likely be a problem in terms of adding the big bopper that the team needs in the No.4 spot in the lineup. Brian McCann has hit in the cleanup spot since the team traded Mark Teixeira but he would be the ideal No.5 hitter. If you keep Chipper at No.3 that means you need a big-time No.4. Jason Heyward, if he wins the leftfield job out of spring training, is likely too young to begin his career there, so he'll probably bat fifth with McCann returning to the four-spot. Should Heyward make the team, he will man leftfield and Nate McLouth is locked into center. In right field, Matt Diaz and Ryan Church will probably platoon since they team doesn't have the money to make a run at Matt Holiday.
As for the infield, Martin Prado earned a permanent spot in the starting lineup with a huge second half last season. However, as the market may not be conducive to signing a first baseman in the team's price range, perhaps Prado could move to first to enable the team to sign a second baseman. Orlando Hudson had a nice year for the Dodgers but LA and New York (NL) will be coming after him. If Hudson doesn't sign, the Florida Marlins are offering Dan Uggla to folks and the Braves do have one of the deepest farm systems in the majors. Yunel Escobar and Chipper Jones are a strong left side, but the team could afford to look around for a reliable option behind Chipper since Jones cannot seem to stay healthy.
Bottom line, the development of Jason Heyward in left should add some pop and a new second baseman with Prado shifting the first will help out the infield.
1 comment:
I think Chipper Jones is one of the most underrated players in baseball over the past 20 years. He has been very consistent and won MVP's, batting titles, and gold gloves.
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