Great Minds DO Think Alike!
Steve Ungrey, I wanna buy you a drink sometime! It's always good to find like minded baseball folks.
Jason Getz — USA TODAY Sports
The are letting many rumors percolate at the winter meetings this week in San Diego, including one where catcher Evan Gattis may be dealt away to the right bidder.
Not only are the Braves crazy to do this, they should meet with Gattis and restate their commitment to him.
The Braves are trying to do what they can to improve their lot in the National League East. The reality is the rest of the division, with the possible exception of the , is spinning its wheels. The Braves are trying to restock the roster with quality pitching instead of hitters, which is why they dealt away Jason Heyward and are in on numerous trade rumors involving Justin Upton.
The biggest rumor on Gattis is the will acquire him. Gattis is originally from the Dallas area, so it would be a case of a hometown hitter coming home. Gattis is also 28, so his late-bloomer status eventually will work against him in the future.
Gattis had 21 home runs in 2013 and followed up with 22 homers last year. At a time when the Braves could use some offense, getting rid of Gattis would be odd.
Gattis’ backup is Gerald Laird, who really isn’t a threat to take anyone’s job. Christian Bethancourt, the Braves’ catcher of the future, hit .248 with no home runs in a cup of coffee at the major league level last season. If Bethancourt had established himself as a big hitter already, the Gattis rumors would be understood. Bethancourt is an unproven commodity, however.
Even though the Braves are retooling the roster for a run at an NL East title and a move into the team’s brand new ballpark, it is best to hang onto Gattis for the time being. Atlanta needs as much power as it can get.
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