The Curious Case of John Hart
It goes without saying that the new president of baseball operations, John Hart, is an enigma of sorts. He possesses the upper hand in trade talks, but yet other than trading Jason Heyward to the St. Louis Cardinals and Tommy LaStella to the Chicago Cubs, has not made that big of a splash on the "Hot Stove" off season....yet.
The big talk lately is whether or not he will deal one or both in a combination of the best hitters on the Atlanta Braves squad in Justin Upton, and unfortunately for us Oso Blanco fans, Evan Gattis. There are only two ways this scenario plays out:
1. John Hart is telling the truth and wants to keep them both: I, as much as any other fan of Evan especially, wants this to be the scenario that plays out. It is the offense, after all, that this team is in desperate need of. So why get rid of the two best power hitters that can essentially give Freddie Freeman the best protection in the lineup? There is no easy, or reasonable, answer to that question. The only way both of these hitters should go is if the return on them is so blockbuster and substantial, that it cannot be refused.
Which leads to the next scenario:
2. John Hart actually plans to trade one, or both players, and is keeping it secret: This is the ultimate nightmare scenario, at least for fans of Evan Gattis. The possibility that John Hart would trade away, not only a fan favorite slugger that can change a game with one swing of his bat, but someone that is a merchandise and ticket draw and cost controlled for the next four seasons, is pretty scary to think about in any universe. If hard pressed, I would see every reason for Hart to trade Justin Upton to avoid him leaving after free agency that he is eligible for after 2015. Don't get me wrong, I like Justin very much, but he is also costing the team a pretty penny. Gattis, on the other hand, makes the league minimum and is costing hardly anything to produce the offensive power he does. So many critics and cynics are so easy to point out Evan's defensive flaws as a reason to trade him now, assuming that his stock is only high right now. Personally, I believe that to be pure poppycock, but whatever. Haters are gonna hate, regardless!
Let's now take a look at a John Hart timeline of transactions as it relates specifically to Evan Gattis:
November 10th, 2014: The first GM meetings get underway in Arizona. Reports immediately surface that Gattis is being actively shopped to American League teams. Within hours of the same day, John Hart refutes the rumors as "absolutely inaccurate."
November 12th, 2014: Hart tells reporters of his intent to move Evan to left field. His exact words: “We want to get Evan’s bat in the lineup, and if he catches, he would play just 100 games and we would not have a bat perhaps good enough to hit cleanup for those other games,” Hart said. “So we are going to put Evan in left field and see what we have.”
November 17th, 2014: For most Braves fans, a date that will live in infamy as Jason Heyward is traded to the St. Louis Cardinals. Beat writer, David O' Brien asks the following in an interview with Hart: Does moving Gattis to left field now look like a greater possibility? His response: “It looks that way. We’ve had conversations with Evan, and he is game-on for anything. And if that is the move that we do make – obviously still have time during the winter – but that is definitely a possibility where Justin Upton would go to right field and Gattis would go to left. We realize that we sacrifice a few things defensively. We have that option. We don’t have it set in stone just yet, but it’s certainly an option.” One would hope, especially me, that Hart actually has spoke with Evan about all of this. But again, we really will never know until something happens, will we?
November 29th, 2014: Reports begin to surface that the Braves may look to trade Upton and Gattis to the Oakland Athletics for left handed starting pitcher, Jeff Samardzija. Within hours, once again, GM of the A's, Billy Beane, refuted any rumor surrounding Samardzija.
November 30th, 2014: To echo the same refute of Beane, John Hart appears on "The Front Office" on MLB Radio Network, hosted by Jim Duquette and Jim Bowden. In the interview, Hart mentions about Evan that "they are toying with Gattis in left field for now." Key words: FOR NOW. He also mentioned that he is not pushing for a trade of Gattis or Justin Upton, and that extending Justin "is not out of the realm of possibility," but downplayed the likelihood.
December 8th, 2014: The winter GM meetings will take place. And boom will go many dynamites!!!!
So knowing all of this, how will John Hart play this script out? Savvy businessmen, and even Bond villains for that matter, do not reveal ALL of their secrets. Not that I am equating Hart to a villain, although he has been seen by many in Braves Country as one already with the trade of Jason Heyward. Imagine that hate folded over many times if he moves Evan. I really am still hopeful that Oso Blanco can remain a Brave for as long as possible. But with an enigmatic leader in John Hart, the tug of war with the heartstrings of many Braves fans continues in this epic saga. Let us pray that saga will have a happy ending for the team, fans, and for Evan!
The big talk lately is whether or not he will deal one or both in a combination of the best hitters on the Atlanta Braves squad in Justin Upton, and unfortunately for us Oso Blanco fans, Evan Gattis. There are only two ways this scenario plays out:
1. John Hart is telling the truth and wants to keep them both: I, as much as any other fan of Evan especially, wants this to be the scenario that plays out. It is the offense, after all, that this team is in desperate need of. So why get rid of the two best power hitters that can essentially give Freddie Freeman the best protection in the lineup? There is no easy, or reasonable, answer to that question. The only way both of these hitters should go is if the return on them is so blockbuster and substantial, that it cannot be refused.
Which leads to the next scenario:
2. John Hart actually plans to trade one, or both players, and is keeping it secret: This is the ultimate nightmare scenario, at least for fans of Evan Gattis. The possibility that John Hart would trade away, not only a fan favorite slugger that can change a game with one swing of his bat, but someone that is a merchandise and ticket draw and cost controlled for the next four seasons, is pretty scary to think about in any universe. If hard pressed, I would see every reason for Hart to trade Justin Upton to avoid him leaving after free agency that he is eligible for after 2015. Don't get me wrong, I like Justin very much, but he is also costing the team a pretty penny. Gattis, on the other hand, makes the league minimum and is costing hardly anything to produce the offensive power he does. So many critics and cynics are so easy to point out Evan's defensive flaws as a reason to trade him now, assuming that his stock is only high right now. Personally, I believe that to be pure poppycock, but whatever. Haters are gonna hate, regardless!
Let's now take a look at a John Hart timeline of transactions as it relates specifically to Evan Gattis:
November 10th, 2014: The first GM meetings get underway in Arizona. Reports immediately surface that Gattis is being actively shopped to American League teams. Within hours of the same day, John Hart refutes the rumors as "absolutely inaccurate."
November 12th, 2014: Hart tells reporters of his intent to move Evan to left field. His exact words: “We want to get Evan’s bat in the lineup, and if he catches, he would play just 100 games and we would not have a bat perhaps good enough to hit cleanup for those other games,” Hart said. “So we are going to put Evan in left field and see what we have.”
November 17th, 2014: For most Braves fans, a date that will live in infamy as Jason Heyward is traded to the St. Louis Cardinals. Beat writer, David O' Brien asks the following in an interview with Hart: Does moving Gattis to left field now look like a greater possibility? His response: “It looks that way. We’ve had conversations with Evan, and he is game-on for anything. And if that is the move that we do make – obviously still have time during the winter – but that is definitely a possibility where Justin Upton would go to right field and Gattis would go to left. We realize that we sacrifice a few things defensively. We have that option. We don’t have it set in stone just yet, but it’s certainly an option.” One would hope, especially me, that Hart actually has spoke with Evan about all of this. But again, we really will never know until something happens, will we?
November 29th, 2014: Reports begin to surface that the Braves may look to trade Upton and Gattis to the Oakland Athletics for left handed starting pitcher, Jeff Samardzija. Within hours, once again, GM of the A's, Billy Beane, refuted any rumor surrounding Samardzija.
November 30th, 2014: To echo the same refute of Beane, John Hart appears on "The Front Office" on MLB Radio Network, hosted by Jim Duquette and Jim Bowden. In the interview, Hart mentions about Evan that "they are toying with Gattis in left field for now." Key words: FOR NOW. He also mentioned that he is not pushing for a trade of Gattis or Justin Upton, and that extending Justin "is not out of the realm of possibility," but downplayed the likelihood.
December 8th, 2014: The winter GM meetings will take place. And boom will go many dynamites!!!!
So knowing all of this, how will John Hart play this script out? Savvy businessmen, and even Bond villains for that matter, do not reveal ALL of their secrets. Not that I am equating Hart to a villain, although he has been seen by many in Braves Country as one already with the trade of Jason Heyward. Imagine that hate folded over many times if he moves Evan. I really am still hopeful that Oso Blanco can remain a Brave for as long as possible. But with an enigmatic leader in John Hart, the tug of war with the heartstrings of many Braves fans continues in this epic saga. Let us pray that saga will have a happy ending for the team, fans, and for Evan!
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| Your move, John Hart. Make it a good one! |
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