I think he can be an above average hitter, particularly in the first half. He's already a fit for the team culture and he should be someone who can be brought back cheaply without much commitment.
In the absence of a big move, I prefer him to most of the second and third tier options who would be costly to acquire in trade that are being thrown around. It's a low risk move that keeps all the Braves powder dry. And the Braves have at least two other internal options for the position in Duvall and Camargo that give them other options headed into the summer acquisition period.
I have the sense that people either don't believe some of these lower tier options would cost much in trade (certainly not as much as their surplus value calculations) or they undervalue some of the assets the Braves would be sending away. Sometimes in reliance on their overvaluing their potential replacements.
All of 2018 reflects an improvement in K and BB rates.
his first half was fortunate but not nearly as fortunate as it has been made out to be. His second half certainly looks unfortunate, but is consistent with his second half in 2017, which suggests that perhaps he has reached the age where a full season is too much for him at this point in his career.
you folks are acting like I'm pencilling him in for the All Star game again. I'm not. I'm simply saying acquiring him cheaply and using him in conjunction with other options isn't such a bad alternative, particularly in comparison with some of the ideas being thrown around here.
I wanted to upgrade the position with a better player. Now that the prospects of doing that cheaply are reduced. I'm more inclined to wait for a solution that makes more sense than what I've seen here. At least those that I think have a prayer of happening.
bravesfanforlife88 (12-27-2018)
I'd happily have upgraded Markakis. I wish they had signed Brantley. I could justify trading for Haniger, though I see it as unrealistic.
I have no interest in spending real assets on Joey Gallo or Max Kepler or Ian Happ. I'd rather bring Markakis back or some other similar option obtained cheaply, look at Camargo in the OF, upgrade other areas of the team, and marshal assets for the summer when better candidates might be available.
JohnAdcox (12-27-2018)
Yeah, I don't care whether Markakis is on the team.
I think the Braves could go into the season without making any other hitting move and probably be ok. So I wouldn't tie him or any other stopgap in the OF to acquiring Realmuto.
they do need to spend some of the money they would save on upgrading some other area of the team. I guess that would leave the bullpen or rotation. I don't really see rotation upgrades out there except by trade though.
Has there EVER been a statement and question a certain someone should absolutely never have made and asked publicly more than...
Kinda pathetic to see yourself as a message board knight in shining armor. How impotent does someone have to be in real life to resort to playing hero on a message board?
Pretty easy to eyeball HR highlights there just like it'd be easy to see dunk highlights on SportsCenter - if I bothered to watch it.
They tell you the number of HRs hit on top of the highlights, and I can go to the website to find out how many times everybody walked and struck out. Then I can check FanGraphs to answer any questions since my eyes are useless.
That way I could do something else between 7 and 11 for six months a year. Would save me the money I spend going to SunTrust for games so I could send it to Trump to help build his wall.
Has there EVER been a statement and question a certain someone should absolutely never have made and asked publicly more than...
Kinda pathetic to see yourself as a message board knight in shining armor. How impotent does someone have to be in real life to resort to playing hero on a message board?
And a lot of people like to see people who can make contact - that's what the game was founded on from a hitter's side years and years ago - nobody's *itching about the numbers you guys provide about people hitting straight fastballs. You want to prove somebody's a "good hitter"? Show me he can hit a slider or change. If you keep throwing fastballs over the plate, eventually everybody adjusts.
Even Frenchy would have been an absolute monster if you didn't throw him breaking balls - regardless of velocity - he was a great athlete, eventually he would've caught up.
Has there EVER been a statement and question a certain someone should absolutely never have made and asked publicly more than...
Kinda pathetic to see yourself as a message board knight in shining armor. How impotent does someone have to be in real life to resort to playing hero on a message board?
Everybody was "young" once - and you guys pick and choose who MIGHT improve as they age when it fits your narrative.
No big deal - just kinda hilarious to see some of the same people campaign for a guy like Gallo that screamed bloody murder about how bad the Uggla contract was.
Everybody can twist the numbers to make their argument regardless of which side they're grouped with - the deal Uggla signed after the trade was 5 years/$62 million - covering several free-agent years BTW. That's $12.4 million per. Average defense at 2B (would've been a huge stretch) and significant pop. Is anyone really suggesting Gallo's 4 years/$40 million will be that much better?
You guys have already told us that Gallo's infield defensive metrics shouldn't matter since we're only looking at him as an OF. How much better would Uggla have been if he would've only been asked to play "league-average" defense in LF where everybody sticks their *hittiest defender?
Has there EVER been a statement and question a certain someone should absolutely never have made and asked publicly more than...
Kinda pathetic to see yourself as a message board knight in shining armor. How impotent does someone have to be in real life to resort to playing hero on a message board?
Has there EVER been a statement and question a certain someone should absolutely never have made and asked publicly more than...
Kinda pathetic to see yourself as a message board knight in shining armor. How impotent does someone have to be in real life to resort to playing hero on a message board?