Atlanta Braves looking for additional reinforcements at the deadline
By Fred Owens
The Atlanta Braves have two positions that rank at or near the bottom in production this year, second base, and third base.
Third base production is less than stellar so far, but over the last 21 days, Austin Riley’s been putting the bat on the ball with better results. In that span, he’s batting .298/.328/.459/.787 and lowered hi K-rate from 31% to just over 25%.
Looking at just the last two weeks the view is even better. His line improves to .333/.381/.513/.894, with a K-rate of 24.3%. While it’s easy to say that might be a mirage, the black hole at second base is real.
Since taking over most of the second base duties when Ozzie Albies went on the IL August fifth, Johan Camargo is batting .164/.197/.329/.526 and striking out 32.4% of the time while walking 2.9% of the time.
His output equates to a .220 wOBA and 31 wRC+. For reference, going into his 0-4 game Sunday, the much embattled Inciarte is batting .208/.301/.278, with a .265 wOBA and 62 wRC+.
We all hoped Albies would return soon but that apparently isn’t going to happen.
Ozzie Albies hasn't taken batting practice on the field yet, "So he's still a aways away," Snitker said. So far just hitting soft-tossed balls and off tee.
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) August 30, 2020
Camargo’s ineptitude and Albies’ prolonged absence appears the motivator for the position player search.
Candidates please!
Before anyone screams Culberson or Hechavarria are the answer, take a deep breath, and relax. Charlie’s a great guy, but he’s not a good defender at any position, nor is he likely to give you significantly better productions than Camargo.
Hechavarria does the defensive half pretty well, and if they can’t find an answer you might see him get more playing time in the hope of getting his bat going. So far this season, in very limited play, he’s hitting on a par with Camargo.
Looking around the league for suitable options a few names appear available for trade: Adam Frazier, Wilmer Flores, Donovan Solano, Jonathan Schoop, Shed Long, and Hanser Alberto.
Alberto is having a great year for Baltimore and we’ve just made a deal with them. However, he’ll require a larger return, which wouldn’t be an issue if the need was permanent, but the Braves expect Albies to eventually have a full recovery, if not this season then in 2021. So, I eliminated Alberto.
Adam Frazier is hitting about the same as Inciarte, making him a non-candidate. The same is true of Seattle’s Long, leaving just three candidates.