Braves: Why Drew Waters is not the Answer Right Now
With the injury to Marcell Ozuna, a lot of fans are screaming for the Atlanta Braves to call up talented outfield prospect Drew Waters.
It’s certainly understandable for fans to be excited about what they haven’t seen yet, but calling up Drew Waters right now would be a really bad decision for the Atlanta Braves.
Again, I get the excitement as there is a lot of upside for Waters. And Gwinnett not having him in the lineup on Thursday didn’t help in settling things down on Twitter with everyone speculating.
A roster move for the Braves series in New York hasn’t been announced yet, but I would be very surprised if Waters gets the call.
And that’s simply because he isn’t ready and calling him up now could be detrimental to his development. He needs to spend all of this season in Triple-A as there is still a ton he needs to work on before he’s ready.
I’m not saying Waters is a bust and won’t be a good Major League player, so don’t twist my words. He’s 22-years-old with just over 40 games at the Triple-A level.
The biggest knock on Waters is his plate discipline — he strikeouts out too much and doesn’t walk enough. That’s still happening this year, but he’s certainly making an effort to improve there.
Garrett Spain at Talking Chop does a great job of explaining the concerns (and why some are being overblown) with Waters here.
Allow him the time he needs to figure that out.
If he gets called up now Major League pitching will eat him alive with his swing-happy approach and it could only harm his confidence.
The time just isn’t right for Waters to be thrown into the big leagues on a team that needs to win now.
There is a chance Waters is a big part of the future of the Braves, don’t throw that away now because you’re desperate.
Next. Who Needs to Step Up in Ozuna's Absence. dark
I’d rather see them give Abraham Almonte or Phillip Ervin a chance before they rush Waters to the big leagues.