Things have been rough for the Atlanta Braves as they've won just three of their last ten games. Their lead in the NL East has dwindled to three games because of this skid. Part of that has been subpar offensive output from most of the lineup, including shortstop Jim Jarvis. Jarvis looked excellent when he was first called up on July 2nd. He made such a good impression that Walt Weiss deemed him their starting shortstop going forward.
Jarvis' defense was pretty good, but his offense disappeared very quickly. He batted .176 over the past 30 days with 15 hits, seven walks, and 18 strikeouts. Even worse, his average dropped to .059 over his last seven games with a .200 on-base percentage.
That is absolutely putrid for a player who has good speed on the bases. Jarvis simply was not able to sustain success at the big league level. Atlanta has finally realized their mistake and optioned Jarvis back to Triple-A Gwinnett.
Braves option Jim Jarvis back to Gwinnett, call up Brewer Hicklen
Outfielder Brewer Hicklen was brought up to fill Jarvis' spot on the roster. Hicklen is a much better bat and made some great defensive plays in an earlier stint with the Braves. He had a .368 average through eight MLB games. Hicklen has continued to hit well in the minors with a .302/.373/.520 slash line, 15 doubles, 18 homers, 30 stolen bases, and an .893 OPS over 96 games. That will absolutely play.
This move also solidifies Mauricio Dubon as Atlanta's shortstop going forward. Ha-Seong Kim could get some playing time on the days Dubon needs to cover other positions. However, Dubon has more than earned the right to be the primary field general.
Hicklen's bat has reignited over the last 15 games, with 17 hits, a .321 average, a .351 on-base percentage, and a .377 slugging percentage. Couple that with his Gold Glove-level defense, and it's a no-brainer why the Braves finally gave up on Jarvis.
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