Fansided

Choosing Orlando Arcia as their shortstop surprised and confused Atlanta Braves fans

By Fred Owens |
The Atlanta Braves shocked fans by selecting Orlando Arcia as their starting shortstop.
The Atlanta Braves shocked fans by selecting Orlando Arcia as their starting shortstop. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
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Late Monday, the Atlanta Braves optioned Braden Shewmake and Vaughn Grissom to Gwinnett and gave the opening-day shortstop job to Orlando Arcia.

Most Atlanta Braves fans were baffled by the announcement because the Braves repeatedly said they believed Vaughn Grissom was their shortstop of the future.

As Spring Training approached, the club began emphasizing Arcia and Grissom would compete for the job. Grissom started the spring well, then a healthy Braden Shewmake appeared and turned the competition into a three-horse race. Suddenly Shewmake was playing short every day, and Grissom faded into the Spring Training fog.

Where in the Camp is Vaughn Grissom?

On March 17, Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker was asked about Grissom and said all was well.

Grissom started as advertised on the 18th, but he was the DH, not the shortstop.

After the game, Snitker once again said either Grissom or Shewmake would break camp with the Braves, but

Two days later, the Atlanta Braves demoted both players.

This morning Peter Gammons, who knows a lot about baseball and Boston but hasn’t been in Braves camp lately, tweeted the team was “concerned that Vaughn Grissom had an issue in the hernia area,” without specifying which hernia area he meant.

Gammon’s fairytale was quickly squashed by both beat writers, who pointed out that:

  • Gammon’s fairytale was quickly squashed by both beat writers, who pointed out that:
  • Grissom did his on-field training with Ron Washington every day,
  • Played nine innings in his yesterday's game,
  • There’s no reason to hide an injury,
  • The MLBPA would throw a shoe if the team sent an injured player down instead of putting him on the Major League IL.

Atlanta Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos had questions about Vaughn Grissom as a shortstop.
Atlanta Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos had questions about Vaughn Grissom as a shortstop. / Lucas Peltier-USA TODAY Sports

What do the Atlanta Braves say?

The Atlanta Braves presented their fairytale rationale, faithfully reported by David O’Brien in a post for the Athletic.

If they had kept Grissom or Shewmake. . . Adrianza, who was on a minor-league contract . . . could opt for free agency rather than accept a minor-league assignment. Other teams are looking for players with Adrianza’s versatility and experience at this point in spring training.

Excuse me? The official Braves line is that they were so worried about losing Ehire Adrianza they chose to demote Grissom and Shewmake. Maybe I missed something.

Nope, it’s as I remembered. Adrianza is a 33-year-old journeyman infielder with a career line of .239/.309/.354/.663, who had 209 PA in 109 games for the Braves in 2021. The team let him walk in 2021, traded for him at the deadline in 2022, and brought him back on a Minor League deal after Swanson signed with the Cubs. But there’s no reason to believe he’d leave the team that earned him a ring in search of a better deal or that a better deal would pop up if he did.

A Rock, The Atlanta Braves, and a Hard Place

We know that AA had doubts about Grissom as an everyday shortstop because he said so.

“I can see how the scouting community might have questions about Vaughn. I had questions about Vaughn when I first saw him.”
Alex Anthopoulos

AA went on to say that Ron Washington believed he could turn Grissom into a Major League shortstop. That’s true enough, but Washington didn’t say he could do it in a few days of work over the winter.

The Atlanta Braves were in a rough spot. The team was never going to lay out the kind of money Trea Turner, Carlos Correa, or Xander Bogaerts wanted, and couldn’t sign Swanson. I’m sure Anthopoulos searched the trade market for a quality shortstop, but none were available at a cost the Braves Minor League system could pay.

The team had no choice except to hope one of their lottery tickets was a winner.

Atlanta Braves hope Orlando Arcia grabs his chance and performs well as the team's everyday shortstop.
Atlanta Braves hope Orlando Arcia grabs his chance and performs well as the team's everyday shortstop. / Patrick Smith/GettyImages

Orlando Arcia: What to Expect

The Braves named Arcia their shortstop supported by the idea that he was a starting shortstop for three years. Left unsaid was that Fangraphs shows that his defense declined sharply in 2019 when he posted – 6 outs above average, –5 RAA, and –2 DRS.

Washington undoubtedly worked on and hopefully improved Arcia’s defense; only time will tell.

At the plate, Arcia’s 2022 is his best since the 2020 farce and his best full season since 2017, but the sample size was small and likely deceptive. Statistically, he strikes out and walks around league average, and we’ve seen Arcia run into a few mistakes and hit them out, but he has a career 51.3% ground ball rate and isn’t a speedster; his 26.4 ft/sec makes him slower than William Contreras and Juan Soto.

The last time Arcia was worth more than one win over a season was 2017, when he posted 2.0 fWAR. His work since then came with a 0.7 fWAR in 2020 and again last year.

Arcia plays at 28; maybe he’ll have a bounce-back year in what should be his prime. I think the Atlanta Braves would loudly applaud anything over 1.0 fWAR this year.

That’s a Wrap

I don’t believe keeping Adrianza is the reason the Atlanta Braves demoted both players. Keeping the player you know has value, but it isn’t a reason to make a roster move such as this, and players like Adrianza are available most days.

What I find most troubling is the way the Braves hyped Grissom as the guy, to the point where his manager said he or Shewmake would break camp with the team 48 hours before they sent both down. It's true they said he and Arcia would compete, but fans were always told how Grissom was progressing and that there were no doubts he could handle the job.

Snitker is a company man, but he believed what he said and was caught off guard by the decision. If that’s the case, it’s unsettling at best.

The Braves will continue to search for a better option. Maybe the Guardians would trade one of their middle infielders, the Brewers suddenly collapse and deal Adames, or the shortstop fairy taps someone on the shoulder and anoints them a Major League shortstop. Until then, we can only wait and wonder what’s next.

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