Braves News: Anthopoulos interview, changes to arbitration?, more
We are just a couple days away from spring training games getting started for the Atlanta Braves. In a rare treat, we should see some of the actual starters getting time on the field early in the spring training calendar, especially guys like Ronald Acuna Jr. who are going to be playing in the World Baseball Classic. We will be recapping each spring training game here so keep an eye out for those.
While it was a reasonably quiet day out of spring training with the notable exception of an excellent interview of general manager Alex Anthopoulos that was done on the AJC's Braves podcast. In the interview, AA discussed several of the moves that were made this past offseason as well as the status of talks with Max Fried, how he is feeling about the Braves' left field situation, and even his own future with the organization. You should definitely listen to that podcast if you haven't already.
More Braves News
Elsewhere on the site, we took at look at the state of the Braves offense and identified some areas that could use some improvement. Obviously the Braves' lineup has a bunch of absolute studs in it and even if nothing about their approach changes, they will still be quite good. However, there is reason to think that we could see even more out of them if they could grind at-bats more consistently.
We also had a piece go up on the site about MLB's new increased base size and how that could benefit the Braves in 2023. While the base size increase is likely to make things a little easier in the stolen base department and we are definitely going to see an increase in stolen bases in 2023, it does seem more likely that the limits on the pitcher's ability to hold runners is going to have a bigger impact.
Finally, we had a deeper look at arbitration and what the future could hold for the practice in the wake of several high profile wins for teams including the Atlanta Braves' win over Max Fried. It sure doesn't seem like teams or players like arbitration, but there also doesn't seem like a great solution that both sides would agree to exists at the moment, either.
MLB News
While the offseason is over and we won't see a ton of high profile moves the rest of the way, we did have an actual transaction yesterday as the Twins added they reportedly signed Donovan Solano to a one-year deal. The move sure give Minnesota some depth and a potential platoon option which, given how late we are in the roster building process, isn't a bad thing to add.
The Yankees may be looking to get a little weird with a potential outfield alignment. Apparently one idea the Yanks have floated is giving Giancarlo Stanton more time in right field and shifting Aaron Judge over to left on days when they decide to do that. There is some anecdotal evidence to suggest that Stanton plays better when he is actually playing in the field, so this isn't an uninteresting notion.