Is it time for the Atlanta Braves to address Ozzie Albies' defense?

Ozzie's arm strength is big concern

Speaking of Albies arm, it's one thing that has concerned Braves fans, and for good reason. Among MLB players, Albies has the worst arm in baseball, excluding first basemen. Averaging 71.2 MPH, Albies throws are 2.4 MPH slower than the next slowest non-1B.

Of course, having a weak arm isn't indicative of poor defense. Former Brave SS Dansby Swanson has never had better than 27th percentile arm strength (this year), but has been above average, if not elite, defensively in every season arm strength data has been available.

However, it does make the need to field balls quickly and cleanly even more important. If Albies is struggling to get to balls, he can't make it up on the arm side.

What can even be done about Ozzie Albies defense?

If going to his right is the biggest issue, then shading further to the right might mediate some of the issues.

Over his career, Albies biggest struggles defensively have come with righties at the plate. For his career, he's been worth -4 OAA with righties batting, versus 10 OAA with lefties batting.

In the past two seasons, this has been exacerbated, being worth -12 OAA with right handers hitting, versus -2 OAA with lefties. This also indicates that the problem with his defense is not due to the shift being banned, predominantly against lefties.

The Braves might benefit from having Albies inch closer to the second base bag with righties hitting than the normal to prevent him from needing to field the ball on the run. This could also aid his weakness with his arm, as he wouldn't need to make far throws while moving away from 1B.

The trend line on Ozzie Albies' defense is certainly concerning, but there could be some solutions that could help the Braves buy a few extra outs and bring the longest-tenured Brave closer to league-average defense.

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