The Braves leadership got out the tomahawk and chopped general manager Frank Wren out of the picture. This may have been necessary after a lack luster second half of the season. I just wonder who else should be on the chopping block. We can look back at some of Wren’s moves and show that he had a lack of vision for some of those players. I think that there are others that should be looked at as many of these players dropped off very quickly upon their arrival in the ATL. I have to ask the question, is there an issue with the hitting coach or are they not being utilized in a way to make them successful?
The additions of Dan Uggla and BJ Upton are easy to point two after they both could not hit above the Mendoza line over the past two seasons. Uggla, did have one productive season in Atlanta, his first. That year was saved by a torrid second half that had a 33 game hit streak and 24 HRs. Despite that 33 game hit streak he still only batted .233. From that season on Uggla has been a drain on the lineup until the team finally cut ties with him on July 18th of this year. Uggla had a nice career, but a high Babip in his last year in Miami gave a false read on what the Braves should have been expecting. He had a Babip of .334 that year. The only times Uggla hit over .245 were in seasons where he had a Babip over .315. 30 plus home runs are great to have but we must remember that average goes before power. Someone should have recognized that Uggla could not afford any drop in his batting average. When his contact rate dropped so did his batting average. Unfortunately, his contract did not go away.
BJ Upton was another mess that the Braves spent heavily on. Scouts will tell you of his tools, they always have. The numbers show that those tools were never truly utilized. Wren signed BJ Upton after his career high 28 home runs in 2012. That year he also had his lowest stolen base total since 2007. He also had a career low in OB%, .298. Warning signs were there in the numbers. I will admit that I would not have forecasted the drastic drop that we saw in BJ Upton’s performance. It took him two seasons to amass 20 HRs and 31 SBs. He also had OBP of .268 in 2013 and .282 in 2014. In the move, Wren sent more Braves money down the drain.
We must remember the good, too. The Braves should have been out of the playoffs this season after the spring training losses of starting pitchers Kris Medlen and Brandon Beachy. To Wren’s credit he brought in Ervin Santana and managed to put a make shift rotation together that carried the Braves through the end of July. They have had talent brought up through the organization that has paid off; Freddie Freeman, Jason Heyward, Andrelton Simmons, Evan Gattis, and Cragig Kimbrell. These are all very good to great major league talent. So, the farm system and amateur scouting department should be free and clear of any wrong doing. We will give Wren a pat on the back as he goes out the door on those areas.
I feel that the Braves have two areas they need to look at as they build towards the future.
I am not and will not claim to be a hitting coach. My skill in this area is limited to getting 7U players to hit from coach pitch. I however can see that there are issues with the approach of the Braves hitters. There are too many hitters how have come to Atlanta and seen a drop in their production. Even the players who have come up through the organization have huge up and downs in their production. The talent is there, but even their best hitter, Freeman, has the approach of swinging on the first pitch. Look, I am not saying take the first pitch every time. Could we at least set on one pitch and zone for the first pitch?
The other issue is the Braves as a franchise have all but dismissed any analytical approach. I understand that “geeks and spreadsheets” cannot score runs. Of course neither can the Braves, 29th in runs scored this year. They may help with finding and guiding the decisions on what players to go after. They may show where they can improve fielding, pitcher use, and lineup construction. Lineup construction is the biggest fail point of all those discussed here. You need to put a roster together where you have players hitting in the top of the order that get on base, whether it’s a walk or a hit. The Braves currently rank 21st for OBP of their leadoff hitter and 24th for OBP for their number 2 hitter. One in the bottom 10 is bad, much less both. Is that a manager issue or a GM issue? Maybe, it is a little of both.
The Braves new GM will need to build an analytical department and find a few players who can get on base. They need to look at the coaching staff along with the manager. They may also want to look at the pitching program. They have had way too many Tommy John surgeries. That said the organization has enough talent to make a quick turnaround. Keep the farm system together and the scouts that have kept the farm system filled with talent. There is a new stadium on the way, It should be opened with a new banner ready to be raised.
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Main Photo: June 15, 2013 Atlanta – Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman (5) is congratulated by Atlanta Braves second baseman Dan Uggla (left) after his game winning single in the 9th inning against the San Francisco Giants at Turner Field in Atlanta on Saturday, June 15, 2013. Atlanta Braves won 6-5 over the San Francisco Giants. HYOSUB SHIN / [email protected] via Getty Images
