A Guide to Atlanta Braves Spring Training Drama: Position Player Edition
Here is your guide to all of the different competitions for Atlanta Braves starting jobs and roster spots this Spring.
The first full squad workout is upon us. There is a lot up in the air this spring with regards to the position players, Braves fans. Click through to the last slide to make sure that you’re ready to sound smart amongst your friends as the drama unfolds. If you missed the Starting Rotation and/or Bullpen editions of this dramatic series, double back and check those out when you finish here.
THE STARTING 8
We nearly have full-on predictability with regards to the everyday 7 that will fan out behind the battery on Opening Day. Nearly. Specific questions still loom as the Braves gets ready to kick off their Grapefruit League schedule. Third Base and Left Field are just a little bit screwy, in no small part because of how difficult it is to know exactly what the brass think about Hector Olivera and Adonis Garcia. There may be a little wiggle room with the second base situation too, depending on how the club views the future of Jace Peterson. Let’s dig in.
Locks
Ender Inciarte, Freddie Freeman, Nick Markakis, Eric Aybar, Hector Olivera
Probable
Adonis Garcia , Jace Peterson
On the Bubble
Note that Garcia and Peterson being listed as Probable is an indication that they are platoon candidates as much as anything else.
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The Drama
Cuban Identity Crisis
Hector Olivera will be in the starting lineup regardless of his ST effort. He’s on a long leash. Having missed most of a Venezuelan winter league schedule that was intended to make up for some missed time in 2015 (under strange circumstances), there is even more reason to view March as merely tune-up time for the unproven Cuban slugger. However, the timing of Olivera’s 3B>LF position swap leaves us in limbo. It’s not clear how fluid Olivera’s defensive role is. Is it possible that Olivera will play both positions in 2016?
The reps that Olivera gets during Spring Training should signal more clearly what the Braves are thinking on this front. It should be exciting to see the drama of Hector’s defensive identity crisis unfold this March.
Who is Adonis, Really?
Adonis Garcia came out of nowhere. I mean, he’s from Cuba, but also from nowhere. Garcia put up a better Slugging Percentage in Atlanta last year than he ever had at any stop in the minors. This seemed like an apparition at the time, but Garcia continued to mash during this winter in Venezuela (.370/.430/.519 in 135 ABs). I’m still skeptical, though he has power to all fields, but what does the club think? From my vantage it’s nearly impossible to tell.
Garcia could be on a short leash, soon to be jettisoned away at the first indication of a better long-term plan. He could be viewed as a platoon candidate, given his huge discrepancy in OPS against righties and lefties last year. Or, he could be entrenched as the 2016 starter at third base. The resolution to this uncertainty has significant implications for the roster and the Opening Day lineup.
I’ll limit the detail here, but be mindful that Michael Bourn’s presence seems to open the door for Olivera to move back to third if desired, and a definitely possible platoon with Kelly Johnson and Adonis at third could affect roster plans for backing up Freddie Freeman, as KJ is also a candidate for that job. So watch this situation closely, and wonder pensively how bad Garcia’s spring would have to be to land him on the bench. It’s worth mentioning that Gordon Beckham is also gunning for the starting job at the hot corner, as he’s been keen to let everyone know, but that seems more than unlikely given his recent rack record and Adonis’ recent good work.
2B is Jace’s to lose… right?
I wrote recently that we shouldn’t get our hopes up for Jace Peterson as a solution at second base. Just the same, he seems by far our best hope for some league average production there.
There are wrinkles to this story, though.
Let’s just say that the FO agrees with the assessment of many that Jace is best suited as a dedicated super utility man. Or perhaps they feel his value would be higher as a trade piece if he had shown that he could hold down several positions (it likely would). Why not start the transition now?
Also, remember that Kelly Johnson had a pretty resurgent 2015 with the bat, and still doesn’t embarrass himself with the glove at second. He, along with Emilio Bonifacio and Daniel Castro, could step in at second if Jace was playing all over the field.
Keep an eye on where and how much playing time Jace is getting as the spring progresses, as well as how that thumb of his is doing. There may be more hanging in the balance than it appears.
Alan discussed what to expect from Jace this year for us here.
Click immediately below to continue reading up on what promises to be an interesting and hotly contested competition for roster spots among bench players.
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Next: Battle of the Bench