The Atlanta Braves Should be Patient With Their Best Prospects This Year

I’ve always been a strong proponent of bringing up a prospect to help a needy team, but 2016 in Atlanta is a different situation.

This morning Braves Country awoke to the news that Dansby Swanson and Ozzie Albies have been promoted to their respective leagues. Ozzie’s three years younger than Dansby, but just like I was saying all winter, Ozzie is currently more advanced than Dansby.

Despite being the youngest player in Double A, Ozzie has slashed a ridiculous .369/.442/.512 in Mississippi this year. His performance has certainly warranted a promotion. And Dansby Swanson has hit .331/.441/.526 with 12 doubles, 1 HR, 7 SB, 15BB in Carolina this year. This also warrants a promotion to the next level.

If it’s one thing the Atlanta Braves organization seems to be doing right these days, it’s grooming their prospects in the right way. The Braves general managers, assistant GMs and field staffs from Gwinnett down are some of the strongest in baseball. The problem is, in my opinion, this strong progression of managerial skills does not advance all the way to Atlanta currently.

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Here’s why the Atlanta Braves should be extra patient with these two players this year.

What good will it do to call them up to Atlanta this year? Sure, each player would be a giant step up from Erick Aybar right now. Don’t get me started on Erick Aybar. But, if the Atlanta Braves are going to be this bad during 2016, is any help even that necessary? Plus, the Brave have about zero power, therefore bringing up any contact hitters who will get on base, might just get more guys on base and might not translate into runs. It might. But, it might not.

The second and most important reason the Braves should consider being extra patient with any elite prospects this year (Dansby and Ozzie especially, and ESPECIALLY Ozzie) is the fact that Fredi Gonzalez is still the manager for the Atlanta Braves.

Look at what’s already happening with Mallex Smith. I predicted two weeks ago that Fredi Gonzalez would soon platoon Mallex and flirt with his playing time, and it’s happening. Friday night, Mallex goes 3-for-3, and is benched the very next day for Drew Stubbs because John Lester is a lefty, even though Drew Stubbs was 0-4 against Lester going into the game. And Stubbs struck out four times while Mallex was taking notes in the dugout.

If Ozzie Albies gets called up and struggles for one week, Fredi Gonzalez will platoon him with Jace Peterson and will prohibit Ozzie Albies from being the type of player that he has the potential to be. Plus, he’s still 19 years old. So, leaving him in AAA for the rest of the year and waiting until a manager not named Fredi Gonzalez is at the helm in 2017 means that Ozzie still start in the majors at ripe young age of 20.

Next: Braves Promote Albies and Swanson

Am I against Ozzie Albies and Dansby Swanson making their major league debuts in Atlanta in 2016? No. They might deserve it in short order (especially Albies), which is great. But, I am against them playing for Fredi Gonzalez.

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