Atlanta Braves Will Be Solid in Middle, But What's the Impact?

Atlanta Braves Will Be Solid in Middle, But What’s the Impact?

Aug 30, 2016; Anaheim, CA, USA; Cincinnati Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips (4) tagged Los Angeles Angels shortstop Andrelton Simmons (2) and and then threw to first base for a double play in the eighth inning of the game at Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Angels won 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports /

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Aug 4, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Braves center fielder Ender Inciarte (11) in the dugout against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the sixth inning at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /

The Atlanta Braves have improved their up-the-middle defense for 2017. It’s one thing to have excellent defensive players on the field. It’s another to see why that matters.

Yesterday we compared defenders in the 2B/SS/CF positions around the league and found that the Atlanta Braves will have one of the few teams without a serious flaw among their projected regulars for these slots.

Today I want to go to the next step: identifying how that might translate from on-the-field promise to box score improvement.

To do this, we’ll go back to the fangraphs’ data and break it down using league-wide 2016 numbers to show how the best and worst fared on the field.

So let’s start the breakdown… at the keystone sack.

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