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Atlanta Braves’ 2017 Positional Reviews: Shortstop

By Alan Carpenter

ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 24: Dansby Swanson #7 of the Atlanta Braves tosses to Johan Camargo #17 who throws to first for a conversion of a double play as Cesar Hernandez #16 of the Philadelphia Phillies is forced out at second in the sixth inning of an MLB game at SunTrust Park on September 24, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 24: Dansby Swanson #7 of the Atlanta Braves tosses to Johan Camargo #17 who throws to first for a conversion of a double play as Cesar Hernandez #16 of the Philadelphia Phillies is forced out at second in the sixth inning of an MLB game at SunTrust Park on September 24, 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) /
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The fourth in a series in which we comp the diamond positions of the Braves against the performances of the rest of baseball.  This time we’re at shortstop.

Admittedly we all thought that the Atlanta Braves‘ shortstop position would be – well, not just ‘settled’, but celebrated by now.

But a funny thing happened on the way to that Rookie of the Year award that virtually all industry pundits were pre-awarding to Dansby Swanson.  As a result, I wasn’t looking forward to this particular position review.

PREVIOUS REVIEWS

Let’s dig in.

Offensive Side

For the shortstop position, by team:

  • Best offensive WAR component:  Astros with 32.4  Braves 21st overall with -21.6.
  • Best fWAR:  Indians (5.9).  Braves 21st (1.3)
  • Best average:  Astros (.315).  Braves 19th with .254
  • Best OBP:  Astros (.391).  Braves 13th (.318)
  • Best OPS:  Astros (.941).  Braves 21st (.684).
  • wRC+:  Astros (152), Braves 24th (77).
  • Walk Rate:  More Correa (11%), Braves 5th (8.8%)
  • K Rate:  Angels (10.4% – it’s hard to strike out Andrelton Simmons), Braves 21st (21.2%)
  • Doubles:  Mets (61), Braves 8th (44; tie with Cleveland)
  • Triples:  Reds (11), Braves tied for 11th with 4 (among 6 teams)
  • Homers:  Rockies 40, Braves only 10, good for 26th/27th place with Red Sox
  • Steals:  Nationals 56.  The Braves were 26th… would you believe only 3 steals credited to shortstops??  Yeah – Swanson had all 3.

Defensively Minded

  • DRS (Defensive Runs Saved):  Angels (yeah, you know who: 33).  Braves -10 (26th in tie with the Cardinals)
  • Plays:  Rangers 354; Braves 15th (290).
  • RZR (Revised Zone Rating – “the proportion of balls hit into a fielder’s zone that he successfully converted into an out”):  Cubs 83.3%; Braves 28th with 72.5%.
  • OOZ (Out of Zone plays):  Brewers 133; Braves 20th at 92
  • Putouts:  Brewers 293, Braves 16th (216).
  • Assists:  Rangers 518; Braves 18th at 431.
  • Errors:  Phillies 7; Braves 25th with 22.

Okay – this is bad.  It wasn’t all Swanson bad, but it was close enough.

Of the three shortstops used this season, Swanson logged 1202 innings, Johan Camargo 205, and Jace Peterson just 34.

Defensively, Swanson recorded 20 errors – even though his UZR rating was easily the best of the three and he excelled – if you can call it that – in the other categories as well.

But offensively, Swanson plainly had a bad year.  Sliders still pose a significant problem and despite a passable months of June and August (.306 and .309), the rest of the year was spent contemplating the Mendoza line.

More from Tomahawk Take

It’s clear that Swanson has talent and his baseball acumen is apparent on the field as he always seems to be in the right place when a play needs to be made.

But it’s also a fair question to ask about whether he was moved through the minors too quickly.

The Braves may have recognized this – belatedly – as they gave him a short stint in Gwinnett.  But that may not have been enough.  There was a glimmer of hope thereafter, but it was short-lived.

The reality, though, is that Swanson is going to have to work through his troubles at the major league level as the Braves have hitched their wagon to him. He’s ‘the guy’.

There are no other options readily available in the system unless you count 33-year-old Sean Kazmar (but of note:  10 errors at Gwinnett in 99 games and a .284 batting average with .726 OPS).  It’s also seriously doubtful that other, external options would be explored.

Next: Cycling through Arizona

Could there be a rebound?  Sure – but the idea that suddenly he can sustain the kind of offense that had him hitting 2nd to start 2017 is a reach… at least for a while.

For right now, the Braves shortstop position is very nearly as poorly performing as third base was in 2017.

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