NL East: A mid-term front office assessment of the 5 teams
By Bill Felber
Atlanta Braves front office, +1.0
The winter soap opera story in Atlanta concerned the world champs’ efforts to re-sign free agent first baseman Freddie Freeman. Anthopoulos ultimately lost that battle, Freeman taking the money and running to Los Angeles. The Braves did acquire first baseman Matt Olson from Oakland to replace Freeman, and with a +0.5 WAA Olson has been a useful part, if a measurably less impactful one.
Since the end of the 2021 season, the Atlanta front office made 32 personnel decisions impacting major league performance in 2022. Only 13 of those decisions helped the Braves, 17 hurt and two were neutral.
Here are the five most impactful Braves moves this season.
Nov. 3: By letting Freeman go to free agency, the Braves gambled and eventually lost. In Los Angeles, Freeman has justified the bidding war over him. He’s off to a .303 start with nine homers and an .877 OPS for a club that probably wouldn’t be in first place without him. His impact measures +1.5 WAA, which is 1.5 that the Braves did not get.
March 14: The Olson trade with Oakland was also impactful, both with respect to Olson and also the principal player who went to Oakland. That was Cristian Pache, a touted rookie outfielder who bombed in his three-month exposure to the big league big time. Pache batted only .159 with a .427 OPS and -1.5 WAA before being dispatched last week to Triple A Las Vegas in the hope that he could rediscover his potential there.
March 16: Eddie Rosario was a midseason trade pickup in 2021 who helped restore the Braves’ outfield to championship caliber. Atlanta’s front office let him walk to free agency in November, but re-signed him in March, but to date 2022 has not gone nearly as well. Burdened by injuries, Rosario is hitting just .068 in 49 plate appearances, sticking the Braves with -1.3 WAA.
April 7: Rookie pitcher Spencer Strider made the opening day roster and has justified the team’s faith in him. Alternating between the rotation and bullpen, Strider is 3-2 with a 3.02 ERA in 17 appearances, six of them starts, and 54 innings. It adds up to a +0.9 WAA.
May 28: Michael Harris started the season at Triple-A, but was called up in late May and has filled a gap in Atlanta’s outfield. Since assuming regular center field duties, Harris is hitting .316 with four homers, four steals, and an .857 OPS. It adds up to a +0.9 WAA contribution. If he keeps that up, Harris could be a Rookie of the Year candidate by season’s end.