Archive for Teams

How They Were Acquired: The Atlanta Braves’ NLDS Roster

by
October 3, 2019

The Braves’ playoff roster includes seven players who joined the team during the 2019 season and two others who were acquired near the end of Spring Training. That’s pretty significant turnover in a fairly short amount of time for a team that won the NL East in 2018 and had pretty much wrapped up their offseason by the end of November after signing a former AL MVP to play third base and bringing back a catcher who was a seven-time All-Star during his first stint in Atlanta.

When the team struggled out of the gate, it became clear that the roster might not be good enough to reach the postseason once again. While the four homegrown players on the playoff roster did a lot of the leg work, combining for 18.2 WAR, second-year general manager Alex Anthopoulos made a lot of good moves that helped turn things around and has the team once again playing October baseball after a 97-win season.

Here’s how every member of the Braves’ 2019 NLDS roster was originally acquired. The team’s full RosterResource Depth Chart and Payroll pages are also available as a resource.

Homegrown (4)

Total WAR: 18.2

Signed in Free Agency (9)

  • Nick Markakis, OF: December 2014 (BAL) — Signed to four-year, $44 million contract; re-signed to one-year contract extension (2020 club option) in January.
  • Tyler Flowers, C: December 2015 (CHW) — Signed to two-year, $5.3 million contract (included $4 million club option in 2018).
  • Brian McCann, C: November 2018 (HOU) — Signed to one-year, $2 million contract.
  • Josh Donaldson, 3B: November 2018 (CLE) — Signed to one-year, $23 million contract.
  • Rafael Ortega, OF: January 2019 (MIA) — Signed to Minor League contract.
  • Josh Tomlin, RP: March 2019 (MIL) — Signed to Minor League contract ($1.25 million salary).
  • Dallas Keuchel, SP: June 2019 (HOU) — Signed to one-year, $21.21 million contract (prorated rate is $13 million).
  • Adeiny Hechavarría, INF: August 2019 (NYM) — Signed to minimum salary contract for remainder of season.
  • Francisco Cervelli, C/1B: August 2019 (PIT) — Signed to minimum salary contract for remainder of season.

Total WAR: 10.6

Acquired Via Trade (11)

Total WAR: 10.3

Acquired Off Waivers (1)

Total WAR: 0.1


How They Were Acquired: The St. Louis Cardinals’ NLDS Roster

by
October 3, 2019

Not only is the Cardinals’ division series roster filled with homegrown talent, the number three and four hitters in their lineup were acquired in successive offseasons for a total of seven prospects who all began their professional careers with the organization. The ability to develop talent in their farm system is a big reason why St. Louis has had 12 consecutive winning seasons, although they’re making their first playoff appearance since 2015.

Here’s how every member of the Cardinals’ 2019 NLDS roster was originally acquired. The team’s full RosterResource Depth Chart and Payroll pages are also available as a resource.

Homegrown (12)

Total WAR: 23.0

Signed in Free Agency (4)

  • Dexter Fowler, OF: December 2016 (CHC) — Signed to five-year, $82.5 million contract.
  • Miles Mikolas, SP: December 2017 (Japan) — Signed to two-year, $15.5 million contract; signed four-year contract extension (2020-23) in February.
  • Andrew Miller, RP: December 2018 (CLE) — Signed to two-year, $25 million contract ($12 million club option for 2021).
  • Matt Wieters, C: February 2019 (WSN) — Signed to Minor League contract ($1.5 million salary).

Total WAR: 3.3

Acquired Via Trade (7)

Total WAR: 9.5

Acquired Off Waivers (1)

Total WAR: 0.1

Acquired Via Rule 5 Draft Triple-A Phase (1)

Total WAR: 1.3


Postseason Preview: New York Yankees vs. Minnesota Twins ALDS

by
October 3, 2019

Let us dispense with this first, so that we can move on: Derek Jeter isn’t here, and neither are the rest of the Core Four. For that matter, there’s no Johan Santana, Michael Cuddyer, Francisco Liriano, or Joe Mauer. The four Yankees teams that manhandled the Twins in the 2003, ’04, ’09 and ’10 Division Series by a combined total of 12 wins to two are no more relevant to this series than Babe Ruth or Lou Gehrig. Aside from “Yankees Bullpen: Still Very Good,” there’s no point overthinking the results of the 2017 AL Wild Card Game, either. These 101-win Twins and 103-win Yankees are a pair of excellent, evenly-matched squads here to write new stories instead of extending old ones.

Some thoughts on the series, which begins at Yankee Stadium on Friday at 7:07 pm ET.

Keeping It 100

This year was the first in major league history with four 100-win teams, and while that seems impressive, it’s an indication of the game’s competitive balance issues (a topic worth revisiting on another day). While 33 teams have won at least 100 games in a season during the Wild Card era, only three previous times have two of them crossed paths in the postseason, all within the past three years: the 2017 World Series between the Astros (101-61) and Dodgers (104-58), the 2018 Division Series between the Red Sox (108-54) and Yankees (100-62), and the subsequent ALCS matchup between those Red Sox and the Astros (103-59). Inevitably, one of these teams will be the unlucky 13th 100-game winner to make a first-round exit, after the 1998 Astros (102-60), 1999 Diamondbacks (100-62), 2001 A’s (102-60), 2002 A’s (103-59), 2002 Yankees (103-58), 2002 Braves (101-59), 2003 Braves (101-61), 2003 Giants (100-61), 2008 Angels (100-62), 2011 Phillies (102-60), 2015 Cardinals (100-62), and 2017 Indians (102-60). It’s going to hurt.

Not all 100-win teams are created equal, of course. This pair had similar levels of scoring and runs allowed, and both similarly overachieved relative to their Pythagen records. However, the Yankees distinguished themselves in a few ways:

Read the rest of this entry »


How Mike Foltynewicz Got Himself NLDS-ready

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October 3, 2019

It is some kind of fall to go from earning a top-10 finish in Cy Young voting to being demoted to the minors in just an 11-game span, but that is exactly what happened to Atlanta right-hander Mike Foltynewicz this summer. A 2.85 ERA, 3.37 FIP, and 3.8 WAR in 183 innings in 2018 led to an eighth-place Cy Young finish and set him up to become the ace that would guide this next generation of great Braves teams. Then this season got started, and Foltynewicz looked like a disaster.

He missed the first four weeks of the season due to a bone spur in his pitching elbow, and when he returned, he allowed a 6.37 ERA over his first 11 starts. Twice he allowed eight earned runs in fewer than five innings. He had two other starts in which he allowed five earned runs, and two others in which he allowed four. When Dallas Keuchel joined the rotation near the end of June, the choice for who would be the odd man out to make room for him was clear: Foltynewicz had to go.

That was just three months ago, but just as quickly as he lost all direction, Foltynewicz has re-established himself as a formidable starter. Since returning from the minors, he’s held opponents to a 2.65 ERA in 57.2 innings. Take away his first two starts, and he’s been even better: A 1.94 ERA since August 17 that ranks sixth-best in the majors. Even in a Braves rotation that looked very strong for much of the season, Foltynewicz has pitched well enough to just about lock himself in to start one of the first two games of the NLDS against the Cardinals. Without a doubt, it’s been an impressively quick return to form, but there are still a few questions surrounding how he stacks up against the rest of the Braves’ pitching staff as a playoff starter. Read the rest of this entry »


Díaz, Rays Slug Their Way to AL Wild Card Win Over A’s

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October 3, 2019

In a postseason field dominated by the league’s foremost home run-hitting teams, the Tampa Bay Rays are one of a couple outliers. With 217 homers during the regular season, they ranked ninth out of the 10 playoff teams, and just 21st across all of baseball, one of just three playoff teams not to rank in baseball’s top eight in dinger-mashing prowess. But on Wednesday, they proved to be as capable as anyone of leaving the yard.

Yandy Díaz smashed a pair of solo homers, while Avisaíl García launched a two-run shot and Tommy Pham added a third, solo bomb as Tampa Bay silenced Oakland 5-1 in the American League Wild Card game at Oakland Coliseum. The Rays will face the World Series favorite Houston Astros in the ALDS beginning on Friday.

The home run heroics got started before many fans in Oakland were probably able to find their seats. Leading off the game, Díaz worked a 3-1 count against A’s starting pitcher Sean Manaea before getting a fastball high and outside, and hammered the pitch over the opposite field fence in right to push the Rays in front. Manaea settled in to strike out the next three hitters, but he wasn’t able to hold off further damage for long. He surrendered a leadoff single to Matt Duffy to start the second, and after falling behind García 2-1, attempted to even the count once more with another fastball out and over the plate. García punished it.

With an exit velocity of 115 mph, Garcia’s homer was the hardest-hit ball by a Rays player ever recorded by Statcast. And they were just getting started. Díaz made his second plate appearance of the game leading off the third inning, and made it look exactly like the first one. Read the rest of this entry »


Job Posting: Diamondbacks Baseball Operations Analyst

by
October 3, 2019

Position: Baseball Operations Analyst, Player Personnel

Department: Baseball Operations
Status: Regular Full-Time
Location: Phoenix, Arizona

Position Summary:
The Arizona Diamondbacks are seeking an Analyst with a focus on Professional Player Personnel to join their Baseball Operations department. This position will work closely with Director and Executive levels of the front office on player evaluation both internally and externally in regards to potential trade and free agent targets. A model candidate will be able to leverage their analytical skills, a strong sense of creativity and their knowledge and passion for the game of baseball to provide innovative ideas throughout the Player Personnel decision making process.

Duties & Responsibilities:

  • Evaluation of players covering all 30 Major League organizations, the NPB, KBO, CPBL, MLB affiliated Caribbean leagues, and Independent Leagues.
  • Create and maintain a systematic process for evaluating a large sample of players in a quick and efficient manner.
  • Design and develop statistical models and tools that can be communicated effectively to a nontechnical audience.
  • Generate ideas for player acquisitions, roster construction and contract decisions.
  • Continuously explore interesting research questions in order to identify new trends in the game that will lead to competitive advantages.

Skills:

  • Proficiency in SQL as well as either R or Python is strongly preferred.
  • Experience with data visualization is a plus.
  • Ability to communicate ideas and opinions to all members of Baseball Operations.
  • Experience with roster decisions, evaluation of professional players, and the free agent market within other ML front offices is desirable.
  • An expert-level understanding and appetite for the game of baseball.

To Apply:
Interested individuals should send a cover letter and resume to bbopsjob@dbacks.com.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the Arizona Diamondbacks.


Job Posting: Tigers Baseball Ops Seasonal Positions

by
October 3, 2019

Please note, this posting contains multiple positions.

Position: Performance Science Associate (Seasonal)

Department: Baseball Operations
Location: Detroit, Michigan

Job Description:
The baseball performance associate will assist with the delivery of performance science solutions within Baseball Operations. This role will work closely Baseball Analytics, Player Development, Strength and Conditioning, and Coaching staffs in order to optimize performance.

Key Responsibilities:

  • Assist with implementation and maintenance of existing performance science initiatives across the organization, including data collection, analysis and reporting.
  • Assist with the design, development, testing and support of new performance science initiatives.
  • Work closely with the Director, Performance Science to develop and disseminate information from performance science initiatives.
  • Effectively collaborate and communicate with player development, coaching, sports medicine, strength and conditioning and front office staff.
  • Assist with data management, organization and integration into the organization’s athlete management system.
  • Review research and technology updates relevant to baseball performance.
  • Perform exploratory performance science research projects and analysis as directed.
  • Assist with the maintenance, calibration and upkeep of performance science related equipment.
  • Other duties as directed by Director, Performance Science

Minimum Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

  • Bachelor’s degree in exercise science, exercise physiology, sports science, kinesiology, biomechanics or similar field.
  • Experience with the following technologies preferred: Force plates, accelerometers, motion capture, high speed video, GPS tracking.
  • Experience using an athlete management system.
  • The ideal candidate must have excellent computer skills. Coding or data visualization skills a plus.
  • The ideal candidate must have excellent communication skills. Candidate must be able to convey complex sports science findings to relevant staffs.
  • The ideal candidate must have excellent attention to detail.
  • The ideal candidate must have excellent organizational skills.
  • Previous experience working with professional athletes and coaches preferred.
  • The ideal candidate must be willing to work longs hours, including days, nights, weekends and holidays.
  • The candidate must be available full-time.
  • Willing and able to relocate to the Lakeland, FL area or Detroit metro area.

To Apply:
To apply, please complete the application that can be found here.

Software Developer Associate (Seasonal)

Department: Baseball Operations
Location: Detroit, Michigan

Key Responsibilities:

  • Perform general development and maintenance tasks for the upkeep of internally developed software products.
  • Use modern software techniques and best practices in all parts of the software life cycle.
  • Troubleshoot issues with existing Baseball Operations systems.
  • Assist with development of new tools for improving data collection and processing.
  • Complete ad-hoc database queries and analysis as directed.
  • Provide support for important events such as the Rule 4 Draft, the trade deadline, contract negotiations and salary arbitration.
  • Support Baseball Operations, Scouting and Player Development with ad hoc requests.
  • Other duties as assigned by members of the Baseball Operations Department.

Minimum Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

  • The ideal candidate must be at least a college senior or recent graduate (within 6 months).
  • Educational background in Computer Science or similar technical field of study.
  • Familiarity with C# and/or Java in a web application context. Knowledge of Angular or similar front-end frameworks is a plus.
  • Familiarity with SQL, database design principles, and relational data concepts.
  • Experience with software development including requirements gathering, development, and testing is a plus.
  • The ideal candidate must have excellent verbal and written communication skills.
  • The ideal candidate must have excellent organizational skills.
  • Highly motivated with excellent attention to detail.
  • The ideal candidate must be available full-time.
  • The ideal candidate must be available to work evenings, weekends, and holidays as dictated by the baseball calendar.
  • Willing and able to relocate to the Detroit metro area.

To Apply:
To apply, please complete the application that can be found here.

Position: Baseball Analytics Associate (Seasonal)

Department: Baseball Operations
Location: Detroit, Michigan

Key Responsibilities:

  • Assist with importing, cleaning, and preparing of baseball datasets.
  • Assist with the design, development, testing and support of proprietary data collection and decision-support systems.
  • Design ad hoc SQL queries.
  • Assist with statistical modeling of baseball data.
  • Execute exploratory research and analysis as directed.
  • Review public research on a regular basis.
  • Provide support for important events such as the Rule 4 Draft, the trade deadline, contract negotiations and salary arbitration.
  • Support Baseball Operations, Scouting and Player Development with ad hoc requests.
  • Other duties as assigned by members of the Baseball Operations Department.

Minimum Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

  • The ideal candidate must be at least a college senior or recent graduate (within 6 months).
  • Demonstrated familiarity with SQL querying and database design principles.
  • Demonstrated knowledge of baseball-specific data, modern statistical techniques and sabermetric analysis.
  • Familiarity with R/Python and/or other software applications/languages used for statistical calculations and graphical representations.
  • Experience with software development, including requirements definition, design, development, testing, and implementation, a plus.
  • Experience with ETL processes that integrate multiple data sources, a plus.
  • The ideal candidate must have excellent verbal and written communication skills.
  • The ideal candidate must have excellent organizational skills.
  • Highly motivated with excellent attention to detail.
  • The ideal candidate must be available full-time.
  • The ideal candidate must be available to work evenings, weekends, and holidays as dictated by the baseball calendar.
  • Willing and able to relocate to the Detroit metro area.

To Apply:
To apply, please complete the application that can be found here.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the Detroit Tigers.


Job Posting: Cardinals Engineer, Data Scientist, and Developer Positions

by
October 3, 2019

Please note, this posting contains multiple positions.

Position: Data Quality Engineer

Location: St. Louis

Summary of the background and skill set best suited to excel in this role:
The role of Data Quality Engineer will be to ensure data management (ETL) processes for the Cardinals’ testing and quality standards are met across existing and new data sources being ingested by the organization. This person will work closely with other members of the Baseball Development department to understand their data needs and incorporate them into the data management (ETL) processes. This role requires a detail-oriented mindset, analytical ability, an ability to work independently, and an interest in the game of baseball.

Minimum Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related technical field from an accredited college or university or equivalent work experience
  • Candidates in school expecting to graduate Winter 2019 or Spring 2020 with work towards such degrees will also be considered
  • Experience with end-to-end data testing and/or data analysis as well as knowledge of best practices and methodologies for data QA
  • Demonstrated proficiency with SQL for creating/modifying queries
  • Experience with JSON, CSV, XML and other data exchange formats
  • Excellent organizational, interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
  • Ability to work well in a fast-paced environment under deadlines in a changing environment
  • Proven problem-solving skills and analytical ability

Preferred Qualifications:

  • 1+ years of experience with software and/or data quality assurance
  • Experience with Cloud data pipeline tooling and principles

To Apply:
To apply, please complete the application that can be found here.

Position: Data Engineer

Location: St. Louis

Summary of the background and skill set best suited to excel in this role:
The role of Data Engineer will be focused on supporting the data pipeline infrastructure that supplies the Baseball Development department with the data needed to make actionable insights in day-to-day operations. The person in this role will be responsible for maintaining the current data infrastructure and develop new innovative methods to deliver data to drive actionable business outcomes. This person should be detail oriented, analytically inclined, and have an interest in the game of baseball.

Minimum Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Mathematics or related technical field, or equivalent practical experience
  • Candidates in school expecting to graduate Winter 2019 or Spring 2020 with work towards such degrees will also be considered
  • Experience with data processing software (such as Hadoop, Spark, Pig, Hive, Beam) and/or algorithms (MapReduce, Flume)
  • Experience in writing software in one or more languages such as Python, Go, Java, C++ and/or JavaScript
  • Demonstrated proficiency with SQL for creating/modifying queries
  • Experience with JSON, CSV, XML and other data exchange formats
  • Experience working with API endpoints (REST, oAuth2, CRUD, SOAP)

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Experience working with data warehouses, including architecture and design of infrastructure components, ETL/ELT processes, reporting/analytic tools and environments
  • Experience working with big data, information retrieval, data mining or machine learning
  • Experience with Cloud data pipeline tooling and principles

To Apply:
To apply, please complete the application that can be found here.

Position: Analytics Engineer

Location: St. Louis

Summary of the background and skill set best suited to excel in this role:
The role of Analytics Engineer will be focused on supporting the analytics pipeline that supplies the Baseball Development department with the data tools and processes needed to make actionable insights in day-to-day operations. The person in this role will be responsible for facilitating the analytics team members with the necessary components in their data modeling processes. This person should be detail orientated, analytically inclined, and have an interest in the game of baseball.

Minimum Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Mathematics or related technical field, or equivalent practical experience
  • Candidates in school expecting to graduate Winter 2019 or Spring 2020 with work towards such degrees will also be considered
  • Experience working with big data, information retrieval, data mining or machine learning
  • Experience working in Python and/or R
  • Experience working in SQL and/or NoSQL

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Experience with data processing software (such as Hadoop, Spark, Pig, Hive, Beam) and/or algorithms (MapReduce, Flume)
  • Experience in one or more modern machine learning languages, such as TensorFlow, Caffe/Caffe2, PyTorch, Keras, MXNet, Scikit-Learn
  • Experience with Cloud data pipeline tooling and principles

To Apply:
To apply, please complete the application that can be found here.

Position: Senior Data Scientist

Location: St. Louis

Summary of the background and skill set best suited to excel in this role:
The role of Senior Data Scientist is to conduct quantitative research aimed at developing/enhancing predictive, machine learning, and other quantitative models to help the Cardinals organization gain insights as well as make actionable decisions related to all aspects of baseball operations.

Minimum Qualifications:

  • BS, MS, or PhD in an appropriate technology field (Computer Science, Statistics, Applied Math, Operations Research, etc.)
  • 3-5+ years of experience with data science
  • Expertise in R or Python
  • Expertise in SQL
  • Solid communication skills with demonstrated ability to explain complex technical issues to both technical and non-technical audiences
  • Passion for baseball and strong intellectual curiosity

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Proficient in a modern machine learning framework such as TensorFlow, Caffe/Caffe2, PyTorch, Keras, MXNet, Scikit-Learn
  • Published research demonstrating clearly defined methodologies and use of technical abilities

To Apply:
To apply, please complete the application that can be found here.

Position: Application Developer

Location: St. Louis

Summary of the background and skill set best suited to excel in this role:
The role of Application Developer is to design, implement and maintain analytics and technical systems (Frontend & Backend) in collaboration with the Baseball Development department. These applications will be used by Baseball Operations personnel and field staff. This person should be detail oriented, intellectually curious, and have an interest in the game of baseball.

Minimum Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or equivalent practical experience
  • 1-3+ years of experience as a software engineer, developer, or equivalent technical experience
  • Proficiency working with one or more of the following: JavaScript (including MVC frameworks such as AngularJS, Angular, React, or Vue.js), Java, Python, Go, CSS or HTML
  • Proficiency developing, securing and consuming REST / JSON APIs using modern server-side or client frameworks (such as Node.js, GraphQL, Angular, etc.)
  • Experience with SQL

Preferred Qualifications:

  • iOS and/or Android Mobile App development
  • Familiarity with NoSQL
  • Experience with cloud developer tooling

To Apply:
To apply, please complete the application that can be found here.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the St. Louis Cardinals.


Postseason Preview: Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Washington Nationals

by
October 2, 2019

In one of the most thrilling finishes to a Wild Card game, the Washington Nationals defeated the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday night. That victory finally exorcised the nightmare that elimination games have been for the Nats over the last decade. Now their sights are set on the best team in the National League, the Dodgers.

At a Glance:

  • Game 1: Thursday, October 3, 8:37 PM EST in Los Angeles
  • Game 2: Friday, October 4, 9:37 PM EST in Los Angeles
  • Game 3: Sunday, October 6, time TBD in Washington
  • Game 4 (if necessary): Monday, October 7, time TBD in Washington
  • Game 5 (if necessary): Wednesday, October 9, time TBD in Los Angeles

Dodgers-Nationals Team Overview
Overview Dodgers Nationals Edge
Batting (wRC+) 111 (1st in NL) 103 (3rd in NL) Dodgers
Fielding (DRS) 136 (1st) -2 (12th) Dodgers
Starting Pitching (FIP-) 81 (1st) 82 (2nd) Dodgers
Bullpen (FIP-) 93 (3rd) 109 (14th) Dodgers

This five-game series sets up a clash between the top two starting rotations in the senior circuit. The Dodgers starters posted a park- and league-adjusted FIP 19% better than league average, and the Nationals were just a point right behind them. But in a short series, the quality of the top of the rotation is paramount, and these two teams are very top-heavy. Read the rest of this entry »


Postseason Preview: St. Louis Cardinals vs. Atlanta Braves

by
October 2, 2019

After winning their respective divisions, the Atlanta Braves will face off against the St. Louis Cardinals starting on Thursday. This series looks evenly matched, with our Depth Charts projections (53%) and ZiPS (55%) both seeing the Braves as slight favorites. Before we get to the meat of the preview, let’s lay out the schedule. All games will be televised by TBS.

When and Where:

  • Game 1: Thursday, October 3, 5:02 PM EST in Atlanta
  • Game 2: Friday, October 4, 4:37 PM EST in Atlanta
  • Game 3: Sunday, October 6, time TBD in St. Louis
  • Game 4 (if necessary): Monday, October 7, time TBD in St. Louis
  • Game 5 (if necessary): Wednesday, October 9, time TBD in Atlanta

What We’ll Be Watching For:

Injured Players
Ender Inciarte will remain out for this series, at least, after a hamstring injury struck him down in mid-August. Matt Joyce and Adam Duvall have platooned some with Inciarte out, though the Cardinals have no lefty starters, so the 35-year-old Joyce could play a big role in the series. He hasn’t shown a ton of power the last few years, but he’s walked 15% of the time against righties since the beginning of 2016 with a decently low 21% strikeout rate. Inciarte’s replacement in center actually meant an upgrade as Ronald Acuña Jr. took over, but the Braves’ star outfielder has injury concerns of his own; an apparent hip injury was classified as a groin strain and it is unclear how that injury might affect his superb baserunning or his defense in center field.

The health worries don’t end there for the Braves. Freddie Freeman has a bone spur in his right elbow, which he is still favoring, and though he played over the weekend, he struck out four times in 11 plate appearances and didn’t come up with an extra base hit. It was only the third three-game stretch all season during which Freeman struck out that often and didn’t get an extra base hit. All three stretches have come in the last six weeks. Every player is going to have sporadic, three-game down stretches, but given what we know about Freeman’s elbow, look for a lot of inside pitches to test whether the injury will continue to hobble the Braves’ first basemen. Josh Donaldson sat out the last game of the season after being hit on the hip with a pitch, but that injury appears less severe. Donaldson, Acuña, and Freeman have accounted for half of the 27.9 WAR accumulated by Braves’ position players this season (Ozzie Albies is the only other position player with more than 2.1 WAR); Atlanta would be a completely different team without that trio at full strength. Read the rest of this entry »


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