FanPost

A fallback candidate for CF...



Many of the Braves hardcore followers were very upset when Gregor Blanco was dealt, especially considering he was the only CF candidate worthy of putting on the field at that time. Gregor was always a no-power, high OBP, average to above-average defensive CF. Gregor, although above average in speed, was never a great base stealer. He either stole 20-40 bases getting caught at a 30-50% rate, or stole very few bases and got caught at a 10-20% rate. Needless to say, trading Gregor Blanco might have been a bad move for the success of the 2010 season. Here are Blanco's career Minor League stats:


http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=blanco001gre

Hopefully, the Braves are in financial position to upgrade both CF and LF this offseason and hopefully McLouth can become a force like he had been in his previous 3 seasons. But if he can't rebound and if the Braves only have the finances to upgrade one outfield position, there is a fallback candidate in the organization that has put up better career Minor Leage numbers than Gregor Blanco.

Matt Young

http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=young-001mat

Many people have harped on Gregor Blanco and his on-base skills, but year after year, Matt Young gets overlooked. I honestly don't get it. Here are their career breakdowns:

Career OBP- Matt: .390 Blanco: .368

Career OPS- Matt: .775 Blanco: .734

Career SB%- Matt: 70% Blanco: 69%

This past season, Matt stole 39 bases, being caught only 7 times to go along with a .786 ops. His Winter League stats are ridiculous thus far:

20/45 2hr 7rbi .444avg .500 obp 1.100 ops

Matt Young is trying to get the Braves attention. His message is clear: He wants to be a Major Leaguer! Obviously, he doesn't deserve to be the starting CFer in 2011, but he most definitely deserves a bench spot and a chance to show what he can do if all the other candidates fall on their faces (like 2010).




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