BRAVES NEWS
Freddie Freeman could be representing Canada at the WBC
As early as last year, Freddie Freeman had made it publicly known that he’d definitely play for Canada at the World Baseball Classic if given a chance. This was mostly so that he could honor his late mother, who was Canadian. That could become a reality now since Jon Morosi is reporting that Freeman and Baseball Canada are currently in discussions about bringing him into the Canadian fold for next year’s WBC.
Eddie Perez will manage Venezuela at the WBC
In further Braves-related WBC news, Eddie Perez will have the opportunity to add some more managerial experience to his resume next year. Omar Vizquel was supposed to be managing Venezuela at the upcoming WBC, but apparently the two parties have parted ways and now Eddie Perez will be the man in charge of Venezuela’s dugout at the tournament.
Adonis Garcia is poised to improve in 2017
In news completely unrelated to the WBC, Adonis Garcia is more-than-likely going to be the Braves’ starting third baseman on Opening Day (assuming nothing drastic happens from now until then). He may not be an elite option, but he was at least respectable in 2016 and Francys Romero of Outside Pitch believes that Garcia could be in line to see a decent amount of improvement next season.
Offensively, Steamer projects Garcia to tally another 14 homers and 64 runs batted in. Even more promising, is that the predictions say that metrics like his isolated power will increase from .133 in 2016 to .136 in 2017. Even if the increase is only marginal, Garcia should still help the Braves produce runs.
Despite being underestimated, Garcia ranked third amongst Braves players in RBI. Only Freddie Freeman (91) and Nick Markakis (89) produced more. At 30-years-old, he may have a limited ability to improve on certain metrics, but with any luck, he should still be able to maintain himself as a staple in team’s offensive production.
Demeritte is good, but Ozzie is better
Down on the farm, Travis Demeritte has made some big strides since he came into the Braves organization via trade from the Rangers. It’s gotten to the point where some people have been arguing that Demeritte could be better than Ozzie Albies. This is where Garrett put his foot down and drew a line in the sand.
Credit where credit is due, Demeritte made an argument by being one of the top performers in the league including cutting his strikeout rate while maintaining a high power output. The fresh, cute new toy has all the attention and it was easy to get swept away in the commotion and bandwagon away from the tried and true. This is prospect fatigue, plain and simple, and it happens to us all and it causes at times some silly debates.
MLB NEWS
Yoenis Cespedes re-signs with New York Mets
The first major free agent domino has fallen, and it’s Yoenis Cespedes returning to the Mets. He chose to opt out of his initial three-year, $75 M contract with the Mets and now he’ll be making $110 M over the next four years. The contract also includes a no-trade clause, to boot. It’s a boatload of money, but it’s a move that the Mets needed to make if they wanted to stay competitive in the NL East.
Heyman: Blue Jays could go after Dexter Fowler
Now that Cespedes is off the market and the Winter Meetings are looming (heaven forbid a lockout), we should start seeing some more big names come off the market and start signing contracts soon enough. One of those names is Dexter Fowler, and Jon Heyman is reporting that the Blue Jays are showing serious interest in the outfielder.
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