Atlanta Braves news and links: Suzuki, Fried, and Andruw’s HOF chances

BRAVES NEWS

Braves bring in Kurt Suzuki

The Braves bolstered their depth at one of their weaker positions over the weekend, as they brought in Kurt Suzuki on a one-year deal with a base $1.5 million salary. Suzuki finished the 2016 season with a .258/.301/.403 slash line with 86 wRC+ and 8 homers, but he’s probably a better bet to serve as a capable backup Tyler Flowers over Anthony Recker. Speaking of Recker:

Mayo of MLBPipeline.com gets bombarded with Braves questions

Jonathan Mayo of MLBpipeline.com recently did another inbox column for that website, and the reaction to some of his recent rankings caused a bit of a stir among people who closely follow the minor leagues. That included plenty of Braves fans, who wanted to ask Mayo specifically about Max Fried’s placement on his Top 10 LHP Prospects list. Mayo addressed the fans in this article.

I get it. Fried still has a tremendous amount of upside. And yes, he had a tremendous second half, punctuated by a great playoff run as part of that very deep Rome rotation that led that team to the South Atlantic League title. Rest assured, Fried will work his way onto that list at some point in 2017. But keep in mind that last year was the first time he had pitched in two years and he's yet to pitch above A ball. Again, not taking anything away from the former first-rounder. I'm a believer. I think we all just want to see what he does as he moves up.

Beyond the Box Score stumps for Andruw Jones’ Hall of Fame induction

Chipper Jones is entering the Hall of Fame ballot next season, and the only question should be whether or not he’ll get in unanimously. Meanwhile, Andruw Jones is also on the ballot, but it’s reasonable to believe that he’ll probably have to go through the agony of being in ballot limbo for a while. Evan J. Davis of Beyond the Box Score doesn’t think this should be the case — he believes (and rightly so) that Andruw should make it into the Hall of Fame.

Jones was probably the greatest defensive center fielder I ever saw with my own eyes. The man was a wizard with the leather. Statcast would almost certainly have a field day with his first step and top speed in getting to balls. He probably single-handedly kept Tom Glavine’s ERA nice and shiny in the late 1990s.

The numbers support the case, too. While the flaws in Total Zone and Fielding Runs Above Average are manifold (less so with FRAA than with TZ), both consider Jones to be a pantheon talent. His 135 TZ is third all-time behind Paul Blair and Willie Mays. His 177.5 FRAA is the highest for a center fielder since World War II.

He kept doing it as he aged, too. For 11 consecutive seasons from 1997 to 2007, Jones was the best defensive center fielder in baseball. He hit well enough in those years to give him multiple six- and eight-win seasons.

MLB NEWS

Yordano Ventura and Andy Marte both pass away

Sunday was another dark day for baseball as two more players were taken away from the world due to accidents. Yordano Ventura of the Kansas City Royals and former Brave Andy Marte were both in separate car crashes over the weekend. It’s always sad to see public figures like these two pass away, and the loss of Ventura is especially shocking considering how he was one of the multitude of players who paid tribute to Jose Fernandez and Oscar Taveras after those tragedies.

I could talk about these two men as players, but I think this moment is better served in reminding folks about them as human beings. Andy Marte has been widely called one of the nicest guys in the game of baseball. Based on the response to his passing, his former teammates, managers, and reporters that covered him admired him for his kindness.

Ventura was certainly a polarizing figure at times, but he was quick to honor those who passed away and did so prominently. After pitching the game of his life in the World Series in 2014, he dedicated it to Oscar Taveras who was a close friend of his at the time of his passing. When Jose Fernandez died tragically last year, he honored Jose with writing his name and number on his cap.

Wieters could be headed back to Baltimore

With the Braves signing Kurt Suzuki, the options for Matt Wieters are dwindling by the day. As a result, one team that could end up taking advantage of this Wieters’ longtime team — the Baltimore Orioles. There are now rumors that the O’s could bring him back on a one-year deal, which would be a shock considering how unlikely a reunion was back when the offseason started.