Braves 2009: Corner Outfielders and final analysis

Many pundits around the country say that the success of the Braves really comes down to Jeff Francouer. As many people know and have read about, and cried about, Francouer had a miserable season. He put up numbers that friends of mine here at UGA could rival if given the chance at the major league level (an exaggeration). Frenchy is supposed to be the "next one" instead, McCann has embraced that role and Jeff is stuck in 2nd gear trying to find his way back to prominence.

RF

With all that said. Francouer is critical to the success and balance of this offense. He will bat 6th or 7th in a left-handed heavy line-up. Having his right-handed power show up again would be an immense lift to the squads overall balance 1-8. While Frenchy struggled at the plate last year he rarely let it affect his gold glove caliber defense. Francouer still had 14 outfield assists and only made 4 errors all season. Braves fans just might start getting restless about Jeff if he gets off to another slow start. But he had a solid spring in which he batted .328, walked 7 times (tied for 2nd on the team during the spring) and only struck out 6 times in 67 at-bats. Those are hte kind of numbers that we have always expected from Jeff. I believe that he will jet right back into stardom this year. Don't expect absurd numbers, but a batting average at least over .270. 20 homers and close to 100 RBI

LF

Some may see LF as a wild card for the Braves, I see it as a source of solid production. Newcomer Garrett Anderson will try and continue hitting like he has for the past 15 years out in Anaheim. Last year he hit .293 which is better than anything the Braves got in Left Field all of last season. Granted he doesn't hit for much power anymore, but a 15-20 HR season is definitely not out of the question. Joining him in left in a possible platoon role is Matt Diaz. Diaz was poised for a breakout season last year when a knee injury kept him limited to just 135 at-bats last season. He's a career .309 hitter with gap power and will poke a few home runs. He's one of the most reliable hitters on the entire time. He's definitely one of the top 5 guys on the team I'd want up there in a pinch. Both play adequate defense, nothing special, but wont do anything stupid. There is a slight concer with Anderson because he played less than 90 games in the outfield last season. But that could be more attributed to the crowded outfield situation in Anaheim more than his age or inability to play the field every day.

2009 Season Outlook

The Braves struggled last season. A perfect storm of bad things happened that ruined any chance of success last year. With all the injuries to the Old pitchers we had, lack of power production in the outfield, and the wear down of the bullpen, the team jsut wasn't deep enough last season for a sustained run. This year things are far brighter. With a revamped rotation, the addition of Garrett Anderson, and the hopeful resurgence of Jeff Francouer, the Braves have every reason to believe that they are going to be legitimate contenders for the NL East crown.

These aren't the Braves that won 15 divisions in a row, it will take time for this team to round into shape. They have to learn how to win. With Chipper now the elder statesman in the lockers room, he is essentially passing the torch to our young core of players (McCann, Francouer, Johnson, Escobar, Schafer, Kotchman). Our team is deep and balanced from 1-5 and 1-9. If we play our game offensively, we will score enough runs. If our starting rotation stays healthy and throws their innings, our bullpen wont get taxed. There are definitely a lot of questions to be answered, but we are in far better shape than last year and the future beyond 2009 looks even brighter (Tommy Hanson, Jason Heyward, Freddie Freeman, Brandon Hicks).

This team should win somewhere between 85-90 games. They're going to contend for the NL East and wild card well into September. I wont be surprised if they make it to the playoff. A world series is not out of the question because if we make it through our division there is no other team in the NL East that is better than the winner of our division and I think the Sox Yankees and Rays are grossly overrated (along with the Phils and Mets). In the end I think a NL east crown is definitely achievable, but the best years for this club are not even back yet. 2010-2011 are the years to really look forward too.