Atlanta Braves General Manager Frank Wren knew going into this offseason that his ball club had a major gaping hole in it's lineup: power right handed bat. Yesterday he accomplished one of his goals by acquiring second baseman Dan Uggla from the Florida Marlins for Omar Infante and Mike Dunn. In the last 5 seasons only one right handed National League player has more home runs than Uggla. His name is Albert Pujols.
Uggla will more than likely start at second base with fellow All-Star Martin Prado moving to third base. With the infield complete (Freddie Freeman at 1B, Alex Gonzalez at SS and Brian McCann at C) the Braves will now look to make a drastic improvement to the outfield. The only player penciled into new coach Fredi Gonzalez lineup is Jason Heyward in RF. Nate McLouth could be the starting CF which would be absolutely horrible in my opinion. There is no left fielder unless they resign Matt Diaz. The Diamondbacks have made it known that 23 year old budding superstar Justin Upton is on the market. He would be the perfect left fielder for the Braves. He's young, steals bases, has power, and is signed through 2015. It would take a lot to get Upton and the DBacks are looking for arms. If I'm the Braves there is no way in hell I trade Tommy Hanson, Johnny Venters, or Craig Kimbrel. Everyone else is available for Upton. I would think Julio Teheran and Jair Jurrjens gets the deal done easily. If I'm the Braves I would try to trade Mike Minor, Brandon Beachy, and one of Teheran/Jurrjens for Upton and see if they would put Stephen Drew in with the deal.
If this deal could go through you are looking at this potential lineup:
LF-Justin Upton
3B-Martin Prado
RF-Jason Heyward
2B-Dan Uggla
C-Brian McCann
1B-Freddie Freeman
SS-Alex Gonzalez
CF-Nate McLouth/anybody else
This is a lineup that would score a shitload of runs. The pitching would still be excellent with Huddy, Hanson, and Lowe anchoring the staff and one of the best bullpens in the league.
What do you think the Braves and Frank Wren should do to improve the ballclub?
