Yunel Escobar (.471) like a new player — should Braves care?
Yunel Escobar's grand slam against Baltimore was his first homer of year.
When the Braves traded shortstop Yunel Escobar for Alex Gonzalez, it was easy to understand their logic. Escobar was slumping, management was turned off by his perceived attitude and they viewed him as a potential road block to a grand postseason run.
I wrote at the time that the deal could come back to haunt them. Of course, my time frame wasn’t the next four games.
Have you seen Escobar’s numbers since the deal? He is 8-for-17 (.471) with three runs scored, seven RBI and a grand slam on Sunday (his first homer of the season). He has walked once and has yet to strike out. He has moved runners along. He has been solid defensively.
Also, he has yet to pout.
So I guess he doesn’t stink after all.
Now, from the Braves’ perspective, this trade will be judged at the end of the season by: 1) Whether they make the playoffs and how they do when they get there; 2) What role Gonzalez has in that run (for what it’s worth, he’s 3 for 16 with the Braves).
In that sense, Escobar isn’t even a factor. But the franchise’s worst nightmare down the line would be for him to turn back into the player they saw for three seasons.
Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston, who spoke to Bobby Cox about Escobar following the deal, said: “The kid’s played great here. He’s done everything we’ve asked him to do and more.”
Just want to take a pulse of Braves’ fandom here: Are you happy for Escobar, upset that he has been a success or really don’t care one way or another?
This might be even the bigger question: What will make the Gonzalez-Escobar trade a success or failure in your eyes?
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486 comments Add your comment
Anon21
July 20th, 2010
3:33 pm
N: Exactly. The Braves sold him when his value was at rock-bottom, at the tail end of a long offensive slump. Because they chose a terrible moment to sell, they got Alex Gonzalez, a SS in his decline phase with nonexistent on-base skills and power numbers which were a mirage created by hitting in easy HR parks. Oh, and some spare parts–a smallish lefthander whose ceiling is probably as a LOOGY, and a SS prospect who’s probably worse than even money to ever make a major league roster.
If the Braves had been patient and not foolish, they would have held onto Yunel at least until the end of this year, after the inevitable offensive rebound. Then they might have been able to acquire a younger SS replacement, at the very least. By pulling the trigger too early, the Braves made a very poor business decision, and lost a good deal of value on the trade.
N
July 20th, 2010
3:35 pm
Why be patient when you have a chance to go deep in the playoffs and make it a special year. Guys, things are falling into place and you have to take advantage of these opportunities. Yunel was not that young.
Sonny Clusters
July 20th, 2010
3:40 pm
Somebody who knows told us that Chipper told somebody else that he wouldn’t want to share a tree stand with Yunel and Yunel overheard that and said that he was the only shortstop in the league that has to play both short and third because Chipper can’t go to his left. That’s when it started to go downhill.
boots
July 20th, 2010
3:41 pm
Baseball is not just about stats. It is about how a team fits together and how the player makes his team better. I am glad for Escobar, but this deal is a win-win for both sides. I would still have AG in Atlanta and, unless he goes .220 for the rest of the year, he will make our team better. Plus he has power and is a good glove. You can’t judge trades on the day of the trade or even a week in to it. Let’s talk in September and see how this goes. Or, better yet, in October.
Anon21
July 20th, 2010
3:43 pm
True, Yunel was not that young, since he got a lateish start in American baseball. But there’s a pretty big difference between 27 and 33, particularly when it comes to an athletically demanding position like SS. At 27, Yunel is in his prime; at 33, Gonzalez is most definitely in his decline, despite all the long fly balls which were HRs at the Rogers Centre but will be outs at the Ted.
I would really have no problem with the trade if it represented a sacrifice of some medium-term value for an improved shot at the playoffs this year. I truly have no problem with the one last push for Bobby–indeed, I welcome it. I am ready to see this club playing October baseball again. But this trade actually made our lineup WORSE, this year and going forward. That was apparent to everyone looking at the numbers on the day the trade went through, and we’ve seen nothing since then to change the picture. That’s why I say the trade was terrible, and that Frank Wren made a big mistake to go through with it.
Sonny Clusters
July 20th, 2010
3:43 pm
We also heard that Yunel found a deer foot in his locker one day. Nobody knows where it came from.
Freddie : G
July 20th, 2010
3:52 pm
N
Everytime I hear someone refer to the throw to Troy as terrible and blame him for the supposedly injury to Troy I know that person has no clue and never suit up for any sport. I will not try to convince you that he was running and in an effort not to overthrow the ball been at close range he lobbed it. Did Chipper and Omar have Base running blunders this season? Andruw Jones the best center fielder in Braves history and the best in the NL for several years was once benched, so have several others in their careers. If all the players on this team were treated equally several others would have been benched too.
Good for him
July 20th, 2010
3:58 pm
Good for Yunel. I can’t stand when everyone piles on like a bunch of pack animals.
Freddie : G
July 20th, 2010
3:58 pm
Sonny Clusters your 3:40
I can see Chipper been mad and wanting yunel gone for speaking the truth. Because of Chipper’s lack of range yunel cover more ground than any other Shortstop in the league.
Rbrave
July 20th, 2010
3:59 pm
Bottom line is for the Atlanta press to quit writing articles on ex braves ! The kid was a great talent but would not perform here. He’s like T.O., Milton Bradley and any number of athletes that behave for a while but can’t grow up. Yuney might be great for a while but his demeanor will show up again, but in the mean time right or wrong , move forward and stop writing on every at bat. For the most part Atlanta has done well with getting rid of malcontents. Yuney had more chances to move forward with the Braves, than any of us will ever get at our jobs
Roy Hobbs
July 20th, 2010
4:01 pm
Maybe this will make more sense. Just a couple years ago Yunel was considered so good that they traded Elvis Andrus to the Texas Rangers because there was no place for him to play in Atlanta. The same Elvis Andrus who is hitting leadoff for a first place club and who played in the All Star game this year.
For those saying AG has power, he has 131 home runs in 12 seasons. Thats about 11 per year. This was a bad trade, made to make someone happy. Based on the Birthday talk and comments after the trade, I would guess it was Chipper and/or Bobby. That is sad, first that they could not learn to play with this guy, and second that long after they retire we will get to watch the Braves try to find another shortstop with half as much talent.
Point awarded
July 20th, 2010
4:02 pm
Sonny,
Regardless of whether the story is true, the fact about Yunel having to play both positions absolutely is. Chipper’s defense sucks. The only time he makes a play is when it’s hit within 3 feet of him.
What's Important
July 20th, 2010
4:05 pm
Whatever Yunel is doing now, he wasn’t doing it as a Brave. I believe learning that you are expendable can be a great motivator. If that is what is happening, fine for him, but his head would have still been you know where if he stayed in Atlanta because was either lazy or stupid or off his meds, because he thought he could be. We’ll see how long this surge lasts. Either way, Atlanta is better off without himi.
Tony
July 20th, 2010
4:10 pm
Chipper’s defense sucks and McCann, and I actually like the guy is probably the worse defensive catcher in the league. Glaus is learning, Prado has greatly improved defensively, no comment on left and center and Heyward is pretty good in right, just hope he doesn’t injure himself trying to impress Mr. Cox. So the SS defensively on the Atlanta Braves needs to be excellent. Is Gonzo? From the games so far, NOPE.
Roy Hobbs
July 20th, 2010
4:11 pm
RBrave, can you elaborate? What did he do here that would have gotten us fired? Did he hit his wife/girlfriend? Get picked up for drunk driving? Get caught with a gun? Get in fights? Get arrested for anything? Miss meetings or the team bus? Show up late for games? Have kids with random strangers?
Please elaborate, because I would love to know the truth. For all those saying we will never know the truth, thats a lie. Every malcontent in the league is well documented. We wont know the truth because its far more petty than that. Some people did not like his hair, or his pouting.
Coach K
July 20th, 2010
4:12 pm
I was and always will like this Esco kid. It was apparent for awhile he was not enjoying his time here. But its now time to look at our coaching here. It’s their job to get the talent and mold a team. Hell we can field an allstar team with the players we have given away. It just might be time to take a real hard look at this coaching staff and quit blaming the players
Smile instead of frown?
July 20th, 2010
4:13 pm
So if Yunel had smiled when he was mad, like Andruw did, would he still be here?
He was making fun of me!
July 20th, 2010
4:18 pm
I agree with Mr. Hobbs. The whole Yunel situation reaks of pettiness.
Wonder if Chipper got reprimanded by Bobby for his tree stand comment? Probably not. The rules are different for different people.
Plate Appearance
July 20th, 2010
4:31 pm
IT WAS A BAD TRADE
Face it! THIS WAS another bad trade by Frank Wren! The early confirming stats that it is are already coming.
Gonzalez is currently a journeyman shortstop at the later part of his career, while Yunel has demonstrated over the last two years that he is one of the best shortstops in the game — and has the potential to be so for many years to come.
I like the way Jonah Keri put it in his blog:
–Escobar slugged .401 and .436 the past two seasons (and got on base a ton, of course). Unless he’s hurt, is there any reason to trust 3.5 months of data over 2 years?
–Alex Gonzalez has a career SLG of .402. Is there any reason to trust 3.5 months of data over a whole career?
–The data show that Gonzalez leads MLB in “wall-scraping” HRs – 10 of his 17 homers have barely cleared the wall. That suggests big-time regression, where those balls go for doubles or long flyouts.
–Given those factors, it’s far from a sure thing Gonzalez slugs higher than Escobar. And that’s supposed to be a major reason (if not the major reason) for the trade?
–”Not needing” OBP, and wanting to trade on-base for slugging, is a dubious concept. Runs are runs. If you avoid making outs, you’ll score more. You can do that with eight .300 hitters, or eight .250 power hitters. It’s nice to have a diverse offense. It’s also a minor issue if you have good offensive players of whatever stripe. — End quote.
Wren has been talking a lot about patience of late. It’s too bad he didn’t exercise some with Yunel!
I’m still feeling angry about this trade!
Squeaky Clean
July 20th, 2010
4:36 pm
No mystery here. If you had been expelled from a great University, for whatever reason, and then another school let you in their door, do you think you’d show the same behavior at the new place that got you kicked out of the old?
When your butt stings and you’re embarrassed you tend to walk a straighter line.
thebraveone
July 20th, 2010
4:37 pm
hah production from gonzalez you guys are talking about how escobar is producing when theres nothing at stake didnt alex gonzalez just come from that team oh yeah alex gonzalez career .250 escobar with his struggles career .300 and the fact that he carried us last year when chipper spent more time at the chiropractor than on the field and cox was still trying to make excuses for kelly johnson maybe if escobar had the same role that he had last year or maybe the rest of the clubhouse was the problem this is still narrow minded atlanta REMEMBER?
thebraveone
July 20th, 2010
4:47 pm
DOES ANYONE FIND IT WEIRD THAT THE BRAVES WOULD RATHER PUT UP WITH .176 AND CAREER .250 NATE MCLOUGHT THAN .240 AND CAREER .300 YUNEL ESCOBAR HORRIBLE TRADE THE FACT OF THE MATTER IS CHIPPER DIDNT LIKE YUNEL AND THIS IS CHIPPERS TEAM OH YEAH AND YUNEL BEING LACKADASIAL ON THE FIELD WELL AT LEAST HES ON THE FIELD CHIPPER!!! ONLY PLAYER TO EVER HAVE ENOUGH BALLS TO CALL U OUT THANK GOD JOHN SMOLTZ
Jf McNamara
July 20th, 2010
4:59 pm
Boots,
Baseball is all about stats, because stats represent performance and performance wins ball games. If you’re not performing, there is someone in triple A who will. How the team fits together means nothing other than you have someone to hang out with. This isn’t little league. They are professionals. Do the job you are paid to do regardless of how you feel about your co workers.
GOBRAVOS
July 20th, 2010
5:05 pm
I feel like Escobar has the potential to be a superstar, I always have! He is still young and just coming into the prime of his career.. The same goes for Josh Smith, and we see that the Hawks wont trade him because of his upside. So, we should not have traded Escobar because he had an extremely high ceiling!!! Do u agree with me JS
Time
July 20th, 2010
5:06 pm
The trade was bad from the start, and is going to get worse. My opinion is the only reason he fell out of favor is because he shares the same agent as another former Braves SS, Rafael Furcal, who the Braves have had issues with and publicly stated they won’t do business with.
Sonny Clusters
July 20th, 2010
5:15 pm
We heard Cecil Fielder found a deer foot in his locker the day he got hit. Nobody knows where it came from either.
ReddJonn68
July 20th, 2010
5:16 pm
I feel that something was going on behind closed doors. The truth is as thebraveone stated how could we even fall for a dumb trade like Mclouth, yet trade away a future corner stone at SS I just don’t understand it.They should have sat Yunel down & put everything out in the open. Please dig & find the real story Schultz. If we were so fired up about getting a replacement for Yunel, why not wait for Mclouth to get healthy & package both for a young power guy thus solving two problems at once. We are gonna need more than Heyward for the future to compete after Bobby is gone.
dennis
July 20th, 2010
5:24 pm
the furture to me is now,so he is fired up now but that is whaat cart it was going to take.I hope he has a great career .
Nacho Daddy
July 20th, 2010
5:25 pm
batting against Baltimore… enough said
Nacho Daddy
July 20th, 2010
5:26 pm
He was batting against Baltimore.
carlchamblee
July 20th, 2010
5:28 pm
It was a bad trade. Really bad.
Chipper didn’t like his whistling, guess that’s why he played third like a bad hockey goalie. Yunel’s fault.
Bobby is loyal to white guys who stink. It killed him to finally put Prado in for Kelly Johnson when for at least a year and a half everyone else saw what Martin had.
But hey the clubhouse is ecstatic now, just like they were during all the choke jobs under this fool manager.
Funny how wife beating, Hooters waitresses are ok for good ol’ boys. Constant lack of hustle, running from press after a loss, and selling out teammates in media is ok for some players.
So stupid to trade an excellent SS to appease a lame duck manager and third baseman.
JEB
July 20th, 2010
5:37 pm
GEEZ!!!
He was hitting against Baltimore’s pitching!
Wait till he plays a few more games – facing good pitching before we start talking about some kind of revival. Must be a REALLLLL SLLOOWW day in sports writing for Schutz!
jarvis
July 20th, 2010
5:41 pm
Wow! Yunel’s hitting on a team that has no shot at doing anything. I’m shocked!
Tony
July 20th, 2010
5:41 pm
JEB..We saw what he did last year and the year before. Give me a break.
It was a bad trade, I cannot wait until Glassman Chipper and Old Bobby finally leave.
Jfreak13713
July 20th, 2010
5:42 pm
Frenchy started off hot with the Mets but has come back down to reality. Escobar has been a good player and I hope and even think he will still have a good career, but the trade still makes sense on the surface. The Braves needed some pop and hopefully they’ll get it?
Plate Appearance
July 20th, 2010
5:43 pm
IT MAKES LITTLE SENSE
Many called Yunel the Braves best player last season.
To trade last season’s best player after 3 and 1/2 months of diminished statistics this year just doesn’t make sense.
Instead of shipping players out of Atlanta, I really think it’s time to change some members of the coaching staff — and I’m not referring to Bobby in this, who I still believe is one of the best managers in baseball.
carlchamblee
July 20th, 2010
5:45 pm
Morons, Yunel hit for three years on the Braves. Best player just LAST season. He had a slow start like a LOT of braves this year, in part due to injury. Him getting hot was gonna happen.
MIKE LIFE LONG BRAVES FAN
July 20th, 2010
5:49 pm
FOUR GAMES WOW BAD TRADE
Mitchell
July 20th, 2010
5:53 pm
Can’t wait to see what Shane digs up on me.
I guess I’ll have to though. It took him two months to look up Chipper’s post-season stats.
VoiceOfReason
July 20th, 2010
6:04 pm
Typical reaction from a loser athlete. Let him get comfortable with his surroundings and start feeling job security again. Then the real Escobar will surface: Loafing, pouting; victim’s mentality. Mark it down: One month of hustling and working hard, then back to the old Yunel.
Atlanta Cracker
July 20th, 2010
6:27 pm
We should be happy for Escobar. I don’t think this trade can come back to haunt us, unless we end up playing Toronto in the World Series. We didn’t trade him to a rival. We didn’t include other prospects. So I wish Eunel the best. Go Braves!
James
July 20th, 2010
6:35 pm
I’m Glad he is gone. He didn’t want to be here so whatever.
Charlie Lau
July 20th, 2010
7:00 pm
Congratulations to Escobar. I said it before and I said it after his trade that something had to give with him. I thought sitting him or other was imperative. He is an unbelievable talent that was wasting away in Atlanta. If the change of venue or the circumstances gives him a wake up call, more power to him. He wasn’t getting it done in Atlanta and he seemed like a poison in the clubhouse. I wish him the best, but absolutely no regrets on the trade. Hope he is the AL MVP next year and there will still be no regrets, because he had his head up his butt, sulked, had bad body language in most everything he did and then wondered why he never got a call in his favor. Hope he can keep it going.
Go Braves!
Charlie Lau
July 20th, 2010
7:05 pm
Suspect what Voice of Reason says is closer to reality.
Big Man
July 20th, 2010
7:31 pm
Well, they should get rid of Chipper now. Yunel carried the team last year and they gave up on him after one half the year? And we painfully have to listen to Joe Simpson make excuses for Chipper. I am happy for Escobar..
jojatek
July 20th, 2010
8:19 pm
Good start for the Jays, but his numbers will fade. He’s a headcase, which means he will always have peaks and valleys, but never deliver on a consistent basis. He’ll bounce around the league for a few years until everyone realizes what they’re getting from him…
siskel_god
July 20th, 2010
9:12 pm
Good for Yunel. Like I said about Frenchy, we will probably regret dealing him but at the end of the day it’s all about wins and losses. We couldn’t wait around and hope JF snapped out of it and we couldn’t really make a serious run with Yunel (and Mclouth) giving away outs. Maybe JF and Yunel become stars, I really hope both of them do, but if we make a run and win the WS this year I will be fine with whatever price we pay. We still have an incredible nucleus and a stacked farm system. No matter how this run plays we will be contenders for the foreseeable future.
Mitchell
July 20th, 2010
9:47 pm
Jf McNamara
July 20th, 2010
2:44 pm
It was a failure to begin with. Why trade a 28 year old with a higher career average and OBP for a 33 year having a career year? Its just another player Bobby couldn’t handle, and its the reason they only have on World Series. The Yankees would never trade Escobar. They would rather get rid of the manager than trade a top tier player because player production wins ball games not a “good” clubhouse.
Could not agree more.
Plate Appearance
July 20th, 2010
5:43 pm
IT MAKES LITTLE SENSE
Many called Yunel the Braves best player last season.
To trade last season’s best player after 3 and 1/2 months of diminished statistics this year just doesn’t make sense.
Instead of shipping players out of Atlanta, I really think it’s time to change some members of the coaching staff — and I’m not referring to Bobby in this, who I still believe is one of the best managers in baseball.
Could not agree more also. Couldn’t agree less with the last line however.
jojatek
July 20th, 2010
10:17 pm
“Voice of Reason” nailed it. Yunel is a HEADCASE… moments of brilliance that will carry him through the gray twilight of a productive, yet unremarkable MLB career for at least 5 different clubs. There have been many like him… the Braves are better off without him…
Bravo Fan
July 20th, 2010
10:51 pm
First of all, Escobar hasn’t had a bad “first half” he as had a bad year. Go back to his last 162 games with the Braves and you will see what I mean.
Secondly, he has a great upside, and I hope he gets his head straightened out and has great success in Toronto, or where ever he goes next.
Thirdly, if the team couldn’t get him straightened out in the head in the last three years, then it wasn’t going to happen in this system and he had become a hazard to the other players, ask Glaus.