Braves need this free agent splurge on Upton to pay off
Frank Wren hopes and believes B.J. Upton will live up to his $75.25 million contract. (AP photo)
This probably isn’t fair to B.J. Upton, an immensely talented player with power, speed and the motivation that generally accompanies an athlete looking for a fresh start with a new team. It might not even be fair to Frank Wren, who was staring at significant holes in his lineup this winter and had relatively few options in how to fill them.
But that’s a lot of money.
It’s a lot of money for a young player who may have wowed the baseball world in 2008, but, statistically at least, really hasn’t blown anybody away since. It’s a lot of money for a franchise that just cleared a ton of payroll space and can’t afford to take a wrong turn and clog the financial ledger with a big mistake again. It’s a lot of money for a general manager who too often has taken that wrong turn and smacked into a wall.
Derek Lowe. Kenshin Kawakami. Dan Uggla. We’re not talking the Apple-Home Depot-Coca Cola trifecta of ground-floor investments.
The Braves just committed $75.25 million over the next five years to B.J. Upton, thereby making their new center fielder the highest paid player in franchise history. By 2017, and more likely sooner, we’ll know if the organization hitched their wagon to the right limo.
Wren is aware of the risks. He has endured past ones. He deserves credit for not becoming gun-shy with visions of an 8-22 Kawakami dancing in, and stomping on, his head. He also surely realizes that how Upton pans out will go a long way toward determining the Braves’ success and, therefore, defining Wren’s tenure.
“Any time you’re making a big investment you take a deep breath and think, ‘How does this affect our club going forward?’” Wren said Thursday. “We just felt he was such a valuable asset in the way he plays the game, and after meeting him [and realizing] the type of person he is and the type of teammate he’ll be, we wanted to go after him.”
It was news conference day. Everybody is happy on news conference day.
Upton hits for power. Upton plays defense. Upton steals bases. He can’t hit leadoff like Michael Bourn, but he hits right-handed. That should help a lineup loaded with lefties (Jason Heyward, Freddie Freeman, Brian McCann).
Manager Fredi Gonzalez cracked that on defense, with the speedy Upton and Heyward, “We might not even need a left fielder.”
Smiles and laughter all around.
But Upton brings some baggage – at least, perceived baggage. In 2008, he twice was called out and subsequently benched by manager Joe Maddon for not hustling on ground balls. In 2010, he and Tampa Bay teammate Evan Longoria argued and had to be separated following an inning against Arizona when Longoria perceived that Upton lazily pursued a drive to the gap, allowing a double to turn into a triple.
Wren checked out all of the issues. He came away convinced the criticisms were either unfounded, overstated or the result of a young player still learning his way.
Upton didn’t hide from the topic.
“I’ve been tagged,” he said in a soft tone. “Why sugarcoat it? I can’t worry about it. The guys who were in the clubhouse with me know me.”
Braves special assistant Jim Fregosi lives in Tampa, Fla., and, according to Wren has seen Upton play “30 times a year. … He was there the night the ball was hit into the gap and said it was an isolated situation.”
Wren likened Upton to another former Braves center fielder, Andruw Jones. “He plays the position so gracefully that there are times it looks like he’s not hustling and he is. And there were times when he was younger, and I don’t think even he understood what was being said until they brought it to his attention.”
In the Rays’ postseason of 2008, Upton looked like baseball’s next superstar. He had seven homers, 16 RBIs and six stolen bases in 16 games. He hit .321 in the American League Championship Series against Boston. But he’s a .255 career hitter, and while his power numbers have ascended, with a career-high 28 homers last season, his batting average (.246), on-base percentage (.298) and strikeout total (169, one more than Uggla) don’t scream $75.25 million player.
Upton benefited from a thin free-agent market. But if he becomes the player some envisioned four years ago, the salary won’t be so out of whack, and one thing Wren and the Braves need now is a free-agent success story.
By Jeff Schultz
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108 comments Add your comment
Jeff Schultz
November 29th, 2012
7:34 pm
Extremus — I don’t see anything in spam. You have a comment posted at 5 p.m.
martyjames
November 29th, 2012
7:35 pm
I think this is way to much money ,an nothing against BJ Upton, because of all the young talent u have now that will be coming up for contracts soon. plus catcher brain Mccann .
Peter
November 29th, 2012
7:38 pm
The only positive thing I can think of is that since the AL is the superior league, maybe he’ll find the pitching in the NL a little easier to solve.
I would say the national League pitching is tougher………
After the Nationals signing.. Wren tipped his hand, how did the nationals get away with a trade involving one A ball pitcher, and we couldn’t make it happen with our depth at pitching ?
WREN IS A JOKE !
Tommy Boggs
November 29th, 2012
7:52 pm
Span was the leadoff man we needed to replace Bourn and Play CF. Leave Prado in LF, sign either Youkolis or Keppinger to Platoon with Francisco at 3rd. Take the balance of cash and spend it like a mid-market team should; strong bench and reward the players that have produced for you.
This .250 hitter will take away the money that Prado deserves.
Wren better pull a big rabbit out of his Ars to salvage this winter.
Arno
November 29th, 2012
7:59 pm
I was dreaming Wren was deeking the Phils about an Upton deal, and instead, going after Span. Then I woke up. Ah, well.
Longtimefan
November 29th, 2012
8:30 pm
We shall see. Sometimes you have to roll the dice. Can’t argue he has the potential and the 5 years of his contract should be his peak years. Every FA center fielder had question marks. At least FW is being aggressive and trying to make something happen. Many of these some bloggers were calling for FW to trade/cut/demote Heyward last winter. I’ll trust a MLB GMs assessment of a players potential over even the most ardent fan. No doubt he has done his homework. And for those saying this doesn’t leave money to lock up our young talent-get real, you don’t think FW has a flow chart of each player’s arbitration years and who and when he plans to offer long term deals? That’s his job folks. I know I am in the minority on this blog but I trust in his judgement and his plan. As I have said before, no GM bats1.000
beone
November 29th, 2012
8:52 pm
So what did Mr. Magoo say / do? What gets you banned?
Loki
November 29th, 2012
8:58 pm
A Dan Uggla that plays defense. Hopefully Greg Walker can do something to get his strike outs down.
Felix
November 29th, 2012
9:15 pm
“Derek Lowe. Kenshin Kawakami. Dan Uggla. We’re not talking the Apple-Home Depot-Coca Cola trifecta of ground-floor investments.” ………..I fear that, in a year or two, Jeff will be adding Upton to his list of bad deals.
b
November 29th, 2012
9:20 pm
And we couldn’t afford David Ross for two years? Ross was worth his salary just to be Medlen’s personal catcher.
CJ
November 29th, 2012
9:28 pm
And to be added, may we not forget the Mike Hampton saga.
Jo Bling
November 29th, 2012
9:31 pm
No, we could not afford to pay a backup catcher $3.1 million. Ross was good, but that’s ridiculous.
TomB
November 29th, 2012
9:44 pm
Wren’s track record is not very good on the free agent front which leads me to believe we just signed another Uggla…time will tell.
It will be interesating to see if adding a right handed bat makes that much of a difference. Remember Chipper was a switch so it will be interesting to see the results.
This is just a crazy era we’re living through in baseball…salaries this high for above average ballplayers…. Meanwhile Washington just signed Span. Philadelphia,you’re up
Jimiz
November 29th, 2012
9:48 pm
The Phills made wren overpay on Upton. Wren figured the phillies would make a offer for around 15 a year. Thats why they had him come here to visit and talk they were hoping he would pick us instead. Now i see that the Phills only offered him 10 a year which makes me think they didn’t want him really at all. They just was giving the appearence that they was so the Braves would rush into a deal and over pay. This makes it easy to acquire Bourn for what will be a bargain since the Braves and the Nats are out. I bet Bourn gets 5 years at 65mil. And we look like the kid that got his candy took by a bully.
Peter R.
November 29th, 2012
9:54 pm
I think he COULD improve. This reminds of the Fuggly trade and subsequent signing sadly. The Braves need another piece to fill LF then the magic might happen. Definitely reminds of putting everything on black in Las Vegas. Eh, I think it’s reasonable to presume that he could bounce back next year. Definitely needed to balance out the lineup. Maybe not having Longoria in the lineup for so long really hurt is numbers. The Rays have never had much protection for him in there. Some their batters are complete jokes. Gotta take risks to win big.
Delbert D.
November 29th, 2012
10:00 pm
Doesn’t seem like a good move. That is star money for an average player.
Steve
November 29th, 2012
10:45 pm
I agree on the risk part, it is definitely there. Still, the signing is not as bad as the alternative, which might have been trading one or two quality SP prospects to the Twins for the extremely overrated Denard Span.
Speaking of Span, I see the Nats just got him. Gald for that as now the Braves won’t do something silly trying to get him. The Nats trading for Span tells me that they also believe Bourn’s asking price is too high.
Dawgdad (The Original)
November 29th, 2012
10:46 pm
We could have had a better player, a leadoff man, a spark plug, Denard Span, for a freaking minor leaguer, but we decided to spend $75 million on another castoff who strikes out more frequently than Dan Uggla? Someone is going to wrap this deal around Wren’s neck in about 3 years.
Thomas Brown
November 29th, 2012
10:57 pm
Most money paid by the Atlanta Braves for a Free Agent Signing, exceeding that paid to Derek Lowe who got a 4 years $ 60 million contract to pitch here the 2008-2009 season. We traded him 2011 for left hander Chris Jones and paid off $ 10 million dollars 2012 to Cleveland to unload him last year. For his career, he has a 4.00 ERA. In his 3 years here, he was 1 game over .500 with an ERA of 4.57. $ 60 million for that. And, he has not had a winning season since Atlanta unloaded him, admitting they were wrong on Derek Lowe.
$ 75 million for .255 career batting average skinny center fielder who averages 18 home runs a season but does steal more bases than the Atlanta Braves tally and also has a .990 fielding average.
Jo Bling
November 29th, 2012
11:05 pm
$6.2 million for two years for a backup catcher is way too much. Ross was great and gave us everything we asked for and more, but he is on the decline and matching that kind of money for a backup catcher would have been ridiculous.
STEELY DAN MAN
November 30th, 2012
3:19 am
I agree w/ LONGTIMEFAN …… FW studied under SCHUERHOLZ …. And has proven to be a professional as far as I’m concern. FW knows what he’s doing ….. There are so many variables involved in what he does ….. by the time he does make these decisions …. FW & his staff will have done all due diligence, cross every T …. dot every I ….. looked under every rock …. so that we can be sure that whatever decision he makes for the Braves ….he done everything to keep feeding his fam LOL …….
STEELY DAN MAN
November 30th, 2012
3:22 am
OH ….. and give the Braves the best chance at being successful !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
STEELY DAN MAN
November 30th, 2012
3:23 am
In other words ….. I trust FW’s judgment
man and dog
November 30th, 2012
5:56 am
@DP way back at 7:15pm – “Whiff Machine” – I love that!!! I remember a time in many Septembers when many Braves fans called out Henry for not ‘hustling’ when he was one of the few busting his butt day in and day out. On the outside, this looks to be a bad move to some. I think it could be a great thing. We have the International League batting champ (Costannza) and one of our old favs (Shaffer) that could play left field AND lead off. Keep our pitching staff and lets go with this. Of course, we still have Fredie and Uggla to deal with.
man and dog
November 30th, 2012
6:02 am
I remember another, no, two other skinny outfielders that went on to greatness. Make that three….Aaron, Bonds, Griffey.
man and dog
November 30th, 2012
6:08 am
One thing I am not happy about is not re-signing Ross. That was D-U-M-B dumb.
man and dog
November 30th, 2012
6:14 am
Then again, 6 mill might have been too much to give an old catcher when you have some pretty decent prospects in the minors (WHICH YOU DON’T USE OR FORGET ABOUT) that could be brought up and used.
man and dog
November 30th, 2012
6:15 am
And I’m not just talking about catchers………..
Iluvnutella
November 30th, 2012
7:27 am
Frank Wren, Dan Radokovich, Thomas Dimitroff……textbook examples of the Peter Principle.
Pippa's Meaty Backside
November 30th, 2012
7:45 am
How many strikeouts above WAR has he accrued? I know the WHIPs,WAPs,and SBOs are solid. Some cutting and pasting of many years of salary and staitistical information might be in order.
Mr Pitts
November 30th, 2012
7:47 am
“Then again, 6 mill might have been too much to give an old catcher when you have some pretty decent prospects in the minors (WHICH YOU DON’T USE OR FORGET ABOUT) that could be brought up and used.”
Man and dog, I think you nailed it.
Arthur
November 30th, 2012
8:01 am
Lets wait and see. Maybe this will be a good move. Mr. Upton will not be out there alone. Heyward,Freeman, Prado, Simmons,McCann, and yes Uggla.
Bob the Blogger
November 30th, 2012
8:04 am
We missed out on Span, and for the price of a single A pitcher, nonetheless. If we could have traded a minor league pitcher or two for Span, we would have had one heck of an outfield and offense.
Larry
November 30th, 2012
8:20 am
A Career .255 average, free swinging, guess hitter that is at the top of the league in strikeouts.
Yes, the is the Braves way, the Bobby Cox way, the Fredi Gonzalez way and the Frank Wren way to guarantee yet another season and era of the streaky, hot and cold baseball, that has always been their Achilles heel in the playoffs. Remember, of the Braves 16 seasons under Cox (15) and now Gonzalez (1) in the postseason, we have watched the other team celebrate on the pitcher’s mound 15 of those 16 opportunities. This is much more than abysmal; this is utterly unfathomably horrid postseason management.
And this is why after 20 seasons as a season ticket holder I cancelled three seasons ago as this is simply the most boring baseball in the world to watch….zero regrets, haven’t been to a games since, and haven’t missed it a second!
Go Falcons and Go Dawgs tomorrow!
Thomas Brown
November 30th, 2012
8:22 am
Go Dawgs
jfreak13713
November 30th, 2012
8:39 am
Not a good deal for the Brave but a GREAT deal for a slightly above average offensive player. Sorry, but this is not a game changer for the braves. Now we have another player who will hit .250 or lower and strikeout twice a game and never hit with runners in scoring position! That now will be $125 million dollars tied up between two guys who are good but not great. However, we do still have the FALCONS!
John Leonard
November 30th, 2012
8:57 am
Bad signing,top three Braves in salary hit 246,230,and 222 last year.We could have had Span for a minor league pitcher.I would take Span over Upton.It seems Wren makes huge mistakes when going after free agents.
Cecil34
November 30th, 2012
8:59 am
Wren’s tally sheet of success in these matters is suspect at this point in his regime.
There is so much money being tied up in any one player these days that it is frightening to think about if they fail. Then they just drag everything down with them.
With these type of contracts that are routine in MLB now – it just kills any incentive of these players to bust their butts.
That is why you see so many players signed to these kind of contracts fall into mediocrity and under-perform.
A definate catch-22.
Carroll
November 30th, 2012
9:38 am
I am physically sick over this move. The one guy who said we shouldve traded for span and signed youkilis…those are the kind of moves that make a mid-market team a success (see, cardinals, giants, oakland etc)….NOT this kind of absurdity. I have been saying it all winter…I live in Tampa and watch the Rays regularly, and have so often lemented seeing Upton come up to bat in a crucial situation. He is a black hole of energy and emotion–a true rally killer. And just think…if a player loafs BEFORE they hit the contract jackpot, how do you think he will conduct himself now that he is locked up through the end of his productive years? Frank Wren, I literally hate you for ruining my braves by refusing to adopt the moneyball method. Unless you are the Yankees, then OBP is king in this day and age of baseball and should dictate your every move from an offensive perspective…everything else is streaky and unreliable. Moreover, this moneyball-driven style of baseball means getting more for your limited supply of money out of hungry, enthusiastic players out to prove themselves by playing SMART, sound baseball–this is exiciting for fans to watch. Instead, we get to see more overpriced primadonnas loafing around, flailing away helplessly with runners on base…and you wonder why there isn’t more excitement and energy among the braves fan base? #Disgusted
Swede
November 30th, 2012
10:03 am
If the Braves where to trade Jair Jurrjens for Mike Trout, Zack Greinke and cash considerations, I am positive the majority of commenters here would be disgusted and physically sick about the move.
What is wrong with you people?
After reading these comments I feel an ocean of negativity surrounding me. Is it true that the Atlanta fanbase is the worst in both leagues?
We have a young, talented roster with a very bright future, and a GM that has proved himself by putting this group of players together in spite of a more than tight budget.
The future is bright!
Get som perspective – try to get a smile on yours faces once in a while.
Here is more balanced take on the signing:
http://capitolavenueclub.com/?p=8007
Please people, try to show just a little bit of optimism this off-season…
doug
November 30th, 2012
10:15 am
another bust in the making. and probably injuries. the curse of the braves.
Let's Go
November 30th, 2012
10:26 am
I’m not thrilled by the move but considering what was available this year I think it’s the best move the Braves could make and I’m glad they pulled it off. The problem when there are not many options available in free agency is that teams that have players they want to trade can demand small fortunes for their guys and I think that was the problem the Braves were running up against. The Rockies wanted too much for Fowler, the DBacks wanted way too much for Justin Upton and the Twins got a gem of a prospect for Span which makes you think the only way the Braves were going to get him is if they had included Bethancourt in a deal.
Moving to the NL where the pitching is better and playing half his games in a real size ballpark instead of a dome you got to know Upton’s home run numbers will decrease to around 20 a year. Hopefully the Braves hitting guys can get him to try and hit more balls into the gaps instead of swinging for the fences and coming up short.
I know 75 mil is a lot of money but the Braves had to get someone and sometimes it’s better to pay too much then to give up too much. The Braves still need someone for LF or 3B so a trade is not out of the question next week at the winter meetings and they still have all their young pitching as bait.
Don
November 30th, 2012
10:28 am
The Braves spend 75 million and get a player who hits below .250, also has a terrible, terrible On Base Average below .300, and an unbelievable Strike Out total that approaches 200.
BUT even these terrible stats are concentrated against the WEAKER Pitching in the league
Against the 1/3 Best Pitchers, he hit ONLY .168 with NO HOME RUNS.
UNBELIEVABLE ACQUISITION.
Don
November 30th, 2012
10:42 am
UNBELIEVABLE, ABSURD, DISGUSTING.
Do you not understand?
Against the better pitchers – the best 1/3 of the Pitchers, he HIT ONLY .168 with NO HOME RUNS.
Ralph
November 30th, 2012
10:52 am
Max Sizemore
The only positive thing I can think of is that since the AL is the superior league, maybe he’ll find the pitching in the NL a little easier to solve.
—————————————————————————————————-
Who won the All Star game, who won the World Series this year?
Michael
November 30th, 2012
11:08 am
The money he makes is irrelevant, but yaayyy, the Braves intentionally hire another anemic bat. Woohoo!
RaleighDawg
November 30th, 2012
11:46 am
David Wright apparently just re-signed with the Mets for $17.25M/year on an eight year contract…I sure wish the Bravers would have pursued and signed Wright instead of Upton given the contracts are in the same neighborhood. Guess we’ll keep our fingers crossed that BJ’s .246 average doesn’t go further south as seemingly every other player from another team does with the Braves.
Too expensive a BJ
November 30th, 2012
11:48 am
Way to go Frank!! You lock McCann in a homer move that will tie up millions and will see McCann trend downward thru injury and age….Had no bead on Span, who our rival Nats locked up and is a way better player than Upton (and for less $) ..saddled with Struggla’s contract … but this may be your grand opus or “dopus” as it were. The Atlanta Braves, where <250 hitters come to thrive!! Give me a break. I cannot wait until Liberty unloads Braves and whoever buys them has "Fire Frank Wren" as the first item on his checklist. Fredo will be 2nd on the list. I heard this was going to happen and then yesterday when it was confirmed had to go to the medicine cabinet. Yeah, we like a guy who will hit some dingers now and again…forget about the percentages and OBP, etc.
Dave
November 30th, 2012
11:49 am
Not too worried…you get a kid who can flat out play centerfield. You get a kid who steals bases. You get a kid who’s power is increasing. I can deal with the batting average and strikeouts. However take the age 28 and understand that for the next 3 to 4 years he is likely to get better not worse I don’t see how the Braves fans don’t see this as a win.
Tell It Like It Is
November 30th, 2012
12:14 pm
The Braves are getting an excellent player who has at least been in the playoffs beyond the first round. That is an improvement already.