Remember one of the first priorities of Alex Anthopoulos when he took over the Atlanta Braves‘ General Manager chair? It was all about defense:
But the backdrop of everything we’ve talked about is, what can we do to get ourselves better defensively. And that ultimately should help the entire (pitching) staff.
That was from December of 2017, and the statement has been one consistent principle that has survived the trades, signings, non-signings, non-trades, and even the ‘financial flexibility’ of the past 2 Winters.
The numbers this season truly couldn’t be much more clear:
DEFENSIVE RUNS SAVED – NL EAST
- Braves: +18 (MLB Rank: 9th overall)
- Marlins: -10 (22nd)
- Phillies: -22 (25th)
- Nationals: -27 (28th)
- Mets: -35 (29th)
Those are almost stunning numbers.