Because of the weather, Ozzie Albies’ rehab assignment is off to a slow start. He’s only played in two games, although he did have two hits in one of those games. It will probably still be a couple of weeks before we see him Atlanta, but I do expect him to return and be apart of the playoff roster. What his role will be has yet to be determined, but one thing should be set in stone — Vaughn Grissom will continue to have a spot in the lineup no matter what happens.
After beginning his major-league career on fire, Grissom finally cooled off for about a week to end August, and you began to wonder if this was all a little too good to be true. One of these rookie phenoms eventually has to hit a wall and regress, right? Well, it hasn’t happened to this point. Grissom has started off September scorching hot, hitting safely in all six games and slashing .476/.542/.857.
I’m not saying the rest of the league won’t eventually figure out Grissom, but with only a few weeks left in the season, they are running out of time. Also, something about his approach at the plate suggests it’s unlikely he experiences any sort of lengthy slump. This was a kid who put up better numbers than Michael Harris at every level, and we all know what Harris has done since joining the Braves. Grissom was born to hit, and he’s here to stay in Atlanta for good.
In an ideal world, Albies will heal up, start producing, and take over at second base. Vaughn Grissom would move to left field, where he’s been seen practicing before games. And the Braves would have one of the most unstoppable lineups 1-9 the game has ever seen. However, assuming Albies will immediately start playing like the All-Star version of himself and Grissom is able to adequately play left field might be optimistic thinking.
There’s not a lot of time left for Albies to get back into the swing of things, and we won’t know if Grissom can handle the outfield until we see it in a game. There’s a chance him playing left field is not an option, but regardless, the Braves MUST keep Grissom in the lineup if he keeps playing this way, even if that means finding a new role for Albies.
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Photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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