It shouldn’t come as a shock that FanGraphs is bullish on the reigning World Series champions. As I’ve wrote about over the last couple of days, they believe the Braves upgraded significantly at catcher and that Matt Olson will be able to fill Freddie Freeman’s shoes just fine. Add second base to the list of positions that FanGraphs thinks the Braves will be elite at, as Atlanta came in fourth in their positional rankings.
As far as individuals go, Ozzie Albies actually tied for third with Trevor Story, finishing just behind Marcus Semien and Brandon Lowe. The reason the Braves came in fourth is because FanGraphs isn’t fond of Atlanta’s infield depth, which I also think could be a cause for concern if someone is to get injured for a substantial period of time. Here is what they had to say about Albies, though:
Albies is a mainstay atop lists of contract-inclusive value, but he’s also just great. After a forgettable, injury-shortened 2020, he’s back to his old tricks, swinging early and often and making frequent, loud contact. It’s a strange profile – he swings so much and stands only 5-foot-8, so the power is hard to comprehend – but he hits home runs at a 22-per-600 PA pace, so swinging a lot sure seems to work for him. Combine that with excellent baserunning and solid defense, and you get a perennial All-Star.
If there were a list of the most underrated players in baseball, Albies would be near the top. Perhaps it’s because how many others stars are on the Braves roster, but he always seems to be overlooked when people talk about the best second basemen in the game. FanGraphs knows better. Albies has provided All-Star caliber production at the position ever since he made his MLB debut, and there’s no reason to believe that won’t continue in 2022.
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Photo: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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