Thanks to everyone who submitted their questions on Twitter to our intern! We’re bringing Mailbag Monday back and it’s here to stay, so if you have anything feel free to DM us anytime or reply to this tweet for next week!
We’ll start off with a flurry of Marcell Ozuna questions we got over the weekend:
Even though the NL has decided to move away from the DH position, do you think it is worth it to resign Marcell Ozuna or do you think he will sign to a AL team that could utilize his strengths better? I personally believe that his offense well over compensates his outfield play and that we (the Braves) should keep him. – @codyxc14
Can the Braves handle one year of Ozuna in Left Field? – @dubman459
How much are you willing to pay Ozuna if we have to wait a year for the DH? – keep_chopping69
Since all of these are pretty similar I’ll address them all at once. Personally, I think the DH will be in the NL sooner rather than later. Ozuna has stated a few times he doesn’t see himself as a DH, but the market will dictate that. I certainly think he would be just fine for one season in Left Field. Drew Waters is almost ready, so a dream scenario would be the DH after a season and letting Waters, Pache, and Acuña man the outfield defensively. As far as a contract, I could see somebody overpaying, but I expect between $20 million and $26 million. Of course with more years, that number decreases. I imagine he would want four.
Why can’t Atlanta (a big city market) attract big name talent? We should be a destination like LA, Miami, & New York – @Spyder_Jones
I’m right there with you man. It’s a little different for each sport. The Falcons have drafted well enough to fill up their cap sheet to avoid really needing to go big in free agency. I think if they had the space, it would be a hot destination with the culture that’s built around the city. The Hawks had a nice free agency, but I think they lack the history that teams like the Lakers or Celtics have. Trae’s gonna bring that soon. The Braves are similar to the Falcons. They have the money but really only need their own guys plus a few outside pieces. Big contracts in baseball are tricky anyways, if you look at guys like Albert Pujols signing ten plus year deals, they’re gonna be awful contracts by the time they finish. I think Atlanta is certainly improving, but they need the titles to match the city life to start really attracting the bigger names
Assuming the Falcons make good hires and find spare change in their pockets, do you have any upcoming free agent targets in mind? Also, thoughts on how far the Hawks will go this year? – @Spencerlee_02
Great question. I wanted to wait until some cuts were made until we dove into this, but I have a few guys in mind already. Atlanta can clear a decent amount of space to bring a handful of bargain bin options in. Shaq Barrett or Brandon Scherff would be the dream, but realistically I could see Joe Thuney, Corey Linsley, Quinton Dunbar, Mike Hilton, or maybe even Pat Pete as targets. We’ll be all over that closer to time after we see who gets re-signed/cut.
I think the Hawks win a playoff series if they get healthy, but they gotta figure it out. They’ll miss them all together if they keep playing like this.
Out of the Quarterbacks not named Lawrence, who fits the Falcons best and why? – @JoeTMcDonald
We’re kinda split among the staff on this topic, personally I like Zach Wilson. Prospect fatigue undoubtedly plays into this, and Fields’ performance in the National Championship will be very telling. I think Wilson is more of a finished product and still has loads of potential, so I give him the edge. Justin Fields can be great in the right system, however, if a team like the Jets picks him up — it may not end well. I think Fields & Atlanta are actually better for each other so Fields can refine himself as a passer, but I still prefer Wilson. I think they’ll both be great QBs. I’ll be doing a big write up on both guys breaking down their tape tomorrow, so check that out too.
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