NORTH PORT, Fla. — On Wednesday night, Braves officials met and discussed the coming spring training.
“There’s really two main stories,” Alex Anthopoulos said. “It’s, who’s going to be the fifth starter, assuming health with the other four, and the last two spots on the bench. And that’s really it. I mean, everything else is kind of accounted for – which is a result of having a solid, steady, good team with not a lot of competition. You’d much rather be in that position.”
Anthopoulos, the Braves’ president of baseball operations, did an admirable job improving a roster that already was strong. And because of the work he has done over his tenure in Atlanta, including all the long-term extensions, the Braves don’t have a ton to figure out here at CoolToday Park.
But this is spring training, and there will be surprises. More storylines will arise. That’s how it goes in camp.
On Thursday, Anthopoulos spoke about his roster and other topics as pitchers and catchers began their first workout.
Here are takeaways from his media session.
The challenge with adding to the bench
On paper, it may seem that the Braves’ bench is thin. Luis Guillorme is penciled in, and two spots are up for grabs.
But no team is perfect.
And here’s the catch: It’s quite difficult for the Braves to pursue quality depth.
“I think what’s challenging for us, and we had this at the trade deadline last year, I remember talking to some of our players about this – when we were looking to add to the bench, there were a bunch of really good players that were out there. And for a bench role, because of the way (manager Brian Snitker) runs things, which I’m totally on board with, our guys play every day. So it’s hard to have bench players that are gonna be good clubhouse guys and accept their role, that Austin Riley is gonna play every day, Matt Olson is gonna play every day and so on. And the outfield is the same way, so the at-bats aren’t gonna be there. You need a certain type of person, a certain type of individual.”
The Braves, as Anthopoulos mentioned, ran into this when they were trading for a utility infielder last summer. Players more accomplished than Nicky Lopez were available, but …
“I don’t know how happy they would’ve been in that role,” Anthopoulos said.
A clue on one bench spot
Anthopoulos provided a bit of insight on how the Braves may fill one of those two open bench spots.
“Those last two spots, it’s gonna come down to how Snit is gonna use these guys,” he said. “But I would tell you that I think speed is likely gonna factor for one of those two. It would make sense for Snit to have that option, but we’ll make that decision at the end of camp.”
That seems to point to Eli White or Forrest Wall. White might be a more capable backup outfielder – and he also features speed – but Wall is a burner. He was on the postseason roster in October.
Perhaps the Braves would carry both. Or maybe they put both Guillorme and David Fletcher, whom they acquired in December, on the opening-day roster.
And remember: The Braves also have outfielder J.P. Martinez, acquired in a small trade last month, on their roster.
Asked about whether speed would factor into the equation for one of those final two bench roles, Snitker said: “Yeah, usually, when you look at it. We’ll use this next six weeks to evaluate all that and see where we’re at and watch guys. You know what? Every year, there’s somebody that comes in and makes a name for themselves (that) you’re not thinking about). That’s part of the fun of spring training.”
And about the fourth outfielder spot …
The Braves’ brass talked about it a bit Wednesday night.
“And again, Snit will make this decision, but I know there’s been talk about: Do we give (Jarred Kelenic) everyday at-bats to start?” Anthopoulos said. “We were able to live through (Michael) Harris having a rough start to the year, and we lived through it, and he was phenomenal through the end of the year. The fact that we have depth in the lineup, he’s 24 years old, and getting everyday at-bats could have real value for him. To platoon him at this time, again, I don’t want to speak for Snit, but we’ve talked about it. I don’t think the lean is to do that. I think the lean, especially because we have a good offensive club, is to give him everyday at-bats. And that’s gonna impact who the fourth outfielder is.
“You take a J.P. Martinez, for example. We might decide we want to see him get at-bats in (Triple-A) Gwinnett. Or we might decide, if there’s a meaningful role, that we do want to carry him. It’s not just necessarily who are the best players? It’s, who are the best fits?”
Kelenic is young. A built-in advantage for him with the Braves: There’s enough lineup protection to take any pressure and stress off him.
It seems he’ll receive everyday playing time.
“He’s 24 years old, and I’m all for (giving him regular at-bats),” Snitker said. “We talked about that. We give him that opportunity because he’s a very talented young man and early in his career. That’s pretty good, a kid that’s tooled up like that, and he can be able to do that.”
Injuries?
A year ago, pitcher Kyle Wright came into camp behind others because of a recent cortisone shot. Ozzie Albies was coming off offseason shoulder surgery.
Asked if anyone was experiencing any lingering issues, Anthopoulos said the Braves won’t announce minor injuries – like guys dealing with something small after throwing a bullpen session – during camp. They’ll announce those situations when it becomes clear players will go to the injured list.
But, Anthopoulos said, the Braves don’t appear to have any surprise injured-list cases at this point.
Snitker said the same.
“Just talking to (head athletic trainer) George (Poulis) the other day after the physicals, we got some guys doing Tommy John (surgery rehab),” he said. “But other than that, guys are pretty much healthy and right now, no restrictions.”
Here’s more good news: The pitchers and catchers who needed to report Wednesday all did so, Anthopoulos said.
Anthopoulos lives in the moment
There’s been a lot of talk about the “World Series or bust” mindset. A.J. Minter shared it Wednesday, and Spencer Strider validated it Thursday.
Anthopoulos supports anything the players use for motivation. But he always strives to stay in the moment and worry about the day at hand.
The reasoning is explained in an example he’s provided before: After the Braves lost to the Dodgers in seven games in the National League Championship Series in 2020, Anthopoulos focused on how he could help the team get back to the playoffs. He thought he did “a bad job in the offseason and basically scrambled in ‘21.”
“It’s something that I learned from, that I’m never gonna get ahead of myself,” Anthopoulos said. “But, look, players aren’t front-office guys, and they have to worry about competing. If that (World Series-or-bust mindset) works, outstanding.”
This is why you’ll always hear Anthopoulos say the first step is to win the division and make it into the postseason. But he’s happy the players have come into camp motivated.
And Anthopoulos isn’t surprised that so many position players are here early. It shows their dedication and work ethic.
“I’m proud of the group, I’m proud of the character,” he said. " … Obviously you want to win, but I think they represent the South, the city, the community. These guys are awesome.”
