B.J. Upton says it’s just a coincidence that the Braves were 8-1 since manager Fredi Gonzalez moved the speedy center fielder into the leadoff spot, including a seven-game winning streak before Friday night’s series opener against Arizona.
“I’m not the only one doing it,” he said. “There’s guys doing it up and down the lineup. Guys have been piecing together good (at-bats) and trying to give ourselves the best possible chance to win. I think we’ve done that as a whole.”
Upton was 9-for-37 (.243) during a nine-game hitting streak since moving to leadoff, with three extra-base hits, two walks, seven runs, and two stolen bases (he would’ve had three steals, but was tagged after coming off the base).
He extended the streak to 10 games with a first-inning single Friday, then stole second base, advanced on a sacrifice bunt and scored on Freddie Freeman’s single to put the Braves ahead 1-0.
If the numbers don’t seem overly impressive, consider what Upton had done in his last 44 games before the move: .193 (32-for-166) with 19 runs, a .257 OBP, and five stolen bases. The team was 19-25 in those games.
He’s gotten on base at least once a game since moving to leadoff, and when he’s been on base he’s made the opposing pitcher think about him being a threat to run. That’s a distraction that can pay dividends for others in the lineup.
“My job is to get on, put pressure on some pitchers, make them think about me,” Upton said. “Get some guys behind good pitches to hit…. That’s what I’m in position to do, just kind of set the table for these guys. Fortunately I’ve been able to do that the last week or so. Hopefully I can just continue to do that.”
Moving Upton to the leadoff spot was a hunch more than anything else by Gonzalez, who wanted to try something to spark a stagnant offense and get Upton going. He also wanted to get Jason Heyward down into the middle of the lineup instead of leadoff, to a spot where the big man could drive in runs.
Heyward has struggled so far in the fifth spot, but had begun to slump even before the move. The offense as a whole has been more successful manufacturing runs and not relying on home runs, and Gonzalez said he wasn’t thinking about moving Upton from leadoff.
In Heyward’s past 22 games before Friday, the left fielder was 15-for-75 (.200) with one homer, eight RBIs, 14 walks and a .341 OBP and .320 slugging percentage. He had four hits and one RBI in his past 12 games and was 9-for-46 (.196) with no homers and a .373 OBP hitting in the fifth spot.
