Talk about a good first impression. Two newcomers to the Braves’ roster took home monthly awards Thursday when Justin Upton was named National League player of the month and Evan Gattis was named National League rookie of the month.
Upton has welcomed himself to a new team by hitting a franchise-record 12 home runs in the month of April, two shy of the major league record of 14 hit by Albert Pujols (2006) and Alex Rodriguez (2007). He was three shy of Joe Adcock’s franchise record for any month when he hit 15 in July 1956.
He’s made the transition look easy, compared with what players such as Albert Pujols, Josh Hamilton and even his brother B.J. Upton have gone through.
“I didn’t change leagues, that’s the first thing.,” said Upton, who came via trade from Arizona while B.J. signed as a free agent from Tampa Bay. “I’ve seen a lot of these guys before. I’m seeing more of the pitching in the NL East now. It’s been a pretty smooth transition for me. I’ve enjoyed the new team, new surroundings. It’s a great group of guys.”
Upton led the major leagues with a .734 slugging percentage in April, while hitting .298 (28-for-94) with 22 runs, 19 RBIs and a .402 on-base percentage in 26 games. This was his second player-of-the-month award. Upton won it in May 2009 with Arizona.
He reached 10 homers earlier than any Brave, getting there in 19 games while Dale Murphy reached 10 in 20 games in 1985. He was only the 18th player in major league history to reach 10 home runs before his team had played 20 games. Upton, at 25, was the second youngest of that group to do it behind Mickey Mantle, who was 24 when he hit 10 homers in 19 games for the 1956 Yankees.
Gattis wasn’t even sure he would make the Braves roster out of spring training and now he has won rookie of the month in his first month in the majors.
“I didn’t really even know there was one,” said Gattis, who was told about the award just before the Braves took the field for batting practice Thursday. “Definitely honored and definitely happy about it. And excited.”
Gattis homered in his first major league game, his first pinch hit at-bat and his first game against Stephen Strasburg. He assured the Braves of a series win over their rival Nationals on April 13 with a game-winning two-run shot.
“My first home run was big for me, that was cool,” said Gattis, who homered off Roy Halladay and the Phillies in his first start April 3. “Reed (Johnson), when I came in, said, ‘That’ll take the pressure off.’ Just getting that out of the way. Having some success early on has helped.”
Gattis finished the month with six home runs, when no other major league rookie hit more than three. He has 16 RBIs, and no other major league rookie has more than 10. He’s tied for third in the majors with five game-winning RBIs, behind Angel Pagan and Brandon Phillips, each of whom have six.
Heyward improving: Jason Heyward has been walking on the treadmill and riding a stationary bike for the past two days and feeling more encouraged a week into his recovery from an emergency appendectomy. Heyward thought it might be late May before he was able to return, but now he hopes to return sooner.
“I hope I don’t have to wait that long,” Heyward said. “I’d be disappointed if I had to be out that long.”
Heyward plans to start taking dry swings Saturday, two days ahead of when he planned to start doing baseball activities. If all goes well, he’ll add some catch and light running, too.
He said he has spoken to teammates such as Ramiro Pena who have had the surgery, as well as hitting coach Greg Walker, who was in Chicago when Adam Dunn rushed back from his appendectomy in 2011 and had the worst season of his career.
“Everybody is telling me to take my time,” Heyward said. “You’ll know (when you’re ready), but it’s still not something to rush. You can end up having a hernia or oblique strain.”
Charity walk: Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez unveiled plans Thursday to join Marietta's Cindy Donald in a charitable effort to raise money for patients with spinal-cord and brain injuries. The Braves are asking fans to donate for every walk drawn by Braves batters this season to raise money for Donald's foundation which helps patients cover the costs of therapy and equipment.
Gonzalez got to know Donald eight years ago shortly after she was paralyzed in a driveway accident while sunbathing when her father accidentally ran over her. Gonzalez, pitching coach Roger McDowell, former Braves manager Bobby Cox and coach Ned Yost are all part of the “Bagel Boys” a group of Marietta neighbors who have helped raise money for Donald and now her foundation. For information, go to www.dreamsofrecovery.com or call 770-675-6565.
