The Daily Chop: Pache, Heredia, Infield Previews, and more

The Braves enter camp having done little to warrant keeping Cristian Pache off the Opening Day roster, but circumstances may force him to Triple-A temporarily. Obtaining an additional year of contractual control will no doubt tempt Atlanta, but can they afford to have those at-bats go to Ender Inciarte? Nothing is etched in stone yet, and as Mark Bowman wrote on Wednesday, Pache believes he can win the job outright. The Braves have a tough choice, especially given how the Jason Heyward scenario played out during arbitration. An extra year of control is very valuable, but also off-putting to players and potentially detrimental to the club. Spring Training will be very interesting with regards to the center field job.

Braves News

Cristian Pache’s defense, athletic ability perfectly fit Braves

Gabe Burns of the AJC outlines the traits that make Pache a perfect fit for the current Braves roster.

Braves claim Guillermo Heredia off waivers, designate Jack Mayfield for assignment

The Braves add an additional outfield option in the form of Guillermo Heredia.

Braves’ infield returns intact, looking to build off strong 2020

Atlanta returns a very strong infield group, including the defending MVP. The right side may be the best in baseball and the left side has all the potential to become a force as well.

Breaking down NL East outfields for ‘21

The Braves have one of the more volatile outfields in baseball from the standpoint of how Marcell Ozuna will be used. The implementation of a universal DH would greatly affect the makeup of the Atlanta outfield, especially defensively.

MLB News

Baseball’s 25 best players under 25

The Braves landed four players in this draft simulation of the top 25 players under 25.

Ichiro’s home project: a pitching mound

This man is still an absolute machine.

Rumors: Phillies, Angels in mix for Odorizzi

These two options seem suboptimal from Odorizzi’s perspective.