Not sure what else you can call it besides a dump. Most surprising of all, the Braves traded within the NL East.
Wow. Church must really have worn out his welcome with the Mets. Since coming off the DL in early June, Church’s line is .290/.336/.402 … far from good for a corner outfielder, but decent enough compared to most of the Mets’ other outfielders … and of course a far sight prettier than Francoeur’s .250/.282/.352 line for the season.
Defense? According to UZR, there’s little difference between them and Church might actually be better.
Handedness? With Fernando Tatis and Gary Sheffield, the Mets already had two righty-hitting corner outfielders; now they’ve got three.
So, let’s review: The Braves got a decent hitter and fielder who bats left-handed, and thus can platoon (or semi-platoon) with Matt Diaz in right field. The Mets got … what, exactly? If you figure it out, drop a line to Jerry Manuel. He’s going to need all the help he can get with this one.
Like everyone else in Braves-vill, I was all on-board the Francoeur bandwagon until the wheels fell off. As I said a few days ago, a change of pace would probably be good for him and help revive his career. I just cannot get over trading within the NL East, and I must admit that I do not know much about Church. Landing a 30 year old for a 25 year old, plus giving up cash does not seem like the best deal around.
What happened to Boston being hot and heavy for Francoeur? Was this really the best deal on the table? All I can say is rats!
