Atlanta Braves Might be Forced to Find a Spot for Evan Gattis

It seems like right now in Atlanta Braves Spring Training, Evan Gattis is hitting everything hard. Whether slapping a fly to nothingness with a flyswatter, slamming a light switch into the on position so hard the plastic breaks or slamming doors everywhere he goes, Gattis is making some noise! The main noise he is making is with his bat. Everything that comes his way seemingly gets hit and hit hard. I think the last report said that when he steps in for batting practice the baseballs jump out of the bucket and begin to roll away as fast as they can.

So, we have sufficiently shown that Gattis is absolutely killing the ball. Not only is he killing it now but he also did in the minors last season as well as winter leagues this past winter baseball season. There always seems to be give and take though. With Gattis that comes with his defense. He isn’t the most reliable in the field all of the time though he does have a few options of where he can play. Other than a few games at first, his main playing time has been behind the plate and in the outfield. The outfield time has come more lately and he does okay there as well as at catcher.

His defensive problems aren’t so terrible that he couldn’t make up for it with his big bat. Even if they sign him in a back-up or bench role, his bat could be extremely valuable. Honestly, the work he has put in along with the results he has gotten should put him head and shoulders above someone like Jordan Schafer. I can’t imagine carrying Schafer and not Gattis. While Schafer might be better in the outfield, he certainly isn’t better in the batter’s box. Also he can play only the outfield while Gattis can be an emergency catching and first base backup at any time along with his outfield capability. For me, as long as something weird doesn’t happen between now and the end of Spring Training, it’s a no brainer. Gattis should be on the 25-man roster somewhere.

David Miller is a Senior Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @davidmillerrant, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google₊.