…and it was highway robbery.
I guess Uggla, a Silver Slugger recipient this year, was only worth super-utility man Omar Infante and reliever Mike Dunn to the Florida Marlins.
Infante, as we all should remember, came up big for the injury-plagued Bravos this season and was controversially named to the National League All-Star Team by fellow NL East manager Charlie Manuel. Infante hit .321 this season in just under 500 at bats. Don’t get me wrong, this is a very respectable number, however Infante just doesn’t have the track record to be able to guarantee future results resembling his career 2010 season.
Dunn is a reliever who has only logged 23 innings in the big leagues. Although the young lefty showed some promise this season, the crowded Braves bullpen limited his innings and would likely continue to do so next season.
Now Braves fans, you should be thrilled with this trade! Uggla will add a feared right handed bat to the middle of the Braves lineup…one that has hit over 30 home runs in each of his last 4 seasons. It is also worth noting that Uggla’s numbers are insanely good at Turner Field. He is a .354 career hitter in Atlanta with 12 homers and a 1.051 OPS.
The Marlins almost seemed desperate to trade Uggla due to the fact that the two parties could not agree on a contract extension. Uggla enters free agency following the 2011 season. Uggla was holding out on a 5 year, $71 million deal. Sounds like a bargain to me! You be the judge. Should the Braves go ahead and lock him up for a long term deal? Or is he another rental?
