Nov 18 2008
Kotchman gives Braves upside, stability at first base
By Bud L. Ellis
braves.today.com
ATLANTA — Remember this time last offseason, when Braves Nation already was wringing their hands and sweating bullets over the future of first base?
Yeah, a lot like Braves Nation has done this offseason surrounding the makeup of Atlanta’s starting rotation, with the Jake Peavy talks halted for now – yes, I still think there is a decent chance Peavy will be here next season.
But regardless of who toes the slab for Atlanta when we kick off the 2009 season, there is no debate who will man first base.
Casey Kotchman may not be Mark Teixeira, but I think he’s a much better player than what we saw through most of his first two months with the Braves. If you remember, we first got a glimpse of Kotchman when he beat Jorge Campillo and Atlanta on Sunday Night Baseball in June with a two-run homer, on a night Campillo pitched great but the Braves couldn’t do anything about the Angels.
Six weeks later, Teixeira was with the Angels and Kotchman was a Brave. At the time of the trade, Kotchman was hitting .287. But the combination of going 11-for-70 in his first 20 games in an Atlanta uniform, then his leave-of-absence to be with his ailing mother, left the 25-year-old struggling to find his footing in a new league, with a new team, trying to take over a position manned by one of the game’s better sluggers.
And in a way, it’s unfair to hold Kotchman up against Teixeira. He’s just as good defensively as Tex, but he’s not a power-hitter. He’s more of a doubles’ hitter and, yes, I know traditionally you want your first baseman to have some pop. Twenty-one of his 25 hits in September were single, in a month that saw Kotchman hit.305 and drive in 15 runs.
You’ll see a better showing from Kotchman next season, I believe. Changing leagues isn’t easy, and the time away to be with his mother – which was the right choice; any son would go in a heartbeat to be with his mom if her health was failing – kept Kotchman from really getting his bearings until September. And by then, all of us were looking toward 2009 and beyond.
Check out his 2007 numbers: .296 average, 37 doubles, 11 home runs, 68 RBIs. Kotchman finished 2008 with 14 homers and 74 RBIs, both career highs. I think you’ll see Kotchman continue to develop, perhaps into a 20-homer, 90-RBIs guy, and the good news is he’s going to be here for a while, signed through 2011.
So worry all you want about the top of the pitching rotation. At least this winter, nobody’s sweating over who will play first base.
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