The Braves have claimed outfielder Adam Walker off waivers from the Orioles, Baltimore announced. He’ll take the roster spot just vacated by catcher Tuffy Gosewisch, filling Atlanta’s 40-man.
Walker has moved around quite a bit already this winter. He started with the Twins, stopped off with the Brewers, and then landed in Baltimore before being designated for assignment.
[Related: Updated Atlanta Braves Depth Chart]
A free-swinging slugger, Walker belts plenty of long balls and also whiffs at an equally impressive rate. Over the past two years, he has been retired by strikeout in over one-third of his plate appearances. The 25-year-old ended with a .243/.305/.479 slash and 27 homers at Triple-A in 2016 and has launched a total of 58 homers in 265 games across the past two seasons.
The Braves’ outfield looks mostly full, with Matt Kemp, Ender Inciarte and Nick Markakis currently set to line up as starters. The Braves are lacking in options beyond that starting trio following the recent trade of Mallex Smith, so Walker could conceivably get a look in a reserve role. However, he’s limited to the outfield corners, and the Braves would likely prefer their fourth outfielder to be someone capable of stepping into center field.
Works for me
Check out his strike outs from 2016. He strikes out more than he hits the ball. But when he connects, the ball flies far!
That is two Baltimore AAA outfielders this week. Gwinnett will have Walker, Avery, Rojas, Jr. and Bonifacio this year. AAA champs? It is a much more reasonable task to increase contact than to hit 30 HRs.
It is a much more reasonable task to increase contact than to hit 30 HRs.
What is your proof for this? Players routinely develop power and rarely develop contact (with out sacrificing some power)
Ichiro could hit 30 hrs a year if he wanted
You are correct, sir. And, chit arthritis is just being a troll because she has nothing better to do. The proof is — go look it up for yourself since you have plenty of time to waste.
More braves fans that don’t understand baseball, SHOCKED!
the proof is that it’s far harder to teach contact hitting than power, because all you need for raw power is to swing a lot harder and pray you make contact. There’s no skill there, just muscle.
but that’s just, you know, basic logic, so i’m sure it has no place on an internet comments section.
You don’t develop power by “swinging harder”. That’s how you jack up your strikeouts.
thus explaining why we’re seeing a rise in both HRs and K rates in modern MLB?
seriously, anybody who believes power is harder to teach just doesn’t know anything about playing baseball. It’s mostly based on raw physical ability.
if you don’t believe me watch an hour of batting practice at pretty much any level of baseball. Anybody can hit a HR when that’s all their trying to do. Doing it consistently in game situations takes a lot more skill, it’s learning everything from pitch recognition to mid-swing bat control. If all that was remotely easy to teach, every minor leaguer would be hitting 20 HRs a year by double A.
From someone preaching basic logic you seem to none. You said “anyone who believes power is harder to teach just doesn’t know anything about baseball.” Then your next sentence is it’s based on raw physical power. So how easy is it to “teach” raw physical power it’s not. Of course people can hit BP homers but that doesn’t translate on the field always. You think people are striking out in BP?? That’s like saying a guy is a great contact hitter bc he never misses in BP. Your a joke
HR rates rose because of the new balls last year, before that they had been much lower and the K/9 has risen very, very little over the last 10 years. You’re power comes from legs and core and having solid mechanics.
Players cranking beach balls pitches they know are coming over the plate proves nothing.
You can teach contact and power by tweaking mechanics, what you can’t teach is instincts and, to an extent, bat speed.
Dustin Peterson, Ronnier Mustelier too. One of those guys may end up on the bench in Atlanta. Probably Bonifacio, but I’m pulling for Rojas. One of those guys will probably go to Mississippi.
My guess at starters: Peterson in LF, Avery in CF, Walker in RF. Adams on the bench at AAA, Bonifacio on the bench in Atlanta, Mustelier to AA or released.
I heard he hit a ball last June that still hasn’t landed, talk about powah
As of now he’s projected to break camp with the Braves. He has literally no competition for that utility outfield spot– the only other AAA outfielders in the organization are Rojas, Avery, Bonifacio and Lane Adams (none of which are on the 40-man roster).
Good god, this poor guy is gonna go see a movie and get DFA’ed, claimed, and DFA’ed again before the previews are over.
Him and Brady Dragmire both.
And Juan Graterol
Strikes out that much ?
Looking at a diet of ML pitching will surely decrease his strike-outs.
If only his defense was better I feel he’d stock somewhere but he’s polling at Trumbo-level D in RF which unless he hits Trumbombs won’t lend itself to a ML spot somewhere
Walker is the right player in the wrong era. Had he come through in the 80’s, he’d join the likes of Steve Balboni, Dave Kingman, Pete Incaviglia and Rob Deer as pure all or nothing sluggers, dropping 30 bombs and whiffing 200 times. ‘Teas simpler times.
*** ‘Twas
Mark Reynolds, Chris Carter, Drew Stubbs, Chris Davis ????? The top 10 all time single season strikeout seasons are from 2008 to today. None of those players you mentioned are even in the top 25.