Matt Olson, Atlanta Braves. (Photo by Adam Hagee/Getty Images)
Atlanta Braves first-team captain Matt Olson appears to be completely comfortable with his one diamond baseball weakness: foot speed around the core tracks.
While Matt Olson thrived on his first series outfit with the Atlanta Braves, the first star had some hiccups on the core tracks versus the Cincinnati Reds at home this past weekend.
The Atlanta area star and former Parkview star picked up an 8-14 lead in four games against the Reds over the weekend. He also walked three times and took the first of three extra hits at base in stout uniform, including towering moon shots on Sunday afternoon. However, he was dumped on the home plate twice on Saturday night. Ron Washington might love to send it, but that was tough.
Here’s Olson on the podium Saturday night laughing at his outstanding offer of wheels in exchange for Cincinnati.
Matt Olson, captain of the Atlanta Braves, feels comfortable not being in full swing
Atlanta did not trade Olson for 30-30 in a particular campaign. Brave Brass expects him to ignite the plate and play a Gold Glove-caliber defense at the start. Not to say it’s a liability on the core trails, but taking running advice from Travis D’Arno’s slow-footed catcher means you’re not built for speed either. Regardless, Olson fits right in with the new MLB franchise.
Olson may have huge boots to fill at first to replace Freddy Freeman, but he has the talent around him to be himself. Playing in front of friends and family 81 days a year seems to have put some extra activity in his stride. Unfortunately, a bit of overconfidence has led to Olson shooting twice at home to the Reds, the Braves should be significantly better this season.
In the end, Olson had a great first streak with the Braves. Yes, there will be stretches where his racket will get cold, but he’s given all of Braves Country a glimpse of what he can do when he sees the ball well. Going from a team in the early stages of rebuilding to the defending World Series champions should amplify Olson to play the best baseball game of his career. It’s totally at home.
Next time we see Washington raise the stop sign at third for Olson, we’ll understand his reasoning.
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