The Atlanta Braves are in the trying start of a long rebuild.
Braves fans were given another reality check this week when the club traded star shortstop Andrelton Simmons to the Los Angeles Angels. If that wasn’t a tough pill to swallow on its own, reports suggested the team was willing to move first baseman Freddie Freeman as well. The Braves are truly exploring every opportunity.
Braves general manager John Coppolella understands fans being frustrated with the tear down of a team that won 96 games two years ago, but admits rebuilding is a long proccess, while not mincing his words about his frustration.
“I know it’s hard for our fans, but I’m not running for office. We are doing what I believe is what’s best in for the long-term interest of the Braves. I’ll trust our scouts and analytics.
“I’m getting so tired of this,’’ Coppolella told USA TODAY Sports. “If guys want to take shots, or (degrade) us, fine. But let’s let it play out for a few years before we start branding our pitchforks and torches.
“I feel in my heart this is the best for the Braves.”
Going through a rebuild sucks. Braves fans have watched the team trade away almost everything resembling star power, including Simmons, Jason Heyward, Justin Upton, Craig Kimbrel, and Evan Gattis, among others. It’s hard to be assured of future success when the return for these sure things are prospects who don’t always pan out.
Coppolella flat-out refuted the team was looking to deal Freeman, and says the club isn’t trying to actively tank. The latter comment seems like a bald-faced lie. No team is ever going to admit to actively trying to lose, but the strategy of tanking on an extreme level worked wonders for the Houston Astros, although they almost lost their fan base doing so.
For Braves fans, Copolella says patience – something not many fans have – is needed.
“There is a method to this madness,” Coppolella said. “Judge our trades in two to three years. Not now.”
That’s easier said than done.
