Yasiel Puig’s show is heading to Atlanta.
Puig, the 29-year-old outfielder, joins the Atlanta Braves, according to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand, as they try to separate in the competitive East of the National League. Puig was the last notable free agent on the market. The agreement is pending a physical examination. Terms were not immediately disclosed.
Most of the time we meet Puig in Dodger blue, having spent his first six seasons in Los Angeles after leaving Cuba, but last year, he split time with the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians. A preseason trade sent him to the Reds under reconstruction and the Indians hoped to get a raise on Puig’s trade deadline while chasing the Twins at the American League Central.
Puig was Puig in 2019, even outside of Los Angeles. He hit .267 / .327 / .458 combined, with 24 home runs and 84 RBIs. He plays solid defense and has a laser arm, but when you talk about Puig, you’re also talking about the biggest personalities of a baseball and decent-sized luggage that some fans will never forget. He is sure to offer reflections on the field and some surprises, like different hair colors or lick his bat.
Yasiel Puig continues to be one of the most polarizing players in baseball. (David Maxwell / Getty Images)
Fair or not, it is often the face of the age of bat-tossing and spectacle. He had a history of showing up late in Los Angeles and pestering some teammates, but many of these problems seem to have dissipated once he left the Dodgers. Add it to a team that already has Ronald Acuña Jr., Ozzie Albies, and Marcell Ozuna, and the Braves will be fun to watch in 2020.
When Nick Markakis opted for the season, he opened up a space with the Braves that Puig seems ready to fill. The Braves had Acuña, Ozuna and three-time Golden Globe winner Ender Inciarte as their initial open field for 2020, but the addition of Puig would allow them to have Ozuna DH and create an Acuna-Inciarte-Puig open field that also it would be pretty good. On the defensive
The biggest problem with Puig is that he will never again be the player who stormed the league in 2013 during his historic rookie career. He was solid in 2014 and got a nod to the All-Star Game, but once the league caught up with him, he established himself as a player ranging from 1.5 to 3.5 WAR.
He’ll still be a player of the kind who loves or hates him, and fans in Atlanta begin to enjoy the Yasiel Puig show as soon as he hits the field. Front desk executives and coaches will expect the headaches it brings to be a thing of the past, and instead just get an exciting player who’s good at a few dazzling moments each year.
