ATLANTA, GA – AUGUST 31: Dansby Swanson #7 tosses to Vaughn Grissom #18 of the Atlanta Braves during the seventh inning against the Colorado Rockies at Truist Park on August 31, 2022 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)
The Atlanta Braves opted not to sign free-agent shortstop Dansby Swanson, who instead took his talents to Chicago. Vaughn Grissom will take the reins instead.
The decision not to bring back Dansby Swanson at his preferred price point wasn’t necessarily about ‘choosing’ Vaughn Grissom, as this headline suggests, but more about upholding the Braves way of doing things.
As long as Alex Anthopoulos is in the Atlanta front office, this team will believe in the sum of its parts. Swanson would have cost a lot of money, and in similar fashion to Freddie Freeman last offseason, the Braves would rather spend that capital on a litany of players than one superstar.
Grissom is a talented player, however. At 21 years old, Grissom is set to take over at shortstop, and was sent to New Orleans this offseason to train with Ron Washington. The Braves assistant coach came away impressed.
“I mean, we’re covering everything. He’s doing a tremendous job. He’s gonna be ready to go by the time we get to spring training in February,” Washington said, per The Athletic (subscription required).
It was always a risk for Anthopoulos to choose a 21-year-old kid to take over for Swanson, a seasoned veteran. Still, he has his reasons.
Vaughn Grissom provides more financial flexibility
For the Braves, financial flexibility is everything.
Atlanta prefers to sign its young stars pre-arbitration. It’s what they did with Ronald Acuña, Ozzie Albies and more recently Michael Harris II. It’s what they very well may do with Grissom, as well, should he succeed at the MLB level.
The Braves do plan on spending that money at some point, and with Max Fried’s free agency coming up, there’s no better time to empty their pockets. Atlanta traded for Sean Murphy this offseason, as well, meaning they will eventually have to sign him to a long-term extension, should they wish to keep one of the best catchers in all of baseball in the ATL.
There are benefits to letting Swanson walk, even if it means losing a vital locker room presence.