Washington Nationals: 5 storylines to watch post NL East clincher
By Ricky Keeler
Young players to watch on the Braves
This past weekend, Nats fans got to watch some of the key young players in Philadelphia’s rebuild in outfielder Nick Williams and first baseman Rhys Hoskins. Well, now they will get to see some of the young players that will play a part in Atlanta’s future.
From a position player standpoint, Ozzie Albies has made an impact since making his major league debut on August 1 against the Dodgers. In 38 games, he has a slash line of .282/.346/.444 with seven doubles, five triples, two home runs, and 12 RBI’s.
Albies, who ends into this series on a nine game hitting streak, has been plugged into the number two spot in Brian Snitker’s lineup between Ender Inciarte and Freddie Freeman. He won’t steal as many bases as he did in the minors (21), but a consistent .340 on-base is what Atlanta would sign up for.
The fun fact about this series is that two of the youngest players in baseball will be in this series with Albies and Nats outfielder Victor Robles. Those two players could be key in whether or not Nats-Braves becomes a rivalry within the next couple of years.
On the mound, Gohara will be making his second big league start tomorrow night. The 21-year-old left-hander gave up six runs in four innings in his major league debut September 6 against Texas. Despite a rough debut, Atlanta has high hopes for him.
The Braves have been very aggressive moving players up in the system. Gohara is one of those examples as he’s gone from High-A Florida to the big leagues. He had 48 strikeouts in 35.1 innings in seven starts at Triple-A Gwinnett.
Between Gohara and Sean Newcomb, the Braves hope that they have two of the main pieces in their future. Plus, they might have another rising star down in the minors in outfielder Ronald Acuna, who went from High-A to Triple-A at the age of 19.
Atlanta is in a rebuild mode, but their young players are either getting experience at the major league level or knocking on the door to the big leagues.