The Braves have officially moved on in left field. They declined Eddie Rosario’s option and acquired the much younger Jarred Kelenic in a trade with the Mariners earlier this offseason. He’ll get most of the reps in left, but the Braves still should be looking to add a competent right-handed bat in case the Kelenic experiment goes south
Pillar had some fantastic moments with the Braves this past season. He’s the kind of player that will run through a wall if it will help the team win, and it was on full display each time he stepped in between the lines.
I would have had no issue bringing him back in some capacity, but I would argue the Braves should probably be looking to upgrade. Kelenic is oozing with upside. There’s a chance he takes a stranglehold of left field and starts nearly every day. But there’s also a chance that he regresses back to who he was in his first two seasons with the Mariners, when he hit a combined .168 over 147 games.
Pillar was a fantastic teammate, but he hit .228 with nine homers and a .664 OPS, accruing -0.1 WAR. He’s not much more than a fringe roster guy that can fill in occasionally. The Braves need more than that in case Kelenic struggles.
The Braves aren’t going to do or die by Kelenic’s performance in 2024, but Alex Anthopoulos isn’t the type of general manager to overlook the minor details. A strong right-handed bat that can at least platoon with Kelenic is the last remaining piece of the puzzle for the Braves this offseason. Look for them to make a move before the start of the season.
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He might not have succeeded as a head coach in Atlanta, but he sure did in Tennessee as an offensive coordinator. The Titans had the league’s third-best rushing attack (138.9 yards per game) and the 10th-best scoring offense (23.3 points per game) in 2019 then improved upon those numbers in 2020, averaging 168 rushing yards per game and the fourth-most points (30.7).
Though the trend didn’t continue in Atlanta, 24th in scoring (19.6 points per game) and 11th in rushing during Smith’s tenure with the Falcons, the new Steelers coordinator possesses what Mike Tomlin wants.
Both men epitomize Pittsburgh’s blue collar fan base and the team’s style of play, old-school football. The Steelers have a pair of runners in Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren that will be featured in the new-look offense.
Smith isn’t the next great Kyle Shanahan or Sean McVay like Zac Robinson may be under Raheem Morris in Atlanta, but the former Falcons head coach has experience and matches what Tomlin and the Steelers wanted their offensive scheme and personnel to be.
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