The Atlanta Braves lost a franchise cornerstone in Freddie Freeman, but did a fine job in replacing him with Matt Olson.
It appears the Braves’ infielders also appreciate the organization's effort to replace Freeman.
While much is being made about the relatively lateral move from Freeman to Olson offensively, not to be forgotten is that Olson is a two-time Gold Glove winner (Freeman has one).
So while raving about Olson the person, Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos said on the “Baseball Tonight with Buster Olney” podcast that Olson’s defensive presence is being felt, as well.
"Obviously a great player, but we had heard great things about the person, character, makeup and so on," Anthopoulos said when asked for his impressions of Olson thus far. "He's fit in really well into the clubhouse. You expect that, anyone who is a good person and a good teammate and all the work we did, but he's just seamlessly fit in, he fits this group so well. I know the infielders appreciate -- obviously they had Freddie for all those years, a great defender -- having another great defender over there too.
"He's got a humility about him, he's very bright and he's just a fantastic fit for us. I just like how grounded he is. Obviously it's a lot to take on from coming into Atlanta, winning a World Series, getting the contract, replacing Freddie, all that kind of stuff -- I don't think he's fazed by any of it in a good way. I think he's grounded. I think (manager Brian Snitker) said it best, if he had to do this at 22 or 23 it would be a lot harder, but at 28 now he's been through a lot of things. Had some success, Gold Gloves and so on. We're just excited to have him."
In just a few weeks in Atlanta, Olson has drawn nothing but rave reviews. And with the Braves’ regular season set to begin Thursday night, we’ll soon see if he can live up to all the hype – and pressure – surrounding him.
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