Uggla or Infante?

Should the Braves have never made the Uggla for Infante trade? When the trade was made the Braves had just been eliminated from the playoffs, after fielding a team in the NLDS that included starters Matt Diaz, Rick Ankiel, Brooks Conrad, and a crippled Troy Glaus at third base. Uggla had just won the Silver Slugger Award as the best-hitting second baseman. He received numerous MVP votes while playing on a team with a losing record. There was no indication that his numbers had peaked.

A comparison shows that between 2011 and 2014 Infante outperformed Uggla. In 135 fewer plate appearances between 2011 and 2013 Infante collected 121 more hits. Though Uggla hit 38 more home runs, Infante had only seven fewer extra-base hits. Though Infante’s batting average was a whopping 80 points higher than Uggla, Omar’s slugging and OPS were only slightly better. And due to his ability to work walks (he led the league in 2012), Uggla’s on base percentage actually bested Infante’s .322 to .320. Uggla drove in 62 more runs, but struck out 319 more times.

Defensively Uggla got the job done at second base, but little more. But like Martin Prado, Omar Infante (#4 below) could play all four infield positions, and fill in out in the outfield as well.

PL   H   2B 3B HR BI   BB  K  AVG OBP SLG OPS    PA

DU 140 22 1 36   82   62 156 233 311 453 764   672

DU 115 29 0 19   78   94 168 220 348 384 732   630

DU 080 10 3 22   55   77 171 179 309 362 671   537

DU 335 61 4 67 215 233 495 210 322 400 722 1839

OI  160 24  8   7   49  34  67  276 315 382 696  640

OI  152 30  7 12   53  21  65  274 300 419 719  588

OI  144 24  3 10   51  20  44  318 345 450 795  476

OI 456 78 18 29 153 75 176 289 320 413 736 1704

The Braves also included left-handed reliever Mike Dunn in the deal to get Uggla. Dunn proved to be a reliable reliever for the Marlins. This past June blogger Joe Lucia revisited the trade in detail, providing other factors to consider. http://bloguin.com/theoutsidecorner/2014-articles/how-much-of-a-disaster-was-the-dan-uggla-trade-for-the-braves.html

Infante’s salary was considerably less than Uggla’s massive extension. That money would’ve given the Braves the ability to be more aggressive signing other free agents. With more money to offer, the Braves could have possibly signed centerfielder Dernard Span before the Nationals gobbled him up – meaning the BJ Upton signing would never have happened. Frank Wren would still be the general manager of the Braves. Perhaps it is good the Braves did trade for Uggla.