The Braves’ Adeiny Hechavarria acquisition was necessitated by heightened defensive needs. The Mets cut the journeyman shortstop, who had a reputation for all-defense and no-bat, freeing him for the Braves at a minimal cost.
Thrust into the lineup last weekend, all Hechavarria has done since is hit .389/.500/.722 with three doubles, a homer, four RBIs and an extraordinary bat flip. His defensive acumen also is as advertised.
“You knew what he was capable of doing, but he’s gotten some big hits so far,” manager Brian Snitker said. “We were excited about getting him out there defensively, and he’s contributed with his bat, so that’s a good thing.”
Dansby Swanson’s heel injury left an irreplaceable void at shortstop. Johan Camargo, in the midst of a career-worst year, wasn’t cutting it. The Braves saw Hechavarria as a logical stopgap that allowed them to option Camargo to Triple-A, hoping he’d recover his past form.
It’s a six-game sample size, but Hechavarria has exceeded any modest expectations. He was 1-for-21 in his final stretch with the Mets. In 60 games with New York, Hechavarria never reached safely in more than two consecutive games. He hadn’t had a multi-hit game since July 14.
Hechavarria is 7-for-18 with the Braves, picking up two multi-hit efforts and being held hitless once. The Braves needed him as a placeholder, and he’s excelling at that task.
“I saw him play a lot when he was first with the Marlins,” first baseman Freddie Freeman said. “He took a lot of hits from me. The way he’s been swinging the bat, everyone said he’s light-hitting, but he’s not doing that with us. It’s been huge to cover multiple injuries like we’ve been doing the last few weeks. It’s very hard to do, and that’s a testament to our team.”
It helped that Hechavarria had ties to general manager Alex Anthopoulos, who had him as a prospect in Toronto. As Freeman referenced, the team was familiar with him since his Marlins days. And of course, the cheap acquisition cost made scooping him up a worthy flier.
Swanson is playing rehab games, perhaps returning before the calendar turns to September. Maybe Hechavarria cools off, in which case he was still a productive stopgap. If he continues playing well, the Braves have added another depth option to consider when assembling a postseason roster.
As for the sudden success at the plate, it doesn’t come as a surprise to his manager. Snitker thinks the Braves’ environment extracts the best from players with Hechavarria, who was better than his recent results.
“I just think when guys come into this situation (it affects them positively),” Snitker said. “I remember him (with Miami). He was a really good player. Dangerous with the bat. You put him on this club, in this situation, it has a chance to elevate a guy. They’re going to do OK. It’s renewed excitement and energy for them, in this clubhouse. These kind of guys have a tendency to rise to the occasion.”
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