Cameron Maybin Looks Good in CF for Braves
By John Buhler
Let’s take a quick look in the rear view mirror for just a minute. About a month ago the Atlanta Braves traded Craig Kimbrel and Melvin Upton, Jr. to the San Diego Padres. Atlanta received Padres top pitching prospect Matt Wisler and veteran outfielder Cameron Maybin in return. Wisler should get called up sometime by the Braves in the not so distant future. Atlanta expected Maybin to platoon in centerfield with Eric Young, Jr. Anything else was really an added bonus coming from Maybin.
Live Feed
FanSided
Upon his arrival in Atlanta, Maybin is beginning to show signs at the plate of the promising prospect he once was in his younger days. Cameron was once traded to the Marlins as a top prospect in the Miguel Cabrera trade. Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski is good at his job, what else can I say? But all the hard work Maybin is putting in with new Braves hitting coach Kevin Seitzer is paying out major dividends. His new approach at the plate has won him the starting centerfield job for the Atlanta Braves.
In the season’s first few weeks, I kept hearing the Braves broadcast crew, Chip Caray and Joe Simpson, talk about how much Maybin liked Seitzer’s hitting philosophy. When Cameron was still with San Diego during spring training, he talked to Padres hitting coach Mark Kotsay about integrating some of Seitzer’s principles into his hitting regiment. Two weeks later, Maybin found himself learning under the man he admired in Atlanta.
Maybin’s first couple of spot starts were truly hit or miss, long home run shots and not much else. I knew that Maybin could play centerfield well but I could not recall him ever having that much power. These last few weeks, Cameron has been able to add crisp line-drive singles to his offensive game. It’s great because he’s hitting the ball with authority to both sides of the field. In one month in Atlanta he has done more to my liking than Melvin Upton, Jr. ever did in two years as a Brave.
With every hit Cameron Maybin gets for the Braves, just remember that San Diego now possesses Upton’s albatross of a contract. It will make you enjoy the Cameron Maybin Offensive Renaissance all that much more.