Upton hit eight homers in April -- nearly matching his team record of 12 the previous year -- and seven in August, when he drove in 28 runs. Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports
ATLANTA — Justin Upton was starting to generate talk as a possible candidate for National League Most Valuable Player and the Atlanta Braves appeared a strong candidate to grab a wild-card spot in the playoffs going into September.
Seems like a long time ago.
The Braves went into a swoon that left them well out of the postseason picture and general manager Frank Wren out of a job.
Upton’s lack of production was certainly part of the reason for the team’s offensive collapse and he may not be part of the organization by the winter, either.
The left fielder has just one more season before free agency and the Braves may need to include him in their makeover. He might even end up as part of a package with older brother B.J. — the worst of several costly signing decisions made by Wren.
The younger Upton still ranks third in the National League in RBIs with 99 and is tied for third in homers with 28 after a two-run shot Wednesday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. His September slump, though, has his average down to .271 and he is sixth in the NL in strikeouts with 167.
Manager Fredi Gonzalez, whose job situation is still to be determined, defends Upton.
“Every hitter in the major leagues is streaky and when he’s hot, he’s really hot,” Gonzalez said. “Fundamentally, I think he’s sound. He has the same swings. At the end of year, we’re going to look back (at his stats) and say, ‘That’s a pretty good player.'”
Not necessarily a consistent one, though, and certainly not one the Braves will likely commit to long term despite their obvious offensive shortcomings.
Upton hit eight homers in April — nearly matching his team record of 12 the previous year — and seven in August, when he drove in 28 runs.
When the Braves needed him most, though, he had one homer and six RBIs while going 9-for-67 with 25 strikeouts in his first 19 games of September.
