Some big news coming out of Atlanta, as the first major deal of the young off-season has been struck. Various reports suggest that the Atlanta Braves have acquired All-Star 2B Dan Uggla in return for the versatile Omar Infante and specialist Mike Dunn.
Uggla, 30, has been one of the more powerful second basemen in recent memory. He has slugged over 30 home runs in the past four season, including a career-high 33 in 2010. He also added in 105 runs-batted-in along with a healthy .508 slugging percentage.
Florida and Uggla had reportedly been working towards a four-year extension over this past weekend, which fell through after the two could not come to terms on monetary settlements. The Blue Jays had been considered the favorite to snag Uggla, but instead the team has decided to go intra-division.
Heading to Florida will be controversial All-Star Omar Infante, who did manage to impress with a .321 batting average. Also, Mike Dunn may help in the long-run, as he succeeded with two wins out of the pen in Atlanta.
Uggla joins an Atlanta team coming off of their final season managed by Bobby Cox, alongside a playoff-appearance. The team will now be headed by former Marlins skipper Fredi González.
ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick broke the report.
