Dan Uggla is Confusing!

I don't have anything particularly interesting or insightful to say about Dan Uggla, but I really do feel that I need to post an article about him in some way.  I really like Uggla, not only because he plays for one of my favorite teams, the Braves, but because I have never been able to make sense of the man.  In general look at him.  He is supposed to be a second baseman but he is 5'11" and weighs 205, when I think of second basemen people like Dustin Pedroia and Craig Biggio, who are 5'8" 165 and 5'11" 185, respectively.  Every time I see him I wonder who the first person was that looked at this strong powerful man and decided to throw him at second base.  In the minors he played a majority of his games at second base, but also had a pretty large chunk of games at third base, which is where I would have put him personally.  Comparing him to some of the stereotype third base body types, David Wright and Evan Longoria, Uggla is a little short (about an inch shorter than Wright) and at a proper weight.  Yet, I can't complain about Uggla as a second baseman as his production at the position has made him a notable player and his defense is solid.  I just can never get used to seeing a guy at second base who has arms as big as the moon.

"I don't get it either!"

I also find Uggla's numbers to be notably interesting.  He is on pace this year to hit around 20 home runs which would be his career low by 7 homers, yet is still amazing for a second baseman (especially when you note he usually hits 30 or more.)  He also has a really low batting average in recent years (.233 last year .206  so far this year), yet his OBP is sticking around his career norms.  The man is currently leading the league in walks!  He also has the dubious honor of being the first veteran player I have known of who has been an All-Star at the midpoint of the season, then at the end it on platoon due to continued bad play.  I was ashamed to have to drop him from my fantasy team when the Braves announced a reduction in his playing time.  His numbers don't make sense to me because it seems that every time I watch the Braves he either ropes a double somewhere or hits a towering moonshot, so apparently he can't hit a beachball unless I'm watching him.  This is getting a little sad now so lets look at his arms again.

Consolation

I guess that concludes all I have to say about Dan Uggla, he is a great player to have in the league due to his position and style of play that leaves me scratching my head every time.  If you don't watch much baseball I do recommend you take the time to watch some of the Braves this postseason, Uggla will be there and he will have large arms and you won't quite know what to make of him.  Keep checking in on the site as I will probably start posting more as the playoffs come into sight, and you can also read this for a little bit of Toninho talking about Uggla (and Manny Ramirez!)

He also knows how to finish out a home run swing in style