Jose Altuve

Why Tim Tebow would be perfect for the Atlanta Braves

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:59 p.m. ET

Ken Rosenthal

Three premiere two-sport athletes -- Bo Jackson, Deion Sanders and Brian Jordan -- played for John Schuerholz clubs. Schuerholz, during his tenure as Royals GM, also drafted two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks, John Elway and Dan Marino.

The Braves' interest in Tim Tebow, then, follows something of a historical pattern, though Schuerholz is now the team's vice chairman and not as involved in day-to-day baseball decisions as when he was GM.

Actually, the pursuit of Tebow by Atlanta also makes sense for other reasons, all of which ultimately fall under the category of, "Why not?"

To wit:

• Tebow would cost almost nothing

As an undrafted player, Tebow's contract will count against the 2016 draft bonus pool of the team that signs him. A number of clubs, including the Braves, already have spent nearly all of their allotted money.

A team can spend up to 5 percent over its pool amount and simply pay a tax, but would any club extend itself even by that modest amount for Tebow?

Chances are, Tebow will sign for $100,000 or less -- the maximum amount that a team can spend on a player without him counting against its pool.

•Tebow would not block top prospects

The Braves almost certainly would not give Tebow a 40-man roster spot or invite him to major-league spring training. If they sign him, they likely would encourage him to go to the fall instructional league and winter ball, then start him at Double A.

Sounds like a reach, and maybe it is. But Double A is where the gap in the Braves' farm system will be in 2017; many of their prospects from the '15 and '16 drafts will be at lower levels.

If Tebow "blocked" anyone, it likely would be an organizational player who had little chance of reaching the majors, anyway.

•The Braves actually are intrigued by Tebow's talent

Two of the Braves' top executives, director of scouting Brian Bridges and special assistant to the GM Roy Clark, attended Tebow's workout at USC.

Evidently, they liked what they saw.

Yes, the Braves own their low Single A, Double A and Triple A clubs, and stand to benefit from Tebow as a gate attraction. But the opinions of Bridges and Clark are more important than any financial considerations. Tebow would not have that dramatic an effect on the balance sheets of the Braves' owners at Liberty Media.

The truth is, Tebow's chances of reaching the majors probably would be better if he were a pitcher who threw 98 mph -- teams routinely take chances on such big arms, hoping the pitchers will figure out how to harness their stuff.

Hitting is far more difficult to master, requiring timing and rhythm as well as immense skill. Tebow, who last played baseball 12 years ago in high school, would be a longshot to succeed even at Double A. But considering how little is at stake, there is no harm in the Braves or any other club giving him a chance.

THE INDIANS' HIDDEN SKILL -- AND SECRET WEAPON

A few days ago, I asked Indians manager Terry Francona if there was an aspect of his AL Central-leading club that should be drawing more attention.

"Well, I think our base running all year has been really good -- not just base stealing but running the bases," Francona replied. "I am really proud of that."

Francona was correct -- the Indians rank fourth in the majors in Fangraphs' base running metric (BsR), which according to the web site, "turns stolen bases, caught stealings and other base running plays - taking extra bases, being thrown out on the bases, etc. - into runs above and below average. (The Padres, Diamondbacks and Nationals rank 1-2-3).

As a follow-up, I asked Francona who deserves the credit for the Indians' prowess on the bases.

His answer: Mike Napoli.

"He actually has set a very good tone, moving up on balls in the dirt," Francona said.

Napoli actually ranks last on the team in the BsR metric -- Rajai Davis and Jose Ramirez are 1-2, and no one else is that close. Napoli also was not on the club last season, when the Indians were fifth in the majors in BsR.

Still, Indians president Chris Antonetti agreed that Napoli has been a positive influence.

"We have a group of guys who take pride in running the bases," Antonetti said. "Nap is into every pitch and always looking to advance on balls in the dirt or take the extra base when he can even though he's not that fast. His focus and effort definitely has impacted other guys. Tito (Francona) also is a big part of it. He encourages guys to be aggressive and doesn't harp on it when they get caught."

How did Napoli develop his base-running skill?

"Well, I need to give a lot of credit to coming up in the Angels' organization," Napoli said. "We worked on it non-stop and it was a big priority for us to be able to get to the big leagues.

"We do talk about it here. It's part of our game. It makes us go as an offense. We like putting pressure on the defense and the pitcher."

Napoli, of course, puts pressure on the opponent in other ways as well.

He is the first Indians player to hit 30 home runs in a season since Grady Sizemore in 2008 -- and Cleveland's first right-handed hitter to reach that total since Ellis Burks in 2002.

DOWN THROUGH THE GENERATIONS...

I guess it's Angels old-home week here at Fox Sports.

Tigers officials say that closer Francisco Rodriguez has been a tremendous addition both on and off the field, citing his mentorship of the team's younger relievers.

Rodriguez says he is simply fulfilling an obligation that he learned during his early years with the Angels -- to administer tough love to the youngsters, but teach them, too.

"When I came up, the guys in the bullpen in Anaheim, they were loud and clear, 'When you leave, make sure you pass it down to the young guys,'" he said. "It was the culture of the Angels' bullpen back then: 'Be there when they need you."

Rodriguez credited Troy Percival for being that kind of influence with him, and said that Percival inherited the responsibility from the Angels' previous closer, Lee Smith.

K-Rod, remember, began his career in 2002, helping the Angels win the World Series as a 20-year-old rookie. He recorded his 425th save on Monday, passing John Franco for fourth on the all-time list.

TIGERS' UPTON: GETTING THERE

Through all his struggles, left fielder Justin Upton never asked out of the Tigers' lineup, according to manager Brad Ausmus, fitting in with the team's other regulars who strive to play every day -- Miguel Cabrera, Ian Kinsler, Victor Martinez, et al.

Tigers players say that Upton also never changed his demeanor, remaining a good teammate even when his slump was at its worst. And now, finally, Upton has snapped out of his season-long doldrums with one of his patented hot streaks, with eight home runs in his last 14 games, including a decisive three-run shot against the White Sox on Monday.

Upton has always been streaky, the game's most inconsistent consistent player. In his eight full seasons prior to this one he averaged an .831 OPS, never falling below .785. He might not get to his normal range this season, but you can't rule it out either. In his past 15 games, Upton has increased his OPS from .652 to .721.

GLIMMER OF HOPE IN CINCY

The Reds are back to their losing ways, dropping 10 of their last 14, but if nothing else they seem to have identified the core of a bullpen -- righties Michael Lorenzen, 24, and Raisel Iglesias, 26, plus left-handed closer Tony Cingrani, 27.

The team's change in pitching coaches from Mark Riggins to Mack Jenkins on July 4 had a strong initial impact -- the bullpen's 2.55 ERA over the next 38 games, through Aug. 21, was the second-best in the majors.

The healthy returns of Lorenzen, Iglesias and right-handed starter Anthony DeSclafani surely helped, but the staff overall has a 4.00 ERA since the change in coaches, compared to 5.51 before.

Could the Reds fool themselves into thinking that they are only a few pieces away from contention? Doubtful. Club officials still believe that the team needs additional depth and reinforcements, and that next season again will be devoted to building and development.

CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE IN ARIZONA

The deadline for the Diamondbacks to exercise contract options on general manager Dave Stewart and senior vice-president of baseball operations De Jon Watson was Aug. 31.

The D-backs allowed the mandated date to pass without making decisions on either executive, not only disregarding signed agreements but also putting their scouts and player-development personnel in limbo.

Many of those employees are under contract only through Oct. 31, sources say. Most teams operate under similar timelines, so a quick decision would not necessarily boost the chances of the D-backs’ employees joining other clubs immediately. Then again, most teams also know which jobs they are going to fill, and those employees would benefit from starting their searches as soon as possible.

At the very least, the threat of change is unsettling; new GMs generally hire their own people. And if the D-backs drag out their decisions on Stewart, Watson and chief baseball officer Tony La Russa, it will indeed become more difficult for scouting and player-development employees to land other jobs.

Derrick Hall, the team’s president and CEO, recently told The Arizona Republic, “We’ve decided we’ll go until the end of the season and then we’ll evaluate everything.”

For the sake of all the people who have busted their tails under La Russa, Stewart and Watson, that evaluation needs to happen quickly.

JUST ASKING...

Think maybe the Royals need to reconsider the way they construct their offense?

The team is next-to-last in the AL in runs per game, last in walk rate, last in home-run rate and first in groundball rate.

In fairness, the Royals also were last in walk rate and next to-last in home run rate during the 2015 regular season, yet won the World Series.

The difference then was that the Royals finished sixth in runs per game -- they had better on-base and slugging percentages, better production with runners in scoring position.

Obviously, it's difficult to argue with the Royals, whose contact approach produced back-to-back AL titles, and makes sense given the vast acreage at Kauffman Stadium.

Yet, it also stands to reason that the team could use more line-drive hitters, if not outright sluggers.

Teams know what they want -- hitters who frequently produce launch angles between 10 and 30 degrees, which generally is considered the sweet spot for line drives.

The Royals need more of those players.

DOZIER, WOW!

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, an MVP candidate, is batting .346 with a .966 OPS, 22 home runs and 90 RBIs.

Twins second baseman Brian Dozier, a player barely attracting notice, is batting .279 with a .926 OPS, 38 homers and 91 RBIs.

This is not to suggest that Dozier should draw serious MVP consideration; I prefer my MVPs to come from contenders, believing they perform under greater pressure.

Still, Dozier's season for the worst club in the majors is nothing short of remarkable -- he has hit 33 homers in his last 86 games and eight in his last seven, including three at home Sunday in an 11-5 loss to the Royals.

I asked Twins catcher Kurt Suzuki if he had ever seen a hitter as hot as Dozier.

"Never," Suzuki replied. "It's amazing!!! He is locked in!!!"

AND FINALLY . . .

Freddie Freeman before the Braves traded for Matt Kemp: .284/.367/.514 (pretty good!).

Freeman since Kemp arrived on Aug. 2 and began hitting behind him: .333/.483/.737 (even better!).

The Braves are 17-16 in that stretch, averaging 5.12 runs per game. Prior to that, they were 37-68, averaging 3.43 runs.

An improved bullpen (Jim Johnson, Mauricio Cabrera, Ian Krol, etc.) also has helped.