Consider Andrelton Simmons a romantic.
While at one of the Braves Caravan stops, the shortstop discussed the many changes to the roster, which included fan favorites Evan Gattis, Jason Heyward and Justin Upton having been dealt.
"You never know," Simmons said, "you may fall in love with a brand new player."
One spot where fans have no need to open their hearts is at shortstop, where Simmons has produced back-to-back Gold Gloves behind 69 defensive runs saved the past two seasons, the most in baseball in that span.
While there is no debate over who will be playing the position, there remain lingering questions at shortstop heading into spring training ...
Last spring former Braves general manager Frank Wren discussed the seven-year, $58 million contract given to Simmons and addressed the obvious knock on the all-world defensive player: his bat.
"We think he's just going to keep getting better offensively," Wren said.
It didn't happen in 2014.
Simmons had an increase in just one major statistical category -- strikeouts -- and saw his slash line drop slightly to .244/.286/.331 after those numbers sat at .248/.296/.396 the year before.
He had 10 fewer home runs (seven), nine less doubles (18), two fewer triples (four) and Simmons' RBI total dropped by 13 (46) and he fanned 10.4 percent of the time (60) after posting a 8.4 rate in '13, his first full season in the majors. He also had a 5.6 walk rate, a career low.
Simmons' biggest issue was a 52.4 ground ball rate -- 15th-highest in the majors -- that resulted in 25 double plays. Meanwhile, his HR/FB dipped to 4.7 after hovering over 7.5 in each of his first two seasons.
So while last year may have damped expectations that Simmons can provide consistent power after hitting 17 homers in '13, he remains a high contact player (87.2 in '14) who sees a strong number of pitches per plate appearance (3.35).
The biggest ingredient is the line drive rate , which was 16.4 in '14, a drop from 18.5 the year before. If it can look like the 18.8 Simmons posted over the second half of last season, there's hope for a rebound.
Baseball Prospectus is onboard, projecting Simmons to hit .256/.301/.375 -- figures that would be his best in a full MLB season -- with 22 doubles, four triples, 10 home runs and 55 RBI.
A year ago, that OBP would have put Simmons 19th. It's not a sizable jump or close to the .335 he had in 182 plate appearances as a rookie, but that forecast is progress for a guy whose bat is trying to catch up to his otherworldly glove.
That could be huge given the Braves' needs at the top of the order.
Keep in mind that two years ago, Simmons was given every opportunity to seize the leadoff role. He had 302 plate appearances at the spot, hitting .219/.256/.332 and was in first just one game in '14.
With the departure of Heyward, Simmons could get another look at leadoff, especially this spring.
Eleven years. That's how many more Gold Gloves that Simmons would have to win in a row to equal the all-time record of Ozzie Smith.
For now, the focus is on becoming the latest shortstop to create a dynasty at the position as Simmons can become the seventh NL player to win the award at least three straight times.
That would put him in the company of Roy McMillan (1957-59), Dave Concepcion (1974-77), Smith (1980-92), Barry Larkin (1994-96), Rey Ordonez (1997-99) and Jimmy Rollins (2007-09).
Simmons had 28 DRS this past season, nine more than fellow Gold Glove finalist Zack Cozart (Reds), while the third member of that group, the Marlins' Adeiny Hechavarria, had minus-3. Meanwhile, Simmons had a defensive WAR of 22.1 in '14 and was the only shortstop in the league to go over 20 (the Cardinals' Jhonny Peralta was at 18.9 and Cozart 18.7).
With injury-prone Troy Tulowitzki's defense slipping -- he once had a 22.2 defensive WAR in 2007, 13.9 in '11 and 11.9 in '13 -- and last season had a 6.8 WAR, while he's been in single digits in DRS or worse (including minus-6 in '12) the past three years.
Basically, Simmons stands alone atop in the NL at the position from a defensive standpoint. He'll without question open the season as the favorite for a third straight Gold Glove.
For a little historical context regarding how good Simmons has been so quickly in his career. Through the first three years of his career he has a dWAR of 11.7, the best since 1901 for any shortstop in Seasons 1-3 and its' not even close. Ozzie Guillen is second (8.6), followed by Phil Rizzuto (8.1), Glenn Wright (7.8) and Ozzie Smith (7.6).
Per the Braves depth chart, Phil Gosselin and Elmer Reyes are listed as the options behind Simmons. Prized prospect Jose Peraza has played 203 games at shortstop in four minor league seasons, but whenever he joins the fold, it isn't going to be to backup Simmons.
Of course, there's the player who was the Braves' Opening Day starter in 2012, Tyler Pastornicky, but he isn't currently on the 40-man roster and wasn't among the non-roster invitees to spring training.
Given Simmons' track record any concerns here may be moot. He played in 146 games last year and 157 in '13, and despite flirting with a trip to the disabled list last season with a sprained left ankle, Simmons hasn't been on the DL since '12 when he injured the pinky finger on his right hand.
But should Simmons become unavailable, Gosselin showed he's capable in a small sample size. He played 48 1/3 innings in '14 with two DRS.
Meanwhile, Reyes has yet to play past Triple-A, so the options beyond Simmons are largely untested.
Follow Cory McCartney on Twitter @coryjmccartney
