Ender Inciarte may be the Atlanta Braves’ lone All-Star, but he deserves it

When the Atlanta Braves acquired Ender Inciarte in the Shelby Miller trade in December 2015, not many people knew much about the center fielder. The headliner in that deal was Dansby Swanson, who just months earlier had been the No. 1 pick in the amateur draft out of Vanderbilt.

The Braves had found the new face of the franchise, a local player who had could be marketed when the team moved into its new home, just miles from where Swanson grew up in Cobb County. Aaron Blair, at the time Arizona’s top pitching prospect, was another big piece in the trade.

Inciarte was almost considered the “other” player in the trade. It might be a reach to call him a throw-in, but he was the least important piece for a team in need of highly rated prospects like Swanson and Blair.

One hint the Braves had something with Inciarte might have been that they said numerous teams called to trade for him the minute they acquired Inciarte. Well, if other teams wanted him, maybe Inciarte was pretty good. Maybe he was better than everybody thought.

Well, this is one of those occasions when you can say the more you see someone play, the more you appreciate how great they are. Inciarte has played a season-and-a-half for the Braves, and he’s one of their most valuable players.

Inciarte was selected to the NL All-Star team. It was a deserved honor. Inciarte is second in the NL in hits (112). That’s what Inciarte does. He just gets hits. He doesn’t have much power. Every time you watch the Braves, Inciarte just seems to be on base.

He churns the Atlanta offense. When Atlanta has won this season, Inciarte has hit .351. That’s 101 points higher than his average in the Braves’ losses. So goes Inciarte, so goes the Braves.

It seems like Inciarte is at the center of every Braves rally, and Atlanta has become a team that scores a lot of runs late in games. You can bet when that has happened, Inciarte has been in the middle of it.

Inciarte started slow last year mainly due to a hamstring injury in the second week of the season. He missed 26 games and never got on track until the All-Star break. Then, Inciarte took off. He hit .341 after the break with 100 hits and a .396 on-base percentage.

So, since last year’s All-Star break, including this year’s impressive first part of the season, Inciarte has hit .319 with a .370 OBP, 212 hits, nine home runs, 54 RBI and 19 stolen bases in 159 games.

That’s only his offense. Inciarte’s defense is unbelievably good. The Braves likely have not seen anyone as good in the outfield with the glove since Andruw Jones, who was the best they’ve ever had. Inciarte gets to everything, with great instincts and great jumps on the ball. And his arm is strong.

Still just 26 years old, Inciarte reminds many of Marquis Grissom, who played center for the Braves in 1995 and 1996. Grissom didn’t have much power, but he ran well and played great defense in center. Just like Inciarte.

Inciarte won a Gold Glove award last season. It won’t be his final one.

The Braves locked Inciarte up this past winter with a tremendous team-friendly contract. He’s under control through 2021 at an average of $5.9 million per season. The Braves then have an option on Inciarte for the 2022 season. If he keeps playing the way he has in the last year, he’ll be the best bargain in baseball.

Swanson has had some ups and downs as a rookie, but he is still going to be a face of this franchise. The man who came with Swanson from Arizona is prominent, as well. Inciarte is no longer just the other player in the Miller trade. He’s Atlanta’s All-Star, and he’s a huge part of the Braves in their rebuilding process.

This story was originally published July 11, 2017 at 9:18 AM with the headline "Ender Inciarte may be the Atlanta Braves’ lone All-Star, but he deserves it."