Is Greg Norton the worst hitter in the NL East

September 17, 11:43 PMAtlanta Braves ExaminerRyan Harings

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Everything I've read about Greg Norton the man portrays the image of a good guy that brings a nice calm personality to the bench, and it may seem cruel to pile on him, but baseball is a results driven enterprise and so far Norton has been an unmitigated disaster at the plate, but has anyone in the NL East been worse? Lets find out; coming into tonight Norton has 70 at bats, I'll only compare the worst statistical player from other clubs that has at least that many at bats.

Braves - Greg Norton

70 AB, 2 2B, 0 HR, .143 AVG, .326 OBP, .171 SLG

Marlins - Cameron Maybin

127 AB, 7 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, .220 AVG, .306 OBP, .354 SLG

Mets - Fernando Martinez

91 AB, 6 2B, 1 HR, .176 AVG, .242 OBP, .275 SLG

Phillies - Eric Bruntlett

96 AB, 7 2B, .167 AVG, .224 OBP, .240 SLG

Nationals - Austin Kearns

174 AB, 6 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, .195 AVG, .336 OBP, .305 SLG

Like I said earlier, I'm really not trying to kick the guy when he's down, but the fact remains that he's been down way too long and there was no reason for him to accumulate that many at bats. Look at it this way, in a season thats seen the Braves chase a playoff berth, Greg Norton has nearly a quarter of the at bats that the sizzling Matt Diaz has been able to get. He's getting out slugged by Javier Vazquez and adds zero defensive versatility - the more I write the more maddening it becomes that he's still on the active roster. If the Braves' continue their winning ways, they may end up wishing they had spent those 70 at bats on another somewhere else.