Universal Ramblings

* Height: 5-11
* Weight: 180
* Bats: L
* Throws: R
* Born: Oct 28, 1981 – Muskegon, MI
* College: None
* Draft: 2000 – 25th round by the Pittsburgh Pirates

The 27-year-old Nate McLouth was an All-Star last season and set career highs with a .276 average, 26 homers and 94 RBIs. The Braves desperately needed more offense from an outfield that produced only 10 homers through the first 51 games.

Atlanta gave up outfielder Gorkys Hernandez, one of their top prospects, along with pitchers Charlie Morton(notes) and Jeff Locke.

McLouth, who is hitting .256 with nine homers and 34 RBIs this season, fills several needs for the Braves. In addition to bolstering the lineup, he won a Gold Glove in 2008 and had 23 stolen bases. Since the start of the ’05 season, he has the best stolen base percentage (64 of 69) among all major leaguers.

Another plus: McLouth is under contract through at least 2011, having signed a three-year, $15.75 contract in spring training. The deal includes a team option for a fourth year at $10.65 million, with a buyout of $1.25 million.

The Braves outfield has struggled, capped by the demotion of Jordan Schafer to Triple-A Tuesday. Look for McLouth to start in CF in Atlanta and Andrew McCutchen to be called up by the Pirates.

This is obviously a big step up for McLouth, moving from the perennially bottom-feeding Pirates to the NL East contending Braves. McLouth should be in the Braves’ starting lineup right away and shouldn’t miss a beat. He has been struggling a bit of late, but a change of scenery could be just what he needs to get going again. He is a high-end Fantasy OF and should be active in all leagues. Hopefully he will hit the ground running with Atlanta.