You can see that I didn’t like the news. Since Freeman was a Trustmark Park kid, I have been following his career closely. He was a tall skinny kid with a grin that is a little silly, and he’s still developing his man-skills. Freeman was called up to Atlanta after the conclusion of the next season. He has now played in all 11 of his Major League seasons with the Braves. Freeman has a batting average of.295 and has 271 home runs. He also has 941 runs batting in. He is a clutch player. He has also played a flawless first base. He was a great player and a good friend. He is the face of Chipper Jones’ franchise. He’s now gone to the Los Angeles Dodgers. We’ll see. We will see. Olson, a young, talented player, hits for power and plays first base exceptionally well, and is five years younger than Freeman. Olson was traded by the Braves to acquire four top prospects. Mississippi Braves fans will be familiar with Christian Pache, a centerfielder, and Shea Langeliers as catcher. Both of them have been playing in Pearl over the past few seasons. M-Braves fans will be familiar with Joey Estes and Ryan Cusick, both young pitchers who were expected to make it through Pearl in the next few seasons. Olson’s stats: He hit.271 last season with 39 homers. Olson is a native of Atlanta and, according to all accounts, he is a good friend and teammate. Olson isn’t Freddie Freeman. That’s the only problem. After much Monday cussing, fussing, and finally sleeping on Monday, here is my reaction to Monday’s news: Although I don’t like the news, I am learning more about it from the perspective of Alex Anthopoulos, Braves General Manager. Anthopoulos refused to sign a six-year contract for Freeman. Anthopoulos only agreed to five years because he knew that few sluggers are as productive in their 30s. It should be noted that Anthopoulos earned his keep for the Braves after injuries decimated the team and the Braves appeared dead in the water. The team was revived by the GM’s midseason acquisitions of Joc Pederson and Jorge Soler, as well as Eddie Rosario and Adam Duvall. This led to a World Series title. Brian Snitker (another former M-Brave) was a great manager. Freeman was also outstanding. A replenished bullpen was also a good thing. Anthopoulos’s brilliant maneuvering would have prevented the Braves from coming close. Anthopoulos’s decision-making skills merited at least some credit, if you ask me. He believes that the Braves’ short-term and longer-term futures are better with the younger Olson at the plate and the club not spending nearly $200 million in Freeman for the next six years. Anthopoulos seemed emotional when he announced the trade and talked about it. Anthopoulos stated that it was difficult to pull the Freeman lever than any other trade he had done. The bottom line is that this is baseball in 2022. It has been like this for many years. Braves fans need to know this. Hank Aaron retired as a Milwaukee Brewer and not as an Atlanta Brave. Greg Maddux spent his seven last seasons with the Chicago Cubs, and not the Braves. Tom Glavine spent the majority of his declining years with The Mets, and not the Braves. John Smoltz was a member of two teams when he was let go by the Braves. All Hall of Famer are those. Freeman will no doubt be. Olson? The future will show. It’s a two-way street between Freeman and Braves. Freeman could have accepted the Braves’ five-year contract worth $135 million. He could then retire there. The Braves could also have done the same thing they did with Chipper Jones and signed him to a lucrative extension long before he reached the end of his contract. The former would have been a great thing. It didn’t. This is baseball in 21st-century style. Today, I like to think back on the 2009 summer when Jason Heyward and Freeman spent most of their season in Pearl. Heyward was the most prized of the two. Freeman was less physically developed and more mature than Heyward. Heyward’s bat made the ball sound different. Phillip Wellman was then the M-Braves manager. I told him that I believed Heyward would be in the Hall of Fame. Wellman replied with this: “Don’t sleep on Freddie Freeman. He could very well be the man people remember the most.” We are now almost 13 years later. Heyward is at.259 with 158 hits. Freeman is at.295 with 271 homers. There is no contest. It will be at least three to four years before we know whether the Braves made Monday the right move. We all know this from those who have been following them for the past 11 years: It’s over. We will cherish the positive memories of Freddie Freeman’s time as a Brave in Atlanta, and also in Pearl.