Braves' Cristian Pache: Favorite to win center field job

Pache will be given every chance to win the starting center field spot this spring, Gabriel Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. "We're going to give him a lot of opportunity," Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said Friday. "The kid has to come to camp feeling really good about things, having a lot of confidence off his performance in the NLCS. This'll be his third or fourth camp, so he'll know what to expect and have a better idea about himself."The 22-year-old is still working to turn his athletic prowess into consistent production at the plate, but Pache's defense has been big-league worthy for a couple years already, and his ability to excel with the glove becomes even more important with Marcell Ozuna headed for left field barring the last-minute return of the DH to the National League. If Pache experiences significant growing pains, Atlanta still has Ender Inciarte on hand, and Ronald Acuna could also slide over from right field.