The Atlanta Braves have made the playoffs in six straight seasons and that includes winning the 2021 World Series. They won 101 games in 2022 and 104 last season but were bounced in the NLDS round. They entered the season as heavy favorites to win the NL East. This is all to say the Braves are obviously a win-now team.
They also lost ace Spencer Strider for the season early and then 2023 NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. tore his ACL just like in 2021. Now they've lost second baseman Ozzie Albies until September with a broken arm. They trail the Phillies by 9 games in the NL East, and are holding on to the top NL wild-card spot, though even that has been precarious lately.
Factoring everything in here, the Braves should be buying in front of the trade deadline to shore up areas depleted by injury.
Here's what you need to know about the Braves and their trade deadline situation.
Needs
A utility man who can handle second base until Albies gets back and then move around afterward would be ideal. Think about when the Royals added Ben Zobrist in 2015, for example. They recently added Whit Merrifield, but he isn't very productive these days. And if prospect Nacho Alvarez plays well enough to stick full-time, much like Michael Harris II did when he was thrust into action, the new acquisition wouldn't need to play second.
With Harris still injured, the current outfield is comprised of an Eddie Rosario and Ramón Laureano platoon in left, Jarred Kelenic in center and Adam Duvall in right. That's unlikely to get the team hitting like 2023 again, so outfield bats should be another area to target.
When Acuña was injured in 2021, Braves boss Alex Anthopoulos threw the proverbial kitchen sink at the problem, adding Joc Pederson, Jorge Soler, Rosario and Duvall. Maybe they'll do the same here rather than go looking to make a huge splash. Instead of one blockbuster move, go after a bunch of depth pieces with big upside, including one that can handle second base.
Further, rotation depth is a concern now with Max Fried having forearm neuritis. Chris Sale looks like his old self and Charlie Morton continues to be a rock at his age while Reynaldo López has been excellent this season, but it's all question marks after that.
Possible trade targets
An AL Cy Young frontrunner right now, Tarik Skubal is under team control through 2026. He's had trouble staying healthy and is not far away from his career high in innings, but he's not a rental and the price he commands on the open market -- if the Tigers even sell him -- might be out of the Braves' range, given the state of their farm system.
Similar to Skubal, Garrett Crochet is under team control through 2026 and has workload concerns, though his are more extreme. His previous career high in MLB innings was 54 1/3 in 2021 and he's at 107 1/3 innings right now. Still, there's ace upside here and he's not a rental. The same concerns remain about the Braves' ability to outbid teams with stocked farm systems like the Orioles and Dodgers.
If the Braves go big instead of filling out depth to replace Acuña, White Sox All-Star Luis Robert makes sense. He had a breakout season last year and the Braves could control him through 2025, though there are also club options through 2027. He has issues staying on the field, but maybe that's a plus here in terms of keeping the bidding for his services reasonable.
If you're looking for someone who can man second until Albies gets back and then roam a bit once he's returned, Jazz Chisholm could be the guy. A bonus is he can steal bases and there's a void left there with Acuña on the shelf.
It's still yet to be determined how heavily the Rays sell, if at all. If they do, Randy Arozarena could conceivably work. He's having the worst year of his career, but he's shown signs of life lately and we know plenty about his playoff prowess. He's under team control through 2026.
The issue here is Brent Rooker scores out as a pretty bad defender, to the point that he's mostly been a designated hitter this season. The Braves already have DH locked up with Marcell Ozuna, but hey, you never know with Anthopoulus. He likes to get creative and move pieces around. And Rooker is having a hell of a season with the bat.
Through walks have been an issue in the past, leading to inconsistency, Jack Flaherty this season has 127 strikeouts against only 17 walks in 100 2/3 innings. The "bet on himself" one-year deal he signed is working out swimmingly for both Flaherty and the Tigers. If the Braves go the rental route with a starting pitcher, he would be a nice addition.
Zach Eflin was good enough last season to finish sixth in the AL in Cy Young voting, though he's been down this year. It's possible this is a fit, though, as Eflin is under team control through next season and the price won't likely be astronomical. The way Sale and López are pitching, the Braves really only need a mid-rotation starter anyway.
The hope in acquiring Yusei Kikuchi would be that he reverts back to 2023 form, as he hasn't been very good this season. He's a free agent after this year, so he'd only be a rental and the Braves would be hoping to catch lightning in a bottle here. Plus, the price likely wouldn't be too steep here. He's a realistic depth add.
Taylor Ward hasn't been able to follow up this 2022 breakout season with much more than just being an average everyday player who has run into injury. He flashed enough upside that season, though, that if Anthopoulus decides to go with the "just grab a bunch of bodies and maybe one will stick" approach like he did in 2021, Ward would make sense. He's under team control through 2026, too.
Amed Rosario is hitting for a high average and can handle both second base and the outfield, so he's a fit. He'll hit free agency after the season, too, making him a nice short-term fix.
Another short-term solution who can handle second base, Brandon Drury likely wouldn't cost much, given how awful he's been this season. He was a productive hitter from 2021-23, though, and he's not too old at age 31. It's possible a change of scenery would rejuvenate him.
I wouldn't get any ideas about second base, as Miguel Andujar has played third in the past but he's never been anywhere up the middle in professional ball. He can work in the outfield and he's swinging a good bat this season. He's under team control through next season.
I'm putting Bo Bichette last because while it is an idea that could work, I'm just not seeing it as being realistic. The two-time All-Star is only signed through next season and though the Blue Jays have said they want to sign him to an extension, there hasn't been any traction there and they seem primed for a reboot. Acquiring Bichette would move Orlando Arcia to second base with Bichette taking over at short and then Arcia to the bench once Albies is ready. I'm still not sure the Jays even move Bichette, but if they do, the Braves will very likely get outbid.
Trade chips
It'll be tough to pull off huge deals here, as the Braves have depleted their farm system in recent years due to heavy graduations of prospects and trades that landed Sean Murphy, Matt Olson and Sale, not to mention all their deadline tinkering.
Top catcher prospect Drake Baldwin could work, as Murphy is the long-term backstop here while Travis d'Arnaud can be held through next season. At the plate, Baldwin has a profile lots of people love these days, as he walks a lot and hits for power.
I doubt the Braves move on from A.J. Smith-Shawver, but I suppose it's possible. He's posting an ERA of over 5 this season in Triple-A, yet is still believed to be a high-upside pitching prospect. We just saw the Braves trade former top prospect Vaughn Grissom in order to get Sale. Bryce Elder might not be out of the question, either. He was an All-Star last season but has completely fallen apart since. He's a change-of-scenery candidate.
If you go deeper into the farm system, pitchers Drue Hackenberg, Owen Murphy and JR Ritchie could potentially be centerpieces in deals.
