The Braves know where the problem is. If they’re going to hold off the Phillies and stay on top of the NL East, the starting rotation has to get better, and fast.
Chris Sale has been healthy and excellent, but the rest of the group is a mess of injuries, inconsistency, and uncertainty. Atlanta needs more help on the mound, and MLB.com’s Mark Bowman pointed straight at starting pitching as the club’s biggest deadline need.
The encouraging part for Braves fans is that Atlanta apparently has the muscle to chase just about anyone.
"They have the financial flexibility and prospect capital necessary to make a run for any available starter," Bowman writes.
That’s the kind of line that gets attention, because it opens the door to the biggest names that could hit the market. If the Detroit Tigers ever make Tarik Skubal available, the Braves would be right in the mix. The same goes for Joe Ryan of the Minnesota Twins, Freddy Peralta of the New York Mets, Robbie Ray, or even Logan Webb of the San Francisco Giants.
And it doesn’t stop there. The Braves are said to have the resources to go after basically any starter who becomes available. Even if Paul Skenes were somehow on the table, Atlanta could put together a serious offer by leaning on its farm system.
The list of realistic targets could also include Skubal, Ryan, Peralta, Ray, Michael Wacha, Seth Lugo, Reid Detmers, and Jose Soriano. No matter which arm becomes available, the message is the same: if Alex Anthopoulos wants a top starter, the Braves should be able to make a real run at one this summer.
For Braves fans, that makes this deadline worth watching closely. There’s a real chance Atlanta ends up landing one of the best pitchers on the market, maybe even one of the best in all of Major League Baseball.
In Other News...
Braves Quietly Got Back A Bullpen Arm They May Desperately Need
For most of the season, Atlantas bullpen has looked like one of the clubs quiet advantages, but the last stretch has brought a little more unease. Raisel Iglesias has blown a save, Dylan Lee has had shaky outings and Didier Fuentes is nearing the break, which has made the relief picture feel less settled than it did a few weeks ago.
Into that mix comes Danny Young, the left-hander the Braves have quietly gotten back after his injury layoff. His early work this season has been encouraging enough to give Atlanta another option for mid-to-high-leverage spots against left-handed hitters, and perhaps a way to ease the load on some of the other arms that have been asked to carry more lately. The bigger question is how quickly the Braves lean into that role, and whether Young can turn a useful return into something more than just a temporary fix. [Read more 🡒]
Walt Weiss Decisions Just Cost The Braves A Game They Had Won
The Braves had enough offense to put themselves in position to win, but the game slipped into the kind of extra-inning mess that usually leaves a manager under the microscope. Atlanta scored six runs and still could not finish off the Mets, with the lineups missed chances and a thin bench leaving the club in a difficult spot once the game stretched beyond regulation.
Walt Weiss choices only made the margin for error smaller. The Braves were already navigating a less-than-ideal setup in extras, and the way the bullpen and lineup were handled became a major part of why a game that looked won turned into a loss, even before the final inning had fully played out. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Cant Afford Another Quiet Deadline From Alex Anthopoulos
With the trade deadline approaching, the Braves look like a club that cannot simply sit back and hope the rotation and outfield sort themselves out. ESPNs latest best-fit rundown had Atlanta attached to 17 of the top 25 deadline candidates, which is a pretty clear sign that the market sees a team with real needs and a front office that should be active. Starting pitching remains the obvious priority, and the list of names floating around ranges from Tarik Skubal and Joe Ryan to Sonny Gray, Reid Detmers, Casey Mize, Jose Soriano and Freddy Peralta.
The outfield search is a little murkier, with Taylor Ward looking like the most realistic target if Atlanta wants to add a bat without emptying the system. Shortstop is another area worth watching, but the price tag on the top names would be steep enough to make any deal complicated fast. For Alex Anthopoulos, the pressure is less about making a splash than avoiding another deadline that leaves the roster looking almost exactly the same when the dust settles. [Read more 🡒]