ATLANTA - With the MLB trade deadline getting closer, the Braves’ wish list is pretty clear: starting pitching first, then a bat or two to give the lineup a little more punch.
That’s the easy part. The fun part is the flood of trade ideas that pops up every summer, from sensible swaps to full-blown fantasy baseball fever dreams. To sort through a handful of them, we pulled six Braves proposals from X and ran them past an MLB talent evaluator who spoke anonymously because he isn’t authorized to discuss possible trades publicly.
One of the more intriguing ideas sends Reid Detmers and Jo Adell from the Angels to Atlanta for JR Ritchie, Alex Lodise, Hayden Harris and Luis Guanipa. The evaluator called it a “Good concept” and said Atlanta’s offer was solid, though he thought the Angels might want more.
He pointed to Detmers as a controllable arm with a hefty price tag and said Adell would help with outfield needs and home run power. Ritchie, in his view, could step into a rotation spot quickly, while Lodise and Guanipa would be more about the future.
Harris, he noted, has options, is left-handed and sits near the bottom of Atlanta’s 40-man roster.
The appeal for the Braves is obvious. Adell has a .940 OPS against left-handed pitching with 10 home runs and 29 RBIs, and Atlanta has only a .697 OPS versus left-handers.
Detmers is the bigger prize, though, with a career year and team control through 2029. If the Angels pushed for a little more, swapping Harris for Ethan Bagwell could help, since Bagwell carries more projection.
A much bigger swing would be a Tigers-Braves deal for Tarik Skubal, with Detroit getting a package that includes Spencer Strider, AJ Smith-Shawver, JR Ritchie and others. The evaluator’s read was blunt: “Detroit probably says no.”
He liked the quantity but questioned whether Atlanta would be sending back a true impact player or pitcher to help replace Skubal. The Braves would likely have to replace Smith-Shawver with Cam Caminiti as the centerpiece, and at that point the price would be too steep.
Los Angeles and Milwaukee, he said, have stronger prospect capital to offer.
Another proposal had Atlanta landing Taylor Ward from the Orioles for Diego Tornes. The evaluator said Ward fills a real need and that the Braves would probably jump at the chance to add a veteran presence, but he also said Baltimore should ask for a safer return. Tornes, he said, is talented and projectable but risky, an “arrow-down guy in the Florida Complex League.”
There was also a Robbie Ray idea, with the Giants sending the left-hander to Atlanta for Owen Murphy and Pat Clohisy. The evaluator said the deal might work if San Francisco paid down some of the money, but he still viewed it as an overpay for the Braves.
He questioned whether Ray is the right upgrade to give up on Murphy’s youth. Cano agreed and suggested that a different pitcher, like Lucas Braun or Drue Hackenberg, might better match what the Giants would want.
The most realistic of the bunch, in Cano’s view, was a Casey Mize deal with Detroit. In that version, the Braves would send Alex Lodise and Blake Burkhalter to the Tigers.
The evaluator said Detroit would get a quality return for a rental and that Atlanta would likely see Mize as a frontline arm, though durability concerns remain. He also said the price could make sense if pitching costs are rising.
Lodise, he added, might end up moving off shortstop and fit into Detroit’s upper-level infield mix, while Burkhalter has appeal because of his makeup, deception and arm strength.
Cano called it the best fit of the group, saying it’s more likely Atlanta lands Mize than Skubal. He said Mize would reshape the rotation depth by giving the Braves quality starts and deeper outings, something Braves starters not named Chris Sale have struggled to do. He also noted that Lodise has power but may wind up at third base, and that Atlanta has already added several third basemen in the draft, including Ryne Barker.
The last mock deal was the loudest: Reid Detmers and Zach Neto to Atlanta for Alex Lodise, Cam Caminiti, Luke Sinnard and Blake Burkhalter. The evaluator said it would be a blockbuster, but not a fair one, because the Angels would not be getting enough back for two controllable, impactful players. He said Caminiti would be the biggest prize in the return and called it a fleece for Atlanta if Los Angeles agreed.
Cano was even more skeptical about the logistics, saying the Braves would have to include Ha-Seong Kim and cover the rest of the money on that contract to make it work. Still, he said Neto’s value is real because of the impact he would bring at shortstop and his strong arm.
He also singled out Sinnard’s 6-foot-7 frame as a reason to believe there’s more to unlock there. Even with that, he said Atlanta would probably need to add a Connor Essenburg or an Isaiah Drake to get the Angels to the table.
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