Jon Lester To The Atlanta Braves??

The winter GM meetings began on Monday and everything we’ve heard from these gatherings is that the Atlanta Braves are looking to move big name players.  From Jason Heyward, Justin Upton and Evan Gattis to anyone in the bullpen other than Craig Kimbrel is available.

All these rumors are letting Braves fans to lean towards the thought that they will be rebuilding until the 2017 year when they move into their new entertainment facility.

But is rebuilding the correct “R” word??…maybe it’s actually reshaping.

Things we all know is that the Braves would love to get away from some of these horrible contracts they currently have.  Also, they seem open to trading Justin Upton or Jason Heyward now because they will be free agents after the 2015 season.  Gattis would definitely be more suited for an AL team so that he can DH.

Maybe, just maybe though John Hart is doing the correct business-like thing to do.

The Atlanta Braves have always had the mindset of pitching first and with this new “The Braves Way” philosophy, Hart may be in the shopping store to trade away his bats to get a few arms in Atlanta.

Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Braves may be in on the Jon Lester sweepstakes….

"Lester, 31, lives in Sharpsburg, Ga., outside Atlanta. The Braves need starting pitching. And if they clear enough payroll — something they actively are trying to do — then their entire approach to the offseason could change.The Braves indeed have touched base with Lester’s representatives, according to major-league sources. Their contact might only be a matter of due diligence. But they would be foolish to outright ignore a local resident, no?"

The Braves love their Georgia-boys, don’t they?

Chicago Cubs and the Boston Red Sox are also supposedly very interested in Lester.  If these two teams become more serious and begin a bidding war, the Braves should very politely start backpedalling.

Acquiring a Lester type pitcher would turn this rotation around quickly.  Lester, Julio Teheran, Mike Minor, Alex Wood, and TBD would be something fans could get excited about…especially if they trade away fan favorites Heyward or Gattis.

Lester will turn 31-years-old in January.  The three-time MLB All-Star went 16-11 with a 2.46 ERA in 32 starts split between Boston and Oakland in 2014.

Is Jon Lester likely to join the Braves?  I would say at this point, no but to hear that the Braves are actually interested in acquiring talent instead of shipping it all away is encouraging.