Why Did the Atlanta Braves Trade Wood… and Peraza?
Aug 3, 2015; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Braves third baseman Adonis Garcia (right) is mobbed by teammates after hitting a game winning two run home run against the San Francisco Giants during the twelfth inning at Turner Field. The Braves defeated the Giants 9-8 in 12 innings. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
The news last night? That was pretty special.
But it was the news last week that hit like a solid punch to an unprepared midsection… it took the breath away and left an ache that has lingered over the past few days while we’re collectively still trying to manage a deep breath. To lose Alex Wood and Jose Peraza – in the same deal, no less.
Yeah, there were other players involved – we had more-or-less been expecting that Jim Johnson and Luis Avilan might be moved. Bronson Arroyo? Did he ever actually put a uniform on? Those impacts were mere glancing blows by comparison.
So now that we have had a few days, let’s see if we can muster an objective look at just why this trade was done.
Part of the Plan
For any trade to be good for the organization, there needs to be several components:
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- Trade from strength
- Trade from surplus, especially pitching
- Try to “sell high” and “buy low”
- Fill needs
For the Braves, there is a new plan in place this season: to stock with young arms so that pitching can be used as trade bait to fill needs. Primarily, this pitching is coming from the first-year player draft and via the prior trades of the veterans with expiring contract deals. Those trades have created their own holes, of course, and that brings us to the current day, with few bats to support a flagging offense.
Like it or not, this trade was right in line with that plan. Clearly, the Braves saw an opportunity to plug one of those holes: third base. What we didn’t know was what it would require to do so. Let’s take a deeper look at each of the main players.
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