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Atlanta Braves: 2 Moves That Must be Made Before Opening Day

By Jake Mastroianni

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - AUGUST 28: Madison Bumgarner #40 of the San Francisco Giants reacts after the Giants got the final out of the sixth inning, in which the Arizona Diamondbacks had the bases loaded but were unable to score, at AT&T Park on August 28, 2018 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
SAN FRANCISCO, CA - AUGUST 28: Madison Bumgarner #40 of the San Francisco Giants reacts after the Giants got the final out of the sixth inning, in which the Arizona Diamondbacks had the bases loaded but were unable to score, at AT&T Park on August 28, 2018 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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ATLANTA, GA – SEPTEMBER 04: Right fielder Nick  Markakis #22 of the Atlanta Braves hits a single in the eighth inning during the game against the Boston Red Sox at SunTrust Park on September 4, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA – SEPTEMBER 04: Right fielder Nick  Markakis #22 of the Atlanta Braves hits a single in the eighth inning during the game against the Boston Red Sox at SunTrust Park on September 4, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Mike Zarrilli/Getty Images) /

The Atlanta Braves appear to be set for the upcoming season, but there are still two moves they need to make before Opening Day.

After signing Nick Markakis last week, you could argue that the Atlanta Braves filled their only obvious hole in the lineup.

I think the front office, and maybe the coaching staff and some players to an extent, would be very happy going into Spring Training with the roster they have.

But we are fans, and we are never satisfied.

When they signed Markakis for just $4 million in 2019, that left the door open for the Atlanta Braves to make another big move this offseason.

With their team payroll around $110 million, it would seem like they have another $20 million or so to play with.

Now, we know Alex Anthopoulos likes to keep some room in the budget for mid-season moves, but we were also promised that the budget would increase this year.

I’m coming at this from the mindset that we have $20 million left to spend this offseason, and then if we are on the cusp of winning the division again in July, we’ll expand that payroll to win.

At least, that’s what I hope the front office would be allowed to do.

So with that in mind, I feel like the Atlanta Braves still have at least one big move left in them, and two places were that money should be spent. And in my opinion, there are two ways the team can go about getting this done.

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