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Morton is Here… Now what’s next for the Braves?

By Edgar Galvan

Oct 18, 2020; Arlington, Texas, USA; Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Shane Greene (19) pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the fifth inning during game seven of the 2020 NLCS at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 18, 2020; Arlington, Texas, USA; Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Shane Greene (19) pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the fifth inning during game seven of the 2020 NLCS at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /
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Atlanta Braves
Charlie Morton of the Tampa Bay Rays delivers the pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the World Series. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

The Atlanta Braves have bolstered their rotation after signing Charlie Morton, but there’s more that needs to be done.

A week and some change after the signing of Drew Smyly, the Atlanta Braves made yet another splash with the signing of Charlie Morton. These two signings echoed a bit of what occurred during the last off-season with the quick signing made to bolster the bullpen via Will Smith.

Now that we are “somewhat” familiar with the dealings Alex Anthopoulos likes to make, we can attempt to make some slight predictions about where the Atlanta Braves go from here in terms of signings or trades for the rest of the off-season.

Outfield

Obviously, the elephant in the room has to be the Marcell Ozuna situation. One could say he had one heck of a season this year… in fact the .338 BA, 18 HR, and the 1.067 OPS shows just that! You may think, why are the Braves waiting so long to re-sign Ozuna? In my opinion, the simple answer is they’re waiting for the MLB’s decision on whether or not the NL will have the DH next season and beyond.

The man is a force to be reckoned with at the plate, but his fielding abilities leave much to be desired. So, I just can’t see the Braves making a move on Marcell Ozuna until that DH decision is resolved.

With the DH: No brainer, sign Marcell Ozuna (how does 4 years/$70mil sound? Just throwing it out there. That dollar amount may be a lot higher.)

So what if there is no DH?

I’d say the Braves should realistically go after Michael Brantley or Joc Pederson. Or, if they want to make a big splash, throw some money George Springer‘s way and watch that outfield (consisting of Cristian Pache and Ronald Acuña Jr) work their magic. Highly doubt that move would happen though.

I’d say the Braves should target Michael Brantley. He won’t give you the offensive numbers Marcell Ozuna provided in 2020, but we may have to ask ourselves if even Marcell Ozuna can give you those numbers once again.

Michael Brantley is a great contact hitter that could easily be slotted into this established lineup. A consistent bat is exactly what the Braves need and with a .300 BA and an OPS of .840 in 2020, I’d say he serves as a good replacement. 

Also, let Nick Markakis walk. There are better options internally and the emergence of Cristian Pache relatively pushes him out. Same goes for Ender Inciarte, but he’s still locked in for another year on his contract. 

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