Braves Trade Deadline Primer: Not Much Room to Move

Less than two weeks away from the August 2 trade deadline, the Atlanta Braves don’t really have much work to do in terms of major upgrades. 

At the last traded deadline Alex Anthoplous had maybe the best trade deadline of any general manager making several low-key moves that led to the Atlanta Braves being crowned World Series champions.

That team was two games under .500 and 5 games out of a playoff spot.

This year’s team is 18 games over .500, just 2.5 games back of the division lead, and firmly 6 games up on a playoff spot with the third-best record in the National League.

That doesn’t mean AA should stand pat and do nothing at the trade deadline, but there really isn’t much work to do, and there really isn’t much room on the roster to do anything without subtraction.

Braves Trade Deadline Primer: Roster Crunch

This isn’t to say the roster is perfect, but who are you really cutting off this roster?

There isn’t a pitcher on this roster right now that it would make sense to cut.

A.J. Minter and Dylan Lee are the only relievers with minor league options left, but they’re two of the team’s best relievers.

Will Smith has been the worst reliever as of yet, but the Braves still owe him a good chunk of money and he was great down the stretch last year for them.

In the rotation, you could possibly demote Ian Anderson if he doesn’t start showing signs of improvement. But again, this is a guy that has proven himself in the postseason before.

And let’s not forget, Atlanta could be adding Kirby Yates and Mike Soroka to the roster in about a month.

On the lineup side of things, it’s a little bit easier as there are always spots on the bench that could be upgraded. Robinson Cano and Guillermo Heredia can be replaced.

But that’s pretty much it for now.

A lot of fans would like to see the Braves move Marcell Ozuna, but it’s hard to imagine that happening. His contract seems unmovable at the moment and would just be a money dump.

Ozzie Albies is expected to come back at the end of August.

Other injuries could pop up over the next 11 days creating an opening, but as things stand now, there really is much room for AA to maneuver without getting creative.

Braves Trade Deadline Primer: Likely Moves Made

Another thing to consider is the Braves farm system is very thing. That’s why this past draft is so important.

It’s highly unlikely AA makes a big splash at this deadline. He’s really yet to make any kind of big splash at any deadline.

Instead, you’ll likely see him make a few marginal moves to improve the depth.

You will almost certainly see AA snag a right-handed reliever and a left-handed outfielder for the bench — and that might be it.

That might not sound exciting to some of you dreaming of a trade for Luis Castillo, Juan Soto, or Shohei Ohtani, but that’s the reality.

For better or worse, it will be up to the core of the team you see now to get it done. And when they play like they’re capable, this group is more than enough to win another World Series.