The Braves are down two of their three best pitchers for the foreseeable future, and many fans are wondering if the team will swing a trade. I named five NL trade targets and five AL trade targets, but it’s probably way too early for teams to start selling. Additionally, if the Braves were to make a splash, they’d probably need to wait until after the 2023 MLB Draft just to get some tradeable pieces. Alex Anthopoulos feels the same way:
Anthopoulos says no trade coming but Braves can survive this (for now) https://t.co/IKb8lltiU5
— Jeff Schultz (@JeffSchultzATL) May 11, 2023
When speaking to the Athletic, Anthopoulos had this to say:
“Trade season doesn’t really begin until the All-Star break so trades aren’t likely”
“Of course, everyone still stays engaged, but realistically there’s a reason almost all deals get done around the trade deadline.”
“It’s hard to answer it that way, I just know before July 31 you’re always likely to look internally. That’s for all teams, so whenever we have performance or injury issues early, we always follow the same process.”
This is the logical answer, even if Braves fans don’t like it. They’ll probably have to pluck someone off of a 40-man roster who can eat some innings, because they’re pretty low on internal options. I think the Braves can survive this stretch, but they risk fatiguing their bullpen and jeopardizing their championship hopes.
We’ll see if someone emerges, but the Braves really need Bryce Elder to stay hot and continue to get consistent outings out of Spencer Strider and Charlie Morton. Michael Soroka coming back would also be helpful. I expect the Braves to do *something*, but I doubt it’s going to be anything major. At this point, I’ll take a couple of warm bodies with some experience starting in the majors. It will be intriguing to see how the Braves approach the next couple of months with two of their horses absent from the rotation.
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Photographer: David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire
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