At the beginning of the offseason Braves fans had some high expectations. These were increased even more when Josh Donaldson was signed rather quickly to a one-year, $23 million dollar contract. Since then, not much has happened outside of a couple minor moves involving a short-term deal with former Brave Brian McCann and the return of Nick Markakis for another season. This has left some of the fanbase in an uproar which has only been made worse by other teams in the NL East spending big and vastly improving their squads (outside of the Marlins, of course).
So, is it possible for the Braves to get better at this point, after already missing out on J.T. Realmuto and most likely missing out on Bryce Harper (who has been linked to the Phillies in rumors) along with Manny Machado, both of whom are looking for huge money contracts?
The Braves have done very well in their rebuild which officially started around the end of 2014 and have already graduated major stars like Ronald Acuña Jr. and Ozzie Albies to the big league squad. However, they are still a couple of pieces shy of being a real World Series contender. As far as position players go they are looking good on the infield corners with Donaldson and Freeman along with All-Star Ozzie Albies at second base and the tandem of Tyler Flowers and Brian McCann behind the plate. In the outfield both center field and left are looking solid as well with Ender Inciarte and Acuña leading the way. This leaves right field and shortstop as possible improvements that Atlanta could still make in their lineup.
While Nick Markakis did win a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger last season after being named to his first All-Star Team ever, he isn’t going to do a ton of damage at the plate where the Braves need a slugger right now. Markakis has never been a guy that can produce big power numbers with a career slugging percentage of .424 and a career ISO of .135, so where do the Braves look to bring in a power hitting outfielder?
You might recall earlier this offseason that there were rumors of the Braves being interested in the Mariners’ Mitch Haniger and that fit could not be looking more golden at the moment. What it would take to get the young budding star is another story entirely. The package would probably look something like what the Marlins just acquired for J.T. Realmuto which is steep to say the least, but could be a huge lift for a Braves squad on the cusp of sustained success. While GM Alex Anthopoulos has said in the past that he prefers to not give up such a package for just one player he could have a different opinion when it comes to Haniger, who is a massive upgrade over Markakis at this point where Realmuto would only have been a slight upgrade over the Flowers/McCann combo.
At shortstop the Braves can only hope that Swanson is able to improve on the offensive end, but if he doesn’t it could be possible that Johan Camargo steps into that role as he can provide the offense along with the top-notch defense that Dansby has become so well known for. Externally the Braves have been rumored to have checked in on Manny Machado and while it has largely been noted that he is searching for a long term deal the Braves still have the capital to give Machado a short (but lavish) deal to play shortstop which would easily give Atlanta the best infield in the game.
On the pitching rubber is where the Braves could improve the most, though. Their lineup is not horrible in its current configuration, but Atlanta’s rotation and bullpen are both shaky at best going into next season. Mike Foltynewicz took a step forward last season to become the Braves’ top starter, but outside of him the rotation was largely inconsistent. Touki Toussaint, Sean Newcomb, Max Fried and Mike Soroka are all still so young that the Braves won’t know what to expect next season. Signing a Dallas Keuchel or Gio Gonzalez would be a nice touch to have a solid veteran on the team to help with the growing pains of a young rotation.
The bullpen is much of the same story. The Braves have a ton of young arms that don’t have track records of success, but when you throw in a proven player like a Craig Kimbrel or Tony Sipp, the entire outlook of your pen changes. Adding one of these veterans that are still on the market would go a long way for the Braves who still have money to spend and lots of playing time to go around.
The offseason may not look like the picture many Braves fans had in their minds at the beginning of it, but there are still guys out there that can be had that would help this team get to the next level. Even with the improvements other teams in the NL East have made, it isn’t too late for the Braves… yet.