Atlanta Braves Acquire Justin Upton for Martin Prado in Blockbuster Trade
By Josh Hill
Justin Upton had been on the trade block for some time, but he now knows where he’ll be playing next season. The Atlanta Braves acquired Upton from the Arizona Diamondbacks in a deal that saw a total of seven players change uniforms.
The biggest name was Upton, who will join his older brother B.J. in Atlanta’s outfield. The elder Upton inked a massive free agent contract earlier this offseason to be the braves new center fielder, while the freshly acquired younger Upton will be Atlanta’s new left fielder. The Braves have now pieced together one of the best and fastest outfields in baseball with Jason Heyward being the third member of the new crew.
Diamondbacks third baseman Chris Johnson will follow Upton to Atlanta as part of the trade. Johnson himself joins one of the better infields in baseball as the he’ll join Freddie Freeman, Dan Uggla and Andrelton Simmons.
In exchange for Upton and Johnson, the Braves are sending utility man Martin Prado, starting pitcher Randall Delgado, minor-league shortstop Nick Ahmed and minor-league pitcher Zeke Spruill.
Prado will likely be moving to third base to replace the departing Johnson, but he’s demonstrated that he can play anywhere on the diamond. Delgado was ranked as the 46th-best prospect in baseball by Baseball America and will instantly become a part of the Diamondbacks starting rotation.
Arizona made out like bandits in the trade, and they’ve instantly upgraded more than one position in their lineup. As for the Braves, the deal shifts a lot of momentum towards the Braves for the upcoming season. After last year ended in disappointment, the Braves have set themselves up for a serious run at a World Series not only this year, but for the next few seasons.