Atlanta Braves: 4 disappointments who should be replaced at the trade deadline
By John Buhler
The Atlanta Braves could experience a youth movement by moving off these veteran players.
The next few weeks will decide what the Atlanta Braves‘ second half of the season will look like.
Atlanta enters play on Tuesday night 4.5 games back of the arch rival New York Mets in the NL East standings. While there is a chance Atlanta could get hot in the second half of the season, this year’s team has never been above .500 at any point of this campaign. There have been plenty of disappointments on the field, and it may serve the Braves to move some veterans at the deadline.
Here are four Braves players who could be traded at the deadline to usher in a youth movement.
Atlanta Braves: 4 veteran players who could be dealt ahead of the trade deadline
Pick Analysis. LHP. Atlanta Braves. Drew Smyly. player. 17. Scouting Report. 4
Drew Smyly’s home-run issues have made him expendable at the trade deadline
Though he has pitched better in recent starts, Drew Smyly could be expendable at the deadline for a few reasons. One, he is on a one-year deal with the Braves, so a team in need of a savvy veteran left-handed starter could be interested. Two, he is only the Braves’ at-best No. 4 starter, so he may be occupying a spot a younger pitcher could take advantage of. And three, he gives up bombs.
Yes, Atlanta could conceivably trade its other free-agent starting pitcher acquisition from this past offseason in Charlie Morton. However, he has pitched really well in recent starts, and may offer great long-term value for Atlanta starting rotation mainstays like Ian Anderson and Max Fried down the line. Win or lose, Morton’s postseason success in the American League speaks volumes.
As for Smyly, it could really go either way with him. He has pitched well enough of late to not be undeniably on the trading block. However, Atlanta may want to see what up-and-coming pitching prospects like Kyle Muller can do with more run, as well as Huascar Ynoa once he returns from his broken hand. If any starter gets squeezed out of the rotation, it would have to be Smyly right now.
Of course, there are other roster spots that need to be addressed before potentially trading Smyly.