Braves caught Freddie Freeman off-guard with Matt Olson trade

The New York Post reported that Freddie Freeman and his team were caught off-guard by the Atlanta Braves decision to trade for Oakland A’s Matt Olson. 

The Matt Olson trade to Atlanta seemed to shock all involved, as even Olson seemed a little awestruck as he reacted to the “bittersweet” move back home to Georgia.

Even though nicknames like “Mattlanta” are already rolling in, others involved in the trade were blindsided by the Braves move. Cristian Pache shared his feelings candidly on Twitter, acknowledging that although baseball is a business, his “heart is broken” by the news that he’s leaving Atlanta.

Pache and Olson aren’t the only ones who were caught off-guard. According to reports, Freddie Freeman wasn’t aware of the trade until it broke publicly. Before the trade was confirmed, reports indicated that Freeman was still negotiating with Atlanta, and it had not been ruled out yet.

Braves did not warn Freddie Freeman about Matt Olson trade

As Pache said, this is the way the business works, although it can be admittedly callous at times. Red Sox fans painfully remember when the team suddenly cut Brock Holt, who remains a fan favorite in Boston. Even with Freeman, one could argue that he rejected the Braves’ initial offer, so it shouldn’t be all that surprising that they decided the move on.

Still, in an offseason underscored by tension between MLB players and owners, cutting a franchise pillar by surprise isn’t good business when it comes to fans. Braves fans will show up and support whether it’s Olson or Freeman on first base, but knowing that the player who dedicated his career to a World Series win and wanted to be compensated for that doesn’t bode well in the public eye.

Not giving Freeman a heads up illustrates the Braves’ relationship with him at this point in negotiations: although he was once one of the most important players on this team, the Braves clearly thought they didn’t owe him his desired contract nor a warning about the trade.