Braves: 3 trades to help replace injured Ronald Acuña Jr.
By Tim Boyle
Trades for any of these three outfielders can help the Atlanta Braves survive Ronald Acuña Jr.’s latest injury.
Just when things seemed to be going right for the Atlanta Braves, they received some tough news regarding star outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. They are a top ten team in MLB right now but losing him for a significant amount of time might change this quickly.
Acuña missed significant time last year and was out at the start of the season before returning for 43 games. He came back and helped lift the offense with his .281/.372/.455 performance that included 7 home runs and 13 stolen bases in only 196 plate appearances. After fouling a ball off his foot this weekend, there are questions about how long they may be without him yet again.
The Braves were already in the market to make a trade for an outfielder. Sound familiar? It’s exactly what they did last summer to perfection. They should already be looking to strike another deal. These three options should already be on their radar.
1) Braves trade option to replace Ronald Acuña Jr.: Andrew Benintendi
Andrew Benintendi doesn’t quite compare to Acuña. Acuña is about as well-rounded of a player as you will find in today’s game. Benintendi is a little more limited.
That shouldn’t have the Braves limiting themselves. They were already in the market for another outfielder. Benintendi is one of the best that will absolutely be available.
Through 296 plate appearances of his own, Benintendi has hit .295/.365/.386 for the Kansas City Royals. He has 3 home runs and only 25 RBI. A 2021 Gold Glove winner in left field, there’s no doubt he’d be able to move over to right field if needed. The Braves could also shovel their outfielders around a little more with players like Adam Duvall showing quite a bit of versatility.
The Braves don’t need much power added to their lineup because of how much they get from other guys. Benintendi’s addition would, instead, offer them great OBP numbers and a left-handed bat for a lineup of mostly righties.