Braves: 3 young players Atlanta would have to sell in any Juan Soto trade

Juan Soto rumors: Braves could trade Spencer Strider

Strider is a fan favorite or sorts due to his facial hair, but he’s also one of the best young starters in the National League. While Ian Anderson would’ve been the demand last year, he’s proven himself far more valuable to the Braves long-term.

Atlanta is not without their own pitching needs, so parting ways with Strider would not be easy. The 23-year-old has a 4-2 record, 2.56 ERA and 1.024 WHIP in 70.1 innings pitched this season. Those are numbers to build off of.

All of the Braves on this list are in the bigs right now, namely because Atlanta does not have any current prospects ranked in the top-100 per MLB Pipeline. The front office needs to reload the farm in their own right, but for now that leaves them bare and susceptible to losing young, big-league ready talent when trying to make an upgrade such as acquiring Soto.

Trading for Soto remains a longshot, in part because the two teams are in the same division. Atlanta’s been playing good baseball with their core in tact. Blowing up the roster in favor of one player — regardless of who that player is — doesn’t make a lot of sense.

The only way the Braves would get involved in a Soto chase would be free agency. Because they signed the likes of Acuña and Ozzie Albies to team-friendly deals, and have Matt Olson signed to a long-term contract already, they have some flexibility.

But a trade is incredibly unlikely for now.