3 moves Braves must make to respond to Mets landing Justin Verlander
By John Buhler
1. Either re-sign Dansby Swanson or bring in another top-level shortstop
At this point, the Braves cannot play the cheap card anymore. If they feel like they can upgrade over Dansby Swanson at shortstop by landing either Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa or Trea Turner, they should pursue that. Should Swanson want to return on a hometown discount, then that is absolutely fantastic. However, the Braves cannot roll with Grissom at shortstop in 2023…
If Atlanta does not land a top-four free-agent shortstop, then Anthopoulos failed Braves Country. It is going to take a Matt Olson-level trade or signing to counterbalance a potential Swanson departure. Verlander’s best days are behind him, but the Braves are in win-now mode, so go win now! This is all about getting into and staying in the threshold of having a top-five MLB payroll.
Ultimately, the Braves cannot just sit there and let those hated Mets make all the moves, man.
light. Related Story. Here’s when the Braves bowed out on Jacob deGrom