3 pitchers Braves need to trade for amid injuries and 1 to stay away from

1. Vince Velasquez should be a Braves trade target amid injuries

The Pittsburgh Pirates were one of the best stories in baseball over the first month of the season, jumping out to a hot start and the lead in the NL Central. But after a May 10 loss to the Rockies, they have now lost nine of their last 10 games and are coming way back down to earth — essentially looking more like the team many expected them to be in the 2023 season.

Should that continue, then the Pirates will ultimately end up in a familiar role as sellers at the trade deadline. And given how their pitching has performed this season, even with the recent skid, that’s an area where the Braves should be interested, particularly in a veteran option like Vince Velasquez.

Though he’s currently on the IL in his own right, the 30-year-old righty is expected to start throwing BP again soon and should return in short order. Meanwhile, he’s the perfect type of arm for the Braves to pursue.

Velasquez has been great for the Pirates this season, posting a 3.06 ERA and 1.16 WHIP. More importantly, though, he’s on a one-year deal so, if Pittsburgh indeed continues to bottom out, they could easily be compelled to move the veteran to recoup some value for the future. That’s something that Atlanta could take advantage of, especially for a pitcher with plenty of NL East experience given his 5.5 seasons with the Phillies.

Even if he regresses, though, he can still be a solid veteran arm, not dissimilar to Morton, who can hold down the fort until the rotation is healthy.