3 Braves trade targets Alex Anthopoulos could steal from the A’s again

1. Brent Rooker has cooled off but still needs to be on Braves trade radar

For more than a month now, the possibility of the Braves upgrading the outfield by going after Brent Rooker has been on the radar. The two biggest factors in that were the fact that Rooker was white-hot to begin the season and Marcell Ozuna was somehow hitting even worse than he had in the previous two seasons with Atlanta. It felt like an obvious match to make.

The situation, however, has changed a bit over the month of May. While Rooker has cooled off with a .610 OPS in the month after posting a 1.262 OPS in April, Ozuna has found himself once again with a month that could legitimately have him in the NL Player of the Month conversation, posting a 1.066 OPS with nine home runs and 20 RBI in May alone.

Wherein these numbers and wild swings the truth lies, however, is the important context. It’s highly unlikely Ozuna keeps up his current pace while Rooker’s recent slump is likely a regression to the mean. However, if he stays where his season-long numbers currently are with an .876 OPS, 11 homers and 32 RBI for the year while Ozuna either slightly improves his season-long numbers or stays at a .789 OPS, there’s a trade to be made here for the Braves.

Rooker is almost four years younger than Ozuna and won’t even hit arbitration until after the 2024 season. Meanwhile, Ozuna has two years left on his deal while currently at 32 years old before a club option for the 2025 season. And when you factor in that Rooker appears to be ascending while Ozuna has been a headache the past two years, it’s not hard to decipher who the better long-term option would be.

Given the year he’s had overall, Rooker should draw some heavy trade interest around baseball. But with Anthopoulos’ relationship with the A’s, he should be able to come in and work up a deal that would not only improve the outfield platoon for the 2023 season but, much like with the Olson and Murphy trades, set up the Braves better for the future as well.