Braves Rumors: Ranking the 12 best trade targets for Atlanta to pursue

Braves Trade Target No. 8: Zack Greinke, SP, Kansas City Royals

The only true big-name trade that we’ve seen made to this point was the Kansas City Royals dealing Aroldis Chapman to the Texas Rangers… but that’s not expected to be all that the last-place team in the lowly AL Central will trade away before Aug. 1.

It remains to be seen if one of those players would be Royals legend Zack Greinke in the twilight of his career, specifically if he would want to move on in a trade to a contender. If that happens, though, it could be a situation in which Kansas City looks to do right by him and not play too much hardball with trade partners. Moreover, his performance this season won’t make him one of the most coveted arms on the trade block.

That’s a bit of a catch-22 for the Braves, though. Would they want a guy with a 5.40 ERA on the year? Greinke’s experience and track record are what make him enticing, but you could easily fall on either side of whether it’s a good idea for Atlanta to pursue this move or not.

Braves Trade Target No. 7: Scott Barlow, RP, Kansas City Royals

Earlier in the season when taking a look at trade possibilities for Atlanta, I was all-aboard the Scott Barlow trade. That hype, however, has since cooled, which is largely because Barlow simply hasn’t been as reliable as expected.

Through 34 appearances on the season, the 30-year-old with just one arbitration year left on his contract has a 4.89 ERA and 1.43 WHIP. More concerningly, he had a 5.19 ERA in nine June outings and that has ballooned to an 8.44 ERA over five appearances in July.

Considering that Barlow had a 2.42 and 2.18 ERA in 2021 and 2022, respectively, with the Royals, the Braves could very well still believe in his talent and stuff as a way to upgrade the bullpen. The performance this season, unfortunately, casts some shades of doubt on that, which could ultimately push Atlanta away from making this deal.