Alex Anthopoulos seems hell-bent on letting the entire pitching market pass the Braves by

The Atlanta Braves aren't having a very good night.

Max Fried officially bid farewell, signing an eight-year, $218 million contract with the New York Yankees. That is a comical amount of money. There's no way the Braves were ever paying that. But, all the same, losing Fried leaves a noticeable hole in the middle of a notoriously volatile rotation.

Atlanta has plenty of talent in the rotation. Spencer Strider and Chris Sale are Cy Young candidates, but neither is guaranteed to put together a healthy season in 2025. Reynaldo Lopez was great in his return to a starting role, but the Braves just can't expect a 1.99 ERA again. Lightning rarely strikes twice. Spencer Schwellenbach is fun, but Atlanta's rotation is teetering on the brink.

Adding more depth is a must, whether it's through trade or free agency. There are several compelling options out there. It just requires the proper aggression from Alex Anthopoulos, who is under pressure to deliver a winner after a disappointing 2024 campaign.

One of the most popular free agent names tied to Atlanta this winter has been Nathan Eovaldi, a two-time World Series champ who'd bring experience and a wicked pitch combo on an affordable, short-term contract. He'd made for an adequate Fried replacement, if not quite on that level.

Alas, Eovaldi is officially staying with the Texas Rangers, per FanSided's Robert Murray. So, there goes that dream for Atlanta.

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Nathan Eovaldi spurns the Braves for Rangers reunion, now what?

This leaves Atlanta in a minor pickle. There are obviously other options out there, but we can be realistic. The Braves aren't going to mortgage the future on a Corbin Burnes contract. Atlanta wasn't fond enough of Max Fried to pay up when the moment arrived. Many of the more "affordable" alternatives, such as Eovaldi, or Luis Severino and Clay Holmes, are taken.

The Braves are running out of time to make a splash. Atlanta is a contender through and through, but if this all ends with re-signing Charlie Morton and giving the same general rotation another trip around the sun, that'll be disappointing. Last season was a sobering reminder of how finite World Series windows are. Atlanta has all the talent on paper, but these chances are few and far between. Anthopoulos should be acting accordingly.

We can point to the bargain options, such as a Garrett Crochet trade or a run at Roki Sasaki, but neither has been connected to the Braves in a serious way. There's time to change that, again, but Anthopoulos has never been an ultra-aggressive free agency operator by nature. That is why there is justified skepticism of Atlanta's plans moving forward. The Braves need to be getting better, not treading water. Bryce Elder, AJ Smith-Shawver, Hurston Waldrep. These dudes aren't ready to pitch in the big leagues. If the Braves can't find a truly dependable Fried replacement, Atlanta will be one serious injury away from weekly catastrophe.

This is a great move for the Rangers, who lock up Eovaldi for another three years. Surely this is home cooking to a certain extent — Eovaldi enjoys the Rangers clubhouse and he won it all a year ago — but at the same time, one has to imagine the Braves could've won this bidding war with a bold enough offer. Oh, well.