3 Braves doomsday scenarios for the worst possible MLB trade deadline

What a difficult season it has been for the Atlanta Braves. Ronald Acuña Jr. and Spencer Strider, their best hitter and pitcher, are out for the year with season-ending injuries. Ozzie Albies, Sean Murphy, Michael Harris II, and Max Fried have all had IL stints.

On top of all of their injury woes, players have simply underperformed. Matt Olson, a player who hit 54 home runs and drove in 139 last season has just 13 home runs and 44 RBI, posting a 91 OPS+. Austin Riley, a perennial MVP candidate, has hit better lately, but got off to such a brutal start to his season. The only players who have met or exceeded expectations on this team are Marcell Ozuna and Jarred Kelenic.

Thanks to the injuries and underperforming offense, the Braves enter a crucial four-game series against the New York Mets with a 54-46 record, 9.0 games behind the first-place Phillies in the NL East, and only 1.5 games ahead of the surging Mets. It was assumed they'd be comfortably in postseason positioning at this point in the season but with the trade deadline just five days away, it's time for Alex Anthopoulos to get to work.

The Braves must be active at the deadline to not only make a deep run in October, but to even fend off their National League counterparts and secure a playoff spot. Anthopoulos can't afford to make mistakes. These are three in particular he should look to avoid.

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3) The Braves should not trade for Cody Bellinger under any circumstance

The biggest need for Atlanta right now is outfield help. Not only is Acuña out for the season, but Michael Harris II was recently moved to the 60-day IL, keeping him sidelined until mid-August at the earliest. He has been out since mid-June with a hamstring injury.

Jarred Kelenic has been a solid everyday outfielder for Atlanta, but the other two spots leave a lot to be desired. It's probably unrealistic to expect Anthopoulos to trade for two starting-caliber outfielders, but one is not out of the realm of possibility. Cody Bellinger would certainly fit that mold. As fun as that might be, there are several reasons why Atlanta should not pursue him.

Bellinger busted out of his multi-year slump last season for the Chicago Cubs, finishing tenth in the NL MVP balloting and shining both offensively and defensively, but he's taken a major step back in both areas in 2024.

The 29-year-old is slashing .269/.331/.410 with nine home runs and 37 RBI in 79 games played. His numbers are a tick above league average, but nowhere near where they were last season. What makes it worse is his profile on Baseball Savant would suggest that he's been fairly lucky at the dish. He ranks in the 30th percentile or below in just about every batted-ball statistic, proving that without making solid contact, he might not find as many holes down the stretch.

What made the Cubs signing Bellinger to the contract they did somewhat acceptable was the fact that even if his offensive game took a step back, he'd at least provide defensive value. Well, Bellinger has -1 OAA according to Baseball Savant, ranking him in the 32nd percentile.

So, he's lucky to have only regressed to a certain extent offensively, and isn't the Gold Glove-caliber defender he's always been. He also has player options worth $27.5 million and $25 million for the next two seasons, and with how he has played, he's not opting out. The Braves should want no part of that.

Overpaying for Jack Flaherty could prove to be problematic for the Braves

Adding another starting pitcher is something that Anthopoulos should consider. Strider is done for the year, and Fried is currently on the shelf. Additionally, pitchers like Chris Sale, Reynaldo Lopez, and Spencer Schwellenbach come with innings concerns. Adding rotation depth would be great, and there isn't a better rental on the market than Jack Flaherty.

The right-hander signed a one-year prove-it deal with the Detroit Tigers this offseason and it's safe to say he has proven that he's an elite starting pitcher. He now has a 2.95 ERA in 18 starts and 106.2 innings of work this season after six more dominant innings against the AL Central-leading Guardians on Wednesday. What's most impressive about the work Flaherty has done is he has fanned 133 batters while issuing just 19 free passes, displaying not only elite command, but strong swing-and-miss stuff.

He'd be an ideal player for just about any contender to trade for, and would undoubtedly make the Braves better, but there are a couple of issues here. One, the Tigers will ask for a ton to get him. If they don't get a ton, they can hold him and get a compensatory draft pick if he departs in free agency. This means the Braves would not only have to outbid the field, but the starting point would be higher than they'd like for a rental.

Second, can the Braves really afford to trade a ton for a rental? Sure, if Flaherty can come at the right price he'd be a welcome addition, but there are already rotation questions past the 2024 campaign. Max Fried will be a free agent. Strider's health is a major concern. 40-year-old Charlie Morton could easily retire. The only starters locked in are Sale and Lopez, who come with concerns of their own.

If the Braves can get Flaherty without overpaying (unlikely), then they should. If not, it might be wiser to trade more for a starter with additional club control, or a cheaper rental.

1) The Braves cannot complete the trade deadline without adding a big bat

If we're talking about the biggest doomsday scenario, that'd be the Braves completing the deadline without making a trade for an impactful hitter. I'm not talking about the Eddie Rosario's or Ramon Laureano's of the world. It also doesn't have to be Luis Robert Jr. Just get someone who can make this lineup better.

The Braves rank 15th in OPS and 22nd in runs scored. It's very hard to believe considering their historically-great offense last season, but that's where we are. It's not as if they've had a bad April. It's late July.

Injuries have undoubtedly played a role in their offensive regression and that can't be glossed over, but the Braves need to look past that and make moves. Adding an outfielder would be priority No. 1, but even if that big bat is an infielder that can work with Ozzie Albies set to miss substantial time and Orlando Arcia contributing next to nothing offensively.

At the end of the day, Kelenic, Ozuna, Riley, Olson, and the catchers should be the only players to have guaranteed starting jobs by the time August arrives. There are so many replaceable players, and the Braves have no excuse to not add a big bat into the equation.

Things look bleak right now, but Braves fans should know better than any other fanbase that anything can happen in October. They've won as underdogs and lost as favorites. This is the perfect time for Anthopoulos to show just how good of an executive he is by getting this team back to a World Series level.