A Braves-A’s trade to find Atlanta insurance after Spencer Strider injury

The Atlanta Braves were dealt a potentially season-altering blow with Spencer Strider suffering an elbow injury. It's unclear how long Strider will be on the sidelines for, but he has already been placed on the 15-day IL and there's a non-zero chance that he's thrown his last pitch of the 2024 season.

The Braves promoted Allan Winans to take Strider's spot, but he shouldn't be seen as part of the solution. Atlanta does have its two top prospects, A.J. Smith-Shawver and Hurston Waldrep in the upper minors but their choosing to promote Winans suggests that they believe they're not ready right now.

With this season being World Series or bust, Atlanta should scour the trade market, especially if Strider has to miss substantial time. If they were to do that, they can always call up a familiar partner, the Oakland Athletics, who happen to roster the perfect replacement.

An argument can be made that the Athletics should not entertain any offer from Alex Anthopoulos after what he's done to them with the Matt Olson and Sean Murphy deals, but it's the A's, so this could very well happen. Paul Blackburn is a player that the rebuilding Athletics would benefit from trading now while his value could very well be at its peak, and he's the kind of player the Braves would benefit from acquiring given the fact that he wouldn't cost too much in terms of prospect capital.

A Braves-A's trade to give Atlanta much-needed Spencer Strider insurance

The Braves wouldn't be giving up nothing as Owen Murphy is their No. 5 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, but they'd get to hold onto Smith-Shawver and Waldrep. The price tag might seem a bit high for a player who has never made more than 21 starts in a single season, but Blackburn is pitching at his best right now and comes with an additional year of team control. Plus, the No. 5 prospect from one of the worst farm systems in the majors isn't as crazy as it might seem on paper.

He's only made two starts this season, but Blackburn has yet to allow an earned run in 13 innings of work while allowing just seven base runners. Regression to the mean will obviously come, but Blackburn would also benefit from making the transition from the worst team in MLB to arguably the best.

He'll help for this season, but also next. Strider's status for 2025 could be up in the air if he has to undergo major elbow surgery. That combined with Max Fried and Charlie Morton entering free agency at the end of the year means their rotation for 2025 is a major question mark. Adding Blackburn solidifies one spot.

The Athletics would benefit from trading away the 30-year-old who is clearly not part of their long-term future. Murphy, a 20-year-old with some upside to potentially be a mid-rotation arm makes a lot of sense as a player that the Braves should target.

It might be scary for the A's to entertain anything from the Braves, but this kind of deal could be one that is viewed as more in their favor. The other two blockbusters never were.