Braves exposed 'flaw' was actually Alex Anthopoulos playing trade deadline chess

The Atlanta Braves, while not quite as dominant as they have been in recent years, are still one of baseball's top teams.

Despite sitting nine games back of the first-place Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East, Atlanta leads the Wild Card race by four games. They've been able to do all of this even with right-hander Spencer Strider on the shelf.

One could argue that the Braves need to add some starting pitching at the trade deadline.

Top pitching prospects Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep have already made their Major League debuts and are part of the current rotation with Strider and AJ Smith-Shawver both injured.

Unfortunately, the Braves had no choice but to bring them up to fill some holes, and the choice by Alex Anthopoulos to do so was met with some criticism. But it also might have been the right move, as Anthopoulos may have wanted to see what the Braves had in the system before they made a deadline deal.

Alex Anthopoulos may be playing trade deadline chess

Even with all the injuries, Atlanta has three solid starters at the top of its rotation in Chris Sale, Max Fried, and Reynaldo Lopez. Charlie Morton is also a key part of the rotation.

Even with so many pitchers down, Atlanta does have plenty of depth in its system, and having Schwellenbach and Waldrep in the rotation could help them get by until some of their injured pitchers return.

And if they perform well, then the need to make a deal at the deadline goes away. In truth, Anthopoulos could just be playing a little chess and assessing what the Braves have before deciding to give up prospects to add another pitcher.

The Braves will have needs to fill in the offseason, with Morton and Fried both free agents, and it might be good to have some of these arms available to step in if need be.

In truth, the starting pitcher's market at the trade deadline might be thin anyway. It's still unclear how many teams will end up being sellers and trade away some of their assets.

It would be most beneficial for the Braves to not have to make a trade, even with some of their best arms down. This could be why Anthopoulos brought so many young arms up to the big leagues, so he could see what the Braves have.

If these arms pan out, then the Braves will be set for the time being. If not, then they may end up having to make a deal to add a fresh arm to their rotation.