Braves rumors: 3 pitchers Alex Anthopoulos can sign with Marco Gonzales's money

Braves could sign Michael Lorenzen for an affordable asking price

While Lugo and Stroman would be more attractive options, the Braves best opportunity may come in the form of Michael Lorenzen. While the Phillies found out the hard way that Lorenzen can struggle at times -- he did not start for Philly in their postseason run -- he did put up solid enough numbers for the Detroit Tigers prior to the trade deadline to become one of the best starting pitchers available.

Lorenzen had a 3.57 ERA in Detroit prior to his trade to a contending Phillies team. Sadly for Lorenzen, his match in Philly did not work out, as he had an ERA over five after the trade. Lorenzen was brutally honest about his Phillies experience after a tough outing against the Braves in September.

"It's a lot (of rest)," Lorenzen said. "The way the roster is constructed, the starters need to pitch. Going back to a five-man, I have bullpen experience. So it's just the way it is. We're in win-now baseball, so you have to do whatever it takes. I have to adjust better and hope to adjust better. But I just haven't been doing that."

There's an argument to be made that the Phillies and Rob Thomson did not utilize Lorenzen as well as they could have. However, that also makes him affordable for Atlanta, and a possible No. 5 starting pitcher. At worst, he's a depth option and can be replaced by someone in the Braves farm system (such as AJ Smith-Shawver if he's not trade this winter) if he struggles. Spotrac set his valuation at a little over $9 million in a competitive pitching market, which is actually fairly cheap, if you can believe it.