Braves Rumors: Dylan Cease update, Gonzales fallout, Anthopoulos gearing up

Braves Rumors: Dylan Cease trade interest 'overblown' for Atlanta

Of the big moves that the Atlanta Braves have been connected to this offseason, there are none bigger than a loosely rumored pursuit of Shohei Ohtani and a possible trade for White Sox ace and 2022 AL Cy Young runner-up Dylan Cease. Unfortunately, it looks like either is more unlikely than unlikely for the Braves.

When it comes to Ohtani, that's far from a surprise. The Braves always felt like a sleeper at best for the two-way Japanese superstar. The interest and possibility of landing Cease, however, felt realistic for an Atlanta organization looking to further upgrade the rotation this offseason.

But Braves insider Mark Bowman for MLB.com poured cold water on that on Monday as he called the previously reported interest in Cease "overblown" after talking to sources at the Winter Meetings.

"Cease was certainly on the Braves’ radar, but it doesn’t feel like there is currently a fit. In fact, it seems like Atlanta’s interest and involvement has been overblown," Bowman wrote.

With Cease still having two years of control before he'll become a free agent, it's possible the White Sox are asking for a king's ransom. That's not how Anthopoulos has done business at the helm of the Braves front office, so perhaps that's the hang-up and why there isn't a "fit". But it's clear based on this that Atlanta should not be considered the frontrunner for a Cease trade at this moment.

Having said that, there's still a lot of offseason left, so it's still not something to rule out, especially with further confirmation that the Braves have poked around on Cease's trade market.