Braves Rumors: Anthopoulos surprise, Braves trade assets, Cease package
By Mark Powell
Braves Rumors: Which players could be traded at the MLB Winter Meetings?
It's no secret that the Atlanta Braves are involved in trade discussions. Just like every offseason, the best executives always have their ear to the ground, and Alex Anthopoulos is legendary as it pertains to pulling off unexpected moves. Tyler Glasnow and Dylan Cease stand out as two potential upgrades at starting pitcher. Heck, even Brewers ace Corbin Burnes is reportedly available for the right price, and the Braves have a recent trade history with Milwaukee (William Contreras).
With that in mind, Atlanta doesn't have many young trade assets remaining. Most of them were mentioned in the last slide. Grissom would start for most up-and-coming teams, as his bat is too productive to keep out of the lineup. Smith-Shawver is a top-100 prospect and perhaps a high-usage relief pitcher or even starter in the making. One player not mentioned, though, is designated hitter Marcell Ozuna.
Braves insider Mark Bowman discussed the possibility of trading Ozuna while his value is high in an article this week:
"At different points over the past couple years, the Braves tried to swap Ozuna for the likes of Patrick Corbin or Madison Bumgarner, a pair of left-handed pitchers with negative value. Now, instead of swapping bad contracts, they actually could trade Ozuna to help gain something in return,"Bowman wrote.
Ozuna's value has rarely been higher. He has a year left on his deal (plus a club option for 2025), and he hit 40 home runs in 2023. He's also had some off-field issues the Braves should be weary of at this point, including a DUI and domestic violence arrest.
I'm not saying a trade is likely involving Ozuna, but Atlanta is lacking MLB-ready assets. Designated hitter is a position of strength for them, as either Travis d'Arnaud or Vaughn Grissom could fill that slot.