A Braves-Tigers trade to land a real No. 5 starter and stop relying on prospects

Ever since the Braves ace, Spencer Strider, went down with an elbow injury thus knocking him out of competition for the entire season, Atlanta has been left with a huge void in their pitching rotation.

To fill the void, they've tried nearly every internal option possible. They've used prospects Darius Vines, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver and Bryce Elder to try to fill this spot, but none of them have panned out. Sunday, second-ranked prospect Hurston Waldrep makes his debut, being fast tracked to the big leagues in hopes that he can fill this spot.

But internal options just aren't working. Atlanta needs a reliable veteran and there are plenty of options on the trade market.

A Braves-Tigers trade to solve Brian Snitker's starting pitching problem

Atlanta doesn't need a long term option in their rotation. Strider will be back eventually, and the prospects listed above will have developed a bit more to help contribute too. But Atlanta is falling back in the NL East. Jack Flaherty of the Tigers could be the perfect rental option for the 2024 Braves.

Flaherty currently holds a sub-1.00 WHIP and an ERA of just 3.22 in over 70 innings. His K/9 rate of 11.6 further proves his dominance will hold up. He would slot in at the top of the Braves rotation.

The Braves need a reliable starter, and they have the farm system assets to go out and acquire one. They would be moving their eighth and 14th ranked prospects in this hypothetical trade.

Cade Kuehler has a lot of potential and would be the main piece in this hypothetical trade. He's currently in Low-A, where he uses his developed arsenal to dominate hitters at this level. His fastball/slider combination is truly a devastating one, and something the Tigers would hope to build on if they acquire him.

Darius Vines doesn't have the potential that Kuehler does, but he's much closer to MLB ready. He's made a few MLB appearances but hasn't had much luck sticking in the big leagues. His return to the big leagues in Atlanta would have to be as a reliever, as he's fallen behind a bunch of the Braves top prospects in the pecking order. He desperately needs a fresh start in a new home.

For the Braves, they may want to try to turn this hypothetical into a reality sooner rather than later. They firmly hold an NL Wild Card spot, but they have slowly been slipping down the standings. If the Braves don't solve this issue in their rotation quickly, it'll become a real problem and they could fall out of contention in the NL East.