Even though rosters are pretty close to being set, Bleacher Report cooked up a trade hypothetical for the Braves. I don’t think it makes a ton of sense, but I do understand the merits:
To ATL:Â RHP John Schreiber
To BOS:Â RHP Darius Vines, SS Braden Shewmake, RHP Tanner Gordon
The Boston Red Sox had a busy offseason, but they still have a long way to go to bridge the gap in the AL East standings. A last-place finish might be more likely in 2023 than postseason contention.
If they do fall out of the race, right-hander John Schreiber could be their best trade chip.
The 29-year-old was one of the breakout relievers of 2022, posting a 2.22 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 10.2 K/9 with eight saves and 22 holds in 64 appearances. He is controllable through 2026 and has the stuff to pitch late in games, so the asking price will be high.
The Atlanta Braves will have a full season of Raisel Iglesias and offseason additions Joe Jiménez and Lucas Luetge to bolster the relief corps, but there is no such thing as too many good relievers for a team with title aspirations.
In exchange, the Red Sox bring back right-hander Darius Vines, who had a 3.77 ERA with 156 strikeouts in 140.2 innings in the upper levels of the minors, MLB-ready infielder Braden Shewmake and high-floor right-hander Tanner Gordon, who went 12-7 with a 4.64 ERA and 133 strikeouts in 120.1 innings between High-A and Double-A in 2022.
Don’t get me wrong, in a vacuum, I actually think this is a decent looking deal for both sides. However, this is a fairly steep price for the Braves to pay for a guy with one good year of production. If he’s putting up similar numbers to 2022 at the trade deadline, then I’m much more willing to listen. Additionally, bullpen is arguably the strongest part of this Braves roster, but the author is correct — you can never have enough guys, and you never know who’s going to get injured.
I have my doubts about Braden Shewmake being MLB-ready, but this would be a decent return for Boston right now and probably an overpay for the Braves. That could be a different story at the trade deadline, but right now, it’s way too early to gauge this type of deal for the Braves.
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Photographer: David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire
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