Bleacher Report predicts Braves go back to the well at trade deadline

The Braves are hardly keeping their heads above water, and the only reason the club is over .500 is because of the pitching staff.

The lineup has literally been the worst offense in baseball for going on two months now. The most discouraging part of it all? The end doesn’t seem like it’s in sight.

An elite pitching staff and (hopefully) timely hot streaks from the Braves’ proven bats will keep them afloat until reinforcements can arrive at the trade deadline, which is where Alex Anthopoulos has done his best work.

Atlanta’s GM most notably acquired Joc Pederson, Jorge Soler, Eddie Rosario, and Adam Duvall at the 2021 trade deadline after Ronald Acuna Jr. went down with an ACL injury. All four played pivotal roles in the Braves quest for their first World Series since 1995. It’s hard not to see the similarities between these two seasons.

It’s just a matter of who they trade for and when they do it. Bleacher Report is predicting that Anthopoulos will go back to the well that he’s visited so often before — making a trade with the Oakland Athletics.

The club that has seemingly become apart of the Braves farm system is once again looking to sell at this year’s deadline. The Braves swung deals for Sean Murphy and Matt Olson in back-to-back offseason, and Kerry Miller sees Brent Rooker and Paul Blackburn as targets this year.

Chase has already highlighted the A’s as possible trade partners for the Braves, and it’s easy to see why. The relationship is there, Oakland has players to unload, and Atlanta has a need for those players.

Rooker made the All-Star game last year, the sole representative for the A’s, mostly as a DH. He’s still played a fair amount of the corner outfield positions and owns an .868 OPS with 13 home runs this season. Though he’s probably better in a DH role, the Braves shouldn’t write off a potential deal with a guy who could potentially replace Marcell Ozuna in the future, given Rooker is under contract through 2027.

Blackburn was the A’s representative at the All-Star game in 2022 but isn’t some world beater. He owns a 4.31 ERA and 4.10 FIP over 49 starts in the last three seasons, and the Braves don’t exactly need a starter at this juncture, but that doesn’t mean circumstances won’t change between now and the trade deadline.

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Photographer: Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire