Alex Anthopoulos has a lot to do this offseason, with several Braves either injured or testing free agency.
In the outfield, Atlanta has Michael Harris II returning for Opening Day, and that’s it. Jarred Kelenic was relegated to a bench role down the stretch, and Ronald Acuna Jr. won’t be ready for at least six weeks. Plus, who knows what Acuna will give the team when he returns?
The rotation isn’t looking much better. Max Fried and Charlie Morton are free agents, while Spencer Strider isn’t expected back for at least a month. Moreover, Anthopoulos shouldn’t count on Chris Sale, Reynaldo Lopez, and Spencer Schwellenbach to make their full allotment of starts.
That doesn’t even include the bullpen, which features two high-leverage relievers from last season that potentially will not be a part of the team in 2025. A.J. Minter is a free agent, and Joe Jimenez could be out the entire season after undergoing surgery on his knee.
That’s a long-winded way of saying Alex Anthopoulos has a lot to do this winter, with many believing the Braves’ top priority is the starting rotation. Every year since winning the World Series, even during the magical Fall Classic run, Atlanta has been shorthanded in that area.
“With Michael Harris II and Jarred Kelenic the only current roster members projected to be in Atlanta’s Opening Day lineup, the Braves may want to determine how much it will cost to address their outfield before addressing their needs to strengthen their rotation and bullpen.”
The outfield should be easier, or at least cheaper, to bolster than the rotation, but it should not be an either-or situation. Anthopoulos needs to address both areas, and do so with impact players, especially with the rest of the NL East set to improve drastically in 2025.
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