It's unlikely the Braves sign Randy Arozarena, Seiya Suzuki

Not a good sign for the Braves chances of signing Randy Arozarena, Seiya Suzuki

Left field is among the Braves’ most glaring holes on the roster and has been for the last 4-5 years. Unfortunately, similar to the situation at shortstop, there isn’t a very robust list of options.

There are a couple of names that are particularly intriguing. Seiya Suzuki and Randy Arozarena are exactly the type of right-handed bats Alex Anthopoulos would love to add to this lineup. Both are good for about 25+ home runs a season with an .800 OPS, and Arozarena brings the personality and postseason experience that make him even more appealing.

The problem is that with so few reliable options, just about every team trying to compete is going to be interested. And Scott Boras, Arozarena’s agent, is aiming for the moon as always, seeking a six-year, $150 million deal for his client.

“Arozarena’s camp at the Boras Corporation has also apparently opened the winter with a lofty asking price. Ryan Divish and Adam Jude of The Seattle Times report that they’ve been seeking something in the six-year, $150MM+ range. That’s an ambitious goal, particularly on length. Freddie Freeman and DJ LeMahieu are the only free agents within the past decade to command six years starting at age 32 or older. LeMahieu’s contract was artificially stretched to reduce the average annual value for luxury tax purposes. Freeman is a future Hall of Famer who was a year removed from winning NL MVP when he signed with the Dodgers for $162MM,” Anthony Franco writes for MLB Trade Rumors.

Even coming off a career year in which he recorded 5.7 WAR, Randy Arozarena isn’t going to get six years for $150 million as he enters his age-32 season, but 4-5 years and north of $100 million feels very much on the table — and the Braves seemingly never seriously engage with Boras clients.

Whatever Arozarena gets, one would imagine Suzuki will get something similar. The numbers they’ve put up over the last five seasons aren’t far apart, and many clubs would probably even prefer Suzuki’s consistency.

At that price point, I just can’t see the Braves being seriously interested. Anthopoulos has always been hesitant to pay players well into their 30s. He even balked at handing Freddie Freeman a sixth year when those negotiations happened, and Freeman is twice the player Arozarena and Suzuki are.

Then you add in the fact that both players received qualifying offers, which would cost the Braves multiple draft picks in the first five rounds as well as international bonus pool money — another thing Anthopoulos has avoided in free agency since taking over in Atlanta.

This is a GM who typically follows a strict set of rules when it comes to free agency — rules that Arozarena and Suzuki run afoul of in just about every way. It’s difficult to imagine either of them ending up with the Braves.

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Photo: IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

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