The Braves came out of the trade deadline with Jorge Soler and Luke Jackson, leaving many fans in Atlanta disappointed after anticipating a handful of moves from Alex Anthopoulos.
Even with some uninspiring baseball since the All-Star break and a quiet deadline, the Braves are 6.5 games behind the Phillies in the NL East at the time of this writing.
Despite an underwhelming Braves trade deadline, The Athletic’s Jim Bowden still give Anthopoulos a C+ for the moves he made.
Key takeaways:  The Braves are hoping history repeats itself, as they acquired the power-hitting Jorge Soler three years after trading for him the first time. It worked out so well last time that he won World Series MVP. But this time around, they also had to agree to take on his $16 million a year salary for the next two seasons. Soler provides significant power, and his return is a strong indication Atlanta doesn’t think Jarred Kelenic is the answer in left field for 2025 and beyond. I thought the Braves needed to add another veteran starting pitcher at the deadline, but they couldn’t land one.
Before joining the Braves yesterday against the Brewers, Soler was slashing .240/.330/.419 with 12 home runs, good for a .749 OPS. However, leading up to the trade deadline, the new Braves leadoff hitter was trending in the right direction. Jorge Soler has a .280/.374/.486 slash line with six homers and 24 RBI since June 1 before joining Atlanta.
The Braves are hopeful their internal candidates turn things around more than anything. Will Soler help? Of course, but Alex Anthopoulos didn’t go swing a bunch of trades because he believes Whit Merrifield will be servicable until Ozzie Albies returns, Orlando Arcia won’t be as bad as he’s been, Matt Olson and Sean Murphy turn their seasons around, and the team gets healthy — Max Fried, Reynaldo Lopez, and Michael Harris II.
The Braves season probably isn’t going to hinge on the trade deadline; it hinges on the team getting and staying healthy.
More than anything here, Bowden is completely off about Jarred Kelenic, who he believes the Braves think not be the answer in 2025. At a minimum, this move is insurance for 2025. At most, it’s the perfect opportunity to ease Ronald Acuna Jr. into things in 2025.
—
Photo: David John Griffin/Icon Sportswire
You must log in to post a comment.