Atlanta Braves: A Blueprint for the Offseason

Rule 5 options

So in the trades we’ve made, players we’ve released, and players we’ve signed, the roster has gone from 40 to 35 (assuming they protect Nick Burdi after acquiring him from Minnesota). The Atlanta Braves would likely then want to add Dustin Peterson and/or Travis Demeritte to the 40-man roster to protect them from the Rule 5 draft, perhaps also adding reliever Jacob Webb and his incredible strikeout rate to the 40-man.

Even if they add all three players, that still leaves 2 roster spots open as the Braves enter the rule 5, so who could they target that other teams have left unprotected?

Luke Bard, RHP – Luke is the brother of Daniel Bard and a former Georgia Tech arm that was taken in the 1st round by the Twins in 2012. After surgeries along the way, Bard has developed into a dominant right handed bullpen arm, with a 2.76 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, and 24/99 BB/K ratio over 65 1/3 bullpen innings between AA and AAA in 2017.

Shane Broyles, RHP – Broyles has been a slow developer for the Rockies, but he broke through in 2017, with a 1.81 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and a 16/78 BB/K over 54 2/3 innings mostly spent in AA, with 21 saves.

Raynel Espinal, RHP – Espinal could be the most-desired player in the Rule 5 this year after making the move to a long-relief role in his first full season back after surgery after attempting to start in 2016. He was nothing short of dominant in the Yankees system, throwing 74 1/3 innings with a 1.09 ERA, 0.71 WHIP and a 15/93 BB/K across 3 levels, ending in AA Trenton.

Dom Nunez, C – Nunez was just a year ago being considered as a possible spring competition for the starting catching job in Colorado. Now with the team likely to bring back Jonathan Lucroy and having Tom Murphy and Tony Wolters still in hand, Nunez is more able to be moved. He’s got legit power at the plate along with elite defense behind the plate. He does take a walk well, but he’s struggled the last two seasons with consistent contact.

Max Pentecost, C/1B – Even giving the Braves 3 catchers, this would make way too much sense given that Pentecost was a draftee of new Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos when he was in Toronto as the 11th overall pick. After a host of injuries delayed his development and even called his catching into question, Pentecost hit .276/.332/.434 in the notorious pitcher’s league that is the Florida State League. He’d have the chance to develop behind two excellent veterans in Flowers and Suzuki.

Angel Perdomo, LHP – Another former Anthopoulos guy, Perdomo has struggled to control his impressive stuff, but he’s still put up decent results even with poor control numbers. He had a 3.70 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, and a 43/65 BB/K ratio over 75 1/3 innings in the Florida State League. I’ve always thought Perdomo could be an elite reliever, and perhaps the Braves could take Perdomo and use him as a swing man/reliever.

Jake Reed, RHP – Reed was a 5th round selection out of Oregon after being a bit of a late bloomer for the Ducks. He has a huge arm but has struggled with health the last few seasons. In 2017, mostly in AAA, he put up a 2.13 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and a 17/33 BB/K ratio over 38 relief innings.

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Victor Reyes, OF – A former Braves farmhand that was traded away in 2014, Reyes has developed into a guy with an excellent contact tool, above-average speed, and average to above-average power. He hit .292/.332/.399 with 18 steals and 38 extra bases over 516 plate appearances in AA in 2017 then went to the Arizona Fall League, where he hit very well, putting up a .316/.333/.405 line with 3 doubles, 2 triples, and 12 stolen bases over 20 games.

Wes Rogers, OF – Rogers has elite speed, and in old roster construction, he would have been the ideal Rule 5 guy, a guy who could pinch run for a season at the MLB level. He did flash some power last season, however, and that could be a sign of things to come, as he slashed .319/.377/.488 with 9 home runs and 70 steals in high-A.

Jake Stinnett, RHP – Drafted in the 2nd round out of Maryland in 2014, Stinnett has struggled with health, but moved to the bullpen in 2017, where his stuff played up significantly. He worked his way up to AA, putting up a combined line of a 1.19 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 8/27 BB/K over 22 2/3 IP.

Personally, I would make the top choice Pentecost with Espinal being the focus with a second selection to use two Rule 5 picks, with Bard the fall-back for the 2nd pick.

Next: Atlanta Braves Mount Rushmore

So figuring $7.5 million for Cishek and $6M for Smith along with the trades made, here are how the final numbers line up:

Total committed contracts: $77,225,667
Arbitration eligible projected salaries: $12,600,000
Pre-Arbitration players: $6,750,000
Projected Total: $96,575,667, which would give the Atlanta Braves payroll flexibility to take on a big salary along with a prospect as they did in the deal that netted the organization Touki Toussaint while also leaving funds available for next offseason.