Costly Corner Outfielder: Christian Yelich, Miami Marlins
Following the Marlins trading away Giancarlo Stanton and Marcell Ozuna, it’s rumored that Christian Yelich is not happy with the current state of the team, and would like to be traded as well. Currently, Yelich is one of the game’s top corner outfielders, and, with five years of club control, would require a serious package in a trade.
A .282/.369/.439 slash line helped Yelich cement his superstar status in the MLB, and the fact that he’s never owed more than $15 million in any one year through 2022 only makes him more valuable in a trade. Away from Marlins Park, Yelich owns a .301 average and a .465 slugging percentage in 325 games (1455 PA), so if the Atlanta Braves want him, they’d better be ready to shell out the prospects.
Considering all aspects of Christian Yelich’s career thus far, as well as his team-friendly contract moving forward, the Braves would likely have to offer up a haul similar to the group of Ian Anderson, Kyle Wright, Kolby Allard, and Alex Jackson. If they’re ready to give up a package of that magnitude, the Braves can have Yelich, and he just might be worth it.
Moderately-Priced Corner Outfielder: Ian Happ, Chicago Cubs
I love Ian Happ. Call me his biggest fan if you must, but I believe Happ is in line for quite the MLB career, but as of right now, he’d be cheaper than Yelich. For that reason, I think the Atlanta Braves should do their best to try and steal him from the Cubs. Thanks to being a late call-up, Happ still has six more years of club control, including at least two at league minimum salary.
Happ finished 8th in the NL Rookie of the Year voting, although I believe he would have finished higher if he had played a full season in the MLB. The 23-year-old batted just .253 but collected 17 doubles, 3 triples, and 24 home runs in just 115 games (413 PA). Happ struck out 129 times too, which will need to be assessed, but honestly makes him a bit more affordable.
Ian Happ won’t be cheap, but he also won’t cost as much as Christian Yelich, which is a plus. If the Braves offered the Cubs Julio Teheran, Ian Anderson, and Kyle Muller, it would be very hard for Chicago to turn down that deal. This is especially true because the Cubs lost Jake Arrieta to free agency, and are in need of an experienced starting pitcher to take his place in the rotation.
Cheap Corner Outfielder: ???
Honestly, I don’t see any reason for the Atlanta Braves to use up any resources to get a cheap corner outfielder when they’ve already got Nick Markakis. I’d be beating a dead horse if I tried to explain why Markakis is valuable to the Braves in some capacity, but I will say that I don’t believe there’s reason to acquire another corner outfielder unless it’s a definite upgrade over Markakis, and I don’t see any that fit the description.