Atlanta Braves: Trade Deadline Musings – Third Base

Should the Braves look to add a Third Baseman at the trade deadline?

At the blink of an eye, the MLB non-waiver trade deadline is now only a month and a half away for the Braves. Arguably the most exciting time of the baseball season, teams in the playoff chase are hard at work to find ways they can improve their clubs.  Conversely, teams with very little shot at making the postseason are working the phones to deal away veterans in exchange for prospects that can help their club in future seasons.

At 40-28, the Braves are currently 1.5 games in front of 2^nd place Washington in the NL East.  With one of the top pitching staffs in the league and 3 potential all-star starters in the lineup, the Braves find themselves in the position of having very few holes that need filling.

Solid foundation set for a post-season run

With Catcher, First Base, Second Base, Short Stop, Right Field, and Center Field pretty much set, Third Base and Left Field are the only current “holes” in the lineup, and that’s very much a worse case scenario.

Ronald Acuna should be back from the disabled list soon, and I don’t see the Braves taking him out of the lineup unless he hits rock bottom.  It certainly can happen, as Dansby Swanson can attest after being sent back down to AAA Gwinnett last summer.

Johan Camargo settles in as Braves 3B – with mixed results

That leaves Third Base as the most logical everyday position that the Braves might look to upgrade before July 31^st.

After spending the first 16 games of the 2018 season on the DL, Camargo has split time between SS and 3B and has faired….ok.

In 47 games and 166 plate appearances, Camargo is currently hitting with a slash line of .223/.349/.417 with 6 HR, 21 RBI, and 27 BB.  While his average is considerably lower than last season, where he batted .299, he is getting on base at a higher rate and providing decent power from a traditional power position in the lineup.  Additionally, one could argue that he has hit into some bad luck, sporting a Batting Average on Balls in Play (BAbip) of .238.  For reference, in 2017 Camargo’s BAbip was .364.

Will Alex Anthopoulos make a move to upgrade 3B?

With all that said, the Braves could easily improve the production at 3B with several big names potentially being made available in the trade market.  However, one of the common themes expressed by General Manager Alex Anthopoulos since he was hired is that he will not look to make drastic changes to player personnel without having a strong understanding of what he has available.

So while the Braves are loaded in the minor leagues with prospects that would be intriguing for any team looking to rebuild, they may not be looking to offload their high profile players just yet.  My opinion is that the club will stand pat at 3B. If any change is made, it might include calling up Austin Riley later this year, assuming he fully recovers from his current injury predicament.

Regardless, let’s take a look at six teams that might be looking to deal third basemen as we approach the trade deadline.