Here are four impact starters the Atlanta Braves should trade for ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline.
The Atlanta Braves were arguably the favorite to win the National League East going into the 60-game 2020 season and while some might still think they will win the division, their path got harder to do so after key injuries to a few starting pitchers.
The headliner is their ace Mike Soroka, who tore his Achilles tendon on August 3 while trying to get off the mound to cover first base on a ground ball to Freddie Freeman. He is out for the remainder of the season, which is a huge deal because he nearly won the Cy Young last season and was off to a pretty good start this season.
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Every fifth-day manager Brian Snitker knew he was going to get a quality start out of his ace but now that ace is Max Fried.
Of course, we can’t forget about the pitching depth Atlanta has also lost as well. Felix Hernandez was a candidate to be the fifth starter at the beginning of the season but he decided to opt-out due to coronavirus safety concerns and Cole Hamels, who was signed to a one-year $18 million deal, is out until at least September with a triceps injury.
Mike Foltynewicz got DFA’d earlier this season after he couldn’t find any rhythm on the mound and if it tells you anything about how bad he was, no other team wanted him even though he was an All-Star a couple of years ago.
All of a sudden GM Alex Anthopoulos is looking to replace his ace and a couple of other veteran arms in what’s already a young rotation.
If you can’t tell, the Braves need more starting pitching if they want to get to the promised land so here are four options that the front office should go after to bolster their rotation ahead of the August 31 MLB Trade Deadline.