3 former Atlanta Braves thriving with new teams

The Atlanta Braves front office is as good as any professional sports team when it comes to locking up their young stars. While Dansby Swanson and Freddie Freeman both stand out as stars that left the franchise, both deals Atlanta made to replace the stars are looking to be the wiser long-term investments.

This isn’t to say that Atlanta’s front office is perfect when it comes to decision-making, only that there are few that deserve fans’ trust as much as Atlanta’s. Whether it was locking up their young infield or swinging deals for Sean Murphy and Matt Olson, Atlanta has proven adept at quickly adjusting and adding key pieces at a reasonable cost.

The Braves currently hold a solid division lead and are clearly World Series favorites accomplishing what they have without two of their best pitchers and dealing with a number of key injuries.

While Atlanta’s season is going according to plan there are a few familiar faces that have left and thrived in their new landing spot. These are players that the team parted with for very clear and understandable reasons who are now playing at a high level.

3 former Atlanta Braves who are now thriving with their new teams

1. Freddie Freeman, Los Angeles Dodgers

Much has been made of the breakup between Freeman and the Braves, debating who was at fault or what could have been. While this is understandable, Atlanta thought long-term and opted to add Matt Olson, who has clearly been a key part of one of the league’s top offenses and should have more prime seasons left than Freeman.

Despite this, it is still hard to part ways with a franchise legend and Freeman isn’t making it any easier with the numbers he is putting up for the Dodgers. If there is one player close to Ronald Acuña Jr. in the MVP race right now, it is Freddie Freeman.

Freeman is hitting .335 with 13 homers, eight stolen bases, 44 runs batted in, and 58 runs scored. Despite the great Olson deal, it is fair to wonder what the Atlanta offense could look like with Acuña and Freeman both at the top of the lineup.

Despite losing a lot of talent over the last two years, the Dodgers are clearly still a threat to the Braves in the NL with as good a one-two punch to start their lineup as any team in the league.

While there are years remaining on Freeman’s contract, something tells me that we haven’t seen Freeman in a Braves uniform for the last time.

2. Kevin Gausman, Toronto Blue Jays

While Guasman hasn’t played for the Braves since the 2019 season, it still stings that Atlanta simply walked away from the veteran pitcher. At the time, however, it seemed to be the only decision with Gausman putting up an ugly ERA and struggling to keep the Braves in games and make it through five innings.

Perhaps it was the move that Atlanta made that helped Gausman become the pitcher he has been in the three seasons since. Since leaving the Braves, Gausman has changed his primary pitch and the results have been obvious, racking up 34 wins and clearly becoming one of the most reliable starters in the American League.

While Gausman isn’t an ace, the pitcher gives his team a chance to win almost every time he takes the mound and clearly is a different pitcher since leaving Atlanta. While the Braves front office has missed very few deals, this is one they should regret.

Letting Gausman walk away was the right move at the time, but one that has aged poorly. It is far easier to consider this move when Max Fried and Kyle Wright are both on the shelf and Atlanta is searching for reliable rotation options.