The first three starters in the Atlanta Braves’ rotation have been among baseball’s best through the first half of the season, and the team’s power-driven offense has awakened following a widespread slump that lasted more than 40 games and was the main reason they dropped as far as 10 1/2 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East.
But even though the Braves cut a few games off Philly’s lead and feel great about their chances every time Max Fried, Chris Sale or Reynaldo López is starting, they have a couple of holes in their lineup and a steep decline at the back of the rotation. They need to address two areas before the trade deadline: corner outfielder and starting pitcher.
Outfielder Adam Duvall and shortstop Orlando Arcia have struggled at the plate all season, especially lately, as Duvall hit.124 over the past 30 days before Thursday and Arcia hit .129, and they’re lugging the two worst OPS of any qualifying players in that span — Duvall .359 and Arcia .397. Yikes.
The Braves are willing to ride with Arcia because of his strong defense and the energy he provides the dugout and clubhouse. They have a decent backup (Zack Short) and a top shortstop prospect (Nacho Alvarez Jr.) who’s impressed at Triple A.
But corner outfield is another matter. Duvall was signed to platoon with Jarred Kelenic in left field, but after right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr.’s season-ending knee injury in late May and after a recent hamstring strain sidelined center fielder Michael Harris II indefinitely, the Braves started playing Kelenic and Duvall every day with Forrest Wall or Cleveland Guardians castoff Ramón Laureano.
Kelenic has thrived in center and the leadoff spot in Harris’ absence, but Duvall’s slump worsened with exposure to right-handed pitching: He was 9-for-97 (.093) with 37 strikeouts against righties through Thursday, with a .242 OPS against them that was the majors’ worst among hitters with more than 30 at-bats versus righties.
The Braves can live with Charlie Morton’s inconsistency in the fourth spot in the rotation, but they need to add a starting pitcher, even with Ian Anderson expected back from Tommy John surgery soon after the All-Star break. They can’t count on prospects and others they’ve used in the back of the rotation, nor Anderson, after the righty missed one and a half seasons. They also know as terrific as Sale and López have been, Sale hasn’t stayed healthy for a full season since 2019, and López has already pitched more innings (79 1/3) than in any season since 2019, his last full season as a starter.
With those needs in mind, here are some trade proposals I came up with, with thoughts on each from our resident expert, former MLB general manager Jim Bowden. — David O’Brien
The Braves would add another big bat to their order in Rooker, who had 30 homers, a .488 slugging percentage and a 128 OPS+ in 2023, and has been even better this season with 14 homers, .506 slugging and a 145 OPS+ through Wednesday, albeit with an American League-leading 97 strikeouts. He would make Atlanta better now, and with three more years of contractual control, he would provide insurance if Acuña has any issues in 2025 coming back from ACL surgery, as he did in 2022 returning from his first ACL surgery. And if the Braves decide not to pick up the option on DH Marcell Ozuna’s contract for 2025 or don’t extend him beyond that, Rooker is an experienced DH.
The Braves would be giving up a good pitching prospect in Kuehler, a second-rounder in the 2023 draft who has a 2.21 ERA in his first 13 minor-league starts (all in Low A), and a top-10 organizational prospect in Guanipa, an 18-year-old burner who signed for $2.5 million last year out of Venezuela and projects as an MLB center fielder. Exposito, 23, has drawn some attention with a career-best season so far at High-A Rome, batting .286 with 11 homers, 22 stolen bases and an .858 OPS.
Bowden: Oakland should jump all over this trade and call a news conference before A’s general manager David Forst even hangs up the phone with Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos. If the A’s could get Kuehler straight-up for Rooker, I think this proposed trade is a win for them, but to also get Guanipa makes it a no-brainer. Take Exposito out of the deal; Oakland doesn’t even need him in this proposal to get a deal done.
For the Braves, it will seem like deja vu from three years ago, when they acquired Jorge Soler from Kansas City at the trade deadline. Rooker will add significantly more power to their lineup and though I don’t love the 29-year-old defensively, Atlanta has Duvall to play late-game defense for him. The Braves are so good defensively, they can have one below-average defender in the outfield and still win. Rooker might help them advance in the playoffs by lengthening their lineup, but I actually like the Oakland side of this trade proposal much more than the Atlanta side, especially for the long term.
White Sox get: LHP Riley Frey
Pham has big-game credentials and remains a professional hitter at 36, evident by his .345 OBP and 109 OPS+ in 45 games before Thursday. He can bring the coveted and elusive “edge” to a team that is hard to define but that players know when it arrives. A big plus for Atlanta: He’s on a one-year, low-cost contract, so the outlay won’t be too much, in prospects or salary, to get him as a rental player. Pham has hit .313 with six homers and .846 OPS in 31 postseason games. That included 16 hits in 14 games during Arizona’s last three 2023 postseason series, with a homer in each of those including the World Series.
Frey, a lefty with a funky delivery from a low arm slot, has impressed since the Braves took him in the 19th round of the 2023 draft out of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He has a 1.82 ERA in 12 games (eight starts) at two Class-A levels this season, with 46 strikeouts and 15 walks in 59 1/3 innings.
Bowden: Fair deal for both sides and the idea works for both teams. Pham has been dealt at the trade deadline in each of the past two years so we might as well make it three in a row. He’s brought a unique edge to every clubhouse he’s been in and he’s a winning player. He’s at the back end of his career but can still hit for power and steal bases. I like the fit and prospect price for Atlanta. From the White Sox’s perspective, they have to trade Pham to open the door for their young players to develop.
White Sox get: RHP Garrett Baumann, SS Mario Baez
After a year in the KBO, Erick Fedde returned to the majors and is putting together a career year. (Lon Horwedel / USA Today)
Fedde is thriving in his first season back in the majors after a year in South Korea. The 31-year-old was seventh in MLB in innings (100 1/3) and 14th in the AL with a 3.23 ERA after his Wednesday start against the Dodgers. He’s signed through 2025 and has a team-friendly $7.5 million salary next year, and Fedde would provide some security entering the offseason with Max Fried eligible for free agency, Charlie Morton pondering retirement, and Spencer Strider coming back from elbow surgery and his status uncertain for the first part of the 2025 season.
Baumann, a 6-foot-8 right-hander taken in the fourth round of the 2023 draft out of Hagerty High near Orlando, has a 3.20 ERA through 12 starts at Low A with 44 strikeouts and 13 walks in 59 innings. Baez is a 17-year-old shortstop prospect with outstanding speed, a plus arm and good glove. He hit in the Dominican Summer League in his pro debut last summer but has struggled with the bat in the Florida Complex League. He’s among several shortstops in the Braves’ top-30 prospects.
Bowden: I agree the Braves really need one more veteran starter — not because I don’t think one of their young starters will step up and take the fifth spot in the rotation, but because I think the Braves need to protect against injuries to their veteran starters in the second half of the season. Fedde is a solid mid-rotation starter who has figured it out and provides bulldog-type innings that will be crucial come August and September. However, if I’m the White Sox, I’m hoping to get a better pitching prospect back in the deal considering Fedde’s additional year of control. Therefore, start the conversation with Kuehler and finish it with Baumann and Baez, and then we can type up the news release.
Rays get: RHP Garrett Baumann, OF Luis Guanipa
If the Rays decide to trade him, there’s a lot to like about Eflin, beginning with 63 strikeouts and only six walks in 81 1/3 innings, the second-best strikeouts-to-walks ratio in the majors. While his strikeout rate is significantly lower than it was in the best of his seven years with the Phillies through 2022, so is his walk rate, a majors-leading 0.7 per nine innings. Eflin has a modest 4.20 ERA in 14 starts but has averaged nearly six innings per outing and would be a great fit for the back of Atlanta’s rotation. He’s signed through 2025, a plus for a team that could lose starters Fried and Morton to free agency and retirement, respectively. Eflin’s back-loaded three-year, $40 million deal has an $18 million salary in 2025 — a little higher than ideal, but $2 million less than what the Braves have paid Morton each of the past three seasons. If the Rays can move that entire salary, it might also bring down the return cost in a trade.
Bowden: If I’m the Braves, as much as I’d like to add Eflin to the rotation, I don’t love the $18 million salary in 2025 because of the financial exposure already on the books for the rest of my roster. So unless the Rays would be willing to eat some of the salary, which is unlikely because other teams would surely absorb the full amount in a trade, I’d probably focus more on a swap with the White Sox to acquire Fedde, who is much more affordable at $7.5 million in 2025.
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(Top photo of Brent Rooker: Godofredo A. Vásquez / Associated Press)
