After days of hand-wringing over Chris Sale and seeing the Red Sox swoop in for the kill, the Braves are still in a position to bolster their team significantly this week – if they are willing to go in this direction.
It almost seems like the Atlanta Braves and Washington Nationals were being ‘used’ somewhat to set the bar for what ultimately became the price Boston paid to get Chris Sale today.
The Nationals are surely disappointed at the outcome. I expect that Atlanta is to a lesser extent since it’s likely that their offer wasn’t going to change – regardless of the outcome.
Still, now that the White Sox made this big deal, the expectation is that the floodgates are now open – Chicago will rebuild. And they do have more to sell.
How Can the Braves Benefit?
The word from John Coppolella is that he’s now after “wants” and not “needs” for the team at this point.
He “wanted” Chris Sale, a 27-year-old left-handed starter with an average ERA+ of 135 over his career, but 117 over the past 2 seasons. He also managed to average 202+ innings over his past 5 seasons and is under a team-friendly contract for the next year – with 2 more option years.
The White Sox actually have another 27-year-old left-handed starter with an average ERA+ over 118 for his career and 120 for the past 2 seasons. He has averaged 203+ innings over his past 4 seasons and is under a team-friendly contract for the next 2 years – with 2 more option years.
Yes, it’s Jose Quintana, and frankly, if the Braves had been willing to part with a lot of talent to get Sale, then they should likewise put nearly that same talent on the table for Quintana.
With a slight twist.
Since the ChiSox now have Yoan Moncada, they don’t need Ozzie Albies. So instead, let’s take advantage of the fact that Todd Frazier is probably about to be traded … somewhere… soon.
So let’s have Atlanta offer Adonis Garcia, Rio Ruiz and two starters: Matt Wisler and the newly acquired Jaime Garcia in exchange for Quintana. That’s a strong package, but the Braves shouldn’t feel too much pain from this offer.
Atlanta would get a pitcher who controls the strike zone, works innings, and is still young and durable… for up to 4 more years.
The White Sox would plug the third base hole that’s about to happen… and they can keep that pair of infielders around for a while (early indications are that the Sox want Moncada to take 2nd base once Brett Lawrie‘s deal expires after 2017).
Chicago also gets 2 starting pitchers to replace at least a bunch of the innings lost from Sale and Quintana’s trades… with two youngsters they can rebuild with.
Move #2: Third Base
That’s right – both Braves’ third base pieces were sent away in that proposed trade. Well, in parallel, another deal needs to be done – this one to solidify the hot corner for a while.
The price seems to be coming down a bit for the suddenly unloved Justin Turner – that will be underlined if the Dodgers are the team that trades for Todd Frazier. The Braves should take advantage.
Yes – Turner comes with a Qualifying Offer penalty. But this would be the second round draft pick of Atlanta’s that would be lost. It’s still a big penalty, but if the team can ink Turner for 3 years + option at roughly $15-16m per, then that’s still a win… and could be good timing for the arrival of Kevin Maitan if his development occurs as hoped.
Thus in two specific and definitive moves, Atlanta could take care of two positions for the next 4 years – in a matter of hours.
Better offense, better defense, better pitching. A rotation capable of 1000 innings from just 5 pitchers. A step up in the division race.
Details
Of course… none of this is without complications: the first would be cash. The Braves would need the payroll space for Turner. Quintana and Garcia are almost a wash, but the net for Turner is … pretty much whatever they pay him minus $535,000 for Adonis’ slot.
That would put the Braves’ payroll up near $130 million for Opening Day. Can they do that? Probably – they went after Chris Sale after all, and his contract is within $4 million of whatever Turner should sign for.
Here’s the second complication:
Nats have shown interest in Jose quintana. Unsure how anxious CWS are to move Q, but as said about chisox: "nobody's sacred"
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 7, 2016
Another dance with the Nats? Same song, second verse?