Atlanta Braves trade rumors: two starters are already unavailable

Well that didn’t take long.  The Braves had been checking in on one of these guys, and it’s at least possible that the other might have been dealt before the end of July.

If the Atlanta Braves are looking for any additional starting pitching for the long-haul, then they might have to wait until the off-season.  Two desirable starters have been placed on the disabled list, and thus won’t be healthy again until August.

The Tigers have added Michael Fulmer to the disabled list with a strain of the left-side oblique.  As most of you know, obliques are tricky things that can lead any player – pitcher or hitter to be out of commission for multiple weeks.

Happily, this injury has been categorized as a Grade 1 strain, though there is reportedly no current timetable for when he might start throwing again.

Nonetheless, MLB Trade Rumors stated the problem the Tigers face rather succinctly:

Of particular note, it’s now quite difficult to imagine Fulmer as a summer trade candidate. That may not have been in the cards regardless, but the possibility had at least been intriguing to consider.

This is true – Fulmer may not have been dealt either way, but having this injury basically relegates him to ‘off-season trade candidate’ status.

The Braves have had some interest in the former All-Star starter in the past and it is quite plausible that they had continued to monitor his situation with the Tigers… even though this feels more like an off-season-kind-of-trade … even before the injury.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the body

The Cardinals have been a bit of a mess this Summer, but thus far, they haven’t made the call to cash in their remaining chips and go home.  They’re actually (for the moment) a game above .500 at 49-48 and thus a game ahead of the Nationals.

Still, there had been some buzz about one of their controllable young studs – starter Carlos Martinez.

Martinez was signed last year to a 5 year, $51 million deal to buy out arbitration.  His deal includes a pair of teams options, extending possible control through 2023.

However, the 26-year-old has struggled with some health issues, and today, he’s been sidelined with a strain of the right side oblique.

Martinez wowed with an ERA averaging roughly 3.03 for both 2015 and 2016.  He’s been slightly worse since (3.64 last season; 3.39 this season), but is still earning his contract, for sure.

Unfortunately for him – and the Cardinals – this injury represents a setback that he will be unable to shake any time soon.

Honestly, I don’t even know that Martinez would be made available – even if the Cards lose everything else on their schedule for the rest of the month.  But there has been some speculation from multiple social media links that the Braves should at least inquire.

Of course, though, when a bona fide beat-writer throws in his 2-cents-worth…

QUESTION: A New York media report threw out C. Martinez’s name as possible trade bait. Any credence to that claim, or were they fishing for a news story?

GOOLD: There’s credence to it. It’s drawn from reports out of St. Louis. That’s been mentioned in this chat, was mentioned by me on STL radio Monday morning, and is something that Cardinals would explore. This isn’t rumor or innuendo. This is a possibility.

But again… with this injury… any chance of (anybody) getting together with the Cardinals for a deal before the deadline just got relegated to zero.

Inventory Dwindling

Losing these starters to injury will certainly make life difficult for their clubs, but for teams – like the Braves – who are searching for quality, controllable starting pitching, this news replaces a significant setback.

Now it becomes a supply-and-demand deal in which the supply is showing 2 fewer options.  Thus the price probably just went up for the Cole Hamels‘ or A.J. Happ.

Next: Bullpen first?

Whether Atlanta was/is truly in this market, I suspect that these injuries may push them back out.

But this is exactly why teams tend to treat their read-bait pitchers with kid gloves at this time of the year.