Atlanta Braves: Let’s get this ball rolling

We are now a few days into 2019, but more importantly well past halfway through the offseason. January is the last month that we don’t have any sort of baseball action until November. More importantly, lets take a look into what this month could hold for the Braves.

General Manager Alex Anthopoulos said at the Winter Meetings a few weeks ago that he probably wouldn’t make another move until the calendar flipped to January and he was right. The Atlanta Braves have been awfully quiet since November 26th when they signed both Josh Donaldson and Brian McCann.

The Braves front office has publicly acknowledged that they still have holes they want to fill. A front of the rotation caliber arm, an outfielder, and more bullpen help. So why are we still waiting for all three?

Truthfully, we will likely never fully get the answer to those questions, but the Braves seem to be waiting out the market and not making any short sighted decisions. Also, the way the offseason evolves has drastically changed the last couple of years and we are all seeing negotiations continue into way later than what we are accustomed too.

The Handles of the Faucet

On top of all this are 2 players the entire Baseball world are kind of waiting to see what happens with before making any moves themselves. Yes, Bryce Harper and Manny Machado are most likely holding up the market from advancing at this point.

More from Tomahawk Take

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• Report: Dansby Swanson to sign seven year deal with Chicago Cubs
• Braves News: Braves add multiple new players, Max Fried extension?, more

Once these players go off the market, the hot stove should be fully lit and moves should happen almost daily. I believe the Machado sweepstakes could be over in the next 7-10 days, while I could see Harper’s free agency lasting a few more weeks.

Once those players are off the market, I think we will see the trade floodgates open as well. I fully expect the Braves to be extremely active on all trade fronts and at the front of many rumors as the next few weeks roll along.

Much like the Yankees have with Sonny Gray, I could see the Braves only trading Teheran at this point if they receive good quality back. It might even linger into spring training as multiple pitchers will unfortunately go down with injuries.

With all these things being said, things can pop up at any moment and a team’s plans can alter in the blink of an eye. I know many people have complained about how slow the last 2 winters have gone, but look at it this way: it should make for a fun and exciting last 6 weeks before spring training begins.

For the first time in a few years, the Braves should be at the forefront of most talks and buying instead of selling.