Atlanta Braves: Looking ahead to next years free agent outfielders
With a one-year contract for Nick Markakis, the Atlanta Braves will be looking for an outfielder again next offseason. Who will be available?
It was entertaining, to say the least, reading all the comments on all types of social media yesterday after the Atlanta Braves announced the re-signing of veteran outfielder Nick Markakis. By now you know the deal was a 1 year deal worth $4 million and a club option for 2020. With all that being said, let’s dive in and see what outfielders COULD interest the Braves in free agency next winter.
Top of the Class
Starting off with the best players who have a chance to hit the market after the 2019 season. Obviously, keep in mind that not every one of these players will make it to free agency due to potential in-season extensions and/or options that can be picked up, but let’s look none the less.
JD Martinez
Let’s just cut right to the chase – this one is an extreme longshot for so many reasons. First off, I don’t think any team trusts J.D. Martinez to play defense for 81 games much less around the 120 or so the Braves would need him to play. His numbers aren’t bad, but there is a reason more NL teams didn’t try and sign him after 2017.
It would be a lot easier to see JD in a Braves jersey if MLB would adopt the DH rule in the NL and make it fairer for NL teams, but that’s an article for another day.
Martinez can opt out of his current deal after any of the next 3 seasons. He is scheduled to make $23.75 million next year. I tend to think he can do better on the open market, especially considering his deal goes down to $19.35 million in 2021 and 2022. Bottom line is that I think JD and the Red Sox restructure his contract and work out something long term.
Marcell Ozuna
Marcell Ozuna didn’t have quite the numbers in his first year in St. Louis as he’d previously produced. He did battle injuries and yet still produced quality numbers, however. Ozuna will still be in his 20’s when he hits the open market after this season, so whatever team signs him could still be getting a few of his prime years.
It’s hard to put a figure on what Ozuna could possibly make in this day and age with free agency being completely different than what it was 3 years ago. I can tell you he is scheduled to make $12.25 million in his last arbitration season this year.
Historically, Ozuna has been a productive player that doesn’t really have any weaknesses that will hurt a club. I think if the Atlanta Braves decide to go after him, it would be a wise move.
Starling
Marte
Even after the signing of Markakis, some whispers of the Atlanta Braves and Pirates working on a trade still remain. Marte could be in those talks or the Braves could be simply asking about some Pittsburgh relief options.
Starling Marte has been extremely productive in the steel city the past few seasons. Some people will remember he was suspended in 2017 for PED use, but he seemed to get past that and carry on about his business.
This one is a little tricky to peg financially as well. Marte has a club option valued at $11.5 million after the upcoming season that also carries a $2 million buyout, so essentially a $9.5 million dollar question is whether the Pirates will exercise that option.
There are probably 20 teams who this would be a no brainer for, but the Pirates aren’t one of them. I tend to lean towards them exercising it, but it will be something for Braves fans to pay attention too.
The next tier
The following group of players, in my opinion, are still worthy of good consideration but will have a couple of flaws.
Nick
Castellanos
We have seen his name in rumors connected to the Atlanta Braves this winter. (Again….if only the DH rule was universal) As you all know by now, Nick Castellanos is not highly regarded for his defensive work but his bat has improved every year, and he is one of the better hitters in the game.
I have to believe that if the Braves were extremely interested in Castellanos they would have pulled the trigger on a trade with Detroit by now. Who knows though? Maybe Detroit was being extremely unrealistic with their asking price despite the need for young talent there and Castellanos only having 1 year remaining on his deal.
I fully expect Castellanos to be traded by July 31st, but I would also expect him to hit the open market next winter and get paid by a new team. Let’s see if it could still possibly be the Braves?
Aaron Hicks
The Yankees outfielder broke out in a pretty big way in 2018. For the first time in his career, he played in more than 125 games and he made them count.
One should not expect a high batting average from Aaron Hicks, so if he were to hit .250, that team would have to be excited. I would have to think his pay on his next contract will largely depend on his production this year. If he can repeat his 2018 season, he might get paid pretty well next winter.
Hicks in a way could be the type of player the Braves heavily look into as he probably won’t be paid with the likes of all the players mentioned above but he isn’t a bottom of the barrel player either. However, I could see some similarities to B.J. Upton here, and no one wants that again.
Yasiel Puig
General Manager Alex Anthopoulos knows Puig better than anyone most likely in the Braves organization after spending some time in Los Angeles with him. With that said though, I think if the Atlanta Braves had much interest in the polarizing figure, they would have struck a deal with the Dodgers before the Reds did.
Puig has his ways and yes, sometimes they are funny a la Manny Ramirez, but I think a lot of Braves fans would care not to see them from a player on their team. I tend to agree as well.
Personally, I’ve never been enamored with Puig’s play but some people do think he is an above-average player. His arm would no doubt be a weapon, but I think the Braves should have their sights set above Puig.
Adam Eaton
I know some of the prospects that the White Sox acquired for Adam Eaton haven’t worked as hoped, but I still think they won that trade with the Nationals. Eaton has been injured during most of his Washington career and hasn’t produced nearly what they envisioned.
However, when healthy Eaton was a dynamic player on the South Side in Chicago and could possibly still return to that form.
The trick here is will the Nationals let him walk and head to free agency? They have a $9.5 million team option after next season with a $1.5 million buyout. So will they let him test the waters and save $8 million? You never know with the Nationals funds, but I tend to believe they do and try to let their own young outfielders take over.
Getting desperate
The next group of potential free agents are ones that most Atlanta Braves fans will probably be upset, or at least not near as happy, if they were to sign, but I feel obligated to mention them.
Brett Gardner
I’ve always been a fan of Gardner’s play as, despite the fact he plays in New York, I have always thought he was underrated. With that being said, I think his time as a starting player is winding down as he will be 36 in the 2020 season.
You never know though, and Brett Gardner may present an option for a team to sign for a few million and play him a few days a week to give players rest. Maybe under that circumstance, the Braves might have slight interest?
Corey
Dickerson
Corey Dickerson is a really weird player to peg as he is all over the place. He had a really productive year in Pittsburgh last year and surprised everyone. That’s not to say he wasn’t useful in Tampa or Colorado, but nobody expected him to forget how to strike out.
It’s not that I don’t think Dickerson could help the Atlanta Braves, but if he has another season like last year, he will probably command a contract that will earn him north of $12 million per season. I think for that amount of money, I would rather have a player with more tangibles and someone I could trust a little more.
Nick Markakis
This leads us all to our old pal Nick Markakis. The Braves hold a club option on Nick for the 2020 season at $6 million. Unless he does what he did last May and June all year this year, I think it would be time to decline that option and move on, but I’ve been wrong on Markakis before.
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The fact is that he will be 36 by that point and the Atlanta Braves will probably need to look in another direction. Much like the current offseason, he will probably be option 4 or 5 and will only come back if many things fail to pan out.
Notes about Prospects
If you are wondering about what prospects could factor all into this…well Christian Pache could very well be ready by 2020 but I’m not sure the Braves would want to hand him the keys right out of spring training unless for some reason Ender Inciarte isn’t on the team anymore.
Drew Waters will most likely only be a late 2020 season addition to the team, and that may be pushing it on everything I have read.
dark. Next. Braves future bright, but at what cost?
So with that being said, how would you like the Atlanta Braves to go about the same opening in the outfield that we had this offseason? Do you prefer a trade, signing one of these potential free agents or let Pache take over right from the start and spend money elsewhere? Let us know in the comments below.