Atlanta Braves trade rumors: Tuesday updates
Braves Rumors
There have been 3 today for sure (and Chris Martin wasn’t among them!)… two good rumors, one that’s actually a bit cringy. Let’s start with that.
TANNER ROARK
Braves and A’s join Yankees with interest in Tanner Roark
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 30, 2019
Oh, I really hope not. This is not the Reds pitcher you want.
His ERA is just South of 4 (3.95) and he’s thrown 107 innings spread among 20 starts… so he’s averaging about 5.1 innings per outing.
That’s not terrible, but it’s also not really an upgrade, either. The Braves could use a true ‘inning eater’, but (a) this isn’t really what Roarke is, and (b) he’s not somebody that screams ‘member of the playoff rotation’.
He’s a rental, so that cost should be nothing more than a case of Skyline Chili, but unless he comes gift-wrapped with Yasiel Puig, I’d pass.
YASIEL PUIG
Oops… I guess I spoiled that one. Atlanta has been searching for an outfielder… here’s an interesting one.
Braves have shown some interest in Yasiel Puig, one of many OF available. They do not, however, appear engaged on Reyes, Castellanos, Dyson or Peralta.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 30, 2019
I like this rumor. I hope it happens. He’s also a rental, making $9.7 million this season, but we’ve seen no indication that price is going to be much of an object on any player at this point in the season (roughly 1/3rd of the contracts to pay).
LATE UPDATES:
Interest picking up on Yasiel Puig. Indians snd Rays appear to be the main teams. Mixed opinions about whether Braves are interested.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 31, 2019
Yasiel Puig has been traded to the #Indians as part of the Trevor Bauer deal, source confirms @JeffPassan report. @MLB @MLBNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 31, 2019
Well, there’s some cold water being dumped on this rumor. This is why we type fast at this time of the year.
If the Braves do find another bat… then that might very well result in Austin Riley being moved back to Gwinnett to give him a chance to get his own hitting confidence back.
If not, you can probably blame Adam Duvall… he’s 4 for 5 with 2 homers on the night as this is being written and hitting .529 after his recall with 3 homers, a near homer, and an OPS over 1.500!
ROBBIE RAY
The Atlanta #Braves have joined the #Yankees, #Astros, #Twins, #Phillies and #Brewers in expressing strong interest for #Dbacks for starter Robbie Ray. The #Dbacks also have a slew of teams pursuing left-handed reliever Andrew Chafin.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) July 30, 2019
Though the Braves are listed here, you can also see the number of teams lined up at the Phoenix trading counter.
Ray is an interesting case… under team control for another full year. He strikes out a ton of batters (12 per 9 innings), yet throws a lot of pitches (he walks 4 batters per 9).
His ERA – curiously enough – is just a tick below Roark’s and Ray averages going 1 out further into his starts than does the Reds pitcher.
So why do I prefer Ray to Roark despite the obvious increased cost? Because he does pass the test of someone I’d like to see start a playoff game.
Pitchers with better ‘stuff’ – Ray clearly is better than Roark on that point – are what you need in the playoffs. You’d also like to see guys like Ray go deep into playoff games, if possible.
Can Atlanta get him? Sure… if they want to meet the price. As noted early Tuesday, the Braves do need to find some player to consolidate prospects into… for the sake of roster and aging prospect issues if nothing else.
Ray is a ‘tweener’ starter: under control for less than Syndergaard or Bauer or Matthew Boyd, but also not a rental acquisition, either.
This would be a nice get.