House That Hank Built
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Braves 2020 Opening Day roster early prediction

By Jake Mastroianni

ATLANTA, GA - APRIL 4: First base is adorned with an Opening Day logo for the game between the Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals at Turner Field on April 4, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - APRIL 4: First base is adorned with an Opening Day logo for the game between the Atlanta Braves and the Washington Nationals at Turner Field on April 4, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images) /
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PITTSBURGH, PA – SEPTEMBER 07: Starling  Marte #6 of the Pittsburgh Pirates signs autographs before the game against the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park on September 7, 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA – SEPTEMBER 07: Starling  Marte #6 of the Pittsburgh Pirates signs autographs before the game against the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park on September 7, 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /

Starting outfield

This is where I’m going to go a little outside of the box. If the Braves aren’t able to re-sign Josh Donaldson and they decide to go with an in-house option at third, then they’ll have to look for that impact bat in the outfield.

There are some interesting names on the free agent market such as Marcell Ozuna, Nick Castellanos, and Yasiel Puig.

However, I’m not really thrilled about any of them.

Instead, I think Atlanta will look to trade for a big outfield bat. And one of the names that has intrigued me the most that I’ve heard floated around is Starling Marte.

The 31-year-old has two years left on his deal at a very affordable price for his production ($11.5 million in 2020 and $12.5 million in 2021).

FanGraphs has him as a 3 WAR player but it’s only that low because they gave him a negative defensive rating in 2019.

However, he’s won two Gold Gloves in his career and he wouldn’t be forced to play center field like he was in Pittsburgh.

He hit .295 last year with 23 home runs, 97 runs, 82 RBI, and 25 stolen bases in 132 games.

You pair that type of production with Ronald Acuna Jr. and your outfield suddenly looks dangerous.

I think the Braves start the year with Acuna in center, Marte in left, and a platoon of Nick Markakis and Adam Duvall in right.

And then once either Cristian Pache or Drew Waters shows their ready, you can move Acuna to a much more favorable position in right.

Starting outfielders: Starling Marte, Ronald Acuna Jr., Nick Markakis

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