The Braves next move should be to subtract so they can add

Subtract to add

In order to make room on the payroll, there are three players for the Braves who are rather expensive and are expendable.

The first one is pretty obvious and he’s been mentioned in trade rumors for two offseasons now, and that’s Ender Inciarte.

I’ll give my regular statement when talking about Inciarte that I love him and would not be upset at all if he’s with the Braves in 2020, but he is expendable.

With Ronald Acuna Jr. able to play center field (even though I think he’s a below-average defender there) and with Cristian Pache knocking on the door, the Braves could part with Ender and save $7.7 million towards the 2020 payroll.

The next player who can be moved is Shane Greene.

I honestly get the feeling with all the bullpen signings that the Braves are actively looking to trade Greene. Of course, if they can’t find a suitor there is nothing wrong with keeping him and having a strong pen.

But he’s set to make close to $7 million in arbitration for 2020 and with the additions to the bullpen he’s fallen down the pecking order.

There are even rumors that if they can’t find a trade partner the Braves may non-tender him anyway, which I think is ridiculous. Even if you think he can’t repeat last year’s numbers, he’s still going to be a solid reliever and should have value on the trade market.

And finally, one people aren’t really talking about a lot right now, is Adam Duvall.

The postseason hero is projected to make $3.8 million next year, which is a pretty big number for someone who doesn’t have a defined role.

And if the Braves do what I’m hoping and find a corner outfielder, pushing Nick Markakis to the bench, there really isn’t a need for Duvall.

The Braves should look to trade Duvall, and if they can’t, they should non-tender him.

Also, once the Braves find a suitable catcher to pair with Flowers they can get rid of John Ryan Murphy and the $1.2 million he is projected to make.