Measuring up: which big bat are the Atlanta Braves most likely to get?

Lower Profile, High Upside?

TREY MANCINI

• CONTROL:  2
• SALARY:  3
• DESIRABILITY:  7
• AGE:  3
• COST:  4
• PERFORMANCE:  3
• MISCELLANEOUS:  4
• TOTAL POINTS:  26

Mancini is now the face of the Orioles, and is easily their best offensive threat.  That alone makes him desirable… but is he actually available?

His salary is still dirt cheap, and he comes with a ton of team control, so the Orioles truly have no motivation to move him other than getting prospects back in return, so that will impact the price to acquire.

On the field, Mancini had an excellent 2019, but his defense is only slightly better than that of Castellanos.  It’s that defense that weighs on the desirability score, along with the lack of chatter about him in trade talk this offseason.  That could admittedly change if Baltimore lets team know they’d like to move him.

The Miscellaneous score tilts downward because of the Orioles’ perceived desire to keep him.

STARLING MARTE

• CONTROL:  6
• SALARY:  6
• DESIRABILITY:  4
• AGE:  6
• COST:  5
• PERFORMANCE:  4
• MISCELLANEOUS:  5
• TOTAL POINTS:  36

Marte has the unusual combination of having a reasonable salary figure on a team that would rather save some money.  It’s assumed that any team acquiring him would be fine with picking up his option for 2021, too.

Marte has been prominent in trade chatter – but mostly (lately) with the Mets.  This itself is confusing in that the Pirates seem to want Brandon Nimmo, which almost sounds like a potential same-for-same swap (though Nimmo has more control and is cheaper).  Honestly, this doesn’t make a lot of sense.

Marte should be one of the most reasonably-priced trade candidates on the chart, but it’s hard to gauge what the Pirates want given (a) that the team’s been burned in deals lately; and (b) they have a brand new GM at the helm.

Both of those factors figure into both the cost and the Miscellaneous scores… though he’s the oldest player on this list (excepting Kyle Seager), he’s a trade enigma.

MARCELL OZUNA

• CONTROL:  2
• SALARY:  5
• DESIRABILITY:  7
• AGE:  4
• COST:  5
• PERFORMANCE:  5
• MISCELLANEOUS:  7
• TOTAL POINTS:  35

Ozuna is said to want a five year deal, and that – coupled with his Qualifying Offer – is likely the reason he’s still unemployed this week.  He’s going to have to adjust his aspirations.  He prefers the Cardinals, though St. Louis has been lukewarm to his price.

In terms of performance, he’s middle of this pack, so nothing stands out.  Like Castellanos, suitors for his services have inquired… and seemingly not re-engaged strongly (while still checking in).  He’s at least a better defender in general, though still a notch below league average.

This is another case of Atlanta perhaps not wanting to commit to much length on a deal – and all of this above impacts the Miscellaneous score.