House That Hank Built
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All I want for an Atlanta Braves Christmas is…

By Alan Carpenter

What the Atlanta Braves need is to make some holiday cheer with the Colorado Rockies.(no photo credit cited)
What the Atlanta Braves need is to make some holiday cheer with the Colorado Rockies.(no photo credit cited) /
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Atlanta Braves
The Braves would lose nothing on defense if they picked up Arenado. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports /

At these rates, the Atlanta Braves would have to fight off others for Arenado.

The Rockies want the Mets to bid for Arenado.  That’s because they are seen to be the ones with the most money to burn.  It’s also because they don’t want to have to pony up a big sum to get rid of that contract.

That play just isn’t going to work, though… General Managers aren’t idiots and the days of having one of them ‘bid against themselves’ are over.

The only avenue left to Colorado, then, is path:  sigh heavily, realize the error of their ways, and make it known that they are willing to spend $12-to-$15 million per year to pay down Arenado’s contract for a team willing to send significant talent back to Colorado in a trade.

That would still free up $20-ish million in Denver for other purposes, which could certainly help to refresh their roster while building for the future.  It would also allow their fanbase to have something to look forward to while maybe also allowing the club to have a shot at retaining Trevor Story.

It’s not necessarily a “Win Win” thing for the Rockies… but it’s definitely the closest thing to a “Win” that could come out of this sordid saga still swirling out West right now.

Others Might Notice

I won’t go through the list of teams that would suddenly perk up and express interest in such a deal if (when?) Colorado finally figures out that this may be their only recourse, but suffice it to say that there will be a bunch of them.

But the Atlanta Braves certainly should be one of them.

To this point, we’ve avoided the issue of Arenado’s productive abilities as 1000 foot altitudes (Atlanta) vs. those at 5200 feet (Denver), but when you combine even lower estimates of his offensive worth with his significant defensive prowess you have to come to the conclusion that you’re still dealing with a perennial star player… and no doubt:  adding him in the Braves’ lineup would be good for all concerned.

These are the kinds of players that you give up big talent to get.  This is why I have recently advocated for players like J.T. Realmuto and Mike Clevinger (his elbow injury notwithstanding):  top players tend to put your team over the top in the regular season and the post-season.  They lift the play of others and they help you win championships.

We know that the Braves are close:  had they managed to win once more against the Dodgers — even with a patchwork pitching rotation — they would have been in good shape to have won the World Series.

We went through a lot of this on the most recent TomahawkTake podcast as well, but the upshot is this:

  • The window of opportunity for Atlanta is now
  • The positions of need are few:  left field for sure; third base is another option, given lack of offensive consistency.
  • Opportunities to fill either position are difficult in the free agent market.
  • So if not now… then when?

Yes – there are other potential targets out there… but are they better?  Are they more-readily available?

So let’s get to it… what should the Atlanta Braves be willing to offer to get Nolan Arenado from the Rockies?

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