The Atlanta Braves have forged a bit of a reputation of striking early when it comes to free agency over the last few years. Not counting last year which was screwed up by the CBA lockout that condensed free agency into a few days once the lockout was lifted, the Braves have liked to help set the market and get the players they want early in a lot of case. Josh Donaldson is an example here…the Braves snatched him up on a one-year deal instead of waiting the market out.
However, that doesn’t mean that Alex Anthopoulos isn’t willing to let the market come to him nor is he willing to get in an unnecessary bidding war when he is comfortable with a player’s value. In Mark Bowman’s most recent newsletter, he outlines how the latter could be the Braves’ plan for the Dansby Swanson negotiations. Bow, who is not known for just saying things without knowledge on the subject, posits that the Braves may feel good about how they currently value Dansby and aren’t going to be forced into a deal they don’t like as they were in the case of Marcell Ozuna.
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Elsewhere on the site, we took some time out to appreciate Travis d’Arnaud’s awesomeness while he has been with the Braves. The Braves have a ton of stars on their roster, so it is understandable why he could get lost in the shuffle…but we wanted to give him some love as he has been an important part of the Atlanta Braves’ success the last few years.
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Carlos Correa is one of the best names on the free agent market this offseason and regardless of where he ends up, he is going to be well-compensated. However, it appears as though his most recent team, the Minnesota Twins, are pretty determined to try to keep him around.
The future of Jacob deGrom is going to be a hot topic this offseason. The Mets certainly wouldn’t mind keeping him around, but they are planning just in case he does leave as they have been talking with reigning Cy Young winner Justin Verlander. Verlander is definitely looking to get paid and Steve Cohen is definitely not afraid to pay players.