The Atlanta Braves had a pretty great offseason, but that changed after a slew of injuries and an unexpected suspension. Atlanta was linked to a few of the top free agents this offseason, but nothing ever materialized.
There are plenty of reasons why they chose to pass on some of the big-name free agents, despite obvious needs. Some of those misses loom large for the team. However, for a select few of those free agents, fans will be happy the team passed on them.
Here are 3 offseason moves that Braves fans should be grateful didn't happen
Bo Bichette
Atlanta needs a starting shortstop beyond 2026, and Bichette felt like a great option. Unfortunately, his offensive upgrade comes with a major downside. His defense is absolutely atrocious, and the Braves have shown they would take a Gold Glove shortstop over offense the last few years.
Couple that with Bichette signing a three-year, $126 million contract, and it's easy to see why Atlanta passed on him. Ha-Seong Kim's return to the Braves made that an easy decision, but no one could have expected he'd suffer from a freak injury to knock him out for the first couple of months of the season. Regardless, fans will be grateful for the front office passing on Bichette in the end.
Chris Bassitt
Bassitt had the best chance of becoming a Brave this offseason. After missing on all of the major free agent arms on the market, Atlanta's options dwindled drastically. However, with the need for a fifth starter, they needed to consider him.
Unfortunately, Bassitt got away and signed a one-year, $18.5 million contract with the Orioles in February. That cost seemed to be too high a price for the front office. He would have been able to eat a good amount of innings for the Braves. However, he is getting older, his performance is declining, and injuries are a valid concern for a pitcher at this point in his career.
Tatsuya Imai
Imai was an intriguing free agent to watch as he had a great season in the NPB in 2025. He finished second in the NPB in strikeouts, had the sixth-lowest ERA (1.92), and finished with the eighth-most innings. Atlanta was rumored to be interested in him, but ultimately, he signed a three-year, $54 million contract with the Astros.
It would have been awesome for the Braves to land a talented arm, considering how thin their starting depth is right now. However, Imai has never pitched in the big leagues, and committing $18 million per season for an unproven pitcher is dangerous. As good as he has looked in spring training, Imai is anything but a guarantee and paying him would come at the likely cost of Alex Anthopoulos not having payroll space at the trade deadline to do much of anything.