Alex Anthopoulos made more "big" moves on Wednesday night than he did all of last offseason. The first splash move for the Braves President of Baseball Operations was to bring back closer Raisel Iglesias on a one-year, $16 million deal. Next, Anthopoulos got right back to work by swinging a trade with the Houston Astros less than two hours after the Iglesias deal was announced.
The trade with Houston was a one-for-one swap that sent Nick Allen to the American League and brought utility infielder Mauricio Dubon to Atlanta. While the deal was player for player, the incoming salary of Dubon is more expensive than what Allen was projected to make in 2026. Dubon is projected to make $5.8 million in arbitration this next season; meanwhile, Allen is projected to command $1.5 million according to MLB Trade Rumors. This commitment to adding real money should only bring confidence that the team is prepared to spend big this winter.
#Braves are paying Iglesias the same $16M they paid him each of the past three seasons, which is a reflection of his age (36 in January) and certainly not his performance. Except for the first 2 1/2 months last season, he's been outstanding in his 4 seasons with ATL.
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) November 20, 2025
Braves look poised to spend big after multiple transactions on Wednesday
Adding a projected $20 million in payroll, yet not filling the two biggest needs (according to Anthopoulos himself) bodes well for Atlanta's offseason. Anthopoulos was clear about his desire to upgrade shortstop and the starting rotation, and neither of Wednesday's moves fully satisfy those needs. After the trade, Anthopoulos confirmed the club is still trying to add a shortstop despite trading for Dubon.
As expected, MLB's offseason has not had much action yet, but Atlanta's signing of Iglesias could kickstart the closer market. Once big names like Edwin Diaz, Robert Suarez, and Devin Williams sign, perhaps other notable free agents will follow suit. Plenty of big name starting pitchers remain on the market, and not many rumors have made waves ahead of Thanksgiving week. If the Braves can spend $20 million ahead of Thanksgiving, what is stopping them for giving $20 million AAV to an upper tier starting pitcher?
Additionally, the Dubon acquisition gives Anthopoulos a bit of leverage in Ha-Seong Kim negotiations. If Anthopoulos wants to pretend he's fine starting Dubon at shortstop in 2026, then maybe Kim's price comes back toward a number Anthopoulos is comfortable with. We've got a long way to go in MLB's offseason and a lot of moves left to be made, but these early moves from Atlanta should encourage fans the best is yet to come this winter.