MLB Award season is in full swing and Braves ace Chris Sale keeps racking up the hardware. While award season is a lot of fun, looming deadlines impact certain players' and often end their time with a certain team.
It's not fun but it's part of the business that is Major League Baseball. The next approaching deadline is for MLB teams to decide on players who will not be tendered a contract for the 2025 season.
The Atlanta Braves started the offseason with a bang, trading Jorge Soler the day after the World Series. However, since then, they've not done much outside of small moves, including selecting or rejecting player options, minor trades, and restructuring contracts.
The non-tender deadline will provide fans with some much-needed news outside of speculation of trades or free agent additions that may or may not happen. But what exactly is the non-tender deadline?
Braves 2024 Non-Tender Deadline: Full details, deadline date, players most at risk
When a player is non-tendered it means they no longer have a spot on Atlanta's 40-man roster and become free agents. Players on the 40-man roster with fewer than six years of MLB service must be tendered contracts each offseason by the deadline. This year's deadline is Friday, November 22nd, at 8 p.m. EST.
When this happens, it's usually because the player’s expected arbitration raise exceeds what the club deems them worthy of. Or the team simply chooses to non-tender a player to open up a roster spot.
The Braves have six candidates that could be non-tendered this offseason but three of them seem like locks to return, including Ramon Laureano, Dylan Lee, and Jarred Kelenic. Laureano provided Atlanta with great value last season, Lee is expected to make just $1.2 million next season, and Kelenic was acquired with five years of control left.
However, the remaining three players aren't as likely to don an Atlanta jersey in 2025.
Eli White
Eli White is expected to earn $800k next season but there may not be a spot for the speedy outfielder should the team decide to keep Kelenic/Laureano or make a free agent addition. He batted .282 across 25 games with the Braves last year and provided a good pinch-running option/defensive replacement. Atlanta could easily decide to retain his services or look to him as an addition later in the season if needed. However, it does seem like his time with the Braves will end.
Huascar Ynoa
Once a promising prospect for the Braves, Huascar Ynoa has become a distant thought at this point. Atlanta would be wise to cut their ties with the young pitcher as his injury history has left the organization with more questions than answers on his health and ability to pitch effectively. He is expected to earn $825k in 2025. Much like Eli White, they could retain his services but it feels like the writing is on the wall for the right-hander. Ynoa barely pitched in 2024 due to elbow issues and collected a 6.37 ERA over 29.2 innings.
Griffin Canning
Canning was acquired in Atlanta's trade with the Angels for Jorge Soler. He is a right-handed option for the rotation and is expected to make $5.1 million next season. That's an affordable way for the Braves to fill one of their rotation voids but also a lot of money for a pitcher with a 5.19 ERA in 2024. However, he covered 170+ innings which is valuable but it feels like the Braves are leaning towards non-tendering him and acquiring better options.