The Braves acquiring Byron Buxton was always going to be a long shot. Even with the injury concerns, Buxton's ability when on the field along with his relatively team-friendly deal would have cost the Braves a fortune in prospect capital they weren't rich in to begin with. Not only that, they'd have to deal with Buxton's no-trade clause.
When the Braves made the exciting addition of outfielder Mike Yastrzemski on Wednesday evening, it raised eyebrows across Braves country. Not only was it an unexpected signing for a club looking to improve their rotation and shortstop, it effectively killed the pipe dream for Twins star Byron Buxton in the process.
Mike Yastrzemski ends the Byron Buxton-Braves dream
Beyond the obstacles to get him on the team, the Braves would also have had to deal with the outfield logjam they'd create. With both Jurickson Profar and Michael Harris II still under contract, fitting Buxton into the outfield would have taken some maneuvering.
Still, the dream of having both Ronald Acuña Jr. and Buxton, arguably two of the most talented outfielders in the last quarter century, on the same team made it easy to imagine some way the club could start all four outfielders on a regular basis.
However, with the Braves pivoting to signing Yastrzemski, a left-handed outfielder with heavy platoon splits, it instantly zapped any possibility of happening. Even though Buxton is significantly more talented than Yastrzemski, the grandson of former Boston Red Sox legend is limited to the outfield.
While Yastrzemski will likely not command an everyday role (we hope), he'll still be expected to take the bulk of at bats against right handed pitching. When he does play, he'll either play one of the corner positions or DH.
Unless the Braves make a radical decision to package Michael Harris II for Byron Buxton, it will likely be years before the Braves even have another opportunity to add the superstar from Georgia.
Yastrzemski, of course, will cost the Braves much less than what they would've needed to give up, and is still a productive major leaguer, we'd be lying if we said we weren't at least a little bummed not to see Buxton rock the A.