The Atlanta Braves continue to be tied to some of this offseason's free agents. With the Winter Meetings starting next week, things should pick up very soon. Atlanta has only made minor moves at this point, outside of acquiring Mauricio Dubon and re-signing Raisel Iglesias.
There are plenty of things left to do, but some Braves fans are wary that the team won't do enough. It's an understandable position given how Alex Anthopoulos likes to look for diamonds in the rough. Some of those risks pay off, some don't. Until they see the team invest in bigger moves, that cautious optimism will remain.
MLB insider and former GM Jim Bowden recently released his "Winter Meetings wish list" via The Athletic. The 2025 meetings already have a lot of buzz surrounding them, as you never know what could happen. Surprise trades and massive contract decisions are made during this time.
A lot of the focus will be on big names like Kyle Tucker and Kyle Schwarber. The Braves were mentioned on Bowden's list, and his choice for Atlanta was a tad shocking.
Predicting that the Braves would ever give Zac Gallen a $135 million contract is completely divorced from reality
It's no secret the Braves could use another arm in their rotation next season. Bowden thinks right-hander Zac Gallen would be a perfect addition for Atlanta. His notion that Gallen would fit into the rotation isn't what's surprising. It's Bowden's contract prediction that's absurd.
Bowden predicts Atlanta will offer Gallen a 5-year, $135 million contract. That's an AAV of $27 million! There was a time when the former Diamondback would have been worthy of that contract. Unfortunately for him, he doesn't deserve that kind of deal after a down year and will probably have to .
The Braves would have been better off just bringing back Max Fried at that cost. However, this is most likely a moot point, as there are rumors that the Cubs are hopeful of finalizing a multi-year contract with Gallen. Bob Nightengale reported this, but ESPN's Jeff Passan contradicted it by stating Gallen isn't close to finalizing a contract with anyone just yet.
Gallen would be able to give Atlanta 30+ starts next season, and that would be a great value for the team. The main issue will be with cost. It feels safe to add him on a one or two-year contract worth around $20 million per year.