The Atlanta Braves have started the trade deadline by addressing their need for a right-handed bat and a lefty pitcher. Adding Lane Thomas and Bailey Falter is a step in the right direction, but there's still more work to do.
Losing out on Tarik Skubal to the Dodgers stinks, but that likely would have destroyed the chances of adding to other areas of the team budget-wise. With the southpaw off the table, the Braves have to pivot to other options to fill their starting pitching need.
However, Atlanta will likely be limited in the amount of money they add to payroll. Unless they surprise everyone and unload a big contract.
Here's how much payroll space the Braves have to spend ahead of the trade deadline
According to Spotrac, the Braves' payroll sits at $256,384,082 after they acquired Thomas and Falter. Atlanta will pay a prorated amount of their salaries. Thomas is owed $1,572,193, and Falter is owed $1,078,056. After that trade, the team has around $7,615,918 remaining before they hit the second tier of the luxury tax.
The Braves could theoretically add as much to the payroll as they want, but there's a possibility they want to stay under that second threshold. Once a team reaches the second tier, they are required to pay a 12% surcharge on every additional dollar spent.
Thankfully, $7.6 million may be enough to address the remaining needs. Atlanta needs to add a starter to the rotation and potentially another reliever. That money should be more than enough to get this done. Casey Mize, for example, would be a great pivot from Skubal, and he is making just $6.15 million this year. His prorated salary would be much lower than that. So, it's possible for the Braves to make things happen and stay under the second tier of the luxury tax threshold.
However, Atlanta would be wise to consider going above that threshold if it means they can add a high- impact player in a trade. Braves fans are probably tired of Alex Anthopoulos and company saying they have enough money to make things happen, but continuing to pinch pennies.
There's good reason to be wary of the budget, but at some point, they have to swing for the fences so the team has a fighting chance in the postseason. It's worth pointing out that they should have at least an extra $15 million to work with since they aren't paying Jurickson Profar this season, so that should help the cause.
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