With the injury-ridden season the Atlanta Braves have come to know in 2024, some changes had to be made for the team to have a shot at success in October. Ronald Acuna Jr., Spencer Strider, Ozzie Albies, and Michael Harris II are all notable names that have missed significant time this season due to injury. Additionally, Max Fried and Reynaldo Lopez have recently faced injuries themselves.
Many thought Alex Anthopoulos would go all in at the trade deadline to put the puzzle back together. Atlanta made one major trade to bring back 2021 World Series MVP Jorge Soler, but that turned out to be the lone move at the trade deadline. Here are three reasons why Anthopoulos decided not to be too aggressive on Wednesday.
The emergence of Spencer Schwellenbach
If the Braves were going to target any other position at the trade deadline, it likely would have been starting pitcher. The health of Reynaldo Lopez and Max Fried was in question while Spencer Schwellenbach was still trying to find his place in the big leagues. All of this changed very quickly.
Lopez and Fried will rejoin Atlanta's rotation soon and over his last couple of starts, Schwellenbach seems to have turned a corner. In his last start against the Mets, the 24-year-old rookie went 7 innings allowing only two hits, no runs, no walks, and 11 strikeouts.
Spencer Schwellenbach's 10th K 😯 pic.twitter.com/LvPY3rdaPq
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 27, 2024
With a starting rotation like this plus Chris Sale and Charlie Morton, the Braves really did not have room in their pitching staff for another starter. The Braves currently have the 2nd best team ERA in all of Major League Baseball.
Jorge Soler lengthens this lineup
Adding Jorge Soler to the Braves' inconsistent offense is a much-needed improvement. Will he return to the 2021 World Series MVP form? Probably not. However, he still provides a power presence at the top of the lineup the Braves had been missing for so long.
Jared Kelenic has hit a rough patch recently but has shown he has the potential to be a dangerous hitter. Kelenic had been hitting leadoff in Acuna's and Harris' absences. By adding Soler, Brian Snitker can pencil in Kelenic's name at the bottom of the order and just like that, the bottom of Atlanta's order has the potential to be as dangerous as the top.
Too many injures to still go all in
Let's take a second to recognize the harsh reality. Atlanta winning the World Series in 2024 is far less unlikely than it was on opening day. The Braves have lost the NL MVP, a Cy Young Award candidate, and four all-stars to injury for a big chunk of the season.
The Atlanta Braves simply do not have their team and some of their missing pieces are the players with the highest expectations. It would not be logical to trade away prospects for rental pieces to go "all in" in 2024.
Let's say that Anthopoulos was aggressive at the deadline. Prospects would have been traded away for someone in a field of watered-down trade candidates. All of the Braves players who are injured would come back next season and reclaim their position. This would leave those hypothetical acquisitions with no room and Atlanta would be out of prospects.
With the cluster we call the National League Wild Card race, there are so many teams that are in contention for that last playoff spot. As a result, there were fewer sellers than usual at this deadline. Alex Anthopoulos and the Atlanta Braves played this deadline exactly as they should have.