Chris Stratton
The Cardinals' collapse in 2023 has been well documented and frankly, it has been great considering all of the devil magic they utilized over the years. It took them a while, but it does seem like they have finally realized that they need to sell at the deadline. One player that they absolutely should move at the deadline that the Braves should check in on is Chris Stratton.
While his 4.05 ERA this year isn't great, Stratton strikes out better than a batter an inning and does a pretty good job of limiting walks as well. He also has elite spin rates on both his fastball and curveball which could be something that the Braves could see and think they could get even more performance out of him. It certainly doesn't hurt that Stratton is a pending free agent that is only making $2.8 million this season. Assuming the Cardinals are reasonable with their asking prices, this is a bullpen arm the Braves should target.
Jason Foley
Relievers with a lot of team control generally don't get moved as much at the trade deadline, but mentioning the Tigers' Jason Foley as an option is still worthwhile. He is under team control through 2027, has a very live fastball, doesn't walk guys, and is good at limiting barrels and getting guys to chase his stuff out of the zone. Putting up a 2.29 ERA in 39 appearances this season doesn't hurt, either.
Trading for Foley may not be super easy to pull off, though, While the Tigers "probably" need to give up on trying to contend in 2023, they aren't that far off from contending in the AL Central and may want to keep Foley for a little bit to see how the next couple of seasons go. There is also the cost problem in terms of prospects. The Braves are likely willing to be aggressive, but ponying up what Foley may cost could be a bridge too far.
Scott Barlow
Scott Barlow is probably the bullpen arm that has been a rumored trade target for almost every team the most since the season start. The Royals are bad, are going to be bad for a while, and they have already begun the selloff as they traded Aroldis Chapman before we even got into July. Barlow has plenty of experience in high leverage situations, misses a ton of bats, and limits hard contact.
Another nice thing about Barlow is that he would come with another year of team control. However, he is making more money this year ($5.3 million) than some of the other options that are going to be available at the deadline this year. He has also regressed a bit in 2023 with a 4.09 ERA and his walk rate leaves something to be desired. Given the amount of interest in Barlow, price is going to matter a lot here, but he should still be on the Braves' radar.