Braves Trade Proposal Adds $40 Million Star to Fix Biggest Need

There haven’t been many more teams around Major League Baseball as disappointing as the Baltimore Orioles. The Orioles are in last place in the American League East at 36-47, sitting 12.0 games behind in the loaded division. There’s about a 0% chance that the Orioles will win the division, barring anything drastic changing. With that in mind, the Atlanta Braves might have an opportunity to land one of their top players in the form of Zach Eflin, whom CBS Sports recently pitched the idea of them trading for. They named them one of three potential landing spots. It’s intriguing to think about what the right-hander could bring to Atlanta. 

“Eflin’s bloated ERA is the product of an inflated home-run rate, one that isn’t necessarily reflected in his ball-tracking data. He’s allowing harder contact than last year, to be certain, but he’s closer to the league-average mark than not in that respect. More concerning is that both his cutter and curveball have lost effectiveness as swing-and-miss offerings, causing his strikeout rate to drop to its lowest mark since 2017. It’s to be seen if the Orioles sell; if they do, he’s an impending free agent whose best work this season could lie ahead. Potential landing spots: Padres, Braves, Twins,” CBS wrote.

Where Do the Braves Stand Ahead of the Trade Deadline?

Some have questioned whether the Atlanta Braves will buy or sell at the deadline. Eflin has a 5.95 ERA and hits free agency at the end of the year, so there’s reason to believe he might not be too expensive. 

Even if the Braves want to buy some and sell a bit, Eflin could be a decent option to pursue. 

Mark Feinsand of MLB.com brought up some good points recently. He noted that the Braves have been here before, and if there’s one team not to count out, it might be them. If the Braves are thinking the same way that Feinsand is, they’ll likely be buyers. 

“Three years ago, the Braves were seven games behind the Mets with 50 games remaining on the schedule. Atlanta went 35-15 (.700) down the stretch to capture the NL East title. The year before that, Atlanta never broke the .500 mark during the first half of the season, finally getting its head above water for the first time on Aug. 6. The Braves went 33-18 (.647) in their final 51 contests, winning the division by 6 1/2 games before rolling through October en route to the 2021 World Series title.

“These experiences in the not-too-distant past will certainly be at the top of president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos’ mind as he navigates his way toward the Trade Deadline,” he wrote.

Will the Orioles Look to Sell?

In order for the Atlanta Braves to have an opportunity to trade for Eflin, they’ll need the Baltimore Orioles to sell. When speaking about what their plans might be, Orioles general manager Mike Elias noted that he doesn’t have anything in mind yet. 

The Orioles are about as good as done in the American League, but it’s possible that things could change over the next month. They have a very talented team and are 7.0 games out in the Wild Card race, and could lower that deficit if things go as expected when entering the year.

“I don’t have an exact day in mind, but we’ll use our tools and judgment to decide when that might be. But for now, we’re hoping to keep playing well, keep racking up wins, staying within an arm’s reach of the Wild Card race in the meantime, but we will have to make a reasonable determination at some point in the next several weeks,” he said, per MLB.com.

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