The Braves general manager hasn’t heeded the strong message that Brian Snitker conveyed Alex Anthopoulos.
Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker tried to make the team’s biggest need obvious just a few short days ago, but so far Alex Anthopoulos hasn’t listened. The Braves have lost six of their past seven games, and face a tough test against the New York Mets on Sunday afternoon in hopes of keeping their edge in the NL Wild Card standings. A 4-0 victory on Saturday thanks to a standout performance from Spencer Scwhellenbach saved Atlanta from a 1.5-game deficit, and a possible series sweep on Sunday. While the current iteration of the Braves are surviving best they can undermanned at starting pitcher, second base and in the outfield, Alex Anthopoulos is working the phones. It’s long been rumored the Braves would make a big splash at the trade deadline, perhaps adding a starting pitcher or a corner outfielder who actually deserves to play everday.
With Ronald Acuña Jr.’s season-ending injury months ago, Snitker has tried his hardest to fit fourth-outfielder types into the starting lineup every day. The latter would definitely relieve some of his burden. Braves problems have deeply irritated Brian Snitker. JP Martinez, an outfielder for Atlanta, struggled in the team’s Friday night loss to the Mets. Martinez tripped over a game-winning Mets single after making a base-running error. Snitker was not overly happy.
To be honest, I have no idea what that was, Snitker remarked. “You must ask them,” I said. I had nothing at all. Normally, we wouldn’t bunt in that circumstance, but I was attempting to score a run, and I believed we had two decent hitters approaching. That is not appropriate. At the deadline, the Braves can still bolster their deficient roster. Anthopoulos must have heard the comment somewhere as a plea for assistance. The Braves still hadn’t signed a third starting outfielder as of Sunday morning, so Snitker wouldn’t have anyone to rely on save Michael Harris II (when healthy) and Jarred Kelenic. The Braves’ dissatisfaction was exacerbated on Saturday night when the Mets acquired Jesse Winker, an outfielder for the Nationals.
On the outfield front, players like Tommy Pham and Taylor Ward remain available. Lane Thomas, a star for the rival Nationals, could be a fit in Atlanta for a premium price. A starting pitching addition, despite the eventual return of Max Fried, would provide Atlanta with a nice rotation boost as well.
Anthopoulos is busy, as he doesn’t want to overpay from what’s already a relatively thin farm system. But if the Braves are serious about making a World Series run in 2024, this roster isn’t good enough.
