With the World Series firmly in the rearview and winter meetings fast approaching, teams around the MLB are gearing up for the most important stretch of the offseason. Many front offices will be looking to bolster their existing rosters in hopes of a postseason push come next fall, while others are stuck firmly in rebuilding mode.
One of the more interesting squads in that first category happens to be the Atlanta Braves. Coming off a disappointing campaign characterized by an onslaught of injuries, the Braves will be looking to keep pace with the likes of the Dodgers in the National League. Fortunately for GM Alex Anthopoulos, his team doesn’t require much to get back to the pinnacle of the sport.
A series of savvy deals over the past several seasons has locked up one of the best young cores in baseball to team-friendly deals in Atlanta. This means that whatever potential improvements that need to be made exist largely on the margins. Still, the margins are what make or break championship aspirations for teams, so Anthopoulos needs to make the right moves in these areas.
When you look up and down the Braves' current lineup, there are only two areas where you could say they need an upgrade. The first of these is left field, where they’ve spent the past several years utilizing a platoon to varying degrees of success. The second, and much bigger, hole exists at the shortstop position.
Orlando Arcia has occupied this slot for the Braves since he came over in one of several key 2021 deadline deals. His stellar defense up the middle had somewhat made up for his lackluster production at the plate up until last season. Arcia suffered massive regression in both areas in 2024, however, and was borderline unplayable for long stretches.
It’s clear that if an upgrade is going to be made to the lineup, then shortstop is the top priority. What makes this potential move even more of a no-brainer is the fact that there are several high-quality free agents hitting the open market. Willy Adames and Ha-Seong Kim are the most noteworthy, and reports have already surfaced that the team is in on Adames.
The Braves can’t expect to compete with a glaring hole like Arcia in their lineup, and they can go and get an immediate upgrade. Slotting a hitter like Adames into Arica’s spot makes too much sense, so if Anthopoulos has the opportunity to sign the All-Star, he must seize it.
The one other area that Atlanta’s front office will need to address is a replacement for the likely departure of Max Fried. The two-time all-star will hit the open market for the first time this winter, and the prevailing sentiment among insiders is that a return to the Braves is highly unlikely.
If Fried does decide to leave, then the Braves will again have several suitable replacements to choose from. They must pick the right arm, though, as the injury bug has struck their rotation several times in recent years.
At the end of the day, this Braves roster is still among the MLB’s best, but they must improve if they want to get back to the mountaintop. If they want to compete with the Dodgers, then suitable replacements for both Arcia and Fried are a must. A failure to address these areas will be a massive failure for Anthopoulos. If he can find both, however, then another championship parade could be on deck for the Braves.
