"If there’s a deal that makes sense for us, and it’s a good asset to have, we’ll do it,” Anthopoulos said. “I think the one where you scratch and really push, and you want to call it overpay in years or dollars, you feel like that’s the one final piece. Everything else is in place. That could be a trade in July. You step up a little bit."
"So I do think, especially with our payroll and so on, we have to make smart deals."
"The Braves made bigger name prospects available at the deadline, the GM confirmed, which indicates a willingness to move pitching for immediate help."
"There’s the big what-if in Madison Bumgarner. The Giants have resisted rebuilding, and like the Mets are bringing in a new GM. He’ll have his $12 million club option exercised and hit free agency as a 30-year-old in 2020. If San Francisco puts him out there, the Braves would explore it. He’s a proven postseason pitcher. There’s belief that if he were to change jerseys, the Braves are a preferred destination. A North Carolina native, an extension seems palatable, though you risk paying for his decline."
"“We’ll come up with our own internal values on guys,” Anthopoulos said. “If that value is there early, we’ll jump."
https://www.ajc.com/sports/baseball/braves-need-trade-for-ace/nKc4i87xVEnwuO0CE1uOqI/
None of that screams "we're looking for an Ace", but there's enough there to connect the dots that if an affordable one becomes available, he's paying attention if it doesn't gut the system. Kluber/Carrasco/Paxton all make less than $14 million and are under control for multiple years, so they at least fit the criteria he's describing.
deGrom and Syndergaard obviously do too, but I find it awfully hard to imagine a scenario where the Mutts wouldn't require an unbelievably massive overpay to send either of them to us.
"Of course, moving players who are at or near the MLB level generally means giving up the ability to fill roster spots productively at bargain rates. Acquiring proven, high-level major-leaguers who are still playing for peanuts is next to impossible, even for an organization with a talent pool as deep as Atlanta’s. More likely, the club will be most successful at pursuing players who have at least reached arbitration or who are playing on attractive guaranteed contracts — players, that is, who are worth more than they are being paid, but aren’t still at or near the league-minimum."
"Perhaps it’s also possible that they’ll end up re-uniting with Markakis and Suzuki while otherwise only picking at the edges of the roster, though certainly that does not sound like the hoped-for or expected outcome."
"With a rather ambitious scope in mind entering the winter, it’s possible to imagine the club at least considering upgrades at all but a few positions on the roster. And if there’s a real desire for impactful roster additions, without the appetite for paying premium free agent price tags, then it’s possible we’ll see a creative, free-wheeling, multi-faceted winter of action in Atlanta."
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2018/10/anthopoulos-discusses-braves-offseason.html