2018 Offseason And Targets

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Enscheff said:
We just saw the Braves fail to beat 2/30 for Morton, and it's safe to assume they aren't offering 3 years for Happ any time soon. This tells me they are looking to get an average or better pitcher for 1-2 years at an AAV under $15M. Paxton fit that description, and we know (think) they were in on him to the very end.

If the Braves truly want to add a SP and won't beat 2/30, then the only real option right now is Gray. As I've been saying, all evidence leads me to conclude Gray is the most probable SP to add, even if I don't agree with it.
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I'm still interpreting the evidence to suggest that all this SP talk is posturing and that we are going to stand pat with what we have. That would be my preferred course of action and I think its the one that AA is going to ultimately take, unless some terrific value opens up. Perhaps getting Gray and Frazier for a cheap deal is that value. Maybe the Yankees are desperate enough to dump Gray and deep enough in the outfield that they are willing to move them for less than what they are worth. But barring that, I think we are going to roll into next season with what we've got and reevaluate at the trade deadline. Regardless of whether or not you think we need a SP, I think everyone would agree that the main point of that would be for the playoffs and that our current crop could carry us through the first half of the season effectively.

I'm also really concerned about the budget restraints. I think we're definitely going to leave ~10 million off the books for in season moves and I think that will leave us with 13-18 million dollars left this offseason. That should be enough for use to address cOF and a few other minor moves, but probably not much more than that.
 
dak said:
I'll be curious to hear if the Braves made an offer on Morton. Will be a little disappointed if they didn't. I'd prefer to stay away from Keuchel unless his market collapses. I'm sure AA will keep grinding in the coming days, but no worries at all if we wait out the market til January or February and acquire a lower tier of talent as a result. The most important thing is not to make any unforced errors that lead to future dead money.
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The Braves are now contenders trying to win 90+ games, and have plenty of resources to fix the gaping holes on the roster. If that means paying 3/50 for a 3 win player rather than 1/10 for a 1.5 win player, so be it.

AA should have known he needed ~$15M per year to fix LF, and he should have planned accordingly. If his overall plan somehow assumed Cutch would be available for 2/20, then he needs to rethink his planning process. If the Braves get stuck with Markakis or Cargo in LF, AA needs to rethink his planning process.

I think the "we need to be patient" lines we've seen recently are evidence that AA is reworking his off season plans after seeing the deals for guys like Cutch.
 
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dak said:
I'll be curious to hear if the Braves made an offer on Morton. Will be a little disappointed if they didn't. I'd prefer to stay away from Keuchel unless his market collapses. I'm sure AA will keep grinding in the coming days, but no worries at all if we wait out the market til January or February and acquire a lower tier of talent as a result. The most important thing is not to make any unforced errors that lead to future dead money.
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I don't think AA will when it comes to your last sentence. This is an exciting month for baseball fans but remember eventually there are going to be still too many outfielders available left and not enough chairs to sit in, it could be January or even drag into early February but I think that is when AA will strike.
 
Ozzie's Chainz said:
I don't think AA will when it comes to your last sentence. This is an exciting month for baseball fans but remember eventually there are going to be still too many outfielders available left and not enough chairs to sit in, it could be January or drag into early February but I think that is when AA will strike.
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We've seen some big FAs left out in the cold at the end of winter having to take lesser contracts. I'm wondering if this is AA's fallback option for the OF. See if he can fix it with someone good and absent that, sign a FA when they start becoming a bit desperate.
 
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Buster Posey had a microfracture in his hip, in addition to other damage. After surgery, Bruce Bochy said, “I think we’ll see a different player.”

that doesn't sound promising
 
BeanieAntics said:
I'm still interpreting the evidence to suggest that all this SP talk is posturing and that we are going to stand pat with what we have. That would be my preferred course of action and I think its the one that AA is going to ultimately take, unless some terrific value opens up. Perhaps getting Gray and Frazier for a cheap deal is that value. Maybe the Yankees are desperate enough to dump Gray and deep enough in the outfield that they are willing to move them for less than what they are worth. But barring that, I think we are going to roll into next season with what we've got and reevaluate at the trade deadline. Regardless of whether or not you think we need a SP, I think everyone would agree that the main point of that would be for the playoffs and that our current crop could carry us through the first half of the season effectively.

I'm also really concerned about the budget restraints. I think we're definitely going to leave ~10 million off the books for in season moves and I think that will leave us with 13-18 million dollars left this offseason. That should be enough for use to address cOF and a few other minor moves, but probably not much more than that.
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Which is the reason I mentioned it's probably time to go to Brantley and Pollock and offer them both 3/$54 million with 24 hours to accept. AA can get creative with the terms and backload that $18 million per a little to keep a couple million to spend before camp opens if a pen piece slips through the cracks. If Pollock really thinks someone's going to give him a Cain deal, wish him good luck and move on. We know there's interest in Brantley, but not likely at that level, particularly since the Phillies jumped on McCutchen. Maybe even offer him the $20 million AAV he's asking for but only in a 2 year deal with a team option for a third at ~ $12-$15 million.
 
striker42 said:
We've seen some big FAs left out in the cold at the end of winter having to take lesser contracts. I'm wondering if this is AA's fallback option for the OF. See if he can fix it with someone good and absent that, sign a FA when they start becoming a bit desperate.
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This is true, but who was left available late last year? Mous and......? Great news if a team needed a 3B, not so great if they needed an OF.

I don't think waiting around for an OF to be sitting there in late January is a very smart plan for a team just entering their window of contention.

Again, if the signing of JD forces AA to wait until January to sign Markakis because he couldn't afford Brantley/Cutch in December, the JD contract was a mistake and AA misread the cOF market.
 
the outfield market should clarify once Harper finds a landing spot...if he goes to the Dodgers we could see them offloading 3-4 pretty good outfielders
 
clvclv said:
Which is the reason I mentioned it's probably time to go to Brantley and Pollock and offer them both 3/$54 million with 24 hours to accept. AA can get creative with the terms and backload that $18 million per a little to keep a couple million to spend before camp opens if a pen piece slips through the cracks. If Pollock really thinks someone's going to give him a Cain deal, wish him good luck and move on. We know there's interest in Brantley, but not likely at that level, particularly since the Phillies jumped on McCutchen. Maybe even offer him the $20 million AAV he's asking for but only in a 2 year deal with a team option for a third at ~ $12-$15 million.
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Looking at the deal Corbin got and those annual salaries it shouldn't be that difficult to slide some money this year to 2020 for Brantley when we have JD, Julio, and O'Day coming off the books.
 
I think people forget that we have a 3 WAR player already we can plug in at LF if need be. Sure it's a risk, but a platoon of Duvall and Camargo mighty not be terrible. Then sign like DJ LeMahieu to take over Carmago's super sub role.

That's not to say this scenario is ideal. But I also don't think we should force the issue and make a bad decision.
 
UNCBlue012 said:
[TW]1073003624437936129[/TW]

Harper to Atlanta confirmed
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I highly doubt it has anything to do with Harper or anyone like him. However, it is at least a little bit intriguing AA is meeting with Liberty executives. I don’t recall a Braves GM doing that since Liberty took over.
 
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