Braves’ needs and potential moves as free agency begins in earnest

ATLANTA When the general managers meetings start Tuesday in San Antonio, plenty of attention will be paid to Atlanta Braves executive Alex Anthopoulos, because hes earned a reputation for striking quickly if he sees a potential trade or free-agent signing he likes.

Not that Anthopoulos, Atlantas president of baseball operations and general manager, hasnt let the market play out plenty of times in the past, too.

But if he sees a deal he really wants to make happen, particularly something a bit outside the box, he will try to move fast and do it.

Advertisement While the GM meetings serve more as an opportunity to lay the groundwork for trades, for teams to feel each other out and check the temperature of free-agent waters, Anthopoulos is someone who prefers to get deals done between now and the end of the Dec.

8-12 Winter Meetings, or soon thereafter.

The Braves run of six consecutive NL East titles ended in 2024.

The Braves also lost their third straight postseason series since their 2021 World Series win, this time falling in the wild-card round after they dropped consecutive division series to the rival Philadelphia Phillies .

Atlanta was beset by injuries to key players and extended slumps by several stars, and the Braves have offseason needs to fill and decisions to make before they gear up again after seeing their division-title reign ended by Philadelphia.

Braves biggest needs (we think) Back-of-the-rotation starter and a better offensive shortstop are the glaring needs.

But theres a caveat because the Braves could decide to re-sign Charlie Morton for the back of the rotation if the 41-year-old isnt ready to retire, and they might keep Orlando Arcia at shortstop, rather than upgrade the position and move him to a utility role.

Despite Arcias strong defense and reputation as a terrific teammate and dugout energizer, he had the second-lowest OBP (.271) and second-lowest OPS (.625) among all MLB qualifiers last season, as well as the second-worst wRC+ (72) for those into more advanced analytics.

And it wasnt just last season.

Hes been a poor hitter going back to the second half of the 2023 season, after making his first All-Star team with a career-best first half.

The Braves are only paying Arcia $2 million in 2025 (with a $2 million option for 2026), which is a utility players salary anyway.

If Morton retires or the Braves dont re-sign him, theyll still have Ian Anderson , AJ Smith-Shawver , Bryce Elder and Hurston Waldrep to compete for the fifth spot behind Chris Sale , Reynaldo Lopez , Spencer Schwellenbach and Spencer Strider , the 2022-2023 MLB strikeout leader.

Advertisement Strider missed almost the entire 2024 season recovering from elbow surgery but is expected back early in 2025 and possibly by Opening Day.

If hes delayed, the Braves have two spots to fill until hes back, assuming the Braves dont re-sign free agent Max Fried.

Fried tops free-agent decisions Its widely assumed, particularly among Braves followers whove seen this play out with fan favorites Freddie Freeman and Dansby Swanson in recent years, that Atlanta will be outbid for the services of lefty Fried since the team didnt re-sign him to an extension well before free agency as it has most other top players whove come up with them in recent years.

(Freeman and Swanson were the major exceptions.) Fried, wholl be 31 in January, had stints on the injured list in the past two seasons for forearm injuries and other nagging issues in the past, including blisters.

Still, hes a perennial Cy Young contender and one of MLBs best starters when healthy, and some project a contract of five to six years worth close to $30 million annually.

The Braves could afford to pay that, particularly if they dont re-sign Morton and after shedding close to $20 million in salary last week by trading Jorge Soler , reworking Lopez contract and signing reliever Aaron Bummer to a two-year deal with a 2024 salary less than half the $7.25 million theyd have paid him if they picked up a 2025 option from his previous contract.

But do they want to? They havent signed top free agents in some time because the Braves dont like the extended commitments and the dead weight those players often become late in deals, particularly pitchers.

If theyre going to add a big salary, they might be better off allocating it to a free-agent shortstop.

Willy Adames, for example.

Fried is a lock to turn down the one-year qualifying offer ($21.05 million) that will be made Monday by Atlanta, which will assure the Braves at least receive a compensatory draft pick if he signs elsewhere.

Advertisement Which Braves could get non-tendered? The six Braves eligible for arbitration are outfielders Ramon Laureano , Jarred Kelenic and Eli White , right-handers Huascar Ynoa and Griffin Canning , and lefty Dylan Lee .

The highest projected arbitration salaries are Laureano (about $6 million) and Canning (about $5 million), making them the most likely non-tenders.

Canning is a mediocre starter who came from the Los Angeles Angels last week for Soler, a salary dump by the Braves and the first trade of the MLB offseason.

The Braves liked Laureano a lot after signing him off the scrap heap as an injury replacement early last season but $6 million might be too much to pay an outfielder who wont get regular at-bats assuming the Braves keep Kelenic.

They surely didnt take on $17 million in bad contracts 11 months ago to acquire five years of contractual control of Kelenic, only to give up on him after one mediocre season.

Unless something unexpected happens with Kelenic, the only way Laureano might be re-signed would be on a reduced salary, not through arbitration.

Former Rule 5 pick added to the roster In a move overshadowed by simultaneous announcements of new contracts for Lopez and Bummer, the Braves also selected pitcher Domingo Gonzalez to their 40-man roster on Saturday.

The power-armed righty has pitched in parts of seven minor-league seasons and thus could have become a minor-league free agent, so the Braves moved him to their 40-man roster so they wouldnt lose him.

Gonzalez, 25, was a Rule 5 pick from the Pirates in 2022 in the minor-league phase of the draft and has big strikeout totals (albeit with plenty of walks) while used primarily as a reliever for Braves affiliates.

He had a 2.91 ERA in 45 appearances in 2024 in Double A and Triple A, with 83 strikeouts, 22 walks and two homers in 52 2/3 innings.

Filling out Braves coaching staff After firing hitting coach Kevin Seitzer, assistant hitting coach Bobby Magallanes and catching coach Sal Fasano on Oct.

10, the Braves hired former Texas Rangers hitting coach Tim Hyers two weeks later to replace Seitzer.

They still are looking for a replacement for Magallanes, but wont fill the catching coach position.

(Top photo of Orlando Arcia: Brett Davis / Imagn Images).

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