What would Dylan Cease trade cost
The Atlanta Braves appear to be very much in on starting pitcher Dylan Cease, who is available in a trade via the Chicago White Sox. Chicago needs to tear down to the studs for a rebuild, and Cease is one of the remaining attractive assets the Sox can dangle to try to get a deal done.
As we covered in a post earlier Wednesday evening, Jon Morosi has reported that a deal getting done before the Winter Meetings start on Sunday is looking increasingly possible, and the Braves were the only team Morosi specifically mentioned as in the running for him, though others are sure to be interested.
After missing out on Aaron Nola (re-signed with Phillies) and Sonny Gray (signed with Cardinals), Cease is another good option to get a quality arm in the starting rotation, a necessary area of improvement for Atlanta ahead of 2024.
What might it take to get a deal done for Cease? Here's one of three trades Southside Showdown author Todd Welter suggested the Braves could give up:
- Vaughn Grissom
- AJ Smith-Shawver
- Luis De Avila
- Isaiah Drake
Grissom figures to be an outgoing piece of whatever next big move the Braves make. His defensive struggles at shortstop have made him an untenable fixture in Atlanta with capable players in front of him.
A.J. Smith-Shawver is the team's top prospect, and a reasonable surrender for a deeply necessary trade to get someone like Cease. They essentially give up a future good arm for a known good arm today.
Otherwise, the Braves get out OK in this hypothetical payment for Cease. De Avila is their 14th-best prospect and Drake 22. They retain the rest of their farm system, and a trade like this would probably score relatively well.
At the rate things are going, it would appear a Cease trade is coming sooner rather than later. Will he be heading to the Braves?
Penn Murfee signed by Braves... again
Starting pitching is the top priority for the Braves, or should be, but that doesn't mean everything else is on hold until they solve it. The Braves made a fringe move to fortify their bullpen by signing Penn Murfee according to Jeff Passan.
If this is feeling like Groundhog Day, yeah, you're not losing it! Murfee was claimed a few weeks ago and non-tendered, and is now back with the Braves.
Murfee is entering his third year, but has only pitched 83 innings so far in the bigs. In his 14 innings last year, though, he performed well, giving up just five hits and two earned runs.
Hard to make much of what his potential is in 2024, but Baseball Reference projects him to have a 3.69 ERA in 39 innings with a WHIP of 1.205 and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 2.67. Definitely someone to learn more about and keep an eye on as spring training draws near to see what his chances are of having staying power with Atlanta.
Braves player pitches Braves to Ohtani
The Atlanta Braves do not appear to be in the running for Shohei Ohtani. Not that they wouldn't want him, but he doesn't quite fit the timeline (though a player of Ohtani's skillset and star power could certainly convince a smart front office to put the concept of timelines to bed) for Atlanta and would come at such a high price that the Braves would be an uncharacteristic pursuant of him.
That's not to say it's impossible, though... Perhaps he saw how close the Braves have been the last few years and sees himself as the missing piece. Maybe he finds the charm of America's southern region to be his next culture to traverse.
Despite the unlikelihood of Atlanta landing him, it's not going to stop some teammates from trying to get him...
Relief pitcher Pierce Johnson made his pitch to Ohtani on MLB Network Radio:
Johnson is trying to persuade Ohtani by dangling something he never had with the Angels: A year-in, year-out chance at winning it all. Ohtani has never even played a postseason game. He'd have a good shot every year with Atlanta, to be sure. Some of the other teams courting him do not have the recent postseason resume that Atlanta does.
It'd be all over if this pairing actually came to be. But Ohtani feels far more likely to wind up somewhere like the Cubs, Dodgers, Giants, or somewhere else. Atlanta doesn't feel like they're even on the dartboard here, but who knows, MLB free agency is a crazy time...
