The Atlanta Braves should be a team to watch in the trade market as the new year approaches.
Though the Braves’ rotation looks fantastic if everything comes together, there are still lots of question marks after the departure of Max Fried.
Chris Sale just had his first healthy season in six years, Spencer Strider is returning from injury, and Reynaldo López and Spencer Schwellenbach both yet to shoulder a full innings workload typical of a big-league starter.
With that in mind, the Braves could swing one big trade this winter to shore up the depth of their high-potential rotation.
On Tuesday, Zachary Rotman of FanSided predicted that the Braves would pursue St. Louis Cardinals starter Erick Fedde, who has just one year remaining on the contract he signed last winter, in a potential blockbuster trade.
“The Braves, in an ideal world, would love to pull off a trade for a young controllable starting pitcher, but they probably don’t have the prospects to get a deal done,” Rotman said. “They do have the prospects, though, to acquire Erick Fedde in a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals.”
“The retooling (Cardinals) shouldn’t have much of an issue trading the 31-year-old entering his final year under contract, and the Braves have more than enough to make a deal happen.”
Fedde, 31, returned to MLB in 2024 after two seasons in the Korean Baseball Organization, and instantly found far more success than he’d had before his overseas detour. His two-year, $15 million deal has already proved to be a steal.
In 31 starts with the Cardinals and Chicago White Sox, Fedde posted a 3.30 ERA over 177 1/3 innings. He also racked up 5.6 bWAR, which ranked sixth among all big-league pitchers.
The Braves might have to give up a top prospect or two to deal for Fedde, but he’d undoubtedly round out one of the best rotations in the league if they could land him. It’s a matter of which other teams are in on the righty who could top Atlanta’s potential offer.
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