The Atlanta Braves made a big splash in the offseason last year and things look like they could be the same again this season. We will not see them signing the big names like B.J. Upton and trades for his brother Justin Upton but you can guarantee that some offseason acquisitions will be made.
As everyone is well aware All Star catcher Brian McCann will most likely be leaving the Atlanta Braves for greener pastures and starting a new chapter of his career with a new team in 2014. The Braves offered him a one year 14.1 million dollar qualifying offer. There is no chance that McCann will accept this offer and if you do believe he will, you are just being ignorant. Braves fans should not be salty at McCann but instead happy that he graced them with eight great years of baseball.
Either way the Braves now have no control over what McCann is going to do and need to focus on signing players, rather it be by trades or free agency. Below is five potential trades/free agent signings.
5. Trade for Brandon Phillips
Rumors have been circulating that the Braves have expressed interest in trading for gold glove second baseman Phillips. He is 32 years-old and slowly declining as far as his bat is concerned. He has an amazing glove and is one of the “good” guys in the game of baseball. The Braves would include Dan Uggla and a top of the rotation pitcher for him if this deal were to happen. They would most likely have to part ways with either Kris Medlen or Mike Minor. Phillips hometown is Atlanta where he spends most of his time in the off season. Don’t hold your breath on this trade happening but the potential is there.
4. Sign Kevin Youkilis
The Atlanta Braves are in need of some veteran leadership off the bench and Youk would be the right man for the job. He plays first base and third base and could help give some off days to Freddie Freeman and Chris Johnson. He’s 34 years-old so he wouldn’t be playing everyday but he does not need to play everyday on this young Atlanta ballclub. He’s a right handed hitter with a career batting average of .281. The chances of this signing happening are much higher than the Phillips trade.
3. Sign Omar Infante
Man, oh man! As an Atlanta Braves fan I would love nothing more than for the Braves to sign Infante. Believe it or not I was one of the few Braves fans who was upset when they traded Infante to the Marlins for Uggla and I turned out to be right. Things have almost worked out perfectly for him to come back to the Braves fam. He is a free agent, he’s played in Atlanta for three years and the second baseman for the Braves isn’t so great anymore… The chances of this signing happening should be very high on the Braves list of things to do. He can play second, shortstop, third or even outfield. This guy can do it all!
2. Sign Josh Johnson 
Johnson has had a rough time since leaving the Marlins; where he was one of the best pitchers in baseball. He had a 6.20 ERA last season for the Blue Jays and did not perform nearly close to how he should have. If the Braves sign him he has a chance to get back to the NL East where he pitched some of his best baseball. He would also have the chance to be a top-end pitcher in a stacked Braves rotation. He will be healthy for 2014 and could be a really big piece to any contending team.
1. Trade for David Price
One of the main reasons the Braves didn’t advance as far as they would have liked in the 2013 playoffs was the lack of a legit number one pitcher. David Price could be just that with the Atlanta Braves need to get over that hump and finally win a playoff series. The Tampa Bay Rays are always trading away good, young talent mainly because they always have other options. They are also not going to be able to pay him come his free agency next season, so why not get something for him now? The Braves have a lot of talent that they could trade away, but let’s just hope that they don’t do anything too drastic. All Atlanta Braves fans know how it feels to watch Adam Wainwright not pitch for Atlanta and we don’t need a repeat of that for a one year guy.