Atlanta Braves: Was the Quintana Noise Actually A Foreshadow?
By W. M. Lawson
With the MLB trade deadline a matter of weeks away, the Atlanta Braves are at a crossroads. The path they choose will decide much of their future personality.
The Atlanta Braves (43-45) are right at that point. The point where they are good enough to compete and see an increase in revenue. But probably not at that point where they are good enough to compete for championships. The rebuild is working, but it hasn’t worked.
Because of this, all eyes are on personnel decisions over the next few weeks. Debate here, and at all other Braves outlets and water-coolers, seem to be focusing on this subject. And justifiably so. It defines our present and future. That’s not hyperbole.
We all know the names that are involved. And I’m referring to both vets and comers. One of the more eye-brow raising moments of the last few weeks was when the Jose Quintana rumors started kicking. We now know he wound up just heading up Lakeshore Drive to join the Cubs.
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But one of the “stronger” rumors was that Atlanta was willing to deal Ozzie Albies (I wrote about him here) for Quintana. That’s significant because Albies has long been considered Atlanta’s #1 prospect. It also has implications for the possible direction the Front Office is heading with regards to Brandon Phillips, R.A. Dickey, or Julio Teheran.
Maybe it was just a one-off and they really like Quintano. Maybe that was the first of many attempts to use future production for immediate value in starting pitching. We’ll know in a short couple of weeks.
Either way, one does get the sense that they will be active. That usually means somebody is getting moved.