Blue Jays: NL teams most likely to call about trade talks

Atlanta Braves

Whether or not the Braves will add to their talented young roster remains to be seen. The more likely scenario is they ride this current group for whatever happens, knowing full well that they’re at least a year earlier to the playoff race than they ever thought they’d be. The talent is all over the club, and they’re young. Alex Anthopoulos definitely landed himself into an enviable position, and should be set up well for the immediate, and long term future.

If they are still in the playoff hunt before the trade deadline, I could see “AA” giving his old team a call about a couple veterans, depending on the acquisition cost of course. I don’t think he’s going to overpay for someone like Donaldson or Happ, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he looked to add a reliever, or maybe some cheap outfield depth.

Entering play on Friday night, the Braves had a 1.5 game lead on the Nationals for the NL East crown, something that could be difficult for them to hold on to throughout the year. They’ve held the lead longer than I expected already, but I feel like the Nationals are bound to eventually overtake them.

If that happens, they’ll have to battle it out with the likes of the Cubs, Cardinals, Phillies, Dodgers, Rockies, and Giants. The Wild Card race is set to look a lot like the one that happened in the American League last year, so it remains to be seen how the Braves approach things.

They certainly have a familiarity with the Blue Jays’ system, and enough young talent to make whatever deadline deals they choose to. I wouldn’t be surprised if Anthopoulos calls his former team to see if there is some cost-effective help.