Atlanta Braves news and notes from Saturday
Well the big news of the offseason dropped, as Shohei Ohtani chose the Dodgers as his preferred destination, with their 10 year, $700 million dollar offer with significant deferrals. This deal does still have some procedural things that must be done before it is official, possibly including a physical. While a Carlos Correa-esque saga with failed physicals would be incredibly dramatic for the sport’s biggest star, it seems quite unlikely that anything will get between the team and player finalizing the deal.
On the Braves’ side of things, Alex Anthopoulos’ epic five trade chain may have come to a close, barring a David Fletcher trade, as Max Stassi and cash considerations were traded to the White Sox for a PTBNL. This offloads some of the cost of Stassi’s deal while bringing back a likely marginal piece and likely concludes the trade chain that started with Kyle Wright being traded for Jackson Kowar and was thoroughly complicated by the Jared Kelenic trade that brought the Braves both Marco Gonzales and Evan White, both of which were subsequently flipped on to another team.
Braves News
The Braves dumped Max Stassi to the White Sox for a PTBNL and will reportedly be covering the majority of his salary.
Brady looked at second round pick Cade Kuehler’s brief first taste of pro ball.
Devin reviewed the toolsy prospect Isaiah Drake’s draft year season.
MLB News
Shohei Ohtani has decided that he would like to accept the Dodgers’ offer of $700 million over for 10 years with significant deferrals. The deal is not yet officially finalized and may be pending a physical, however, which isn’t a guarantee, given Ohtani’s current injury status.
Japanese 22 year old star pitcher Roki Sasaki has reportedly asked to be posted to be available for MLB teams to sign. This seems unlikely to be accepted, but would be a huge deal if he did become available for MLB teams to sign, as he is one of the best pitchers in Japan and still extremely young.
The Twins are receiving some trade interest on some of their veterans.