The Atlanta Braves need to trade Ronald Acuña, Jr. Seriously. They really need to do it. No, this was not written for shock value or simply to get clicks. I’m not kidding.
Why in the world would the Braves need to trade a former National League Most Valuable Player who turns 28 in December and is under Atlanta’s control for the next three seasons?
Advertisement
Well, there are several reasons. First, even with Acuña not eligible to leave via free agency until after the 2028 season, we know the history of this franchise. It allowed Freddie Freeman, Dansby Swanson and then Max Fried, three huge pieces of the 2021 World Series team, to walk out the door as free agents.
There is no confidence this ownership, that is pinching pennies for some reason, will pay for Acuña for the long term. If there was more faith they want to keep their own talent, it likely wouldn’t be as much of an issue. But can general manager Alex Anthopoulos truly let another star player leave without getting anything in return?
If he did, that might be Anthopoulos’s legacy instead of being a GM that created a championship roster. There is little doubt the Braves have gone down since winning it all four years ago, and you can’t ignore the contributions Freeman, Swanson and Fried made, not only in that season, but in this era of Braves baseball.
There is reason to question whether this ownership group could or would pay for the type of contract possibly needed to retain Acuña. Recently, a tweet circulated that showed the revenue and payroll of each MLB team. The Braves had the 6th most revenue in 2024 ($510 million) but the 2025 payroll was only $235 million, which was the 9th highest in baseball. But that was only 46.1% of the revenue spent on the payroll, which was 17th in the sport.
Advertisement
That percentage would have to increase to afford a contract that would undoubtedly surpass $30 million per season ― or possibly even more depending on how healthy Acuña can stay the next three years. If he has full, injury-free seasons, that figure could surpass $40 million per season. I don’t believe they’d give Acuña that sort of deal.
Another reason is Acuña’s age. He will be 31 years old in March 2029 when his new contract would take over. In three of the last five years, he’s missed good chunks of the season. He’s already had two rebuilt knees. How is Acuña going to age? How durable is he going to be? Is he going to stay healthy? Will Acuña’s skills diminish, almost like Andruw Jones’ did after he had beaten up his body in his 20s with all the diving in the outfield?
Even if the ownership wasn’t frugal (and don’t think it’s not), would it be logical to sign a player for $30 or more million a year to play through his 30s and worry that a high percentage of your payroll would be dedicated to someone who had trouble staying healthy in his 20s?
The Braves are going to have a new manager in 2026. This will, regardless of who is hired, be a new era for the team. It will be different. And it’s time to think about what this team is going to look like into the next decade, even though it’s five years away.
Advertisement
The organization is not ranked high for its minor league talent. The young pitching talent in the minors is solid, maybe even better than most national pundits think. But there are not many position players who look like the next Drake Baldwin or Acuña on the horizon, at least not yet. They need more talent. We saw this past summer how injuries, and a payroll on hold to not surpass the luxury tax, resulted in a horrible season. They’ve got to get more players for the future of this team, especially position player prospects.
If Acuña were traded, especially with three years and $51 million on the books, it would fetch a fortune for the Braves. They could not only get a potential replacement for Acuña in the outfield, but also some help for the (middle) infield. And, as we saw first-hand this past season, you can never have enough pitching. An Acuña trade could net four to six young players who could help dictate what the next decade of Braves baseball could look like.
Anthopoulos needs to hope the Mariners, Tigers, Twins, Brewers, and yes even the Dodgers, would be curious enough to make an offer. Those teams have great young talent in highly-ranked farm systems that could completely renovate the Braves future.
Look, if the Braves were not cheap, and if I knew Acuña would stay healthy, this would not even be an issue. But this is something Anthopoulos really needs to think about. He may be scared that the jersey sales would be damaged, but what might be worse is a team that struggles to get back to where it was before these last two substandard seasons.
Advertisement
Or what might be even worse would be to watch Acuña leave like the other three stars have the last few years. That cannot happen, and therefore, trading Acuna now would help this franchise tremendously. It wouldn’t be another rebuild, but simply a reset, and it could give the Braves much more quantity in what proved last year to be an organization that simply needs more talent.
So, yeah, the thought of trading Acuña is not originally a good one, but there are logical reasons for this to be something the Braves might need to do, even if they don’t want to.
Listen to The Bill Shanks Show on 104.3 FM in Savannah and online all over Georgia at TheSuperStations.com. Email Bill at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: The Atlanta Braves should consider trading 2023 NL MVP Ronald Acuna Jr
