The Braves have been connected to several free agents, but none more than Nathan Eovaldi, who Mark Bowman described as at the top of Atlanta’s offseason wishlist at the beginning of the offseason.
With Max Fried and Charlie Morton testing free agency, the Braves rotation has to be a focal point, and that has even been exasperated following the news that Spencer Strider will miss at least a month of the season.
Eovaldi is a durable veteran who has thrived in the postseason, winning two World Series with two different clubs, including one with Chris Sale in Boston. He’d be an ideal veteran addition that won’t garner a six or seven-year contract like the one Max Fried is sure to fetch. However, that doesn’t mean there won’t be heavy competition for his services.
According to Robert Murray, Eovaldi is drawing significant interest, and he could sign with a team as early as this week during the Winter Meetings.
The Orioles are reportedly interested, and with the way the starting pitching market is taking shape, I’d expect Nathan Eovaldi to be quite the hot commodity, given his track record of success in October, owning a 3.05 ERA over 79.2 postseason innings. The Braves would surely be interested in a one or two-year deal, but a desperate club in this inflated market might be willing to give him a three or four-year contract, which is exactly what sources are telling Mark Bowman.
“Industry sources have said Eovaldi will get a three-year deal worth $20 million-plus per season,” the Braves insider wrote.
The Braves are either going to have to get uncomfortable in free agency or pull an ace from their sleeve. Alex Anthopoulos was able to do that last year with Chris Sale and Reynaldo Lopez, but those kind of moves are far from commonplace, even for one of the best general managers in the league.
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Photographer: John Adams/Icon Sportswire
