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According to\u00a0Braves\u00a0beat reporter Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Alex Anthopoulos has his eyes on one of the best starting pitchers on the market\u2013two-time All-Star\u00a0Nathan Eovaldi.<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan Eovaldi\u00a0ranks near the top of the Braves\u2019 wish list, according to an industry source,\u201d Bowman writes.<\/p>\n
Mark Bowman is one of the most well-connected people in the media when it comes to the Braves. Not many people are capable of seeing what\u2019s going on behind the curtain when it comes to Alex Anthopoulos\u2019 operation. The Braves are notoriously one of the most tight-knit organizations when it comes to concealing information regarding free agents or trades. However, occasionally, there is a leak, and this is one that\u2019s very intriguing.<\/p>\n
When looking at the landscape of the Braves\u2019 needs, starting pitching is closer to the bottom of the list than the top. Shortstop has been a glaring weakness since the departure of\u00a0Dansby Swanson\u00a0in free agency. The Braves could possibly look to add multiple corner outfielders,\u00a0and the bullpen just became a much more pressing need after it was revealed yesterday that Joe Jimenez will be out for 8-12 months following knee surgery.<\/p>\n
However, needs are only part of the equation when it comes to free agency. More importantly, the value has to add up. Chasing needs by throwing money at the problem is how bad organizations stay bad. Sometimes, it\u2019s better to add to a position of strength, and Nathan Eovaldi would certainly be doing that.<\/p>\n
The 34-year-old hurler is coming off a season in which he posted a 3.80 ERA, 1.107 WHIP, and 8.8 K\/9 over 29 starts for the Rangers. He was an All-Star the year before that and has notoriously been a horse in October, boasting a 3.05 ERA over 79.2 postseason innings. That kind of production has helped two different teams to the Commissioner\u2019s Trophy\u2013the Rangers in 2023 and the Red Sox in 2018, when he was teammates with current Braves ace\u00a0Chris Sale.<\/p>\n
Pairing Nathon Eovaldi back with Sale, along with Spencer Schwellebach,\u00a0Spencer Strider, and\u00a0Reynaldo Lopez\u00a0would undoubtedly give the Braves the most potent rotation in baseball. Eovaldi is also a more cost-efficient option than\u00a0Max Fried. Even if their AAVs are similar, Eovaldi will be looking for a 2-3 year deal, while Fried will end up signing a contract for at least five years. The former is much more Alex Anthopoulos\u2019 cup of tea, making Eovaldi a free agent to watch this winter.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
According to\u00a0Braves\u00a0beat reporter Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Alex Anthopoulos has his eyes on one of the best starting pitchers on the market\u2013two-time All-Star\u00a0Nathan Eovaldi. \u201cNathan Eovaldi\u00a0ranks near… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":4958,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4953","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\n