The Braves at the Deadline | 
The Braves appear to be hands off for the deadline this year, though you can never know for sure until that last day passes.
Trading for outfielders Nate McLouth and Ryan Church filled the biggest holes the team had and the offense has responded since the break. Not to mention replacing the three glaring holes in the lineup in Jeff Francoeur, Jordan Schafer, and Kelly Johnson. But another bat could always help, and the Braves realize the door shouldn’t be shut completely on adding one more.
Troy Glaus:
The first thing that must be noted is a statement from Frank Wren that has been repeated many times, which is the Braves can’t add payroll. So a move involving Glaus is a longshot. He would be a power upgrade at first over Casey Kotchman but would cost some defense. Also, you never know for sure how he would return from his shoulder surgery, and it would be a risk to give players away for a possible rental coming off surgery. On the flip side, Glaus probably would not command much in return because of his situation. Glaus’ rehab has been put off due to back pain, but he would more than likely pass through waivers after the deadline, so a deal doesn’t have to be completed before then.
Freddy Sanchez:
Sanchez has a $8.1MM option that will kick in next year, so the Pirates would have to help the Braves and it is reported that the Pirates wouldn’t be able to do much. Not only that, the Braves don’t even need a middle infielder. Reports that the Braves talked to the Pirates regarding him are mind boggling to me, but I guess it doesn’t hurt to call either way.
Michael Wuertz:
Wuertz is an excellent reliever with the Athletics that would help take some of the load off the late-inning relievers. This is the most logical of the names mentioned in reports, though he is also logical for just about every other team in baseball. The A’s have had a lot of calls about him lately so it will be a competition for his services.
Other relievers that are possible include George Sherrill, John Grabow, Chad Qualls, Jason Frasor, Scott Downs, and Brandon League. There is just no way of knowing who the Braves have inquired about, but I would bet they have been busy calling several teams. A lefty reliever might cost more and may not be needed as long as Eric O’ Flaherty can hold up, and Boone Logan isn’t exactly trash as a backup option. Just a solid arm for the late innings would do wonders for the fatigued bullpen down the stretch.
Topics: Atlanta Braves, brandon league, chad qualls, Freddy Sanchez, Jason Frasor, john grabow, Michael Wuertz, scott downs, Trade Deadline, Troy Glaus
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