General manager Alex Anthopoulos and the Atlanta Braves are currently in the midst of what figures to be a highly important offseason for the future of the franchise. The Braves are coming off of yet another NL East title in 2023, but also yet another season that ended in a disappointing first round exit at the hands of the Philadelphia Phillies in the postseason, leading some to wonder if Anthopoulos and this iteration of the team will ever be able to reach the championship heights they attained back in 2021.
Meanwhile, the Braves farm system has been somewhat compromised in recent years by various trades and other moves that Anthopoulos and the Atlanta brass have made, so much so that MLB insider Keith Law is not very impressed, ranking the Braves' farm system 26th in the MLB.
“Atlanta has traded everyone, almost,” wrote Law. “There’s some pitching still here, more if J.R. Ritchie comes back 100 percent from Tommy John surgery, but most of those guys, even their top pitching prospects like Hurston Waldrep (No. 80), carry significant reliever risk, and Nacho Alvarez might be the only position player here who has a reasonable chance to be a regular.”
Indeed, the Braves have made several high profile trades and acquisitions to try to keep pace with a talented NL playoff race. As previously mentioned, the team is trying to figure out exactly why their regular season dominance is not manifesting itself in the playoffs, especially when they take on the Phillies.
Spring training is set to begin later this month.,