Manager Brian Snitker and the Atlanta Braves have been on the struggle bus as of late, losing four out of their last six contests, including a defeat at the hands of the Oakland Athletics on Saturday night from Truist Park in Atlanta. Snitker's squad entered this season full of expectations and aiming for their second World Series championship in four years; however, things for the Braves have not gone according to plan, as Atlanta continues to rack up the losses and sits firmly entrenched in second place in the vaunted NL East behind the Philadelphia Phillies, who have been allergic to losing as of late.
All of the frustrations have caused some to speculate whether the Braves might be on the lookout to add some new talent in this year's trade market, and one of those areas of need right now is in the outfield due to the recent injury to Ronald Acuna Jr., who will miss the rest of the season after tearing his ACL.
One of the biggest names that figures to be on the trade market in the outfield this year is that of Tommy Pham of the Chicago White Sox, and recently, the White Sox' potential feelings about trading their star to a theoretical contending team got an intriguing update.
“The Chicago White Sox definitely plan to trade outfielder Tommy Pham before the deadline, but they have not engaged in talks with Atlanta or any other contender yet,” reported MLB insider Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports.
Of course, as the season continues toward its midway point, this would figure to change as more teams make serious offers for the services of Pham and other stars who figure to be potentially available around the league.
A devastating injury
As previously mentioned, the Braves' season took a turn for the worst when it was announced that Acuna had sustained a torn ACL during a recent game vs the Pittsburgh Pirates.
It's the second time in four years that the 2023 NL MVP has sustained that injury, which could potentially limit his mobility and world class baserunning moving forward.
“All that support finds me crying at home by myself,” Acuña said at a recent press conference, per Nightengale, “and the reason that’s happening is because I feel like I’m the one abandoning the team. It feels like I’m the one letting everyone down.”
Ironically enough, the last time Acuna sustained an ACL injury back in 2021, the Braves made a series of trade deadline acquisitions, including Jorge Soler, Joc Pederson, and Eddie Rosario, among others, that ended up netting the organization its first World Series championship since 1995, with Soler winning World Series MVP and Rosario winning the NLCS MVP after the team's win over the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Alex Anthopoulos will likely look to pull another rabbit out of the hat this season now that his best player is once again out for the year, and as the Braves' fanbase grows more and more restless as the losses mount up.
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