The offseason is officially here and considering that there might be a mad dash for teams to get a lot of their business done before the (what feels like an) inevitable lockout starts on December 2. As such, the trade rumors are going to be hot and heavy and while this is less of a trade rumor and more of a “it would make sense if it happened” type deal, it’s still something to discuss as the offseason gets underway.
MLB Trade Rumors has released their Top 40 Trade Candidates for the upcoming offseason
and while Atlanta didn’t have any players who made it into the Top 40, they were still linked with a handful of players when it came to potential trade options.
One position that needs to be addressed is shortstop. The Braves had hoped that this would’ve been solved with Ha-Seong Kim having a successful season and giving them a reason to keep the relationship going but, um, that absolutely did not happen so the Braves are going back to the drawing board. They could bring back Mauricio Dubón to help out with their shortstop situation as they try to find a bridge to the future but again, Dubón’s defense would be better off deployed in the outfield and as a super utility guy instead of being stuck at one position (which probably isn’t his best position defensively). So I’d imagine that the Braves are probably going to figure out a way to solve that problem going forward.
The Braves were linked with two shortstops in this piece: Otto Lopez of the Marlins and Jeremy Peña of the Astros. I’m going to go right ahead and pour cold water on any idea of the Marlins trading within the division and especially to the Braves. Jeremy Peña seems like a more intriguing option, though. Here’s more from MLBTR on Peña:
Given his excellence, it’s fair to ask why the Astros would consider trading him at all. They’re not entering any sort of rebuild, after all. However, this is the exact same situation the Astros encountered with Kyle Tucker. Peña, like his former right field teammate was in the 2024-25 offseason, is an All-Star with Gold Glove defensive talent and high-end offensive contributions. Both are represented by agencies that rarely consider extensions for star players, however — Excel Sports Management for Tucker and the Boras Corporation for Peña.
The Braves are a perfect match on paper, but the Blue Jays, Red Sox, Tigers, Phillies and Rays all make varying degrees of sense. Even teams with a set option at shortstop could consider jumping into the fray, as Peña is one of the most talented players in the game at his position. A deal isn’t a slam-dunk, but teams will try and the Astros will likely hear them out.
Needless to say, Peña would solve a lot of problems for the Braves at their shortstop position. It’s also safe to assume that any trade for Peña would require a hefty return since the Astros still have team control and they’re not exactly in “rebuild” mode at the moment. Still, if the Braves do end up getting involved then I’d imagine that would mean that the price would be worth it to potentially have peace of mind at the shortstop position with a chance to give him a contract extension down the road.
Atlanta was also linked to Jo Adell and MacKenzie Gore in this article as well, so if you want to get a closer look at where the rumor mill may be heading during this offseason, I highly recommend checking out the article.
