The Atlanta Braves never wanted to offer longtime star Freddie Freeman a sixth year in negotiations, and they have already found his replacement.
“BREAKING: Atlanta and Oakland are in agreement on a trade that will send star first baseman Matt Olson to the Braves, sources familiar with the deal tell ESPN,” MLB insider Jeff Passan tweeted on Monday afternoon.
BREAKING: Atlanta and Oakland are in agreement on a trade that will send star first baseman Matt Olson to the Braves, sources familiar with the deal tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 14, 2022
Per Passan, Oakland will receive OF Cristian Pache, C Shea Langeliers, SP Ryan Cusick and SP Joey Estes.
The Braves just traded two top-100 prospects (Pache and Langeliers) and two organizational top-15 prospects (Cusick and Estes) to the A’s to get Olson, who is 27 and has two years of team control remaining.
The End Of An Era
Freeman, who is 32 and entered the market after giving his longtime organization a World Series title, hit .300 with 31 home runs and 120 runs scored in 2021.
Atlanta, however, felt that going six years with Freeman was costlier than trading away two top prospects and two very good young players for Freeman’s replacement.
Olson will soon turn 28, but remains a top slugger with a very good glove at the cold corner.
He is coming off a career-best season in 2021, in which he slashed .271/.371/.540 with 39 home runs, 101 runs, 111 RBI, and 5.0 Wins Above Replacement (WAR).
Like Freeman, he hits left-handed: he has even more power than Freddie, but less contact.
The offensive output between the two was similar last year.
Now, Freeman will likely sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but a couple of darkhorse teams, such as the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays, could also be players.
Atlanta has all but closed the door on Freeman’s return with this move.
NEXT: Braves Star Getting Freddie Freeman Updates Like Everyone Else