Atlanta Braves Trade Targets: Starting Pitcher Sonny Gray
As we continue to look at potential trade targets for the Atlanta Braves this offseason, a familiar target rejoins the list in starting pitcher Sonny Gray.
It almost seems like an annual post now to write about the possibility of the Atlanta Braves trading for Sonny Gray who seems to always be on the trade market.
And that appears to be the case again for Gray according to Buster Olney of ESPN.
Gray is entering the last guaranteed year of his deal, set to make $10,166,667 (that’s a weird figure) in 2022. He does have a $12 million team option for 2023.
The now 32-year-old righty has a career ERA of 3.61 over 9 big league seasons with 1,221 strikeouts in 1,267.1 innings pitched and a WHIP of 1.220.
Outside of his years in New York, he’s really been a steady 3.50 ERA kind of pitcher.
The strikeout numbers went up significantly in Cincinnati where he has a 10.6 K/9 — compared to just 7.7 when he was in Oakland and 8.4 with the Yankees.
He was near the top of the league last year in barrel% and hardhit% — meaning he didn’t give up a lot of hard contact.
The velocity on all of his pitches took a minor dip last year, but nothing to be too concerned about … yet.
As this point, I view him as a number three starter that can pitch like a number two at times. That’s certainly worth the $10 million price tag.
What Would the Braves Have to Trade for Sonny Gray
Determining the trade value for Gray is tricky because it depends on if you view him as a one-year rental or someone with two years of control.
The Reds probably view him as a top of the rotation starter with two years of control left and would charge a price that dictates that value.
I also don’t know what the game plan is for the Reds — are they competing or rebuilding or both?
That’s probably an overpay, but likely what it would take. I think you could get the Reds to throw in a reliever to sweeten the deal. Maybe someone like Amir Garrett or Luis Cessa.
I’m not saying I would do that deal, just giving you an idea of what it might cost.
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It would be great to have Gray in the rotation along with Charlie Morton, Max Fried, Ian Anderson, and hopefully Mike Soroka. That’s a starting five to dream about.