Last week was an exciting week of breaking trade news and some ongoing rumors for the Braves. Atlanta GM, Jeff Nelson was somehow excited by the fact several major league pieces were moved including All stars Ozuna, Blackmon, and Martin. "I believe we got more balanced and freed up current and future salary. We will miss the production of some of these individuals, but our team is in a more sustainable state and ready to compete." As a prestigious writer I should keep my opinions to myself - but what a crock of $H!+.

In other news...some teams actually made themselves better by signing free agents. Here are the most notable;
AJ Pollock; CHIC 5 YRS @ 16M annually - Great signing by the cubs if AJ can stay healthy and stay in a scoring offense. 16M is not bad compared to some of the other contracts that have been shelled out this off season.
Curtis Granderson; TOR 5YRS @ 18M annually - I don't know what's worse - 18 MILLION DOLLARS or 5 YEARS. You put them together and it is an albatross that will hurt the franchise for years to come!
Ben Revere; TOR 4 YRS @ 6M annually - Crack is whack!
Matt Kemp; MIL 5 YRS @ 8.4M annually - I really like Matt Kemp so it makes this statement all more realistic. 5 years for a guy that may not have a full time job this year is a gamble. Gamble is actually nice in this case.
Ervin Santana; MIL 3 YRS @ 10M annually - Immediately after signing this contract, Ervin underwent surgery on his finger; nuf' said?!?!?!

Cespe is still out there as a FA...can Atlanta bring him in? Also, some big name pitchers are unsigned...should be an interesting week 4!

Feel free to leave your comments and questions below. Leave current FA discussions off the board or you will be trolled...all in good fun though!

2 yrs @ 400k annually; 800k Total

5yrs @ 7.2M annually; 36m guaranteed

4yrs @ 6.1M annually; 24.4m guaranteed

Braves trade away;
Marcell Ozuna (3.5M ‘18, arb through ‘20)
Tyler Clippard (3M ‘18)

Rockies trade away;
Justin Verlander (5M through ‘19)
Jose Martinez (440k ‘18, arb through ‘22)

Braves reluctantly trade away Ozuna who is controllable through 2020. Finances does play a role in this with him getting on the expensive side starting next year. Clippard is a huge question mark considering his year last year and still being a FA. I figure to trade while I can.

Pretty even return in my opinion. Verlander hopefully will stay motivated and dial up the wins this year. JoMart’s control is the key to the Braves future success.

Great trade for both sides.