Alex Anthopoulos says shocking Braves trade nearly happened in 2021

As Alex Anthopoulos makes his media rounds ahead of the trade deadline, most of what you’ll hear is the same thing he says every time he steps in front of a microphone. Occasionally, though, he’ll drop an intriguing Braves nugget about something that nearly happened in the past, and he did just that in his interview with 680 The Fan yesterday.

Apparently, back in 2021, the Braves had a deal in place at the trade deadline that would have brought Kyle Schwarber to Atlanta as they desperately searched for lineup help following the injury to Ronald Acuña Jr. Anthopoulos thought it was done, but it ultimately fell through — something he believes was likely tied to the division rivalry between the Nationals and the Braves.

“We thought we were getting Schwarber from the Washington Nationals at the time,” Anthopoulos said. “Mike Rizzo was the GM, good guy, very successful GM, World Series winner, very accomplished. I thought we were done, I thought we had a price, we agreed, but it’s not done until it’s done. And it didn’t get done. I think being in the division was a challenge.”

When that happened, Atlanta quickly pivoted to Jorge Soler, and I guess you could say everything worked out about how it should have.

The Braves added four outfielders at the 2021 trade deadline — Joc Pederson, Jorge Soler, Eddie Rosario, and Adam Duvall — and it’s really amazing just how significant an impact each of them had on the club’s World Series run.

Joc Pederson brought the vibes. He changed the energy of not just the clubhouse but the entire city, and it really seemed to turn the tide as the club struggled to find momentum. He also delivered some memorable Joctober moments, with critical home runs against the Brewers and Dodgers that helped get the Braves back to the World Series.

Eddie Rosario went on to win NLCS MVP, recording 14 hits in just six games, including three home runs. Adam Duvall hit 16 home runs in just 55 games after being acquired, then added three more in the postseason, including two in the World Series. And, of course, Jorge Soler went on to win World Series MVP.

There’s not a single Braves fan on the planet who’d change anything about how things worked out, but I don’t think the team would have been much worse off with Schwarber, who was eventually traded to the Red Sox, where he also tore the cover off the ball. It would have been interesting to see how things played out from there. Perhaps the Braves would have re-signed Schwarber, which could have led to some very different results between Atlanta and Philadelphia in the years that followed.

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(Photo by Terence Lewis/Icon Sportswire)