Contract Projections For Potential Braves Free Agent Targets: Starting Pitchers

Jim Bowden of The Athletic just projected contracts for the top 40 free agents of this winter, a list that features a ton of players who will draw interest from the Braves.

Obviously, some of these names will be out of Atlanta’s price range, but I’ll cover the options by position group along with some notes on the deals that make a lot of sense for the Braves.

Starting Pitchers

• Tarik Skubal — $350-500 million
• Freddy Peralta — 5 years, $140 million
• Michael King — 4 years, $118 million
• Clay Holmes — 2 years, $44 million
• Nick Martinez — 2 years, $48 million
• Foster Griffin — 3 years, $67 million
• Trevor Rogers — 3 years, $64 million
• Casey Mize — 3 years, $54 million
• Kaima Taira — 3 years, $30 million
• Robbie Ray — 2 years, $45 million
• Shota Imanaga — 3 years, $69 million
• Kevin Gausman — 1 year, $22 million
• Shane Bieber — 1 year, $20 million
• Hiromi Itoh — 2 years, $20 million

—

This is a super intriguing list of starting pitchers, which I’d call the strength of this year’s free agent class. That’s good news for the Braves, who probably need to add at least two this offseason with so much uncertainty surrounding the rotation.

Tarik Skubal would be a dream, but let’s nip that one in the bud real quick: not happening.

I’d file Freddy Peralta at that price under the same category. Michael King will probably be too pricey for the Braves’ liking as well, but everybody else is well within the realm of possibility.

Trevor Rogers at three years, $64 million would be an absolute steal. I think he’s the second-best starting pitcher in this entire free agent class.

Clay Holmes on a two-year deal is something that would probably interest the Braves, reuniting him with his former pitching coach, Jeremy Hefner.

A couple of arms I don’t think Alex Anthopoulos targets are Casey Mize and Robbie Ray. He could have had either one at the trade deadline and opted to pass, and given how they performed with their new teams, I don’t see the Braves turning around and paying them around $20 million a year for multiple seasons.

Kevin Gausman or Shane Bieber on a one-year deal is right up the Braves’ alley in terms of how they typically operate. But one name I was surprised not to see here is Tyler Mahle. He’s certainly a better option than a handful of names on this list — and one the Braves hope to retain this offseason.

—

Photo: IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire