Should fans believe Anthopoulos when he says Braves are buying

Yesterday, Alex Anthopoulos laid out the Braves trade deadline blueprint in a very candid interview with 680 The Fan. The conversation covered a number of topics, but the one crystal clear message he had for the fan base is that the team has absolutely no interest in selling.

“We’re not selling,” the Braves GM said emphatically.“A month from now, we are 30 games under or something crazy, I guess I would reconsider. I’ve been in the postseason personally — talking about myself, totally selfishly — ten seasons in a row. I don’t remember what it feels like to not be contending.”

Anthopoulos did leave the door open for reconsideration if things get out of hand a month from now, but after three straight series wins, something would have to really go wrong for the Braves to sell off their spare parts. The Braves GM also added that there is absolutely no chance the Braves will trade any players with club control past this season.

“No. Zero,” he said of the Braves potentially trading Chris Sale. “We are not selling, especially players with club control beyond the current year. Will not happen. I never make definitive statements unless I’m going to stick to them. So, once you make definitive statements, and then you go back on them, you’re a liar and you’re done. So, WILL NOT HAPPEN!”

Anthopoulos was very direct throughout the entire interview, but some fans are rightfully a little wary based on some recent events.

Most notably, Anthopoulos, at the end of last season, said that payroll would rise like it always has in 2025. Instead, it dropped by nearly $30 million as the Braves seemed to dodge the luxury tax. Additionally, Anthopoulos said that the Braves would pick up Travis d’Arnaud’s option for 2025, which did not happen as he signed with the Angels and reunited with Ron Washington in Los Angeles.

However, I’m not sure if either of those things is as cut and dry as they may seem.

The Braves payroll going down this year was discouraging. Braves Country has filled Truist Park on a nightly basis for nearly a decade, and ownership is reaping the rewards. It’s fair to expect at least some of that to be reinvested into the team. However, are we really sure that’s because of a mandate handed down from ownership?

About a month ago, Anthopoulos attempted to quash that notion.

“I understand that because we are below, the inclination is to say, ‘Well, there’s got to be a mandate or something.’ There isn’t. We went over two years in a row because it made sense to do it. If the right deal presents itself, it’s not even a discussion, it’s done. It just has to be the right player,” Anthopoulos said.

“We explored a deal, I don’t want to say when cause the timing will make it very obvious who the player was, but we were right there and ultimately, we could’ve said yes and we would’ve blown way past the tax and it wouldn’t have been an issue…” Anthopolous added. “And what stopped it was ultimately the length of the deal. The length of the commitment to the player. It had nothing to do with money, AAVs, taxes, none of that kind of stuff.”

It’s possible, Anthopoulos is simply making all of this up and carrying water on the airways for his bosses. But based on his transparency over nearly a decade long sample size, I would say that’s highly unlikely, especially when considering Anthopoulos’ transaction history.

The free agent market has gotten absolutely insane in recent years. Starting pitchers with career 4.00 ERAs were signing multi-year deals worth north of $50 million. High quality talents seemed to cost $100+ million at minimum, which isn’t exactly Anthopoulos’ cup of tea. During his tenure as Braves GM, he’s never handed out a free agent contract worth more than $65 million, which was given to Marcell Ozuna a half-decade ago. Anthopoulos has always been about value — whether that be fair or foul — and value is almost impossible to find at the top of the free agent market.

When it comes to Travis d’Arnaud’s option, not picking it up only makes sense. The Braves invested heavily in Sean Murphy, and Drake Baldwin had emerged as an MLB ready prospect. Paying a potential third catcher $8 million would have been foolish, and it’s evident the Braves made the right decision. Even if d’Arnaud was a fan favorite and a leader in the clubhouse, he’s 36-years-old and hitting .218 with three homers in Los Angeles.

Whether fans care to believe Alex Anthopoulos or not right now, the truth will reveal itself in the near future. The trade deadline is only a month away, and if payroll doesn’t rise significantly over the next calendar year, that’s a lie he won’t be able to cover up for much longer either.

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Photo: David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire

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