OklahomaBrave

QUOTE (fathom @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 11:19 PM) You aren't concerned about his ability to hit RHP? I am. But he has shown great improvement in this area the last month or so working with Chipper Jones on reworking his swing. Has hit RHP significantly better.

QUOTE (Enscheff @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 11:18 PM) As far as how readily folks seem to be to ship Albies off for Q, that is due mainly to prospect fatigue. Albies has been around for a while, and doesn't have much power. Chicks and casual fans dig the longball... Albies breaks his elbow to end last year, and comes back to a slow start this season as a 20 year old in AAA. Then the Braves acquire this shiny new toy in Demeritte. He hits a few HRs, and suddenly folks think he makes Albies expendable. Then the Braves promote a utility prospect named Camargo who proceeds to have a 100 good PAs fueled by an unsustainable BABIP, and now Albies is even more expendable. In 3 years, when Albies is Altuve with half the HR production, Braves fans will be glad they didn't trade their 4+ WAR guy at 2B in favor of keeping fringe prospects that profile as utility players. This is accurate. For clarity, I don't want to trade Albies. I do believe he is fair value as a headliner, and the aforementioned have nothing on him. I have heard some guys I know say he's more likely than Acuna/Maitan.

QUOTE (Enscheff @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 11:08 PM) Maitan will be Acuna in 2 years. That's what chop country thinks of him. Yes that's a fair, more compact take than what I said.

QUOTE (Frank_Thomas35 @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 11:04 PM) As a Braves fan what's your take on Maitan? There's been a lot of back and forth on this board, interested in hearing what you think the organizations opinion of him is in Atlanta as well as fans take. Other than the generational talent etc. etc. comments I think the main hold up on trading him is because he isn't able to be valued properly. A guy with a lot of hype, warranted or not, can't be the BIG centerpiece. We'd have to trade him as a 2nd/3rd piece when he could be a year and a half away from being the majority of a deal. So while I think they do love him, it's equally about recognizing its irresponsible to trade an asset before it reaches maturation. From the Sox perspective, no matter how much talent Maitan has, it would be equally irresponsible to accept such an unknown quantity as a headliner. I'm sure they'd love him as a second piece, but Braves wouldn't consider that.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 11:02 PM) Yeah, I'm not a huge Cease fan, but I'll take him as the 2nd piece if Jimenez is the headliner. If it is the Cubs, hope for Victor Carantini as a 3rd/4th piece. Recent helium and is blocked.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 10:58 PM) You are a gentleman and a scholar. Teheran has shown some life as of late. I suspect he will bring back plenty of value should you choose to move him in the offseason or next deadline. He has for sure, I just get tired of a small vocal segment of our fanbase saying he is Q's equivalent. Most of us know this is false.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 10:51 PM) As a main piece, Eloy is about as good as you could hope for Can't argue that. Eloy/Robles/Acuna in any order I believe are the best three OF prospects in the game. I like both Eloy and Acuna best, personally as I think they have better offensive potential. Nevertheless, Eloy is a clear tier above Tucker, and is a hell of a centerpiece if this somehow is true. I kind of hope it is, because it would be the most ridiculous news break I've seen, although I'd hate to miss out on Q. Maybe the Cubs just properly rate him. He's definitely a stud and is significantly better than Teheran, our "defacto Ace".

QUOTE (steveno89 @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 10:40 PM) Great post, welcome. I feel the braves are interested, but remain on the periphery for now. I still like my compromise deal of albies/gohara/pache/lotto for quintana as being fair for each side. Remains to be seen in the next few weeks what happens. I agree with you.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jul 12, 2017 -> 09:31 PM) OB, I remember you from before. A fellow Braves fan of yours checked in earlier...do you agree with his thoughts about the Braves' reluctance to move any of their top bats? I saw Enscheffs posts, he is a regular at talking chop where I post. And I posted here frequently all offseason, and started reading here daily again about a week or so ago. Side note, I like your board! Homerism is present for all fans of all teams of course, but I feel as though you have a really reasonable well informed fan base. I don't really agree that the Braves follow the surplus value model Enscheff presented, so I don't personally agree with that reasoning, although his logic is sound and well presented. I said back in the offseason I didn't think the Braves would trade Acuna or Maitan. I think that is more true now than it was this offseason. I think they would trade any pitcher, and even though the Whitesox have great young pitchers, they could use a top shelf lefty. Allard is our best pitching prospect, but I think he could be had. I believe he's better, and held in higher regard than Newcomb, even though the later is in our rotation. I do think they would trade Albies. I know Ensheff doesn't like him, but Austin Riley is a legit prospect and could be trade fodder as well. He has real plus power and many scouts are enthused about his improving body and defensive work. He also has a cannon. He's probably in the 120-150 range for many listers. People with sources I've talked to seem to think we'd prefer to trade Allard to Soroka, which I disagree with, but whatever. I'd be surprised if they gave up both Allard AND Albies since they are both too 25ish guys. For those mentioning Pache, if he were the third piece, be psyched. Wait until Longerhans at FG's list is published, he LOVES Pache, and I believe him to be the best public evaluator. I'd hate to lose Pache, but I believe they'd include him. The Braves will trade anyone from depth. We have a ton of pitching and a good amount of MI. Our outfield depth is ok enough we can lose Pache.

Braves fan here, been following Quintana trade possibilities for awhile. I got the notification from Rosenthal as well. Saw the piece about an unexpected trade looming. Didn't see team or players named. Of course it was deleted instantly.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Mar 23, 2017 -> 09:09 AM) I would much rather get Matain instead of Albies or Acuna. Honestly Albies with zero power doesn't excite me at all as a headliner. Braves fan here- From all that I've seen and heard Acuna and Maitan are the two least likely prospects to be traded. Maybe that makes a deal impossible, not sure. I'd guess they are offering something like Albies, Soroka/Newcomb, Riley, lottery ticket. Maybe the Sox like Blair or Wisler and want one as a 3/4/5 piece. If I was another team I'd want to take an opportunity to specifically buy low on Blair.

QUOTE (oneofthemikes @ Jan 30, 2017 -> 09:27 AM) A few of the guys in the comments seem to think that the Cards are giving up too much in that. Lol Saw the Braves prefer Quintana as a pitcher to Archer but prefer the aquisition cost of Archer to Quintana. From a guy who has relationships with multiple scouts, FWIW.

QUOTE (raBBit @ Jan 26, 2017 -> 10:23 PM) Supposedly the Braves weren't willing to include him at all. Any idea what their offer looked like or if talks are ongoing?

QUOTE (Con te Giolito @ Jan 16, 2017 -> 12:20 AM) http://www.braves-nation.com/forums/ I also post on chop country . Unfortunately for Your searching purposes there isn't a current thread for Quintana, but it has been discussed frequently since the Sale rumors started. Some proposed packages are Wisler , Blair, Demeritte packages, which is ridiculous and represents the smallest percentage of Braves fans. Others think Q is unattainable and that the Sox would demand Swanson. The majority of the two boards I post on and Braves twitter seem to believe Albies and Newcomb can be the biggest of the headliners. Past those two there seems to be a great deal of disagreements.(Again I mean the rational ones argue over 3rd/4th pieces while some believe some crap could net Quintana). In short I can tell you the idea of Acuna or Matian being 3rd or 4th pieces is unappealing to Braves fans. Riley, Soroka, etc. depending on particular fan preferences is generally thought of as a preferred tertiary piece. Personally if Acuna or Matian had to be the third piece I would be unhappy as well. Not that they are unwarrranted asking for or receiving them, as I mentioned before losing 2/3 highest upside offensive guys is or system would hurt. As a side note there is a large group that has preferred Quintana(and Archer) as trade targets above Sale due to control and aquisition cost.

QUOTE (ChiSoxFanMike @ Jan 15, 2017 -> 11:46 PM) I have a feeling that something will happen soon. Just find it strange Levine and other just keep referencing the nameless "others" involved. Can't imagine who they would Be other than Rockies or Braves. I'm also very ready for something to happen, I've been reading Whitesox stuff way more than is normal for a Braves fan.

QUOTE (pablo @ Jan 12, 2017 -> 03:28 PM) This very well might happen - but I think it would put such a cloud over the start of the season. Q will constantly be asked about any and all trade rumors and that could get frustrating for him. The last thing the Sox need is a poor first half from Q. If Hahn really isn't getting fair offers, he should come out with a statement like "Jose will be with the White Sox for the 2017 season and we will revisit trade talks at a later time". I was of the belief that Q's value is the highest it could be this offseason (I can't see him taking his performance to another level), but the value being assigned to him by other teams isn't what we are expecting so can't rush a deal. I generally assumed that they have multiple offers that would be sufficient. At this point I believe they are really just trying to hold out for additional talent and weighing The offers.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Jan 11, 2017 -> 09:12 PM) James' friend says that the Smith trade is related to a potential Q trade or other SP trade. Guess other teams are interested in Gohara. Side note, feel like the M's were ripped off.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Jan 11, 2017 -> 08:50 PM) James, also mentioned that his friend said that trading Mallex Smith was necessary and speculates a return could include 5 players. Wow I'm jealous of your inside source! Thanks for sharing. I definitely think Garcia would be in any potential trade. We would need the rotation spot and he could potential bring you back a decent piece at the deadline. Not that I think he would be a valuable piece of the trade, just that he would be included.

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Jan 11, 2017 -> 08:50 PM) James, also mentioned that his friend said that trading Mallex Smith was necessary and speculates a return could include 5 players. That's interesting, wonder if you guys like the young lefty prospect we received? Klaw had him as the mariners #2. Prospect and a borderline top 100 guy.

QUOTE (Con te Giolito @ Jan 11, 2017 -> 08:45 PM) Yea I agree. The national prospect people either havent caught up on Acuna or have caught up on Acuna and just haven't communicated it yet. Acuna + Albies is in the neighborhood of Meadows + Bell value-wise right now. I was brainstorming earlier and came up with Acuna, Riley, Pache and Foltynewicz/Wentz/Toussaint (really impossible to know which of the top 8 or 9 Atlanta pitchers the Sox really like). How does that sound to you, the Braves fan? I honestly think current value wise it might be a bit light. Pache/Riley/Wentz may not be deemed valuable enough with such little track record. I think Albies still has higher value than Acuna, but it is closer than many realize. I can't see us getting Q without him as a headliner, although obviously I'd be pleased if we did. Don't think they will give up Folty though, the organization loves him and I'll be shocked if he doesn't start in the rotation. I'd say Albies,Newcomb,Riley, Touki/Wentz and then offer Garcia as an innings eater/flipable deadline asset.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jan 11, 2017 -> 08:40 PM) Newcomb as the second piece would be bad Is that based on a personal dislike of him? He seems to compare favorably too 100 listwise to other #2 pieces mentioned? To be fair my knowledge of the Pirates and Astros org is less than my knowledge of the Braves system but I'd think he would be a better second piece than Newman, but a worse second piece than Tucker.

Sounds like what I would expect to lead the package. Probably can't agree on a third piece. Doubt they want to trade Albies AND Acuna.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 10, 2017 -> 09:37 PM) But what is the case for Q being worth MORE to the Braves than to the White Sox? They're not going to be competing in 2017. He's not especially marketable. The Braves won't give us any players who will be helping the White Sox to contend until at least 2018, but more likely 2019. I'm just not seeing the case (because most of the assets outside of Albies and Maitan are pitchers, and obviously Swanson's not going anywhere) for trading for a handful of potential Q's unless the scouting department is 100% on board. And it doesn't make sense for the Braves to try to "jumpstart" the rebuilding by a year or two by gutting their system to do so. The timing should be more looking at the 2019 season (just like the White Sox) with Harper presumably leaving the Nats and the Mets' pitching having left (Harvey) or broken down. Not disagreeing with you, but there has been a whole lot of smoke around a trade for a TOR pitcher for awhile. If a deal does go down I doubt I'll be pleased based on the the position we are in which I believe you assessed accurately.

Richard Justice on his talk show today reported the Braves are the most agressive for both Quintana and Archer. Almost simultaneously Bowman reported Braves still pursuing an Ace. Just food for thought/fuel for the flame from a bored Braves fan.

Appreciate all the responses! If the Sox are determined to get positional prospects,which I would understand, I can't see us matching up to well. I would trade Albies only because his best position is SS, which he would be playing if not for Swanson. Not sure how the Sox fan base or brass feels about Anderson, but skepticism for his lack of patience would make Albies an attractive SS option. Our top three hitting prospects are Albies, Matian, and Acuna. As the new rankings come out by BP, Pipeline, Keith Law, some of you may be surprised how closely All three rank. I just can't imagine trading two of those three. Not that it isn't a justifiable asking point. I think Albies is the MOST available, not because of his talent but because of position depth. If Newcomb is a sufficient second piece I think a deal could be workable depending on the tertiary piece. I believe Riley(3b and probably our fourth best position prospect) could be had or one of our further away high ranking SP arms. If the sticking point is Acuna or Maitian I'd imagine the Braves won't bite. Just my perspective as a fan of course, but our front office seems loathe to trade from our lack of power prospect depth.