The Los Angeles Dodgers have been declared 2024 World Series champions, which means that the 2025 MLB offseason has officially begun and is currently underway. Why is that important? Well, the Braves are one of a small handful of teams to have already begun making offseason transactions, as Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos isn’t wasting any time at all in getting his team ready for the upcoming 2025 MLB season.
Coaching staff shakeup
Alex Anthopoulos recently decided to fire longtime hitting coach Kevin Seitzer and assistant hitting coach Bobby Magallanes, with catching coach Sal Fasano let go too. These decisions certainly weren’t easy ones for the Braves GM to make, as all three coaches were integral to the 2021 staff that helped the Braves win the World Series. Not only that, but just over year ago the team’s hitters put together a historic season.
That said, when Chipper Jones called out the team’s hitting approach in a September podcast interview, most of us here in Braves Country surely took a moment to listen. Chipper’s comments on the matter were strong ones in saying that, “working with the Braves for the last couple of years [was] very frustrating… I can’t stand giving away outs, I can’t stand strikeouts… all of these [small] things that really help you accumulate numbers, they don’t care. 100 RBIs, so what? I want to hit 40 dingers… Having worked with Alex Anthopoulos, they want slug & they want guys who get on base at a high clip, but they don’t promote enough, I think, the getting on base part.”
New hitting coach hired
The announcement from the Braves regarding coaching staff changes occurred on October 10th, and on October 24th the team announced that they have acquired one new replacement as Tim Heyers joined the coaching staff as the team’s hitting coach after previously serving in the same position for the Texas Rangers from 2021-2024.
Heyers was interviewed shortly after his hire, where he said that he believes in three core principles, “game planning, swing decisions, and our movements in the batter’s box… if you [become] dominant at those [core principles], then that helps your team be prepared, be disciplined, and also become more fluid. The fluid part of it is very important because you have to be able to score the runs in multiple different ways.”
This is a big hire for a team that desperately needed a change in hitting philosophy. Yes, there were a myriad of injuries last season, but many of the team’s star players (when healthy) performed far below what their normal expectations were at in 2024. Chipper Jones gave his seal of approval on the hire shortly after the announcement.
Jorge Soler traded for starter
Jorge Soler will forever be a legendary figure in Atlanta, but it was time for the team to move on after reuniting with the former World Series MVP in a midseason trade. The Giants played him strictly at DH before he was traded back to the Braves, where he frequently played in the outfield because the team needed his bat in their lineup. He proved that he is a DH-only type of player, as he struggled in the outfield before Eli White became his primary defensive replacement in the game’s latter innings.
With Marcell Ozuna entrenched as the team’s DH, it made little sense for the team to carry and pay for two players with similar profiles who shared an offensive position. That said, the team decided to trade Soler to the Angels on Thursday in exchange for RHP Griffin Canning and an additional $26M of payroll flexibility between 2025/’26. Canning is a 5th starter candidate, but this transaction was primarily a salary dump.
Former prospect re-acquired
RHP Royber Salinas, who was previously shipped to the Oakland A’s as a part of the Sean Murphy trade package, was later claimed on waivers by the Braves on Friday. Salinas is expected to miss extended time in 2025, but there is a possibility that he could return in 2026, and given the Braves’ success with past reclamation projects, who knows? He could end up being a valuable contributor at some point later on.
Other big decisions looming
November 4th is a key date on the Braves’ calendar, as MLB teams have until 5 days after the World Series to make decisions on contract options & pending free agents. Braves players that could see their one-year contract options exercised by or before the deadline include DH Marcell Ozuna ($16M), C Travis d’Arnaud ($8M), LHP Aaron Bummer ($7.5M), and RHP Luke Jackson ($7M), though Jackson’s may get declined. Max Fried, Charlie Morton, A.J. Minter, and Whit Merrifield are amongst the Braves free agents who could receive new contracts before free agency opens on Nov. 4th.
Fried seems likely to test free agency at this point, but Morton, Minter, Merrifield, and others could re-sign with the team before the deadline if their prices are right. Everyone has assumed that Morton would retire following the 2024 season, but he reportedly wants to pitch for one more year at a $10-$15M rate before hanging it up. Minter underwent hip surgery in August, so maybe he takes a hometown discount.
The Braves have done a great job of getting their offseason started with a bang early on, but there is still plenty of work to do as the November 4th deadline approaches.
The Sports Beacon 