Alex Anthopoulos and the Atlanta Braves front office are always looking for opportunities to improve the team. Sometimes, those moves are on the flashier side—as we’ve seen this week with the signings of guys like Craig Kimbrel and Alex Verdugo—but very often, they’re quieter, under-the-radar acquisitions that don’t turn heads in March but make a difference in August.
A Strike-Thrower with a Resume That’s Not Flashy—but Functional
Enter Nathan Wiles, the newest name on the Braves’ growing list of depth arms. He’s not going to dominate talk radio or break into the top of anyone’s prospect rankings, but this is the kind of move that can matter more than fans realize.
An 8th-round pick from Oklahoma back in 2019, Wiles is your classic control-first righty. He’s not going to light up the radar gun or miss a ton of bats, but he fills up the zone and eats innings—something that every major league team needs at some point during the grind of a 162-game season.
Last year, he made 35 appearances for Triple-A Durham, including 11 starts, and posted a 5.54 ERA. Those numbers don’t scream “next breakout star,” but keep in mind, the Braves didn’t bring him in to anchor the rotation. They brought him in as insurance. And you know what? You’d rather have too much of that than not enough.
The Braves’ Blueprint: Build the Floor Before Raising the Ceiling
Anthopoulos has repeatedly proven that he knows how to build a team that can win over the long haul. Part of that process means adding guys like Wiles, who might not wow you on paper but offer stability and flexibility behind the scenes.
Wiles isn’t even taking up a spot on the 40-man roster, and what is the cost of acquiring him? Cash considerations. Not a single prospect was touched in the process. That’s smart business.
In the same week, Atlanta added high-profile contributors like Kimbrel and Verdugo, who also went bargain shopping—and that’s no accident. They’re covering all their bases, no pun intended.
Because when injuries hit (and they always do), the teams that keep rolling are the ones that already had the next man up in the system.
Anthopoulos Knows the Job’s Not Done
Even after the Wiles deal, don’t expect Atlanta to slow down. Anthopoulos himself said that not replacing Joe Jiménez was a miss this offseason, and if there’s one thing he’s not known for, it’s sitting on his hands. The Braves are still looking, evaluating, and acting purposefully.
The Nathan Wiles trade may not make SportsCenter, but it’s the kind of quiet, calculated move that championship teams make. And if he winds up logging key innings when the lights are bright, nobody should be surprised.
Anthopoulos saw something—and history says that there’s usually a reason when he sees something.
