The MLB offseason is off to a roaring start, and while Braves fans might have been hoping for a quieter winter, the Los Angeles Dodgers decided otherwise. Blake Snell, the reigning National League Cy Young winner, has inked a jaw-dropping five-year, $182 million deal with the Dodgers. That’s right—$36 million per year for one of the most dominant lefties in the game.
You’re not alone if it feels like déjà vu for Atlanta fans. Just a year after the Dodgers splurged on Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto to bring another title back to Chavez Ravine, they’ve struck again. The move cements their status as baseball’s financial juggernaut, frustrating everyone outside of L.A.
As Braves fans know all too well, competing with a team that seems to print money is no easy task. Michael Harris II’s cheeky reaction on Twitter/X captured the mood in Braves Country perfectly: disbelief, frustration, and maybe just a hint of resigned amusement.
For the Braves, this news lands at an especially inconvenient time. Atlanta’s rotation needs reinforcements, but with contracts like Snell’s setting the market, things aren’t looking cheap. And let’s be honest—this year’s free-agent class doesn’t have many “budget-friendly” solutions at the top tier. Atlanta’s payroll isn’t exactly peanuts; they’ve been top spenders in recent years. However, the financial gap between the Braves and the Mets or Dodgers feels more like a canyon when you see deals like this.
So where does that leave Alex Anthopoulos? In familiar territory: navigating the offseason with creativity and precision. Big-name free agents might not be in the cards, but Anthopoulos has made a career out of finding undervalued talent and working the trade market like a maestro. Braves fans can take some solace in that. After all, this guy locked down Spencer Strider, Matt Olson, and Harris II to deals that now look like absolute bargains.
The question is whether the Braves’ savvy front office can keep pace in an offseason where even mid-tier arms could cost a fortune. With Snell’s deal setting the bar sky-high, the trade market might just be Anthopoulos’s playground. Braves fans can only hope that the next big offseason headline tilts the balance back in their favor.
