The Atlanta Braves made a strange decision when they traded Nick Allen for Mauricio Dubon. That doesn’t mean Dubon isn’t a better player than Allen, but he doesn’t necessarily fit all of the needs Atlanta has this winter.
Speaking to reporters about why he made the trade, Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos had plenty to say.
He admitted the team has explored several avenues in search of offensive help, and while Dubon isn’t the cleanest fit, adding a shortstop was high on their list of priorities.
“There’s some things we’ve explored in terms of bats,” Anthopoulos said, per Mark Bowman of MLB.com. “It’s not the cleanest of fits, because we have some commitments to guys we like. But if you want to add a bat, the one area where you could do so is clearly at shortstop.
“But it’s kind of the same thing with everything you do, you want it to be an impact addition, right? It’s harder to find that at the shortstop position. There’s some guys at other spots, but like I said, it’s not the cleanest fit for us. That doesn’t mean we’re not brainstorming and trying to find a way, if there is a fit."
Some have suggested that the Braves are interested in bringing back Ha-Seong Kim, but he’s likely to command a decent contract on the free-agent market.
He’s represented by Scott Boras, so Boras will get his players paid, like he always does.
It'll be interesting to see how Atlanta approaches the rest of its offseason, but entering 2026 with Dubon as their starting shortstop likely isn’t what many fans are hoping for.
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