May 13, 2022; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson (7) throws his bat after a three-run home run against the San Diego Padres in the sixth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Another Atlanta Braves franchise mainstay could be replaced soon.
They’ve done this before. Why wouldn’t they do it again?
We’re talking about Freddie Freeman, of course, who was allowed to depart Atlanta for Los Angeles and the Dodgers in free agency this past winter. The Braves found a replacement in Matt Olson, who is quite good, but replacing an icon and franchise face like Freeman had to feel like a slap in the face to fans and many in the organization.
Baseball is a business, however, and that oftentimes means feelings are left in the dust. And it looks like Dansby Swanson could very well be the next member of the 2021 World Series team to get the tomahawk chop.
According to reports, the Braves are at least looking into upgrading from Dansby Swanson, and they could turn to the trade market and Red Sox star Xander Bogaerts to do so.
Braves could move off Dansby Swanson for Xander Bogaerts
Bogaerts is a bona-fide top talent at the shortstop position, and with Boston struggling to meet their star shortstop’s contractual demands, they could seek to trade him for assets rather than lose him for nothing in free agency.
Unlike the Olson-Freeman swap, which could be considered a downgrade for the Braves, Bogaerts is clearly an upgrade over Dansby Swanson. Swanson is a solid contributor and steady as they go, but has a lower all-around ceiling than the X-man. That doesn’t mean there wouldn’t be a level of disrespect here by moving on from Swanson, though. Loyalty doesn’t mean much to the Braves, and I suppose that makes sense… if they weren’t just coming off a title run.
Breaking up a championship core this quickly almost never results in repeating the feat the next season, which is surely what Atlanta wants to do. Dansby Swanson is not a bad player by any means, but we saw how the Braves treated a superstar like Freddie Freeman, so they won’t hesitate to move off a player of lesser caliber. And that should insult Swanson, who has been valuable to this team over the years.
Time will tell if the Braves actually move off Dansby Swanson, but very recent history suggests they’ll have no problem doing so. And that’s just unfair to a player who helped capture the franchise’s first World Series title since 1995.