Braves predicted to trade for $56M NL East Cy Young winner to pair with Chris Sale, Spencer Strider

The Atlanta Braves likely should have anticipated trouble when Spencer Schwellenbach was injured on the first day of Spring Training. That moment marked the beginning of a wave of issues that has since impacted the starting rotation.

“The Braves opened camp this morning with an unwelcome update on talented young righty Spencer Schwellenbach. He’s been placed on the 60-day injured list due to inflammation in his right elbow, per Mark Bowman of MLB.com. The team’s hope is that the 25-year-old is dealing with bone spurs and not something more nefarious,” MLB Trade Rumors’ Steve Adams wrote.

Atlanta has a strong pitching staff when healthy, but even before the injuries, adding another arm was a priority. During Spring Training, there were also concerns about decreased velocity across the rotation.

“I've noticed a lot of Braves starters aren't throwing as hard as usual in spring, even Chris Sale. (Grant Holmes is the exception here). I'm starting to think this is intentional, but it's truly an unknown right now and I'm sure many folks will be worried until they show the gas,” Braves Today’s Lindsay Crosby wrote.

The Braves could be active on the trade market for a starting pitcher, and one name to watch is Sandy Alcantara.

“Alcántara has been at the subject of trade rumors for years. Miami held onto him rather than flipping him for pennies on the dollar. It looks like the right call. Alcántara missed the 2024 season and then was a bit rusty in 2025. Now, he's fully back. Alcántara has made three starts and has a 0.74 ERA in a league-leading 24 1/3 innings pitched to go along with an 18-to-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio. In three starts this season, he has pitched seven innings, nine innings and 8 1/3 innings. He's on a bit of an insane run and looks like the guy who won the Cy Young Award in 2022,” SI’s Patrick McAvoy wrote.

Acquiring Alcantara from the Miami Marlins would not be easy, especially given the division rivalry. However, if there were ever a scenario where he became a Brave, the rotation would be dominant.

Alcantara is on a $56 million deal with Miami, making him a relatively reasonable contract to take on. A rotation featuring Chris Sale, Spencer Strider, Reynaldo Lopez, and Alcantara would be incredibly difficult for opponents to handle.

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