Five Greatest Trades in Atlanta Braves History

While we await to see if the Braves will make a big trade ahead of Spring Training, let's look back at some all-time moves
The Braves have made some masterful trades over the years
The Braves have made some masterful trades over the years / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
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The Atlanta Braves have made their share of stellar trades over the years. From recent memory to over the last few decades, there are plenty of candidates. 

However, five deals stand out above the rest. The Braves won big in these trades and left many scratching their heads - sometimes immediately. 

Here is are those five moves and how both sides faired following the deal. 

1B Fred McGriff From Padres in Exchange for OF Melvin Nieves and Vince Moore, and RHP Donnie Elliott 

In the summer of 1993, the San Diego Padres were looking to offload McGriff’s $4 million salary and the Braves needed a bat. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Braves’ .246 batting average was the lowest in the league and they were ranked near the bottom in runs scored.

McGriff was even better upon arrival than when he played in San Diego in 1993. Before the trade, he slashed .275/.361/.497. After the trade, he slashed .310/.392/.612. He finished fourth in MVP voting. 

The Crime Dog stuck around for four more seasons, slashing .293/.369/.516 and hitting 130 of his 493 career home runs and driving 446 of his 1,550 RBIs. He won the World Series with the Braves in 1995 and has been inducted into Cooperstown. 

Meanwhile, Nieves and Elliott combined for 139 games played for the Padres. Moore never played in the Majors and doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page. 

SP John Smoltz From Tigers in Exchange for SP Doyle Alexander

The Tigers were in the American League Pennant race in August 1987 and were looking to bolster the starting rotation. The Braves had 36-year-old starting pitcher Doyle Alexander. 

Braves scout John Hagemann was interested in acquiring the Tigers’ 22nd-round pick John Smoltz in return. According to the Baseball Hall of Fame, then-general manager Bobby Cox had no clue who Smoltz was. But Hagemann loved his arm, so they made the move. 

The Tigers won the AL East but lost to the Twins in the ALCS in five games. Alexander, who pitched well for the Tigers down the stretch, would be out of baseball after 1989. 

Smoltz made his debut in July 1988 and was an all-star in 1989. However, early struggles in 1991 led to calls for his head. On July 31, 1991, he had a 5.47 ERA, a 6-12 record and a .276 opponent’s average through 23 starts. However, in his final 13 starts, he had a 1.49 ERA, an 8-1 record and a .194 opponent’s average. Smoltz helped lead the Braves to a worst-to-first season and was crucial to a run to the World Series. 

After that, the rest is history. Smoltz pitched for the Braves for 20 total seasons. He was part of a dominant starting rotation that won the World Series, five NL pennants and 14 straight division titles. He was inducted into Cooperstown in 2015. 

Meanwhile, following that loss to the Twins in 1987, the Tigers wouldn’t reach the playoffs again until 2006 - the year the Braves division streak ended.  

Braves Acquire SP Tim Hudson From A’s in Exchange For LHP Dan Meyer, RHP Juan Cruz, OF Charles Thomas

With all due respect to Scott Hatteberg, the Oakland Athletics didn’t have their Moneyball run in 2002 without their starting rotation, Hudson included. The Braves knew this and capitalized on the A’s breaking up The Big Three. Ahead of the 2005 season, Mark Mulder went to the Cardinals and Hudson went to the Braves.

Even among the acquiring teams, the Braves gained more than the Cardinals. Mulder was out of baseball afer 2008. Hudson was part of the Braves rotation for nine seasons. 

Hudson went 113-72 as Braves with a 3.56 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP and 997 strikeouts in 1,573 innings pitched. In 2010, he made the All-Star Game, finished fourth in Cy Young voting and took home Comeback Player of the Year honors. The Braves inducted him into the team Hall of Fame in 2018. 

Meanwhile, Meyer had a 7.98 ERA in 17 appearances for the A’s, Thomas played 30 games with A’s in 2005 before never appearing in the Majors again and Cruz also only played one season in Oakland. 

SS Dansby Swanson, OF Ender Inciarte and RHP Aaron Blair from the Diamondbacks in Exchange for SP Shelby Miller and LHP Gabe Speier

Braves fans laughed about this trade for a long time after. Some probably still are. Fun fact, the Braves tried to get outfielder AJ Pollock too. This could have been even more lopsided. Blair didn’t pan out for the Braves, but the other two acquisitions more than made the deal a fleecing. 

The Diamondbacks took Dansby Swanson first overall in July 2015. Before the calendar year was over, he was shipped off to Atlanta. Swanson became the Braves shortstop from 2016 to 2022, winning a World Series, a Gold Glove and being named an All-Star. 

Inciarte didn’t stick around for the championship, but he was an All-Star for the team in 2017 and won three Gold Gloves in a Braves uniform. 

At the time of the trade, Miller was coming off his first and only All-Star appearance in 2015. The wheels came off the tracks after that. He had a 6.35 in three seasons in Arizona and has bounced around ever since. Speier made his MLB debut in 2019, but not for the Diamondbacks 

SP Chris Sale From Red Sox in Exchange for INF Vaughn Grissom 

Sure, this move happened just over 13 months ago, but it’s already gone down as an all-time masterclass move.

Sale’s career was seen as finished, and even he thought that was the case. Grissom showed a lot of potential in 64 MLB games with the Braves. 

But the Braves took the leap of faith and the result was one of the greatest renaissance seasons in recent memory. Sale finished 18-3 with a 2.38 ERA, a 174 ERA+ and struck out 225 batters across 29 starts. He won his first career Cy Young and Gold Glove awards as well as NL Comeback Player of the Year.

Grissom didn’t play too well to start his Red Sox career - batting .190 in 30 games. But the verdict is still out here. This could still be a win-win for both sides. But for the Braves, this is a move they’d make over and over again.


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