Braves Predicted to Make Blockbuster Trade With NL Foe

SI.com's Nate Hagerty argued the Atlanta Braves should consider making a blockbuster trade with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Braves declined the 2025 club option for catcher Travis d'Arnaud. SI.com's Nate Hagerty argued Wednesday that that decision opens the door for the Braves to pull off an offseason blockbuster trade with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Hagerty pushed that the Braves should consider acquiring 3-time All-Star catcher Willson Contreras.

"Although Atlanta has Sean Murphy and Braves No. 5 top prospect Drake Baldwin to replace d'Arnaud as starting catcher, Contreras would be a far superior option," wrote Hagerty.

Contreras has been one of the top catchers in baseball over the past several years. He made the National League All-Star team with the Chicago Cubs in 2018, 2019 and 2022.

This past season with the Cardinals, Contreras hit .262 with an .848 OPS in 301 at-bats. He only played in 84 games, so Contreras didn't qualify for the MLB leaderboard in percentage statistics during 2024.

But among catchers with at least 300 at-bats, Contreras finished with the best OPS.

Adding that power and on-base to the Atlanta lineup sounds appealing. But even Hagerty cast doubt over how realistic of a trade it is for the Braves.

While the team cleared financial space and roster room at catcher by declining d"Arnaud's option, the Braves still have Sean Murphy under contract at roughly $15 million per season through at least 2028. He also has a $15 million club option for 2029.

Contraras has three years left on his $87.5 million contract. He will cost at least $18 million through 2027.

It's highly doubtful the Braves will pony up $33 million for a pair of catchers. In fact, it's much more likely the Braves just simply re-sign d'Arnaud for a lower contract than his club option during free agency.

It's true that Contraras would be an upgrade over Murphy. But the Braves are paying Murphy to be their top catcher, so the team probably isn't going to change the catcher depth chart this offseason.

Instead, they'll hope Murphy bounces back, and he very well could. Murphy was an All-Star more recently than Contraras. His 2024 season was off to a bad start right from Opening Day when he suffered an oblique injury.

Trading for Contraras is a fun blockbuster hypothetical. But that's all it's likely to be.