Braves offered bold trade idea to close gap on NL elites by ex-Rockies GM

Despite a woeful 0-7 start to the 2025 season, the Atlanta Braves (24-25) are around .500 after the team's surge in recent weeks. However, they still lag behind division rivals the Philadelphia Phillies (32-18) and the New York Mets (30-20).

The Braves are still awaiting the return of superstar slugger Ronald Acuna Jr., who has been out of action for more than a year since his ACL tear at the start of last season.

While the Braves await the return of the 2023 NL MVP, former Colorado Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd discussed a star Atlanta could trade for at the trade deadline on "MLB Tonight."

"I've got I got the Blue Jays trading Bo Bichette to the Atlanta Braves," O'Dowd said. "I think the Braves need a bat, but I think they need that kind of bat, high contact, low strikeouts and uses the entire field."

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Although O'Dowd was skeptical over the deal as the Blue Jays signed Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to a $500 million extension, he feels Bo Bichette could plug the hole for the Braves.

"it's a deal that the Braves need to plug that position in their lineup with an offensive shortstop. They could hit Acuna at one and him at two. They need to make that kind of trade to really close the gap between them and the other elite teams in the National League."

O'Down made the trade suggestion, citing the lack of productivity for Aatanta from shortstop Nick Allen. The Braves shortstop is batting .258 for the season with 10 RBIs.

Bo Bichette is in the final year of his contract with the Blue Jays and his name has been in trade rumors as the star shortstop has not signed an extension.

Braves set to receive big boost for Padres series

The Braves fell below the .500 mark after an 8-7 defeat against the Washington Nationals on Thursday. It was the second consecutive defeat for the Braves, marking a series sweep for Washington.

Despite the result, the Braves will be upbeat as they will welcome back Ronald Acuna Jr. to the lineup in the upcoming series against the San Diego Padres. He is slated to make his season debut in the series opener against the Padres on Friday.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash