Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports is reporting that the Braves are looking to buy tradable draft picks by taking on other teams’ bad contracts if those teams include draft picks in the deal. So far, no one has bit, Passan adds.
The Braves entered play on Thursday night with a 4-17 record, easily the worst in baseball. The club has made no secret it has embraced tanking as they prepare to move into their new stadium. Finishing with the worst record in baseball will net them the first overall pick in the 2017 draft. Adding more and more draft picks will simply increase the odds that they will discover a great player.
The Braves’ Opening Day payroll was only $86 million, their lowest since 2010. The club has less than $50 million in obligations for next season so it can certainly afford to take on a bad contract or two to stock up on young talent.
