Emergency trade between Braves and Red Sox to breathe life into Atlanta’s offense

The Atlanta Braves are left with a huge void in their roster since their best player, Ronald Acuña Jr., went down with a torn ACL. At this point, Atlanta has opted to try to handle this internally, but it doesn’t seem to be working at the World Series level they intend to compete at.

So the Braves could turn to the Boston Red Sox, a team that could find itself in a prime position to sell if it doesn’t skyrocket in the American League standings.

Baseball Reference gives the Red Sox just a 10 percent chance of making the playoffs, largely because of how loaded the American League is this season. If the Red Sox find themselves out of contention, they would be foolish not to trade expiring contracts, like that of outfielder Tyler O’Neill.

You cannot replace Acuña with just one player. Instead, the last time the Braves lost him for the season, they replaced him with several platoon outfielders.

Tyler O’Neill would be perfect as a platoon option for Atlanta. He plays excellent defense and currently has an OPS+ of 157 against lefties in 2024.

The Braves could make this deal as a simple trade offer, offering their eighth prospect, pitcher Cade Kuehler, in exchange for O’Neill.

Kuehler is a 22-year-old right-handed pitcher currently pitching in Low-A. Although he is the Braves’ eighth-ranked prospect, he is their sixth-highest-ranked pitching prospect, which leaves him a little more expendable in trades than one might think. The Braves farm system is loaded with pitching talent.

The 22-year-old has looked solid in 2024, holding a 3.60 ERA in 30 innings. He has an impressive four-pitch arsenal and a developed approach to getting hitters out.

The Red Sox would agree to this trade because the right wing gives them an instant boost to the farm system. Tyler O’Neill likely won’t return to Boston in 2025, so the Red Sox would be foolish not to deal him at the deadline.

The Braves can afford to lose Kuehler in order to get an outfielder with superb defense and a bat that crushes lefties. O’Neill’s defense alone makes him an option to play every day in the outfield, but his bat against lefties makes him impossible to leave out of the lineup against lefties.

Alex Anthopoulos worked his magic to replace Ronald Acuña Jr in 2021. He will have to do it again this year if the Braves want to win the World Series again.