Braves cautious about blockbuster moves

ATLANTA — There has certainly been reason for the Braves to do their due diligence by at least evaluating what it might take to acquire a controllable frontline starting pitcher like Chris Sale, Chris Archer or Sonny Gray.

At the same time, Atlanta has not lost sight of how one significant move could impact the potential value gained over the past two years via the massive rebuilding process that has transformed its farm system from one of the worst to one of the best.

“We’ve worked so hard these past two years to take our farm system from worst to first,” Braves general manager John Coppolella said. “The last thing we want to do is give away the farm to add one player. If we give up young players we like, it’s going to be for long-term value. We’re going to try to build it the right way.”

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Though compiling depth is the key to any massive rebuild, the most significant move the Braves have made during this process occurred around this same time last year, when they traded Shelby Miller to the D-backs in exchange for Ender Inciarte, Dansby Swanson and Aaron Blair. It significantly expedited the rebuilding process and also impacted the price of pitching on the trade market.

There …

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