After the 2016 season and several season without a GM, the Atlanta Braves hired "rockybull" to man their operation. After finishing with 86 and 85 wins in 2014 and 2015, the Braves hit hard times and dropped to 72-90 in 2016. Rocky identified a weak group of veterans and a poor minor league system and decided to blow up the entire franchise. Out the door went Cody Johnson, Craig Kimbrel, Ryan Cornock, Brian Matusz, Kentrail Davis, and Jason Heyward among others. Incoming was a host of prospects that would form one of the best rebuilds in FCM history. The Braves won 44, 54, 54, and 54 games the next fours years as they prepared to get back to contention. But in 2021 they jumped to 75 wins and then 105 wins in 2022. The team was loaded and made several deals to beef up a super talented team poised to unseat Florida.
That all came crashing down after the 2023 seasons as rocky had conflicting views with the league and retired. In came a new GM - piazza. Or as he is known in Atlanta "General Sherman". From this point the potential powerhouse in Atlanta was demolished, primarily with two deals with the Cincinnati Reds involving two of the best pitchers in the league. While this trade was recent and the full ramifications are not yet completely known, it's safe to say this was a major shift for two divisions in FCM that will be felt for some time.
What were the deals? Well even though they were two separate deals we are treating them as one since they were completed within 8 days of one another:
Deal 1: Ace Stan Lomax and SS Fransisco Vialto were dealt to Cincy for 2B Vlad Ladrids, RP Ruben macChlery, and RP Joshua Winchester.
Deal 2: Ace Vlad Pulgarin for SP Max Gomez, OF Nate Bills, OF Greg Johnson, and (confusingly) SS Fransisco Vialto.
Combined? Pulgarin and Lomax for Gomez, Bills, Ladrids, MacChlery, Winchester, and Johnson.
Let's start first with the prospects/players going to Atlanta. Kudos can be given to Atlanta for getting Vialto back as he has developed into a strong defender with a decent bat....but the bizarreness of dealing him in one deal only to get him as a return in another is baffling. It's a horrible way to get value, basically dealing him at pennies on the dollar and then paying dollars to get the pennies back. Bizarre at best. Vlad Larids has not yet reached his potential but was dealt shortly after with Greg Johnson to acquire Jeff Shinault from Texas. Shinault enjoyed a cup of coffee before being dealt for Jason Wheeler who promptly reached his potential far under what he was dealt for. So credit that as eventually dealing one third of the specs in this deal for a backup second baseman. Max Gomez was later dealt to New York for a backup first baseman and a AAAA reliever after only 8 starts. Bills had one full season with Atlanta and hit 30 homeruns, drove in 94 runs, and walked 100 times while snagging a gold glove. However, after that year he was moved for SP Adam Borkholder who had a short stay in Atlanta as well before being moved for Adam Higginson. Winchester was moved to Toronto for Steve Eickholt and then moved back to Atlanta for Tyrese Davis. He's yet to see time in the big leagues. MacChlery was moved as a smaller piece in a deal with Colorado that was primarly Elless for McMullin.
Two aces moved, here's the result - a backup second baseman, backup first baseman, a couple AAAA relievers, and some minor trade pieces. No elite talent identifiable purely from this deal. You have to call that a major, major failure by "General Sherman".
For Cincy the deal has been nothing short of amazing - exactly what you'd expect when you land two aces without paying a high cost. Lomax has been 25-19 with an ERA under 4.00 in the hitter friendly home ballpark he now has. He's been poor in the playoffs at 0-1 with a 6.35 ERA. Pulgarin has been 27-12 with a great season in 2024, a poor season in 2025, and a rebound season in 2026. Pulgarin has been 1-1 with a 2.44 ERA in the playoffs. Apart from their direct contributions, the two arms were massive upgrades over the mediocrity previously eating starts in Cincy. With the juggernaut offense already in tow, these two arms launched Cincy from a 76-86 record to a 92-71 finish just one game out of first place. The next year to 106-56 and a playoff birth in 2025. So far in 2026 the team is 28-8 and leading the division by 6 games. There is no question that acquiring these two elite talents to pair with their own talent has made Cincy an elite team. By most accounts they went from being a near contender to the best of the National League. With the youth of the team, that is unlikely to change anytime soon.
While most deals on this list are not this recent, this is a deal with two of FCM's best arms that transformed one team from the threshold of contention to a total juggernaut and took a team on the rise to power and totally destroyed their future. 11 teams have been impacted directly by this deal with the shift of power in two divisions. The NL Central now looks up at Cincinatti while the NL East has a 13-22 Atlanta team to once again look down on. There is no question these two deals that were back to back have had a tremendous impact on FCM.
Next up: The Red Army gets Marvelous....A's get their Main guy.
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