It has been four years since the Atlanta Braves won their last World Series, but since then have completely fallen off a cliff. With coming off a season in which the Braves held a 76-86 record, it is clear that things need to change. One way that Atlanta can look to do so is through trades, and they have a prime player they can be looking to trade in Austin Riley.
*Prediction*
The play from Austin Riley hasn’t been to great for the contract that the Braves are paying him, and as Atlanta looks to restructure their payroll a bit, it makes sense for them to look to trade players that don’t match the timeline of their team anymore. If the Braves make the bold decision to make Riley available for a trade, then it is the Pittsburgh Pirates that make sense to trade for him.
More MLB Content From TWSN:
Aaron Judge Needs to Request a Trade from the New York Yankees
Toronto Blue Jays Trade Jose Berrios to the Atlanta Braves
Framber Valdez Signs With the San Francisco Giants
Atlanta Braves Trade Austin Riley to the Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates have had a strong offseason so far with moves like trading for Brandon Lowe, and signing Ryan O’Hearn. They almost have a solidified infield, but need to still improve their third base spot.
Pittsburgh was heavily linked as a team interested in signing Kazuma Okamoto, but he ended up signing with the Toronto Blue Jays instead. The Pirates need to pivot once again, and how they can do so is by looking to trade for a third baseman who can provide stabilizing play. The ideal third baseman they can look to trade for is Austin Riley.
When it comes to Austin Riley, he ended up signing a 10-year contract in August 2022, meaning he still has plenty of years left for the Pirates to feel safe in trading for him and getting yearly consistency for the next few seasons. The biggest thing for Riley will be bouncing back following his injury, and if he can, he can provide a huge impact on the Pirates.
Austin Riley is coming off a 2025 season in which he still had a .260/.309/.428 slash line with 16 home runs, and 54 runs batted in. This was even despite him suffering a core muscle injury and missing the end of the season. At his worst he has shown he is a decent hitter, and decent defender.
With where the Pirates currently are as a team, that is all they need to be looking for at the very least. If Riley can fully bounce back and provide more power in the lineup, then this trade would end up paying off immensely for the Pirates as they look to get back on track quickly this season.