Joc Pederson was a fan favorite for the Atlanta Braves and could be traded again this year. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
These former Atlanta Braves fan favorites should be very much available at this year’s trade deadline.
The Atlanta Braves remained mostly intact from the 2021 season into this current campaign with a couple of notable changes. They had several major free agents hit the open market. The most notable was Freddie Freeman.
Far from available as he continues to help represent the Los Angeles Dodgers this season in their playoff push, there are a couple of other ex-Braves who might be changing uniforms in the next few weeks.
These three members of the 2021 Braves—a roster of guys who never have to pay for a drink in Atlanta ever again—should be trade targets for contenders this year. Could some even end up back with the Braves?
1) Former Braves fan favorite available at the trade deadline: Joc Pederson
When you have a nickname like Joctober, you know you had an impact on a postseason team. This was the case for Joc Pederson last year with the Atlanta Braves. While certainly not the most important player on the team, his personality sure did him a lot of favors in becoming a folk hero for the franchise.
Pederson is an All-Star this year for a San Francisco Giants club slipping out of serious postseason contention. As a power-hitting outfielder with a postseason pedigree, he’s a match for teams looking for a variety of qualities. One of them could be the excitement he can bring to a locker room.
Pederson has a whole lot of postseason at-bats. From 2015-21, he has played in October. The .256/.332/.482 slash line and 12 home runs in 218 plate appearances in the postseason should only help his case to be one of the trade deadline’s hottest chips.
The Giants have some big decisions to make over the next few weeks. It’s fairly obvious they aren’t good enough to win it all as currently constructed. Do they buy and try to improve their chances? Or do they do the wiser thing and trade their All-Star slugger?