John Coppolella

MLB Lifts Ban On Former Braves GM John Coppolella

By Steve Adams | January 9, 2023 at 11:07am CDT

Major League Baseball has lifted its previous “lifetime” ban on former Braves general manager John Coppolella, reports Jayson Stark of The Athletic. Coppolella has spent the past five years on the league’s ineligible list in the wake of heavy sanctions for violating rules regarding both international free agency and the annual amateur draft. A league spokesperson tells Stark that Coppolella was reinstated “given the more than five years he spent on the ineligible list, the contrition he expressed and the other steps he took in response to this matter.”

Coppolella released his own statement:

“I want to thank Commissioner Manfred for granting my application for removal from the Ineligible List. I am deeply appreciative of so many people who have been involved in this process, including (executive vice president of legal and operations) Bryan Seeley and (senior vice president of investigations and deputy general counsel) Moira Weinberg at Major League Baseball. I deeply regret and accept accountability for my actions. I want to again apologize to the Atlanta Braves organization, Major League Baseball, its fans, and especially my family and friends. I am grateful for this decision and will strive each day to honor this opportunity.”

At the time of Coppolella’s original ban, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred announced that his investigation into the Braves’ dealings revealed the team underreported bonuses for five amateurs who were subject to international bonus pool restrictions. The Braves then overreported their bonus to an older, pool-exempt player and used that inflated bonus as a means of funneling additional money to the five amateurs in question.

Had the Braves reported the actual bonuses of the five amateurs in question, it’d have restricted them from signing an international amateur for more than $300K during either of the following two signing periods. Instead, the Braves were able to sign two of the top names on the international market a year later. The Braves also agreed to inflated signing bonuses with six amateurs represented by the agent for now-Athletics prospect Robert Puason, with the understanding that Puason would sign in Atlanta several years down the road. Atlanta also offered “extra-contractual compensation” to infielder Ji Hwan Bae (now with the Pirates) and “impermissible benefits” to an amateur draftee not named in Manfred’s statement but reported to be outfielder Drew Waters. You can read Manfred’s full statement on the matter here.

Ultimately, the Braves were stripped of 12 prospects, each of whom was immediately declared a free agent. Their deal with Bae, which had not been finalized at the time of the findings, was voided. The Braves also forfeited their third-round pick the in the subsequent amateur draft, were barred from signing an international amateur for more than $10K in the 2019-20 period, and were barred from signing the aforementioned Puason once he actually became a free agent.

It’s not clear at this time whether Coppolella will actually pursue a return to working in baseball, nor is it clear how many teams would be interested. The now-44-year-old Coppolella’s fingerprints are still on the Braves organization to this day, but there’d also surely be some PR implications for any team adding him to its baseball operations staff.

John Coppolella Makes First Public Comments Since Ban From MLB

By Steve Adams | December 5, 2017 at 9:47am CDT

In his first public comments since being forced to resign as the Braves’ general manager and, eventually, permanently banned from Major League Baseball, John Coppolella issued a lengthy and apologetic statement to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick. The 38-year-old says that he has been “disgraced and humbled” and that he and his family have been “devastated and embarrassed by the repercussions of my actions.”

“Throughout my 20-year baseball career my singular focus has been to help make my team more successful,” says Coppolella. “I am heartbroken that in this case my conduct has done the opposite for the Atlanta Braves organization. I accept full responsibility for my actions.”

Coppolella goes on to apologize to the Braves organization, the Commissioner’s office, his former colleagues and peers throughout the industry and to Braves fans everywhere for the damage caused by his actions.

Those actions, of course, included significant circumvention of collectively bargained rules pertaining to both international amateur free agency and the annual June amateur draft. Commissioner Rob Manfred announced that his office’s investigation revealed that the Braves inflated their contract to a foreign professional in the 2015-16 offseason and then funneled some of that money to five players that were signed as international amateurs as a means of circumventing the international bonus pool system.

Had Atlanta signed the five amateur prospects for those full amounts, they’d have been barred from signing any player in the next year’s class for more than $300K. Instead, the Braves were able to spend aggressively on the 2016-17 class — netting well regarded names like Kevin Maitan and Abrahan Gutierrez — both of whom (along with 11 others) has since been declared a free agent by the league. Atlanta also inflated the bonuses of six additional players as a means of enticing prospect Robert Puason’s agent to agree to a deal in the 2019-20 signing period and offered Korean prospect Ji-hwan Bae “extra-contractual compensation,” per Manfred’s statement. The commissioner also noted that the Braves offered “impermissible benefits” in the amateur draft as well.

“I have learned the lesson of a lifetime, as my mistakes have cost me my dream job and my future in the game that I love,” Coppolella says near the end of his statements. “I hope that other people, regardless of their profession, use this as a cautionary tale when making their own business decisions.”

MLB Announces Permanent Ban For John Coppolella

By Jeff Todd | November 21, 2017 at 3:09pm CDT

Major League Baseball has instituted a lifetime ban on former Braves general manager John Coppolella, according to an announcement from commissioner Rob Manfred. The heavy punishment comes as the league moves to punish his former organization for amateur signing infractions during his tenure as GM. Coppolella had already resigned from the Atlanta organization.

Beyond the lifetime ban for Coppolella, the Commissioner’s Office has banned former Braves international scouting director Gordon Blakeley for one year, and commissioner Rob Manfred has also indicated that other members of the Braves’ international scouting staff will be disciplined. Here’s the full statement from Manfred:

My office has completed a thorough investigation into violations of Major League Rules by the Atlanta Braves. The Braves cooperated throughout the investigation, which was conducted by MLB’s Department of Investigations. The senior Baseball Operations officials responsible for the misconduct are no longer employed by the Braves. I am confident that Terry McGuirk, John Schuerholz, Alex Anthopoulos and their staffs have and will put in place procedures to ensure that this type of conduct never occurs again and which will allow the Club to emerge from this difficult period as the strong and respected franchise that it has always been.

The investigation established that the Braves circumvented international signing rules from 2015 through 2017. During the 2015-16 international signing period, the Braves signed five players subject to the Club’s signing bonus pool to contracts containing signing bonuses lower than the bonuses the Club had agreed to provide the players. The Club provided the additional bonus money to those players by inflating the signing bonus to another player who was exempt from their signing pool because he qualified as a ’foreign professional’ under MLB rules. Consistent with the rules, the Braves could have signed all of the 2015-16 players for the full, actual signing bonus amounts. Had the Club signed the five players to contracts containing their actual bonuses, however, the Braves would have exceeded their signing bonus pool by more than five percent and would have been, under MLB rules, restricted from signing any players during the next two signing periods for contracts with bonuses greater than $300,000.

As a result of the 2015-16 circumvention, the Braves were able to sign nine high-value players during the 2016-17 signing period who would have been unavailable to them had the Club accurately accounted for its signings during the 2015-16 signing period. These players were Juan Contreras, Yefri del Rosario, Abrahan Gutierrez, Kevin Maitan, Juan Carlos Negret, Yenci Peña, Yunior Severino, Livan Soto and Guillermo Zuniga. In addition, the Braves entered into additional ’package’ agreements in 2016 and 2017 in which they signed Brandol Mezquita, Angel Rojas and Antonio Sucre for reduced amounts, and provided additional money to those players’ agents by signing other players affiliated with their agents to contracts with inflated bonuses. In order to remedy these violations, I am releasing these players from their contracts with the Braves and declaring them free agents eligible to sign with any other Club. The procedures governing the players’ release and the signing process will be communicated to MLB Clubs under separate cover.

The investigation also determined that the Braves: (i) agreed to sign six players to inflated signing bonuses pursuant to an agreement with prospect Robert Puason’s agent in exchange for a commitment that Puason would sign with the Club in the 2019-20 signing period; and (ii) offered prospect Ji-Hwan Bae extra-contractual compensation. In order to remedy these violations, I am prohibiting the Club from signing Robert Puason when he becomes eligible to sign, and disapproving the contract between Bae and the Braves, which has not yet become effective.

While the remedies discussed above will deprive the Braves of the benefits of their circumvention, I believe that additional sanctions are warranted to penalize the Club for the violations committed by its employees. Accordingly, the Braves will be prohibited from signing any international player for more than $10,000 during the 2019-20 signing period, which is the first signing period in which the Braves are not subject to any signing restrictions under our rules; and the Braves’ international signing bonus pool for the 2020-21 signing period will be reduced by 50 percent.

The investigation also determined that the Braves offered impermissible benefits, which were never provided, to a player they selected in the First-Year Player Draft in an attempt to convince him to sign for a lower bonus. As a penalty for the Club’s attempted circumvention involving a draft selection, the Braves will forfeit their third-round selection in the 2018 First-Year Player Draft.

With respect to individual discipline, former Braves General Manager John Coppolella will be placed on the permanently ineligible list, effective immediately. Former Braves Special Assistant Gordon Blakeley will be suspended for a period of one year, effective immediately, and may not perform services for any MLB Club during his suspension. I intend to discipline other Braves’ International Baseball Operations employees who participated in the misconduct after the completion of our internal procedures. My staff will speak to the Players Association and officials in the Dominican Republic regarding appropriate consequences for the representatives of the players who intentionally participated in schemes to circumvent our rules, none of whom are certified by the Players Association.

The ramifications are significant for the Braves, whose capacity for amateur talent acquisition over the next several years will be hammered. Both Maitan and Gutierrez were ranked among the Braves’ top 30 prospects at MLB.com, with Maitan having ranked fifth overall and Gutierrez ranking 30th. The forfeiture of those prospects will mean that more than $10MM worth of amateur bonuses have now been squandered, and the Braves will also feel that pain of MLB’s sanctions in next year’s amateur draft and through the 2021 season on the international market.

The role that former president of baseball operations John Hart did or didn’t play in these infractions remains unclear, but Hart, who was given a reduced role in the front office upon the hiring of new GM Alex Anthopoulos, announced his resignation from the organization last week. A split between the two sides seemed largely inevitable; either Hart played a knowing role in the most significant circumvention of MLB’s international amateur free agency system to date, or he exhibited a stunning level of negligence in allowing these infractions to be committed without his knowledge. Neither of those scenarios seems excusable.

The Braves have also issued a statement on the matter:

Today, Major League Baseball informed the Atlanta Braves organization of sanctions being levied as a result of their investigation. As MLB stated, the Braves cooperated fully throughout this investigation and we understand and accept the decision regarding the penalties that have been handed down. As we expressed last week, our organization has not lived up to the standard our fans expect from us and that we expect from ourselves. For that, we apologize. We are instituting the changes necessary to prevent this from ever happening again and remain excited about the future of Braves baseball. We do not plan to comment further on this matter.

That the Braves won’t comment further on the matter runs somewhat contrary to comments made by Braves CEO Terry McGuirk last month. Speaking with Tim Tucker of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, McGuirk stated: “I don’t think there will be any questions (unanswered) when we are able to discuss it.”

Meanwhile, Blakeley has also issued a statement on his year-long suspension (via Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, on Facebook):

I am obviously very disappointed in the Commissioner’s decision regarding my suspension, particularly given my 32 years of untarnished service to the game. That said, I am in the digesting the Commissioner’s findings and considering all of my options going forward. I take responsibility for my actions in this situation; however, I always acted under the direction of my superiors.

NL Notes: Seager, Cabrera, Braves, Dickey

By Jeff Todd | October 24, 2017 at 2:42pm CDT

After going without him in the NLCS, the Dodgers have officially activated star shortstop Corey Seager for the World Series. Given his balky back, however, the team may look to him as a DH for the games played in Houston, as J.P. Hoornstra writes in the Orange County Register. Those interested in some reading in advance of the Fall Classic may also like to check out the Register’s Bill Plunkett’s piece on the analytics-driven organizations squaring off this year.

Here’s more from the National League:

The Mets are “almost certain” to exercise their option over infielder Asdrubal Cabrera, according to a tweet from Marc Carig of Newsday. We have heard such indications previously, to be sure, though it’s fair to say there have been countervailing considerations as well. With much of the offseason planning likely already completed, though, the Mets seem largely to have decided upon a course. As I discussed about six weeks back, there’s a solid case to be made that Cabrera’s $8.5MM option will deliver greater value than the team could find by paying a $2MM buyout and pursuing an alternative. Most of MLBTR’s readers favored the Mets hanging onto Cabrera in the poll available at that link.
A former Braves scout has written a letter to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, in which he offers something of a different perspective on recently-resigned GM John Coppolella. The scout credited Coppolella for his respectful interactions with similarly situated employees, painting rather a different picture than some other accounts have. Of course, the letter does not seem to speak to any assessment of alleged international signing violations against Coppolella or others in the organization.
With Atlanta parting ways with R.A. Dickey, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer considers whether the veteran knuckler could make sense for the Reds. Dickey has indicated that Cincinnati is on a very short list of cities he’d consider playing in, given its proximity to his home in Nashville. But Rosecrans also suggests the Reds would likely not be willing to pay Dickey in quite the same range that the Braves did. The contract he signed last winter guaranteed $8MM, though he earned every penny with 190 innings of 4.26 ERA ball. That made it seem likely that the Braves would bring him back, with the move perhaps hinting that Dickey was already determined to hang up his spikes. Still, if there is some possibility of Dickey carrying on, the Reds would likely be wise to explore a deal with him as a means of addressing the team’s dearth of established rotation pieces.

Latest On Braves Investigation: “Unprecedented” Violations

By Jeff Todd | October 15, 2017 at 9:19am CDT

SUNDAY: Hart may not be innocent in this matter, Bill Shanks of the Macon Telegraph reports in a piece that’s worth reading in full. He “knew everything,” according to two scouts who spoke with Shanks, with one source saying that “(Hart) is just as guilty as Coppy. He helped create this mess by letting Coppy do what he wanted to do.” If true, Hart could be on his way out of Atlanta. His contract is set to expire after the World Series, when the league is likely to announce the results of an investigation that continues to see allegations pour in, per Shanks. MLB investigators have not spoken with Hart, Shanks writes, but they have interviewed Coppolella multiple times, including at his house, and Blakely, among other past and current Braves employees. The league could also talk with some of the Braves’ international scouts, Shanks adds. Even after his resignation, the Braves offered Coppolella a severance package – a move that “amazed” several scouts, Shanks relays – but he rejected it and has hired an attorney, which could suggest that lawsuits are forthcoming.

THURSDAY: The investigation into apparent international signing violations by the Braves has already claimed the jobs of GM John Coppolella and special assistant Gordon Blakely, but the investigation is still ongoing. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic has a lengthy update (subscription required and recommended) on the matter, citing sources that tell him the team’s “violations are unprecedented in scope.”

Even as the Atlanta organization weighs its next steps, which will necessarily include a replacement for Coppolella and others, the league continues to dig. There’s no evidence to this point that president of baseball operations John Hart had knowledge or involvement in the transgressions, per Rosenthal, though he also hasn’t yet had his sit-down with investigators.

Whether or not the matter can be traced higher than Coppolella will obviously play a role in the ultimate punishment. That said, Rosenthal emphasizes that commissioner Rob Manfred could potentially also cite lack of “oversight” or “institutional control” over the now-deposed GM. Of course, it’s not as if Coppolella was just a rogue, lower-level employee; he was entrusted with significant decision-making authority and was the face of the front office to the public.

We heard earlier today that former Braves exec and current Royals GM Dayton Moore is not expected to depart for Atlanta — a possibility that many have cited as a potential out for the Braves, but one that might require the departure of Hart (as well as interest from Moore and permission by Kansas City). And based upon Rosenthal’s report, it seems the expectation is that Hart will continue to lead the charge in finding a new GM and overseeing a broader realignment of internal personnel.

Timelines on all of these threads — the league investigation, hiring of a GM, and assessment and actions on current Braves employees — are not yet known. There are a few weeks yet to go before the organization will begin making key offseason decisions, and the continued presence of Hart would presumably help with continuity. Still, it’s obviously imperative for the Braves that they receive and deal with the punishment that’s expected while lining things up for a hectic offseason to come.

Just what kinds of sanctions might be anticipated? Per Rosenthal, “a substantial fine, a loss of prospects and restrictions on the Braves’ participation in the international market” are all on the table. The devil here is in the details, of course, as that slate of possible demerits could either be relatively light or rather compelling, depending upon how extensively applied.

Broadly speaking, we still don’t know how all of this will turn out. And it’s far from clear that the Braves will be fully diverted from their course — which, the organization hoped, would soon reach a stage of contending. But it’s also not yet apparent just how president John Schuerholz or the corporate ownership at Liberty Media feel about things. And given the evident severity of the misdeeds committed, it certainly seems as if further internal turmoil can be anticipated before the team is ready again to return its sole focus to the on-field product.

East Notes: Girardi, Braves, Marlins, Mets/Nats Affiliate

By Connor Byrne | October 9, 2017 at 11:57pm CDT

Currently in the last year of his contract, Yankees manager Joe Girardi has been noncommittal about his future in recent weeks. On the heels of a rough few days for Girardi, ESPN’s Buster Olney says he expects Girardi’s time as the Yankees’ skipper to conclude at season’s end (podcast link). Of course, things are beginning to look quite a bit different than they did after a baffling Girardi decision that likely cost them Game 2. Now, the ALDS is tied and the Yankees could well find themselves among the last four teams standing, depending upon the outcome of the decisive game in Cleveland. Regardless of how things play out from this point forward, the long-experienced skipper will surely land on his feet, though Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes that some believe Girardi may be interested in some time away from the grind. Interestingly, the Mets have actually talked about Girardi as a possible successor to the ousted Terry Collins, but they “fully expect” him to stay in the Bronx, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets.

Latest On John Coppolella, Braves

By Connor Byrne | October 2, 2017 at 7:22pm CDT

7:22pm: Associates of Moore believe he’s likely to leave the Royals for the Braves, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.

5:42pm: Braves president of baseball operations John Hart spoke to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and other reporters Monday about general manager John Coppolella’s resignation, which was a forced exit, O’Brien writes.

Hart expressed deep disappointment in Coppolella, confirming he committed “an MLB rules violation that has to do with the international marketplace.” Hart also revealed that the league “dug up a number of things that were quite serious, as far as the MLB ruless” in its investigation, one that went back roughly two years, O’Brien tweets. Coppolella’s international violations were merely “the tip of the iceberg,” a source told Jerry Crasnick of ESPN (Twitter link).

As the Braves move forward, Hart will assume their GM role on a temporary basis, but a couple of potential full-time successors to Coppollela have already emerged in the rumor mill. One possibility is Royals GM Dayton Moore, who started his career in Atlanta in 1994 before eventually heading to Kansas City in 2006. Moore still “has a soft spot” for the Braves, Crasnick notes (Twitter links). Crasnick also points out that with the Royals perhaps entering a rebuild and having an up-and-coming GM prospect in J.J. Picollo, now may be the time for them and Moore to part ways.

Should the Braves strike out on a potential Moore pursuit, they might turn to Dan Jennings, who “could be a top candidate,” according to O’Brien (on Twitter). Jennings is a special assistant to Nationals GM Mike Rizzo, but he’s better known for his time with the Marlins. The 57-year-old worked as Miami’s GM from 2013-15, and he even served as its interim manager for 124 games in his final season with the club. Jennings ceded the GM position when he shifted to the dugout, an experiment that yielded a 55-69 record and led to his firing after in October 2015.

[RELATED: Braves News & Rumors On Facebook]

Braves General Manager John Coppolella Resigns

By Steve Adams | October 2, 2017 at 12:02pm CDT

In stunning fashion, the Braves announced today that general manager John Coppolella has resigned, effective immediately, in the wake of a “breach of Major League Baseball rules regarding the international player market.” Special assistant Gordon Blakely is also reportedly resigning from his post as Major League Baseball works to conclude an investigation that is said to have been ongoing for multiple weeks.

“Major League Baseball is investigating the matter with our full cooperation and support,” said president of baseball operations John Hart. “We will not be issuing any further comment until the investigation is complete.”

The Braves are immediately beginning the search for a replacement, per their release, and Hart will assume all of Coppolella’s duties for the time being while serving as the primary decision-maker in baseball operations matters. FanRag’s Jon Heyman points out (via Twitter) that Hart wasn’t under contract beyond this year, though it seems he’ll stick around at least until the team has a replacement for Coppolella in place, if not longer.

While it’s not yet clear what transgressions the Braves have committed, the resignation of a general manager — be it forced or voluntary — would represent the most extreme outcome for any scrutiny under which GMs have come in recent years. Padres general manager A.J. Preller was suspended for one month after his team’s medical disclosure practices were revealed to be substandard, and the Red Sox were forced to tear up some agreements with international prospects they’d signed in package deals as a means of circumventing international bonus restrictions. Neither of those incidents, however, resulted in the resignation or firing of a high-ranking official.

Coppolella’s departure as the team’s general manager comes as the team concluded its first season in the newly constructed SunTrust Park and was widely expected to take another step toward contention in 2018. Atlanta had been in the process of a lengthy rebuild for much of Coppolella’s tenure as general manager, but touted young talents such Ozzie Albies, Dansby Swanson, Sean Newcomb and Luiz Gohara, among others have reached the Majors, with wunderkind Ronald Acuna on the precipice of Major League readiness as well.

The Braves have been among the most active teams on the international market in recent years, with an aggressive splash on the 2016-17 international market (headlined by slugger Kevin Maitan) resulting in strict limitations on the organization for the 2017-18 and 2018-19 international periods. Last signing period’s mass accumulation of talent helped to bolster the Braves to have one of the consensus top farm systems in the league. However, it also put them in the same position as a number of other clubs that shattered their bonus pools in recent years, prohibiting the Braves from signing any one international amateur player for more than $300K.

Yahoo’s Jeff Passan and Joel Sherman of the New York Post suggest (Twitter links) that Coppolella’s rapport with other general managers wasn’t strong and that he had a reputation for being difficult, if not unpleasant to deal with. His relationship with fans, on the other hand, seemed to be a fairly strong one; Coppolella was more outspoken than most GMs, often conducting lengthy Twitter Q&As with the Braves faithful, and he was oftentimes more candid with the media than many of his front-office peers as well. That in and of itself may have rubbed some GMs the wrong way, of course, as most high-ranking front office execs are fairly tight-lipped.

Coppolella’s ousting as GM also figures to directly impact the fate of Atlanta skipper Brian Snitker, who has a club option for the 2018 season that has not yet been exercised or declined. Snitker has told reporters that he hopes to remain in his post for years to come, though the organization has reportedly still been waffling on whether to retain him or go in a new direction for 2018 and beyond. Certainly, Coppolella’s voice would have been a prominent one in those discussions, but the decision will be left to Hart and the lieutenants of the now-former general manager.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported that Coppolella would resign (Twitter links). Yahoo’s Jeff Passan reported that the Braves had been under investigation regarding their international practices for weeks and that a complaint had been levied against them (Twitter links). Rosenthal reported that Blakely would resign as well (Twitter link).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Braves Notes: Pagan, Cabrera, Offseason, Albies, Prospects

By Steve Adams | March 31, 2017 at 11:00am CDT

The Braves are still interested in free agent outfielder Angel Pagan, reports Jim Bowedn of ESPN and MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM, citing a club source (Twitter link). Atlanta has been tied to Pagan at various points this offseason. The 35-year-old Pagan has reportedly been holding out for a Major League deal that’ll pay him in the neighborhood of $5MM, however, which seems unlikely at this juncture. Fleet-footed Emilio Bonifacio has won a spot on the Atlanta roster as a backup outfielder, but Pagan has quite a bit more experience and could serve as a backup at all three positions, deepening the Atlanta bench, if the two sides are ultimately able to agree to a deal. Pagan hit .277/.331/.418 in 453 plate appearances with the Giants last year — a solid effort, especially when considering the pitcher-friendly nature of AT&T Park.

NL East Rumors: Mets, Orioles, Chapman, Ross, Coppolella

By Mark Polishuk | December 5, 2016 at 1:31am CDT

The Mets offered one of Curtis Granderson or Jay Bruce to the Orioles in exchange for “a high-end reliever,” ESPN.com’s Adam Rubin reports, though talks didn’t go anywhere. Based on that description, one would think the Mets were asking about Brad Brach, Mychal Givens or maybe even ace closer Zach Britton. While the O’s are indeed looking for right field help, it’s understandable why they didn’t accept that offer. Here’s more from around the NL East…

The Marlins will make a strong push for Aroldis Chapman, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports (Twitter links). Miami is also looking at Kenley Jansen (and is thought to be willing to make him a very big offer), though the team would prefer to keep the 14th overall pick in next year’s draft, whereas Chapman can be signed without draft compensation. The Marlins are open to a number of bullpen options, though they’re prioritizing signing a reliever over trading for relief help.
Some in the Nationals organization question Joe Ross’ toughness, MASNsports.com’s Pete Kerzel writes, due to the amount of recovery time Ross needed to return from a shoulder injury last year. Ross was posting strong numbers in the Nats rotation before inflammation in his throwing shoulder sidelined him from July 2 to September 18. Ross also has his supporters in the front office and in general, the Nationals don’t want to trade him, though he is one of several potential trade chips who could be included as part of a package for one of Washington’s multiple high-end trade targets.
The Braves have been linked to the likes of Chris Sale and Chris Archer in trade rumors, though while GM John Coppolella admits to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that “we want to add an ace,” this desire is “a want, not a need. So if a great opportunity comes along, we’ll be ready to strike. But we don’t need to force the issue.” O’Brien speculates that Sale might be the only pitcher the Braves would be willing to give up a package of young players and prospects to land. Atlanta has already bolstered its rotation by adding Jaime Garcia, Bartolo Colon and R.A. Dickey this winter, and the team is also looking to add another veteran on a minor league deal to compete with Mike Foltynewicz, Josh Collmenter and others for the fifth spot.
In other division news from earlier today on MLBTR, the Phillies are close to a deal with Joaquin Benoit and we collected more items from Citi Field in an edition of Mets Notes.

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