The Atlanta Braves may have come much closer to acquiring Texas Rangers ace Jacob deGrom than many fans realized before this year’s MLB trade deadline.
Although Atlanta ultimately came away from the deadline without deGrom, new reporting suggests that the Braves and Rangers had progressed far enough in their discussions that a trade was essentially ready to happen. The major issue was reportedly whether deGrom would agree to waive his no-trade clause and approve a move to the Braves.
The revelation provides additional insight into how aggressively Atlanta’s front office was searching for another impact starting pitcher before the deadline.
Braves President of Baseball Operations Alex Anthopoulos explained shortly after the deadline that the organization had identified only a very small number of starting pitchers who they considered true impact additions. Tarik Skubal was one of those pitchers, while another starter remained unnamed at the time.
That second pitcher now appears to have been deGrom.
According to reporting from MLB insider Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Atlanta and Texas had apparently made significant progress toward completing a deal for the veteran right-hander. The proposed trade reportedly depended on deGrom’s decision regarding his no-trade protection.
That detail is particularly significant because players with no-trade clauses have considerable control over where they can be sent. A team generally would not approach a player about waiving that protection unless negotiations had already reached an advanced stage.
Rosenthal cited two anonymous baseball executives who believed a deal was essentially in place. Their assessment suggests that the Braves had done enough work with the Rangers to establish the framework of a trade and were waiting for the final decision from deGrom.
The financial commitment Atlanta was reportedly prepared to make also highlights just how strongly the organization viewed deGrom as a potential difference-maker.
The Braves were willing to absorb a substantial portion of the pitcher’s remaining contract. According to the report, that amounted to roughly $11 million for the remainder of the 2026 season and another $37 million in 2027.
Taking on that kind of salary commitment would not have been a minor move for Atlanta. It demonstrates that the Braves were not simply looking for additional pitching depth. They were seriously considering bringing in a veteran starter whom they believed could significantly improve their rotation.
DeGrom’s reputation and track record make the interest understandable. When healthy, he has established himself as one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball. However, his recent career has also included injury concerns, making the financial and roster implications of such a move particularly important.
Atlanta ultimately did not complete the deal, but the fact that it apparently reached the point of discussing deGrom’s no-trade clause indicates that the Braves were serious.
The Braves were also exploring other starting-pitching options before the deadline. Among the pitchers linked to Atlanta was Los Angeles Angels right-hander José Soriano.
However, according to the reporting, Atlanta’s front office did not view most of the other available starters as genuine difference-makers. The organization reportedly considered Skubal and deGrom to be in a different category, while other possibilities did not necessarily represent an improvement over what the Braves already had internally.
That evaluation helps explain why Atlanta did not simply make a deal for the sake of adding another arm.
The Braves eventually missed out on Soriano as well, with the Toronto Blue Jays completing a trade with the Angels. There is an interesting connection there because Anthopoulos previously worked in Toronto and remains closely associated with the organization’s successful era.
From Atlanta’s perspective, losing out on Soriano was undoubtedly disappointing. But the bigger story is that the Braves apparently had a very specific standard for what they wanted to accomplish at the deadline.
Rather than adding a pitcher who would only marginally improve the rotation, Atlanta was apparently searching for someone capable of making a meaningful impact.
That approach may also explain why some Braves fans were frustrated with the team’s activity at the trade deadline. Fans often expect contenders to make significant moves when opportunities arise, particularly when weaknesses are apparent.
Yet the latest information provides some context for the strategy Anthopoulos and the Braves front office were following.
Atlanta wasn’t necessarily inactive because it didn’t want to improve. Instead, the organization appears to have been focused on a limited number of pitchers it believed could genuinely change the team’s outlook.
Tarik Skubal was reportedly at the top of that group, although acquiring him would have required a massive package of talent. DeGrom was another major target, and Atlanta was reportedly prepared to take on a considerable financial commitment to bring him aboard.
With both options proving difficult to secure, the Braves eventually had to make a decision about whether to pursue less impactful alternatives or maintain confidence in their existing rotation.
That decision could ultimately determine how the second half of the season unfolds.
There are already reasons for Atlanta to feel somewhat encouraged about its pitching staff. The team’s starters produced encouraging performances earlier in the week, giving the organization another reason to believe that the rotation might be capable of holding up without a blockbuster addition.
The situation becomes even more interesting when considering what happened elsewhere around the league. Casey Mize, for example, surrendered eight earned runs in his debut with the San Diego Padres against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Performances like that can reinforce the idea that not every available starting pitcher represents a clear upgrade.
For Atlanta, the challenge now is proving that its decision-making process was correct.
If the Braves’ existing starters perform well and the rotation remains healthy, the organization could eventually look justified for refusing to sacrifice significant assets for a pitcher who did not meet its standards.
But if the rotation struggles down the stretch, questions about the deadline will inevitably return.
The deGrom revelation makes the situation even more fascinating because it shows that Atlanta was apparently willing to go much further than its final deadline results suggested.
The Braves were reportedly prepared to take on tens of millions of dollars in salary and had advanced discussions with Texas. The only major obstacle may have been deGrom’s willingness to approve the move.
Ultimately, the Braves did not land the Rangers ace, and they also missed out on Soriano. But the latest reporting indicates that Atlanta’s front office had a clear strategy: pursue a true impact starter rather than settle for an ordinary upgrade.
Whether that strategy works will become clearer as the season progresses.
For now, Braves fans can take some comfort in knowing that the organization was actively exploring major opportunities. The real question is whether the pitching staff can deliver enough over the remainder of the season to make those missed opportunities irrelevant.
If Atlanta’s starters continue performing at a high level, the decision to stand firm could look increasingly smart. If injuries or inconsistent performances become a problem, however, fans may look back at the deGrom negotiations and wonder what might have happened if the trade had actually gone through.
Either way, the revelation that a deGrom trade was reportedly so close adds another fascinating layer to the Braves’ deadline story.
