{"id":3689,"date":"2017-02-12T15:35:04","date_gmt":"2017-02-12T20:35:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonbaseball.com\/?p=3689"},"modified":"2017-02-12T15:35:04","modified_gmt":"2017-02-12T20:35:04","slug":"atlanta-braves-acquire-brandon-phillips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2017\/02\/12\/atlanta-braves-acquire-brandon-phillips\/","title":{"rendered":"Atlanta Braves Acquire Brandon Phillips"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Atlanta Braves <\/strong>have acquired Brandon Phillips<\/a> <\/strong>via a trade with the Cincinnati Reds<\/strong>. The Reds will receive minor league pitchers Andrew McKirahan<\/a> <\/strong>and Carlos Portuondo<\/a><\/strong> as reported by Zach Buchanan<\/strong>. Cincinnati will also eat a large portion of Phillips\u2019 contract for 2017, making this trade a slam dunk for Atlanta.<\/p>\n

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Multiple baseball sources: Reds to receive 27-year-old LHP Andrew McKirahan and 29-year-old RHP Carlos Portuondo.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Zach Buchanan (@ZachENQ) February 12, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Atlanta Braves Acquire Brandon Phillips from Reds<\/h2>\n

Why Atlanta Pulled the Trigger<\/h3>\n

The reasons for Atlanta making the trade were not immediately clear. After all, the team has two highly touted second base prospects in Ozzie Albies<\/a> <\/strong>and Travis Demeritte<\/a><\/strong>. Super utility-man Sean Rodriguez<\/a> <\/strong>was also signed this offseason with the expectation that he would see lots of playing time at second base. The issue, as reported by Mark Bowman<\/strong>, seems to be that Rodriguez may have been injured during a car crash with his family in January.<\/p>\n

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The Braves initially thought Rodriguez was not injured during a Jan. 28 crash, but they’ve recently became more concerned about his shoulder<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) February 12, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Other reports indicate that Rodriguez may miss between three and five months as a result of shoulder surgery. Phillips, who attended Redan High School<\/strong> in Stone Mountain, Georgia, gives the Braves a veteran presence at second base while their young studs round into form.<\/p>\n

The Details<\/h3>\n

The Braves were able to fill a need without surrendering anything of significance or paying a large sum of money. McKirahan and Portuondo are two players without a legitimate shot of breaking through in Atlanta. The Reds were also willing to pay a large portion of Phillips\u2019 salary simply to make room for young infielders Jose Peraza<\/a> <\/strong>and Dilson Herrera<\/a><\/strong>. Moving Phillips, a fan-favorite in Cincinnati, was a hard decision at such a low cost, but the Reds want their young players to see playing time. For the Braves, the trade met a need without sacrificing any of the young talent they have acquired over the past two seasons. Bringing Phillips home looks like a win for Atlanta.<\/p>\n

Should the one game play-in Wild Card be expanded to a three game series?<\/a> in LastWordOnSports’s Hangs<\/a> on LockerDome<\/a><\/span>