The Atlanta Braves have decisions to make this offseason, as the team’s front office plots how it wants to construct the roster headed into the 2026 season. Considering it is MLB’s hot stove season, the rumor mill is swirling from all angles, and the trade market may be the best way to add impactful players without having to dip into the payroll.
Braves catcher Sean Murphy has become the subject of trade rumors since the July trade deadline, but he was ultimately not moved. Could this be the offseason that Atlanta offloads Sean Murphy? After Drake Baldwin put together a Rookie of the Year campaign, it might be time.
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Braves Trade Idea with Rays Offloads Sean Murphy
The time is now to trade Sean Murphy. The 2023 All-Star catcher is entering his age-31 season and is in the middle of a six-year, $73 million contract.
In this trade idea, the Braves acquire Tampa Bay Rays‘ starter Shane Baz and prospect Tre’ Morgan in return for catcher Sean Murphy.
MLB.com recently came out with a piece outlining all 30 MLB teams’ biggest needs this offseason, and for the Rays, the “need” is a catcher:
“The Rays like their current defensive-minded duo, Hunter Feduccia and Nick Fortes, and they expect both to be more comfortable next season after coming over at the Trade Deadline. Plus, offensive-oriented prospect Dominic Keegan isnât far behind in Triple-A. But itâs hard to ignore that their catchers hit just .185 with an MLB-worst .592 OPS last season.”
The Braves’ biggest need is outlined as a controllable, durable starter, which they would obtain in Shane Baz.
Although Murphy comes with power upside, he’s hit below .200 in back-to-back seasons, while also not appearing in over 100 games. It would be an upgrade for the Rays because of their weakness at catcher on the depth chart, but Atlanta will likely move forward with Drake Baldwin as the everyday catcher in 2026.
What Would Shane Baz Bring to Atlanta?
Adding Shane Baz wouldn’t be the most flashy move off the offseason by any means, but the Braves aren’t expected to open up the checkbook for the top starters on the market due to their already strong frontline rotation pieces.
Shane Baz would slot in as the No.4/No.5 option and add depth.
He made 31 starts in 2025 and posted a 4.87 ERA over 166.1 innings. He has some slight injury concerns (missed all of 2023), but Baz seems to be finding his footing at the big-league level and would at least be able to take the ball every fifth day.
In 2025, six Braves starters spent at least six weeks on the IL, which is just extremely detrimental to a pitching staff, and resulted in Atlanta picking up bad starters all season long.
This trade idea would allow the Braves to get rid of some of Murphy’s contract, while gaining another arm that the team’s coaching staff can help develop.
It will be interesting to see if Sean Murphy’s name continues to pop up in trade rumors as the MLB winter meetings progress.
