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Talking Chop

https://www.talkingchop.com/ | 315 entries published

Your one stop shop for everything Atlanta Braves

Latest Entries

Braves reportedly interested in Robert Suarez and “priced” Edwin Díaz

As mentioned in the rumor that our own Scott Coleman shared on Tuesday, the Braves are apparently being pretty aggressive in their pursuit of improving their pitching staff ahead of 2026. Alex Anthopoulos has hinted at it and Walt Weiss in his press conference yesterday straight-up said that they’re going to need great pitching if […]

about 3 hours ago | 0 reads

Walt Weiss: “I expect our offense to be really good” in 2026

With the Winter Meetings rolling along, newly-hired Atlanta Braves manager Walt Weiss spoke with the media down in Orlando as every other manager has been doing for the past couple of days. There were a couple of interesting moments that came from the press conference that indicate that even though Weiss is an internal hire, […]

MLB

about 4 hours ago | 0 reads

Would you have added Michael Soroka for $7.5 million?

We all love Michael Soroka. We’re all sad his career has gone the way it has, right? Well, Soroka had his second-best season last year, putting up 1.1 fWAR for the Nationals and Cubs. He actually had 1.2 fWAR for the Nationals in 16 starts, but then kind of imploded while barely pitching for the […]

about 5 hours ago | 0 reads

Braves News: Draft Lottery results, hot stove, and more

The MLB Draft Lottery took place on Tuesday evening, and the Atlanta Braves unfortunately slipped a few spots. Heading into the lottery, Atlanta had the sixth-best odds. Instead, the Braves will have the ninth overall pick in the 2026 draft.  The Chicago White Sox will pick first, followed by the Tampa Bay Rays and Minnesota […]

about 5 hours ago | 1 read

Atlanta Braves fall to ninth in 2026 MLB Draft order after Draft Lottery

As I’m writing this, the 2025 MLB Draft Lottery is currently ongoing but the Atlanta Braves currently have all the information they need. That’s pretty bad news because they ended up slipping from their spot in the odds. The Braves went into the Lottery with the sixth-best odds but will be leaving with the ninth […]

about 20 hours ago | 0 reads

The Battery Power Mock 2026 MLB Draft Lottery Simulation

By now, I think everyone is aware that there is a MLB draft lottery tonight and the Braves are involved. Everyone is probably aware that the Braves have the sixth-best odds of getting the highest pick. What I needed to look up was how the draft actually occurred. That is, once the odds were determined, […]

about 24 hours ago | 0 reads

Braves among multiple teams reportedly interested in Willi Castro

The Winter Meetings are underway and folks, we have a rumor. Fascinating, I know. Anyways, even though our Atlanta Braves are apparently prioritizing starting pitching when it comes to improving their squad, Braves President/GM Alex Anthopoulos did say that they wouldn’t let priorities get in the way of finding a deal that makes sense for […]

1 day ago | 1 read

2025 season in Review: Raisel Iglesias

It was a tumultuous season for Raisel Iglesias in his contract walk year. While his results eventually balanced out into something akin to his expected production, his struggles with home runs early set the tone for a disastrous Braves season overall. How acquired The Braves acquired Iglesias from the Angels back at the 2022 Trade […]

1 day ago | 1 read

Rule 5 Draft thoughts and names: 2025 Edition

In theory, I love the Rule 5 Draft. Or, more accurately, I love the idea of what the Rule 5 Draft was created for. Basically, back in the day, MLB had a problem with some teams signing and stashing guys that could probably be productive major leaguers in their farm system. This was all before […]

MLB

1 day ago | 0 reads

Braves News: 2026 MLB Draft Lottery, Winter Meetings, More

Day 1 of the 2026 Winter Meetings was ice cold in terms of actual moves. However, there were, as expected, plenty of rumors going around in Orlando. For the Braves, there was a bit of news in the minor league signing of reliever James Karinchak. But overall, the biggest news of the day was former […]

1 day ago | 0 reads

This Day in Braves History: Bobby Cox is elected to the Hall of Fame

Braves Franchise History  1976 – The Braves acquire Jeff Burroughs from the Rangers. 1992 – The Braves sign free agent Cy Young Award and Gold Glove winner Greg Maddux to a five-year contract, and then trade pitchers Charlie Leibrandt and Pat Gomez to the Rangers in exchange for 3B Jose Oliva. Maddux turned down a […]

1 day ago | 0 reads

Braves sign reliever James Karinchak to Minor-League Deal

The Braves made a move at the Winter Meetings! And if you were ready for minor-league bullpen depth as the move to make, then it is your lucky day. The Braves agreed to a minor-league contract with reliever James Karinchak on Monday night. Karinchak was a reliever in Cleveland from 2019 to 2023, and put […]

1 day ago | 0 reads

Winter Meetings open thread: December 8

The first official day of the Winter Meetings is over, with things set to get busier over the next couple of days with the MLB Draft Lottery and the Rule 5 Draft on the threshold. There haven’t been any serious rumors to discuss — well, other than David O’Brien of The Athletic reporting that the […]

MLB

2 days ago | 0 reads

2025 Atlanta Braves Player Reviews

To say that 2025 was a disappointment for the Atlanta Braves would be an understatement. A team that had World Series aspirations going into the season ended up having a calamitous start that ended up being an omen for things to come, as the Braves ended up missing the Postseason entirely for the first time […]

2 days ago | 3 reads

Atlanta Braves 2026 MLB Draft Lottery Primer

The order for the 2026 MLB Draft gets set on Tuesday December 9th, and the Braves are in position to potentially land a very juicy pick via the lottery thanks to their disappointing and injury-filled 2025 season. The lottery will be at 5:30 PM on MLB Network with the Braves having the ninth worst record, […]

2 days ago | 0 reads

2025 Player Reviews: Nick Allen

The diminutive shortstop played Gold Glove-caliber defense as a surprising starter for the Braves, but his offensive production was the worst in baseball, making it only a one-year escapade with Atlanta for the 27-year-old. How acquired The Braves traded for Allen on November 11, 2024, sending minor league pitcher Jared Johnson to the Athletics. At […]

2 days ago | 0 reads

Who will lead the Braves in innings in 2026?

One day, the fact that Bryce Elder led the 2025 Braves in innings will be a fun factoid, rather than a painful one. The innings leaders for the teams in the half-decade before that weren’t ever surprising, until perhaps when you get to 2019, which featured a tie between Michael Soroka and Julio Teheran. (I […]

2 days ago | 0 reads

Braves News: Winter Meetings, Dale Murphy, Grant Holmes, More

The best time of the MLB offseason is finally here as the Winter Meetings are beginning in Orlando. However, on Sunday, the focus of Braves Country was on franchise legend Dale Murphy and his latest opportunity to get into the Hall of Fame. Unfortunately, Murphy did not get the required votes from the Contemporary Baseball […]

2 days ago | 0 reads

Dale Murphy fails to receive induction into 2026 Baseball Hall of Fame

On Sunday evening in Orlando Florida, the Baseball Hall of Fame revealed the results of the 2025 Contemporary Baseball Era Committee’s ballot to see who would get a trip through this particular method. Of the eight players who were eligible to make it in, Dale Murphy was on the ballot. Granted, Murphy was a long […]

MLB

3 days ago | 0 reads

Alex Anthopoulos: “There are a lot of areas where we can improve”

The Winter Meetings have (un-)officially gotten started, as all of baseball’s higher-ups and luminaries have descended upon Orlando, Florida for a week of getting some offseason business done. While we’re all looking forward to fireworks, Alex Anthopoulos is simply trying to get a job done — even if it means starting it at the Winter […]

MLB

3 days ago | 0 reads

Grant Holmes now treated as “healthy” by Braves

Ahead of the 2025 Winter Meetings, Alex Anthopoulos spoke with the media and provided a positive update on Atlanta Braves pitcher Grant Holmes. Anthopoulos told reporters, including David O’Brien of the Athletic, that the organization is treating Holmes as a healthy pitcher after his 2025 season was cut-short due to an elbow injury. Holmes opted […]

3 days ago | 0 reads

2025 Atlanta Braves Player Review: AJ Smith-Shawver

AJ Smith-Shawver just turned 23. Literally, he turned 23 a couple weeks ago, on November 20. Given that he pitched in Atlanta in both 2023 and 2024, it always breaks my brain a bit to remember how young he is, even though he’s got parts of three MLB seasons under his belt. Selected in the […]

3 days ago | 0 reads