The Atlanta Braves have a left field problem.

Entering the offseason with obvious needs to address pitching in both the rotation and the bullpen, the Braves chose to create another hole in their roster by declining the $9M club option on starting outfielder Eddie Rosario after watching his platoon-mate Kevin Pillar file for free agency and losing backup Sam Hilliard on a waiver claim.

On a roster and farm system with no clear options to immediately fill the left field vacancy, signs point to either a free agent signing or a position change of Vaughn Grissom.

But both potential paths have flaws.

A position change for Vaughn Grissom has inherent risks – what if he’s…not good? What if the learning curve of developing the proper reads, routes, and reactions in the outfield takes too long, and Grissom actively hurts the Braves in 2024? This is a roster with World Series aspirations, and having a player on the roster that’s actively hurting your chances of winning isn’t something that the team can tolerate for long.

(The counterpoint to this argument is obvious – if there’s any one roster that’s equipped to carry a young player that’s learning on the job, it is Atlanta’s.)

But relying on free agency is fraught, as well, owing to multiple factors.

GM Alex Anthopoulos acknowledged that the expectation is for payroll to continue to increase, but every dollar committed to a free agent outfielder is one less dollar available to pursue that frontline starter Braves fans want to add to a rotation that’s already without Kyle Wright for 2024 (and come 2025, could be without Max Fried…and Michael Soroka, and Yonny Chirinos).