At the one-third mark of the Major League Baseball season, the Atlanta Braves have an interesting choice to make.
Regardless of what anyone in the front office says or has said, this season began with the very realistic expectation that this would be a non-contending team. I remember on opening day listening to John Hart respond to Joe Simpson and Chip Caray's questions regarding the shocking Craig Kimbrel trade and for the first time he admitted as much.
On that day, after weeks of trades aimed at making the team's future bright, Hart said he never wanted to trade Kimbrel but the chance to make such a good move for the future was too good to pass up.
The move - which rid the team of Melvin Upton Jr.'s contract and added a future ace in Matt Wisler - was the very essence of what Hart was hired to do. It also seemingly put the white flag up for 2015, a necessary sacrifice to fix a very broken minor league talent pool.
However, here we are nearly 60 games in and the Braves are just four games out of first place. The team is fun to watch, the young guys are playing better than expected and it's clear that Hart's vision of the team brilliant.
The truth is, though, as currently constituted the Braves will likely hang around .500. That would be a great season. But should Hart and company go for more?
Now, there's no guarantee a move here or there would make the team a contender in what is so far a mediocre NL East. That's the problem. Hart isn't going to give up the pieces he's worked so hard to get for a rental player or two to make a playoff run. And he shouldn't.
The bullpen is the obvious area of need but it's also very difficult to find trade partners in early June willing to trade good pen arms. I would be shocked if any significant trades are made (other than Chris Johnson, who will be dealt for more prospects).
The team made a couple of nice no-risk signings this week, getting veteran relievers Dana Eveland and David Aardsma after they opted out of contracts. They'll be in the Braves' pen soon, so could fan favorite Peter Moylan, whose comeback from TJ surgery is going strong.
Adding three good options to get to Jason Grilli might just be enough to keep the team in the hunt without sacrificing any of the future
Atlanta Braves logoBraves ready for draft haul
The MLB Draft is hardly the national event that the NFL and NBA drafts are, but it's every bit as important. Beginning tonight, the 2015 amateur draft goes for three days and will see hundreds of prep and college players picked.
For the Braves, it's the reward after an offseason of heavy work and tough choices. The team will pick five times tonight, including four of the first 54 choices, and the team has said it will target high-end athletes and lean to the prep side.
Mock drafts (yes, even baseball has them) have the team taking guys like Georgia prep catcher Tyler Stephenson, Indiana prep pitcher Ashe Russell, Georgia prep shortstop Cornelius Randolph, Cincinnati outfielder Ian Happ and a few others with its first pick.
Truth is, the team could go anywhere and it could take some chances because of the number of picks and the huge signing pool it has to go with them. One name to watch is Brady Aiken, the top overall choice a year ago who did not sign with the Astros and subsequently underwent Tommy John surgery or Duke right-hander Michael Matuella, a sure top-five pick before he also had to have elbow surgery.
There aren't many teams that can take a chance on missing, but the Braves (along with the Nationals and Yankees) can. The team might also target a couple of college pitchers who could help this season in the bullpen.
Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James, bottom, drives against Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala during overtime of Game 1 of basketball's NBA Finals in Oakland, Calif., Thursday, June 4, 2015. (AP Photo/Ben Margot) Cleveland shows some heart
I'll admit I want Golden State to win the NBA Championship, but after watching Cleveland win game two Sunday it's impossible not to respect what the Cavs are doing without two of its big three.
People who discounted the team when Irving fractured his knee cap in game one underestimated what got Cleveland here in the first place: stellar defense. Irving isn't a very good defender, but LeBron, Moskov, Tristen Thompson, Matthew Dellavedova (the Tazmanian Devil) and crew are exceptional and the Warriors are finding that out.
I believe the Warriors will still win, but it could go seven and every game from here out is going to be a war.