Braves reportedly trying to add outfielder, could be in play for Corey Dickerson

It would make sense for the Braves to add an outfielder this spring, and the Rays have made a pretty decent one available as they (surprisingly) DFA’d slugger Corey Dickerson on Saturday night. Could the two sides match up in a deal?

Jon Morosi — who is known for reporting his own speculation as rumor instead of actual discussions being had — thinks it might happen.

As things stand the Braves will head into the year with Nick Markakis in right field and a platoon of Lane Adams and Preston Tucker in left. It goes without saying that they could use an upgrade in either area, and the corner spots figure to be a real weakness until Ronald Acuna is deemed ready for the bigs.

Dickerson, 28, actually started as the DH in last summer’s All-Star Game and ended the season with a healthy 2.6 fWAR. That doesn’t tell the whole story, though. Check out his splits:

First half: .312/.355/.548, 139 wRC+, 17 HR

Second half: .241/.282/.408, 80 wRC+, 10 HR

A left-handed hitter, he hits righties far better (124 wRC+) than he does lefties (86). He’s an average defender in left field, logging a +1 DRS over the last two years. Dickerson will be paid just under $6 million for 2018 and will be under control through 2019. He was projected a .262/.308/.472 (104 wRC+) line by ZiPS.

So, he’s not an All-Star by any means — an actual All-Star, we should say — but I’d wager he’s a better option than Markakis or the Adams-Tucker platoon. He would bring power to the lineup, and the Braves are known to be looking for power, although they’d probably prefer a right-handed bat to place 4th behind Freddie Freeman.

Stay tuned...