Rangers called 'way-too-early' favorite to snatch Braves superstar

The 2024 Major League Baseball trade deadline now is behind us.

There was plenty of speculation about who possibly could be moved and a plethora of moves actually got done. Unsurprisingly, there were way more rumors than actual trades made but that just is the nature of the business.

Now that the trade deadline is behind us, the next big talking point that will pop up across baseball is free agency. It's far too early to know anything about who could move and what teams will be interested, but Bleacher Report's Zachary Rymer put together a list of "way-too-early" free-agent predictions and linked Braves ace Max Fried to the Texas Rangers.

"Freddie Freeman's departure is a warning to Atlanta fans not to put too much hope in a reunion on the open market. Any number of usual-suspect big spenders could get in on Fried, including the (New York Yankees), (Los Angeles Dodgers), (San Francisco Giants), and (Boston Red Sox).

"And what about the Texas Rangers? They'll have Max Scherzer coming off their hands this winter, and filling his spot with a younger top-of-the-rotation starter would be a good strategy to keep up with the (Seattle Mariners) and (Houston Astros) in the American League West."

Texas already has a loaded starting rotation but changes could be on the way. Fried will be a free agent at the end of the season and it's unclear if he will be back with the Braves. He will be one of the top pitchers on the open market and it won't be surprising if a handful of contenders get involved with the sweepstakes but it's too early to tell.

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