Atlanta Braves looking to unload Nick Swisher, Michael Bourn

It all seems so long ago. Back in 2013, the Cleveland Indians surged to make the playoffs. Nick Swisher, fresh off a four-year, $56 million contract — the largest free agent deal in franchise history — played 145 games and posted 3.6 rWAR. Michael Bourn, signed late in the offseason to a four-year, $48 million deal, played 130 games and had 2.3 rWAR. They haven’t been the same ever since.

The Indians traded away the final guaranteed seasons of Swisher and Bourn, along with additional cash, to the Atlanta Braves on August 7. In return, the Indians took on the longer contract of Chris Johnson, another similarly overpaid player. Now, just a few months later, Atlanta — led by President of Baseball Operations John Hart — is looking to move Swisher and Bourn again, via FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal:

#Braves aggressively shopping OFers Bourn, Swisher, Maybin, one rival official says. Braves GM Coppolella denies that is case with Maybin.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) November 11, 2015

Rosenthal expanded in later tweets how the initial trade was mainly for Atlanta to save Johnson’s 2017 guaranteed salary hit of $9 million. The team is expected to move into the controversial new SunTrust Park in Cobb County that season. After a 67-95 record in 2015, the Braves are plotting for the future and looking to rebuild on the fly. However, the details of this retooling are starting to get complicated. That’s how unloading Swisher and Bourn could allow for more flexibility.

The Braves recently announced a move to left field for 30-year-old Cuban slugger Hector Olivera, acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers in July. That leads to a very crowded outfield situation. Complicating matters for Atlanta is the presence of not only outfielder Cameron Maybin, who produced just 0.6 rWAR last season in 141 games, but the three years and $33 million left to solid veteran outfielder Nick Markakis. The team also now has a glaring opening at third base. And ESPN’s Jonah Keri later reported the team could soon be dealing shortstop aficionado Andrelton Simmons, as well.

It’s somewhat frightening to look back at the rationalizations and excitement of the Swisher and Bourn signings in hindsight. Yes, it is hard to quantify how important that 2013 wild card appearance was to restoring some moderate faith in Cleveland baseball. But in the end, both players declined very quickly and both serve as perfect examples of the risk of major free agency spending. Many believed that the deals were structured so that it’d be easy to trade both players later in their careers. That turned out to not be the case, either for Cleveland or likely for Atlanta.

Keep an eye on this to see if the Braves can somehow find a taker for the $29 million still attached to Swisher and Bourn for this season. Perhaps they could be packaged in multiple deals. It’s going to take some John Hart wizardry, for sure.