Astros, Braves on verge of trade involving Andrew Robinson

The Astros and Braves are on the verge of a trade that would send Triple-A right-hander Andrew Robinson to Atlanta, according to an industry source. The full details of the trade, which was first reported by Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet, are not yet known at this time.

While this could potentially be a minor trade to give the Braves some bullpen depth in the minors, Robinson could be a piece of a larger deal between the two clubs. The 26-year old has a 2.40 ERA in 41.1 innings between Double-A and Triple-A on the year and was named to the Texas League All-Star Game before being promoted to Oklahoma City, meaning that he does have some value.

Also, minor trades that involve a non-40-man roster player being dealt for cash considerations or another non-40-man roster player are usually announced very quickly. That was not the case with this deal, as Robinson was notified on Thursday morning and there is still no announcement.

So yes, the Astros could have decided to send Robinson to a place where he has a better chance of reaching the majors and received something small in return for him. But his success this year and the lack of an official announcement makes me think that something bigger could be at play here. Just my speculation.