Nicky Lopez Contract: Breaking down Braves slugger’s salary details in 2023

Since being acquired by the Atlanta Braves at the trade deadline, Nicky Lopez has been making a name for himself in a big way. He is doing all of this on an affordable one-year, $3,700,000 contract.

The Braves are only paying him $1,233,304 this season, with the Kansas City Royals paying the remainder. He has another two years of arbitration to go and will become an unrestricted free agent in 2026.

He started 2023 with the Royals, who currently have the second-worst record in MLB. Now he is contributing to the team with the best record in baseball.

While the sample size thus far is small, he has exceeded nearly all expectations the Braves had for him. This is a very team-friendly deal for Atlanta which is proving to be one of the best-run organizations in baseball.

The Braves didn't make too much noise at the trade deadline, but the move they did make seems to be working out so far.

"Acknowledge Nicky Lopez as the best player acquired by any team at the trade deadline" - Jared Carrabis

He even got it done from the mound, pitching a scoreless inning to close out a win over the Mets. Now does Shohei Ohtani have some competition? No, he doesn't.

"Lopez pitched a scoreless 9th after going 4-for-6 with a homer and 5 RBI. Unicorn" - Jomboy Media

The Braves are the best team in baseball at the moment, and finding great value players like Lopez is a big part of why.

Is Nicky Lopez part of the Atlanta Braves' long-term plans?

The Braves are a team that constantly has their eyes on the future and is looking to strike deals. Considering how Lopez has performed thus far, a long-term deal for shockingly low value could be in the cards.

They acquired him from the Royals for reasons that he is now making very clear, and this partnership could last a lot longer.