Swanson unsurprised by Braves exit: 'They were going to move on'

Newly signed Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson admitted Wednesday that he was disappointed but not surprised that a reunion with the Atlanta Braves wasn't in the cards.

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't hope that I would be back home," Swanson said, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers. "Atlanta is where I always envisioned myself, especially after I got traded. I'm a homebody."

Swanson added: "There's deep roots there, but at the end of the day, I reached out (to Atlanta) plenty in the offseason … and got the pretty clear sense that they were going to move on. We were on our honeymoon, and we felt (Chicago) is where we were supposed to be."

The Cubs and Swanson finalized a seven-year contract reportedly worth $177 million on Wednesday. The Braves' final offer was reportedly in the neighborhood of $100 million over six years, according to The Athletic's Jeff Schultz.

Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos also shared that Swanson was willing to take "a lot less" to remain in Atlanta, per Schultz.

This marks the second consecutive offseason with a major departure from the Braves' 2021 World Series-winning roster after Freddie Freeman joined the Los Angeles Dodgers ahead of the 2022 campaign.

Atlanta is currently projected to begin the 2023 season with 21-year-old Vaughn Grissom as the starting shortstop.

Grissom made just two appearances at the position last year, with the majority of his playing time coming at second base in the absence of Ozzie Albies.