“There are obviously a lot of good players, both in free agency and in trades,” Braves president of baseball operations and general manager Alex Anthopoulos said on Zoom Sunday. “We haven’t been able to achieve anything that we think will work for us at the moment. There is currently no shortage of players in the areas we want to target. It’s just a matter of preparing for trades and signings, which is the nature of any offseason. And often we were pretty aggressive early on. We just haven’t managed to get anything going, so we don’t want to force a deal.

“We’ll see how the next few days go in Dallas, if there’s more action and more activity. But in the last day or two it’s been more active – a lot more calls, a lot more dialogue.”

It appears the sport could see more activity during these winter meetings — especially because Juan Soto, this offseason’s most expensive prize, reportedly agreed to a deal with the Mets on Sunday night. If Soto and one or two other top free agents pick their teams, it could open a path for teams to get more action.

The Braves need an outfielder, starting pitching and bullpen help. Anthopoulos said the Braves would like to add a starter — although he added that the Braves liked what they saw from Grant Holmes and whether he could fit the role. Remember: Ronald Acuña Jr. and Spencer Strider won’t be ready on Opening Day, so the Braves have to expect that, especially in their outfield. Joe Jiménez’s knee surgery means Atlanta will have to wait for at least one or two replacement players.

Your biggest need to attend these winter meetings?

Anthopoulos doesn’t quite see it that way.

“If we were one player away it would be a really great squad and I don’t know that many clubs can say that,” he said. “I think it’s just that you look at this as an opportunity to get better. And yes, of course, those are obvious areas that you would like to address if you have certain gaps or guys who might be leaving as free agents. We have internal options for some of these. We just don’t think of it as a specific need. If you think you want a starter and need a starter – but what if a great opportunity comes along on the position player front? You can always get better, right? It’s about scoring more runs than the other team. That could mean allowing fewer runs or scoring more points. We don’t really go into it and say, ‘This one need is (a) starter.’ I hope the day comes when our roster is complete and we have 25 spots open and one last spot to fill, and that is the last remnant. But there are just so many places where we can get better. Especially when you look at the many injuries we’ve had, depth is always important.

“We’re open to anything: bullpen, offense, rotation. We have had conversations about all three areas: relievers, position players and starters. Trade, free agents – we’re committed to all three (areas). I don’t know what we’ll come up with by the end of the winter, but we’re open to adding all three.”

The question: How much money can Anthopoulos spend this winter? Roster Resource estimates the Braves’ luxury tax payroll is currently around $217 million. That’s about $24 million away from the luxury tax threshold the Braves could cross again. Of course, Anthopoulos hasn’t published his budget for this winter.

After signing Soto, further steps could follow. At least that’s what baseball fans should look forward to in the coming week.

“There is no deadline, is there?” said Anthopoulos. “So I know we’re looking at moments (of more activity), like winter meetings, etc., but we don’t have a deadline. I suspect there will be plenty of activity between now and spring training. There are a lot of players that are being talked about in trades, there are obviously still a lot of free agents. There will be activity. I think, like everything else, people are waiting to find the right thing. There is no doubt that there will be activity. But nobody told me, “Look, I expect to have something done by Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.” I think it’s the nature of the offseason that when you get momentum, things get done. And just keep talking about it.”