DALLAS (AP) — Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos said his offseason activities will not be limited by the realization that tougher fines will be imposed on teams that exceed the luxury tax limit in three consecutive seasons.

“I think the big problem with this is when you lose draft picks,” Anthopoulos said. “Dollars are still taken for granted. But it’s just a tax. It’s just a percentage you go up by. It’s for every dollar that passes. You are aware of it, but it doesn’t stop you from doing something. If the right opportunity presents itself, we will do it.”

Anthopoulos will weigh what opportunities might arise as talks ramp up during this week’s winter meetings in Dallas. Updates on the offseason injuries to Ronald Acuña Jr., Spencer Strider and Joe Jiménez result in some additional offseason demands and, consequently, increased potential costs.

According to FanGraphs’ RosterResource, the Braves’ estimated luxury tax payroll is just over $217 million, about $24 million below MLB’s first luxury tax threshold for the 2025 season.

Teams whose payroll exceeds a threshold are taxed for every dollar above the threshold, with the tax rate increasing based on the number of consecutive years a club has exceeded the threshold. The Braves would be taxed at a 50 percent rate, as this would be the third consecutive year they exceed the threshold.

The potential cost to the Braves likely wouldn’t be significant since they likely won’t have exorbitant surpluses.

“The tax and things like that are just a mathematical equation, it’s just dollars spent,” Anthopoulos said. “You have to spend X amount of dollars. They bake it in and that’s part of our overall expenses. They simply explain it. But it hasn’t stopped us from doing things in the past.”

For clubs $40 million or more above the threshold, the highest selection in the next Rule 4 draft will be moved back 10 spots unless the selection falls within the top six. In this case, the team’s second-highest selection will instead be moved back 10 spots.

Anthopoulos made it clear that the current priority is to do whatever will benefit the current big league roster.

“It all comes back to the major league team and if you can make your major league team better, especially when we’re in a position that we’re in, that we’re capable of at this moment with this core “To win.” That will always be the priority.”

Flexibility is always key. The Braves entered the offseason with hopes that Acuña (torn right ACL) and Strider (UCL surgery) could both be available around Opening Day. They didn’t even know that Jiménez (left knee surgery) would miss time. The team has not announced schedules, but Strider will likely miss April and Acuña could be out until at least the end of May. Jiménez will miss most or all of 2025.

“These are three monster pieces,” Anthopoulos said. “It’s one thing when you lose a bench player or a reliever or even a last man in your bullpen, but that’s a Cy Young starter candidate, an MVP-caliber position player and an eighth-inning guy who is that good how…” it will be. It had an impact.”

So should the priority be an outfielder, a starting pitcher and a reliever?

“There are just so many areas where we can improve, especially when you look at all the injuries we’ve had,” Anthopoulos said. “Depth is always important. We are open to everything. Bullpen, offense, rotation. We have had discussions about 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.”

Some industry insiders believe Anthopoulos will focus on getting an outfielder. His current outfield could consist of Jarred Kelenic, Michael Harris II and Eli White. There is a need to explain Acuña’s absence with a player who could also become an everyday left fielder in June, and there are still concerns that Kelenic could be an everyday player.

Strider could miss four or five starts and then join a rotation that should include Chris Sale, Reynaldo López and Spencer Wechselbach. Anthopoulos hinted that Grant Holmes could be used as a starter next year, but that doesn’t rule out the possibility of adding a starter via a trade or free agency. But whether he’s used as a starter or reliever, Holmes will have to stay in the big leagues because he’s out of options.