1:13pm: The Mariners are sending around $2MM to the Braves in the trade to balance out the difference in salary, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Paired with the remaining money that would’ve been allocated for Biddle’s pre-arb salary, it seems likely that the trade is effectively cash-neutral.
12:51pm: The Mariners announced that they’ve acquired left-handed reliever Jesse Biddle and right-hander Arodys Vizcaino from the Braves in exchange for right-hander Anthony Swarzak and cash. Vizcaino’s inclusion in the trade would appear to be purely a financial component of the trade, as he’s a free agent at season’s end and is not expected to pitch again in 2019 after undergoing shoulder surgery. Vizcaino is on the 60-day injured list, so there are no additional 40-man moves required by the Mariners to accommodate the addition of Biddle, who will report to the team’s Major League bullpen.
Biddle, 27, gave the Braves 63 2/3 innings of 3.11 ERA ball with 9.5 K/9, 4.4 BB/9, 0.85 HR/9 and a 55.6 percent ground-ball rate in 2018, but virtually nothing has gone right for the southpaw so far in 2019. Through 15 appearances and a span of 11 2/3 frames, Biddle has served up seven earned runs (and another four unearned runs) on 18 hits and 10 walks with 11 strikeouts. His velocity has remained strong, as Biddle has averaged 94.1 mph on his fastball so far in 2019.
Because he was out-of-options and playing on a win-now club, Biddle’s fate looked largely sealed as this year’s control struggles continued from April into May. He was designated for assignment by the Braves last week. The Mariners will hope that they’re able to turn him around and get him back to his 2018 form. If they can manage to do so, they’ll control Biddle through the 2023 season. However, he’ll have to sort things out at the big league level, as his lack of minor league options means he can’t be sent down without first being passed through waivers.
For the Braves, they’d already decided to move on from Biddle and stood to watch Vizcaino leave as a free agent at the end of the year, so they’re not really giving up anything to take a cheap look at Swarzak. The 33-year-old Swarzak has struggled to a 5.27 ERA and eight walks (one intentional) in 13 2/3 innings with the Mariners, but he’s also racked up 17 strikeouts. Injuries have hampered him considerably since signing a two-year, $14MM contract with the Mets prior to the 2018 season, as he’s dealt with an oblique strain and a pair of shoulder-related injuries.
In his last full, healthy season in 2017, however, Swarzak turned in 77 1/3 innings with a 2.33 ERA, 10.6 K/9, 2.1 BB/9, 0.70 HR/9 and a 43.9 percent grounder rate between the White Sox and Brewers. That success is recent enough to give the Braves something to dream on as they scour what is likely an extremely thin trade market for bullpen help at this juncture of the season. Atlanta will surely be active in pursuing additional pieces over the next couple of months, but few teams are willing to sell off quality arms in mid-May — and those that are willing to do so generally place lofty asking prices on said arms given the scarce supply this time of year.
Swarzak will head to Atlanta without any sort of guarantee that he’ll be a long-term piece for the remainder of the season. The fact that the Braves unloaded the remaining $3.43MM on Vizcaino’s deal and acquired cash from the Mariners makes it likely that Seattle sent enough money to make this a cash-neutral swap. Swarzak is being paid an $8.5MM salary in 2019 and has about $6.08MM of that sum still to be paid out.
Yes!!!! Finally it has happened. Mr. Swarzak can go be part of another terrible bullpen! Hopefully he won’t be as bad as he was for the Mariners.
In other news the Mariner’s BP still sucks.
If Biddle gets it figured out this might be a great trade for Dipoto.
So in summary: a guy who can’t throw it over the plate and a guy who’s hurt, for a guy who gives up way too many homers and cash. Cash seems to be the most enticing part of this deal.
that’s exactly how I read this hahaha
If the Braves are to pick up even a cent of Swarzaks contract this is a terrible move
The $ figures are probably a wash. That’s why they also gave the Braves cash and took Vizcaino. I think he was making around $4 mill or so this year even though he will become a free agent before he ever pitches for a team again. Hopefully Swarzak will benifit from a change of scenery. If not, realese him and we are in the same is situation we were in anyway.
Honestly if it’s cash neutral it’s still a loss for the Braves.
You’d rather have 33 year old Swarzak who looks lost than 27 year old Biddle who looks lost but has 4 years of control to sort it out?
Swarzak has never been good to top it off. As long as it’s cash neutral it’s not a huge issue but they definitely didn’t make a move that’s better for them. At best it just doesn’t hurt them.
I agree, MJ… except for the fact that Biddle has already been DFA’ed, and either SEA or another rebuilding team is likely to have claimed Biddle and those 4 years of pre-arb eligibility for nothing, via waivers.
Oh no doubt, I would have been fine getting nothing for Biddle and in my opinion we did get nothing. Biddle had very very minor value at best, nothing worth considering as relevant.
I guess my second comment about it being a loss if it was cash neutral is off base. It’s neither a win or a loss if it’s cash neutral. The original comment was just making sure we hadn’t added an money, then for sure would have been a loss. That was before the cash details were announced in the post.
Seems like a really bad deal for the Braves, trading players with actual upside for one with very little.
And I’m not saying it’s bad like it will hurt the team very much, but just bad in a value sense.
I don’t think the Braves are concerned w/ value at this point. The bullpen has been a glaring hole, and their inability to fix it this offseason w/ proven names, is catching up.
They’ll continue to bring new people in, I feel.
Vizcaino had probably thrown his last pitch as a Brave and Biddle was DFAed, so they were going to lose him anyway. Mine as well get something for them.
Viz is a free agent at season’s end and Biddle was gonna be claimed by someone because he was already DFA’d… salaries match, so we’re basically trading nothing for a long shot. Not exactly a good trade, but I wouldn’t call it “really bad” either.
Swarzak is terrible lol
And I would have to say the insight you provide on every article you comment on, including Yankees ones, is also “terrible”.
Someone is a bitter person lmaooo. You are going to want Swarzak gone within a week and a half
I still believe that if Biddle can get his head screwed on right he could be very good. guy just has a serious case of the yips
you might understand if you knew his injury history.
Anything get to swarzak gone. Thank god.
Braves feel the same about Biddle.
If the Braves didn’t get done kind of financial relief in this it’s a bad deal.
I’ve long been against Biddle being on the Braves but there’s always a chance you give him a couple years in the minors he turns it around.
Swarzaks career is over and he’s expensive. Braves better not be paying him anything, the deal better be M’s get Biddle and we save a couple mil shipping off Viz. that’s the only way this is anything of value go ATL
Biddle is out of options so the Braves could not send him to the minors. It’s major league team or release for him.
They couldn’t send Biddle to the minors.
yeah but he can accept a Minor assignment if he wished is what MJ he’s saying I think…No reason you can’t offer for him to stick around and minors to get work right? Or not, I may be wrong
He would have to clear waivers and there’s zero chance of that happening.
Offer it and he denies, then goes free.
At least Atlanta got something.
the only time Swarzak was bad in the NL was when he was with the Mets. I don’t completely count that because being on the Mets has that effect to people. So he will be good with the Braves. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
This deal is more swaping Cash than anything, Viz is Out till possible Sept Or Out for the rest of season, Biddle also lost with no option.
Braves Making room ($$) for Kimbrel
It’s a grasp at straws gamble on both ends giving each guy a fresh start in a new environment; that and viz was easily as good as gone in ATL once again..
Consider it taking the recycling bin out for both teams.
Over/Under on how many of these middling reliever trades by July 30?!…gotta be near 20 sheesh
I forgot viz was a FA at year end. Pretty good deal considering … nothing to get too excited about but nice to get a little extra cash that we won’t spend to improve the bullpen.
Better to have it and not use (need) it, than to need it and not have it.
Braves front office new motto everyone!…’Better to have it and not use it’.
lol nice work @bravesfan
It’s only funny cause it’s very true
I will say this… From any third party team or Seattle themselves, it looks better for the Mariners. Biddle was already DFA’d and Vizcaino was done until he hit free agency. Biddle is younger and under team control for nearly half a decade. However, the Braves had already sent him to the minors(optioned him) then brought him back up before he had time to figure anything out. That wasn’t smart. They should have either held onto that option and (I know this is hard for the Braves bullpen) given him time off or let him pitch in lost blowouts or better yet… Left him in the minors for an extended period of time until he figured it out on his LAST option. He was down for less than a week. Would any team rather get a bum that preforms well and leaves at the end of the season or a younger bum that performs well and is under cheap team control for almost the next half decade. Both teams have little to expect but Seattle has more to hope for. The Braves brought Biddle up from his last option waaaay to soon.
I’ll wait until the trade deadline passes to make a judgement on the budget. I don’t mind them holding out until July 31st if they make some moves and spend some cash there.
The bullpen is the clear #1 hole, so the next 2+ months should show some changes there.
I look this deal similar at last year with Brach Bach, he will benefit going to NL league with better defense, this guy is a more ground ball pitching.
Man what is it going to take for the braves and ownership to fix the only hole we have. We can be a playoff bound team but not getting consistent outs in the 7-8-9 is going to hurts us in the long run
If fans continue to come to games and spend money, they couldn’t careless if they win a title or not.
It’s Atlanta. Fans only show up to a team that is winning
If the playoffs started today, the Braves would be a Wildcard team. The bullpen continues to improve. Are you really sure your overt condemnation of the Atlanta brass is warranted? So far they’ve fielded a team that’s competing, they have trade deadline money to spend, and they haven’t dented the future at all to make reasonably good things happen in the present. I like what I’m seeing so far in 2019, but—more importantly—I think I’m going to LOVE what I see in 2020, 2021, 2022…
The Braves need money!!??
If it’s cash neutral, why not give it a shot. If Swarzak sucks, kick him to the curb.
Reminds me of the Andrew Cashner story on MLBTR several days ago about him being someone else’s early-season acquisition.
Perhaps the Braves can send Swarzak, his contract, and something of value to BAL if/when he doesn’t work out in exchange for Cashner.
Jerry being Jerry.
i think its unreasonable to believe Biddle would not agree to resigning on a minors deal. given his need for more experience, it would do him well.
Why would he take a minor league deal if he got claimed off waivers by a major league team?
Like this deal for the Braves. Finally, no more Viz.
Its like this, you were gonna have your broken car and motorbike towed away for nothing and someone offered you a broken 4 wheeler in exchange that you might get working…. not much bad here.
the dipoto regular season wheeling and dealing has just begun.. sit back, boys, there’s more to come haha.
The best part is Liberty gets 2 million for the piggy bank, I give Swarzak a month or so….. then back to the scrap heap.
I like it for Seattle. Like you can’t dislike it for either team, realistically, but I like it better for Seattle
Addition by subtraction
Swarzak has given up 6 home runs in his last 9 innings. It was like if Servais put him in durin a close game,the game was as good as over. Swarzak enters the game? Might as well turn off the TV or go home. As a Seattle fan I find it sad, because the M’s had high hopes that Swarzak could do well in the closer’s role. Nonetheless, I’m glad Servais won’t be running him out there anymore in the late innings.
Looks like “rearranging the deck chairs”.At least its change and maybe will help both teams, but no strong bets on that. ATL’s RISP hitting must get back to last year’s & starters go 7 or its 3rd place in the East.
Vizcaino is going to be a free agent at the end of the year, so it’s really just a money thin, which makes it better, but I could definitely see the M’s working out a 2-year extension with him that would pay him like $10 mil
I’d like to trade my trash for yours. Ok we have a deal
Is he the closer now in ATL?
No. Luke Jackson is the closer.
Dumpster diving, yikes!
just curious if braves DFAd anthony, are they still on the hook for his 6 million or is it the team that picks him up? All in all not a bad trade.
Worth a try. The Braves have now released or optioned just about everyone that started the season in the bullpen. It was about time. Newcomb is looking good out there so far. If we can get the starters to go seven or more, we’re in the running.
With that bullpen and no closer?
I have watched Jesse Biddle since he wasa senior in high school. He is a sensitive kid who has talent. His sensitivity overcomes his intellect and he frets to his demise usually.
The Braves are his best friends, giving him a schance at the top level, now sending him to a new league where he can get a fresh start and hopefully some mentoring along the way so he can gain some maturity and internal confidence. He has ability, no doubt and everyone has seen him impress at times through streeks of real greatness. He truly needs some social adjustment so he can go out and play the game and not feel as if the whole world is on his shoulders. He needs to focus, take it a pitch at a time, a situation at a time and stay away from those highs and lows, just grim and steady, if you will, if he can. It’s not an easy task getting inside an athlete’s head. He really needs a good sports pyschologist , in my view. Somebody to talk to on the road as i know Jesse misses his family at home.. Best wishes, Jesse and just let ‘er rip and forget the trip.
Looks like a pretty good deal for the Braves for now. Swarzak has pitched pretty well and Biddle continues to walk everyone.