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Braves Sign Ramón Laureano To Minor League Deal

By Darragh McDonald | May 29, 2024 at 3:10pm CDT

The Braves have signed outfielder Ramón Laureano to a minor league deal, reports Robert Murray of FanSided on X. The outfielder was recently released by the Guardians and will presumably now head to Triple-A Gwinnett.

Laureano, now 29, got his major league career off to a hot start but he was cooled off by an 80-game PED suspension and hasn’t really gotten back on track since. With the Athletics from 2018 to 2021, he took 1,257 plate appearances and hit 49 home runs in that time. He batted .263/.335/.465 overall for a 119 wRC+, indicating his offense was 19% better than league average in that time. He also stole 34 bases and was considered a solid defender in the outfield.

But in 2021, as mentioned, he was dinged for testing positive for Nandrolone, a banned performance-enhancing substance. He returned to the A’s in 2022 but slashed just .211/.287/.376 that year for a wRC+ of 95. He struggled again in 2023, slashing .213/.280/.364 for the A’s before they put him on waivers.

The Guardians put in a claim and saw a bit of a bounceback late last year. In 41 games for Cleveland, Laureano hit three home runs and stole four bases, slashing .243/.342/.382 for a 106 wRC+. The Guards were evidently encouraged by that, as they tendered Laureano a contract and agreed to a salary of $5.15MM.

Unfortunately, his 2024 season has been abysmal thus far. He struck out in 38.6% of his trips to the plate with Cleveland and was hitting .143/.265/.229 when he was designated for assignment last week and eventually released.

For Atlanta, there’s essentially no risk in bringing him aboard. Since the Guardians released him, they remain on the hook for the majority of his salary. If Atlanta selects him to their roster at any point, they would only have to pay him the prorated league minimum salary for however long he holds a spot, with that amount subtracted from what Cleveland pays.

Atlanta’s outfield depth was significantly thinned this week with the news that Ronald Acuña Jr. has a torn left ACL and will miss the rest of the season. The club still has Michael Harris II in center but Jarred Kelenic and Adam Duvall are now the everyday options in the corners. J.P. Martínez has been recalled to take Acuña’s place on the roster but he’s more of a speedy bench outfielder.

Kelenic and Duvall were previously in a platoon but could wind up overexposed as everyday players in Acuña’s absence. Kelenic swings from the left side and has hit just .188/.252/.307 in his career against southpaws, with Atlanta giving him just seven appearances against them so far this year. Duvall is right-handed and better against lefties, but isn’t a total liability against righties. He has a career .235/.307/.477 batting line and 105 wRC+ with the platoon advantage, with a line of .230/.285/.468 and 95 wRC+ without it.

Similar to Duvall, Laureano is a righty with modest platoon splits. He has hit .263/.334/.440 against southpaws for a 116 wRC+ and .232/.311/.414 otherwise for a 103 wRC+. Even last year, when he didn’t hit well overall, he was able to produce a .270/.333/.460 line and 121 wRC+ against lefties.

Atlanta will get a close-up look at Laureano and see if he can get back on track. He’s been in rough form this year but, as mentioned, they have almost nothing to lose by signing this deal and seeing how it goes. If Laureano can return to his old form, perhaps that will help them bolster their outfield or at least keep lefties away from Kelenic.

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Atlanta Braves Transactions Ramon Laureano

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View Comments (28)
Post a Comment

28 Comments

  1. Rsox

    1 year ago

    They need an Outfielder. Lets see if the Braves can work more magic

    3
    Reply
  2. CubsWin108

    1 year ago

    Here comes AA’s dark magic that will revive Laureano’s carrer

    5
    Reply
    • runningwithnailclippers

      1 year ago

      I think the only thing that will revive his career is the thing that got him banned for 80 games before. That probably won’t be happening.

      2
      Reply
      • thickiedon

        1 year ago

        Worth a shot.
        See what I did there?

        3
        Reply
      • case

        1 year ago

        So a team with their own proprietary blend of undetectable PED’s?

        1
        Reply
  3. CubsWin108

    1 year ago

    I’m instantly picking up in fantasy btw lol

    Reply
  4. Troy Percival's iPad

    1 year ago

    He just won World Series MVP. Braves in 5

    2
    Reply
  5. Lefty_Orioles_Fan

    1 year ago

    I knew something like this would happen
    Braves were not going to trade for Hays or Mullins

    Reply
    • formegn hardgin

      1 year ago

      feels like Luis Robert is gonna move. at the deadline but then again braves rarely do the big obvious acquisition

      1
      Reply
      • NashvilleJeff

        1 year ago

        What’s so obvious about trading for a guy who’s only played in 58% of games over the last 3 years?

        Reply
  6. CCooper8920

    1 year ago

    Made the most sense from the guys available

    Reply
  7. Doc666

    1 year ago

    Stupid comment

    11
    Reply
    • sufferforsnakes

      1 year ago

      All of Hotdog’s comments are stupid.

      8
      Reply
      • NashvilleJeff

        1 year ago

        He’s a real weenie.

        2
        Reply
      • Poppin' Balls

        1 year ago

        I don’t relish the opportunity to read them.

        2
        Reply
  8. bhambrave

    1 year ago

    Educate yourself.

    2
    Reply
  9. helloworld

    1 year ago

    put that username into use and go fatten yourself up with enough hotdogs to make you realize your comments are useless

    3
    Reply
  10. bobby cox

    1 year ago

    I think Marte would be a nice fit and be minimal cost.

    Reply
    • NashvilleJeff

      1 year ago

      Starling Marte? That $19,5 mill he’s making this season w/the same amount owed next season isn’t a “minimal cost.” Taking that deal on would rocket the Braves well into the 3rd luxury tax. Paying him more than Ozuna would be owed if his 2025 option’s picked up is an awful idea. Mets are stuck w/him unless they eat a ton of that money. Besides the money, Marte’s adventerous exploits in the outfield are horrifying and he’s a victim for any breaking ball. No thanks.

      3
      Reply
  11. Acoss1331

    1 year ago

    Braves trying to do their voodoo and turn Lauerano into a productive hitter again. It might just work too!

    1
    Reply
  12. DoubleStix

    1 year ago

    Duh move of the year sorry

    Reply
  13. bhambrave

    1 year ago

    I guess those PEDs made a difference.

    2
    Reply
  14. wefwewefwe

    1 year ago

    Seems like just yesterday that almost every writer was calling him the next Mike Trout. Many predicting even better than that

    Reply
  15. User 3014224641

    1 year ago

    Knew it.

    Reply
  16. LarryJ4

    1 year ago

    This move is just as bad as bringing up Schwellenbach to start a game when he hasn’t even been past AA! These moves have caused a knee jerk reaction that quite frankly is gonna blow up in their face.

    Reply
    • Sid Bream Speed Demon

      1 year ago

      Yeah, having Harris and Strider skip AAA was awful too.

      1
      Reply
  17. NashvilleJeff

    1 year ago

    How is signing a player to a minor league deal to improve depth going to “blow up in their face”? Schwellenbach is receiving a spot start tonight because none of the AAA Quad A starters are available to pitch. Neither is his AA teammate Waldrup. Would you rather see a bullpen game? He’ll be 24 on Friday. Mature college player. It’s not like they’re bringing up a kid right out of high school. If he gets knocked around a little bit, so what? Good experience for him. He’s talented and deserves the chance more than any other pitcher they have available. It’s not going to ruin his career if things don’t go well. Plenty of young pitchers get beat up at first. Why not wait until you’ve seen him pitch. He’s pretty good—-and you gain experience by being given the opportunity to get it. I changed my regular Wednesday night fishing trip to tomorrow to watch his debut. Looking forward to this.

    4
    Reply
  18. In nurse follars

    1 year ago

    If Cleveland gives up on a guy with a 5 million contract it says something about the guy. Maybe he figures it out but he is a platoon player who stopped hitting left handed pitchers and that doesn’t bode well.

    1
    Reply

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