Angels Trade Michael Petersen To Braves

The Braves and Angels announced a trade sending reliever Michael Petersen to Atlanta for cash considerations. The Halos had designated the righty for assignment yesterday when they acquired Jake Eder from the White Sox. Atlanta optioned Petersen to Triple-A Gwinnett. They already had an opening on the 40-man roster after placing Jurickson Profar on the restricted list following his PED suspension.

Petersen, 30, has kicked around the league over the past few months. He made his big league debut with the Dodgers last summer. Petersen pitched 11 times with L.A. before they lost him on waivers to Miami. He made five appearances with the Marlins before the end of the season. Miami waived him at the beginning of the offseason. Petersen went to the Blue Jays and then the Angels on offseason waiver acquisitions.

The Halos had optioned him to Triple-A to begin the year. Petersen pitched once for their affiliate, allowing two runs in 1 1/3 innings. He had good numbers at that level a season ago. Petersen fanned more than 35% of opponents while working to a 1.64 ERA across 33 innings for the Dodgers’ top affiliate. That didn’t translate into much MLB success, as he gave up 14 runs over his first 19 2/3 big league frames. He recorded 14 strikeouts while issuing 11 walks.

Atlanta had a free roster spot after the Profar suspension. Petersen is in his second of three option years, so the Braves can keep him in Triple-A for a while if he holds his 40-man spot. This is the fifth trade the Braves and Angels have made since the start of the offseason and their third deal of the past two weeks. Atlanta traded Angel Perdomo to the Angels in mid-March, and the teams lined up on the Ian Anderson/José Suarez swap a few days later.