The Braves announced Thursday that they’ve designated right-hander Carlos Carrasco for assignment. Right-handed reliever Hunter Stratton has been recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett to take Carrasco’s spot on the roster.
Atlanta picked up Carrasco in a cash swap with the Yankees prior to the trade deadline. The Braves were simply in need of arms to log innings with so many members of their rotation on the injured list, and Carrasco had been pitching well with New York’s Triple-A club in Scranton. Carrasco’s tenure with the Braves kicked off decently, as he tossed a quality start in a no-decision against the Reds on deadline day.
The next two outings for Carrasco, however, were brutal. The 38-year-old righty was tagged for six runs in 5 2/3 innings versus the Marlins on Aug. 7 and was torched for another six runs in only two innings against his former Mets club just yesterday. Overall, he’s pitched 13 2/3 innings with Atlanta and recorded a 9.88 ERA: 15 runs on 22 hits (three homers) and seven walks with only nine strikeouts.
Carrasco made 29 solid starts for the 2022 Mets (3.97 ERA, 152 innings) but has now struggled greatly in three consecutive major league seasons. He’s pitched 239 1/3 MLB frames dating back to 2023 but logged only a 6.36 earned run average as his velocity, strikeout rate, walk rate and home run rate have all trended in the wrong direction. The Braves are likely to place Carrasco on release waivers within the next couple days, and he’d become a free agent upon clearing.
With Carrasco dropped from the staff, Atlanta will give starts to Spencer Strider, Erick Fedde, Bryce Elder, Joey Wentz and Hurston Waldrep. Reigning NL Cy Young winner Chris Sale is on the mend from the ribcage fracture that’s sidelined him for nearly two months and pitched two innings Tuesday in the first of what’ll be multiple minor league rehab starts.
Johnny I hardly knew ye
Keep your bags packed, Fedde.
Id kick Elder to the curb before Fedde.
Braves keep holding onto that small sliver of hope that Elder will figure it out.
That’s because he does figure it out….then he starts sucking again. It is a repeating theme. I still think the Braves handling of him these years did little to instill the confidence in him that he seems to be iffy about, but at some point if youre gonna make it youve gotta step up. At the end of the day despite all the demotions and being kept off the opening day roster in 2024 he still has been given a lot of chances. And again it hasn’t all been bad but it’s been far more bad than good the last couple years.
But seriously do they have any other options???
Not enough curb space in Braves-land.
Elder is under control though so it makes no sense. I get that he’s been awful but as this year has proven durable guys who can eat some innings are nice to have stashed (or you have to try to aquire them or start a guy whose like 20). So if one was going to get the innings at the big league level you’d want it to be the guy staying in your organization.
Good Elder is hard to give up
He pitched well last night.
The Mets suck so bad right now that they wouldn’t even allow Carrasco to give them a win.
It’s crazy we can’t even have confidence in them winning a game being ahead 6 runs
Up 6-0 after 3, only to give up 9 runs in the 4th with the crowning blow a line-drive grand slam to straightaway center.
#LOLmets endures.
This is probably the end for Cookie. He was still able to make a couple million dollars the past 2 years but he’s been brutal.
If it’s the end for Cookie, it was a heck of a career. To overcome cancer and still compete with the best of the best is just amazing to me. Good luck and God bless!
Where is that one Braves fan who was acting like getting Carlos was a good move and that he would be a good depth piece for next season lol.
A lot of dumb words. ’26 is not a lost season, and Schwellenbach will likely be healthy enough to have a normal offseason this year.
You shouldn’t make fun of another user’s takes when yours are so bad.
@bwmiller: The Braves aren’t going to trade 3 years of Acuna while he’s only earning $17M per. Most of the “baggage from the ’25 season” is due to bad luck w/injuries—–not quality of the roster. Why would the Braves deal Strider and Sale to let “Elder and Dunning compete at the big league level for the rotation in ’27”? Both of them will be AAA (if even tendered) depth while Fuentes, Ritchie, Burkhalter, and Owen Murphy keep developing in AAA. The TradeAcuna/Met fan fever dream premise is based on the flawed thought that the Braves have to rebuild because they “are out of contention in ’26.” They aren’t. The roster needs reinforcement, not a rebuild. AA will most likely spend money on the pen, sign a starter like Gallen or Bieber, and try to deal for a short term improvement at SS. There won’t be wholesale changes for the lineup or a rebuild dump of Sale and Strider. Possible that Murphy, Albies, Bummer, and Johnson may be dealt, but the core of Acuna, Riley, Olson, Harris II, and Baldwin is too strong to consider a rebuild. The Braves were under the luxury tax this season and have no need to “save a bunch on payroll in ’26.” Good chance they draft high and get the extra first round pick when Baldwin wins the ROY. Their good draft this year and a solid chance at the same next summer eliminates any need to trade the team’s core for a “haul of prospects” — especially since it’s apparent that they intend to compete. Their trade deadline this season also suggests this is AA’s intent.
Not sure Strider has that much trade value this offseason. But he could come around after a normal offseason this winter. Would hold on to him.
It seems so ‘emotional hot take’ type response to concede the 26 season. I believe you mean what you are saying which makes it so sad and painful.
No use talking to a blowhard who claims the “conversation is over” if you don’t kowtow to his claims. Sounds like Rebuild2025 has a new screen name.
Are you stoned?
Great story and career but it looks like he’s done.
Looks like Carlos Carassco will be the next starter for the Minnesota Twins just as soon as Atlanta releases him.
Solid career for carrasco. Some good yrs with the indians. Time to hang em up
Alex Anthopoulos, I’m not gonna give you any insight but MLB players can also come out of retirement too, his name doesn’t have the initials “JC”
Johnny Cueto?
Jose Canseco?
Jack Clark?
Joe Carter?
At some point these guys need to retire with dignity.
Cookie did not pitch well for the Yankees, but was somehow worse for Atlanta. It’s been a good run. Time to ride off into the sunset.
Stratton pitched well for the Pirates until he had a bad leg injury about this time last year.It took him almost a year to fully recover.
The Braves got him on a waiver claim and he has pitched well for their AAA club.
The Pirates could use him now.
Who’s next up for a crack at dead wood?
Too bad tanking the season doesn’t cost you a guaranteed top draft pick anymore.
^^^ get you not cost you……
Nurse these guys even the worst ones on a MLB team get paid more than most good doctors or lawyers. You would have to force me to retire if I were getting paid that much to PLAY a game.
The nurse should realize that supply and demand exists in this country and that if Nurses were paid millions upon millions of dollars, the health industry would collapse onto itself
It’s scary to think people like you still think like that, or rather at least people like you are contained online, we wouldn’t want you running payrolls for the public sector.
Thanks for the cup of coffee, Cookie!
Am I the only Guardians fan miffed because the Braves couldn’t let Cookie make one last start in Cleveland so we could show our appreciation for all those good years? Yeah, I’d like to see him serve us up some dingers, too.