The Braves announced a slate of roster moves today, most notably shaking up their catching corps a bit. Atlanta acquired veteran catcher Austin Wynns from the Angels in exchange for cash (as first noted on the MLB.com transaction log) and selected him to the major league roster. Fellow backstop Chadwick Tromp was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.
Atlanta also selected the contract of outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr. to the 40-man roster and immediately optioned him back to Triple-A Gwinnett. They created a 40-man spot by transferring catcher Sean Murphy from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL. MLB.com’s Mark Bowman notes that Keirsey had an opt-out in his minor league contract, and it seems the Braves didn’t want to let him hit the open market.
Wynns, 35, signed a minor league deal with the Halos just a couple weeks ago. He didn’t appear in the majors with them prior to this trade to Atlanta. Wynns has suited up for the Reds, A’s, Orioles, Giants, Dodgers and Rockies, compiling a lifetime .231/.276/.347 slash line in 826 big league plate appearances (293 games). That’s obviously below average but far better than the typical levels of offensive output from Tromp and fellow catcher Sandy Leon, who’ll split time with Wynns behind the plate following today’s shakeup.
On the defensive side of things, Wynns doesn’t draw premium framing grades, but Statcast thinks he’s solid when it comes to blocking balls in the dirt. More impressively, he’s shut down 30.2% of attempted base thieves in the majors — right in line with his career 31% mark in the minors.
Tromp appeared in a dozen games with the Braves and went 5-for-25 with a double, no walks, a sacrifice fly and a sacrifice bunt, leading to an oddball batting line of .200/.192/.240 in 27 trips to the plate. He’s a career .218/.225/.371 hitter in the majors. He’s spent most of the past five seasons in the Braves organization, so if he clears waivers following today’s DFA, there’s a good chance he’ll stick around, whether via accepting an outright assignment or briefly electing free agency and then returning on a new minor league deal.
Keirsey, 29, has appeared in parts of two seasons with the Twins (2024-25). He’s a speed-and-defense outfielder with a woeful .113/.149/.206 batting line in 102 major league plate appearances. His .260/.298/.384 slash so far in Triple-A doesn’t create much optimism, but he’s 16-for-17 in stolen bases and Atlanta apparently likes his wheels and defensive acumen enough to dedicate a 40-man roster spot to keeping him in the organization.
Am I missing something here or are we swapping one sub .100 batting catcher for another?
It’s for 2 weeks until Baldwin gets back on the next home stand. Could be they like Wynn’s defense/arm better than Tromp’s. It’s not a huge deal
Seems sort of pointless for two weeks. They’ve been rolling along no problem as is.
-38 OPS could be the lowest I’ve ever seen…
If you only look at Wynns’ 43 PAs this season, I suppose, but he’s been better than that (and than Tromp) over his broader MLB career. Still below average, but it should be a net gain in the batter’s box overall.
Why?
former giant catcher carousel:)
I always liked Tromp, his walkoff hit against the Nats was epic.
This ends up being Atlanta and the A’s trading back-up catchers – Heim for Wynn.
I’ve got to imagine the Braves regret letting Heim go.
…just like the A’s should regret letting Susac be taken in the Rule 5 draft.
(I say ‘should’ b/c w/A’s management it’s hard to know if they care enough to feel regret)
Where have you gone Jonah Heim?
A’s not the Angels
They’re correct, the Angels were the ones who had Wynns.
Yeah, Bowman’s tweet says “A’s,” but the A’s DFA’ed Wynns in May and he signed with the Angels a few days later:
mlbtraderumors.com/2026/05/angels-sign-austin-wynn…
The Angels are the new A’s. The A’s don’t take AA’s calls anymore.
The shortage of catchers who can hit even a little bit in baseball is quite alarming. Hey AA….get Baldwin locked up brother!
The quality of catchers are non existent now. Not many kids want to play catcher. Everyone thinks the Yankees need a catcher. I’d say for now play Rice a few times a week. Goldy doing better than I thought however by August he’s done. Jeffers would be nice from Minnesota but everyone knows the Yankees need a RH catcher. The last several years Cashman gave up a lot of catchers. He should have at least kept one
Braves are looking for a former Hacky-Sack champion to work in bullpen with catchers to help them with foul tips.
I read that as Austin Wells. A bit of wishful thinking.
Trading heim was a huge mistake
Neat having Steve jump in with a few follow up comments.
AA suffering from Tromp Derangement Syndrome
Tromp’s a tord.
Why not give The Mav a chance?
Plus, Wynns is another former Oriole!!!
“All we are saying is ‘Give Mav A Chance'”–John Lennon
How was Tromp DFA’ed over Sandy Leon, who is the older, slower, and less athletic of the pair?