The Braves announced this morning that righty Carlos Carrasco went unclaimed on waivers and has been assigned outright to Triple-A Gwinnett. Carrasco has the right to reject the assignment in favor of free agency.
One way or another, Carrasco will likely be back with Atlanta. He’s been designated for assignment by the Braves three other times dating back to last August and has returned on new minor league deals each time. Carrasco also re-signed a minor league deal with the Braves in free agency this past winter. It’s always possible he’ll just accept the outright assignment, but elected free agency and quickly negotiating a new minor league pact gives his camp the opportunity to secure some perks (new opt-out dates, upward mobility clause, slight salary increase, etc.) that aren’t in the current deal.
The 39-year-old Carrasco has pitched well when the Braves have summoned him to the majors this season. He’s tossed 7 1/3 innings and held opponents to a pair of runs on six hits and no walks with four strikeouts. He’s been sharp in Gwinnett, too, logging a flat 3.00 ERA (21 K%, 5.6 BB%) in 30 innings of work there.
Both Carrasco and the Braves front office have been very comfortable with the setup that sees him act as an unofficial 41st man on the roster. He can’t be optioned, so Carrasco is frequently selected to the roster, used as needed, passed through waivers and then returns on a new minor league deal. He’s already picked up 24 days of big league service and salary in 2026 this way, and there’s a good chance he’ll have several similar stint through season’s end.
At this point I just want someone to claim him to see if Atlanta would be willing to give anything up to get him back.
Dombrowski should claim him next time. The Phillies could actually use him.
I could see the Jays claiming him. Can’t be worse than Voth.
@MuleorAstroMule
Claiming him couldn’t hurt. Send him out there until Cease comes back or he sucks, then look to the waiver wire again.
With the Jays luck, he’ll end up on the IL.
I get that he wants to play as long as possible, but doesn’t being the team’s official afterthought feel a little demeaning?
As long as the cheque clears on payday I’m sure he feels just fine
MLB just needs a taxi squad. every team needs the ability to shuttle a couple veterans back and forth without going through parliamentary procedure.
@mcskow
Maybe for some players it would. He might see it as an opportunity to stick around affiliated ball and play a small role on a team that is winning in the moment. Plus if he’s sticks in the organization he could easily stay at one residence and make the short commute between Atlanta and Gwinnett. Obviously pure speculation on my part.
Atlanta is the Cookie (Carrasco) Monster. Sign Cookie, cut Cookie, sign Cookie…rinse and repeat.
Carassco and Jesse Chavez should star in a reality show
He knows what he is at this point. No one will ever claim him so he just stays in Atlanta. Not a bad life