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Ronald Acuña Jr. Wins NL MVP

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For the first time in his career, Ronald Acuña Jr. is an MVP. The Baseball Writers Association of America announced this evening that Acuña was unanimously selected as the National League’s top player. Dodger teammates Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman finished second and third, respectively.

Acuña has been a star for years. The sport’s #1 prospect before he reached the majors in 2018, he won Rookie of the Year and finished 12th in MVP voting during his debut campaign. He got onto MVP ballots in each of the next two seasons and has been named to the All-Star Game in every season since his rookie year (excluding the 2020 campaign in which there was no Midsummer Classic).

In 2023, he firmly cemented himself as one of the top three to five players in the game. Acuña turned in an unbelievable .337/.416/.596 batting line over an NL-high 735 trips to the dish. He led the majors in hits and runs scored from the top of a loaded Atlanta lineup and paced the Senior Circuit in OPS. The Venezuela native tied his career high with 41 home runs and stole a major league leading 73 bases.

That power-speed impact was unparalleled in baseball history. Acuña became the first player ever to go 40-70. One could quibble with his NL-leading 14 times caught stealing or middling defensive grades in right field, but the sheer offensive dominance and unprecedented nature of Acuña’s stat line made him the clear choice in the eyes of voters.

While this was his career season to date, Acuña could be a perennial MVP candidate He won’t turn 26 until December and is squarely in the midst of his prime. Only adding to the appeal for the Braves is that they have their superstar outfielder on perhaps the game’s most team-friendly contract. Acuña is signed for a total of $61MM over the next three years, while the team has options that could (and very likely will) keep him in Atlanta through 2028.

Acuña winning the award was expected. That he received all 30 first-place votes is a bit more surprising. Betts ranked second on every ballot, hammering home how clearly that duo had separated themselves from the pack. The Dodger star hit .307/.408/.579 over 693 plate appearances. He played solid defense in right field and handled the middle infield with aplomb, logging action at second base and shortstop.

Freeman and Matt Olson were third and fourth on every ballot, with Freeman picking up four more third-place nods to secure the #3 spot overall. Corbin Carroll, Juan Soto, Austin Riley, Luis Arraez, Cody Bellinger, William Contreras and Blake Snell all received at least one fifth-place vote. Others receiving votes: Francisco Lindor, Bryce Harper, Fernando Tatis Jr., Ha-Seong Kim, Ozzie Albies, Logan Webb, Pete Alonso, Marcell Ozuna, Devin Williams, Dansby Swanson, Kyle Schwarber, Zac Gallen, Christian Walker, TJ Friedl and Nick Castellanos.

As noted by Sarah Langs of MLB.com (on X), this is the first time in MLB history in which both MVP selections were unanimous. Shohei Ohtani took all 30 first-place nods in the American League. Full voting results are available courtesy of the BBWAA.

Image from USA Today Sports.

MLB Awards 2025 All-Star Game To Atlanta Braves

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced today that the Atlanta Braves will host the 2025 All-Star festivities. The 95th edition of the “midsummer classic” will be third one to take place in Atlanta but the first at Truist Park, which opened in 2017. The other instances were 1972 and 2000.

“I commend Terry McGuirk, Derek Schiller, the entire Braves organization and the Atlanta Sports Council for leading this effort,” Manfred says in a press release. “As a model of success on and off the field, the Braves deserve to host the All-Star Game. Truist Park and The Battery Atlanta will provide fans a world-class experience in 2025. We look forward to working with the Braves and local leaders to deliver a memorable All-Star Week that brings people together and benefits the community in many ways.”

The 2021 All-Star Game was originally set to be in Atlanta but the league moved it to Colorado. This was in response to changes to election laws in Georgia, which were criticized for being discriminatory.

“Over the last week, we have engaged in thoughtful conversations with clubs, former and current players, the Players Association, and The Players Alliance, among others, to listen to their views,” Manfred said in a statement at that time. “I have decided that the best way to demonstrate our values as a sport is by relocating this year’s All-Star Game and MLB Draft. Major League Baseball fundamentally supports voting rights for all Americans and opposes restrictions to the ballot box. In 2020, MLB became the first professional sports league to join the non-partisan Civic Alliance to help build a future in which everyone participates in shaping the United States. We proudly used our platform to encourage baseball fans and communities throughout our country to perform their civic duty and actively participate in the voting process. Fair access to voting continues to have our game’s unwavering support.”

Manfred made reference to that past decision today, as relayed by Evan Drellich of The Athletic. “I made the decision in 2021 to move the event, and I understand that — believe me — people had then and probably still have different views as to the merits of that decision.”

The 2024 game will be hosted by the Rangers while the 2026 game was long ago given to the Phillies in order to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. For clubs that would like to host a future game, their next opportunity won’t be until 2027.

MLBTR Podcast: Top Trade Candidates, Bryce Harper at First Base and the Braves’ Raising Payroll

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • The NL Central appears to be the most intriguing division from an offseason perspective. The 2023 division winner could be selling. The Reds have a positive youth movement that could be augmented with veterans and turn into a real threat. The Cubs and Cardinals have pieces and could do an offseason push to rapidly improve their teams. The Pirates always seem to be a year or two away. What does each team in the NL Central need to do take the Brewers spot on top of the division? Do you see a potential arms race in the middle of the country instead of the coasts? (25:10)
  • Do the Angels have a chance for Cody Bellinger or one of the top pitchers? (29:50)
  • Could you explain why any team would trade something of value for Jonathan India? He’s been one of the worst defensive second basemen in baseball both of the last two years (according to both DRS and OAA), plus he’s been a below average hitter by wRC+ both years? He’s also had injury concerns both years. Maybe I’m wrong, but wouldn’t just about any contender aim higher than him as a starting second baseman? (34:10)

Check out our past episodes!

Braves Claim Penn Murfee, Designate Yonny Chirinos

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The Braves announced that right-hander Penn Murfee has been claimed off waivers from the Mets.  In the corresponding move, Atlanta designated right-hander Yonny Chirinos for assignment.

It was pretty brief run for Murfee in Queens, as the Mets only just claimed the righty themselves from the Mariners two weeks ago.  It wasn’t publicly known that Murfee was again available, but it could be that the Mets opted to move on and clear some 40-man roster space since Murfee won’t be an option until at least midway through the 2024 season.  Murfee underwent a UCL surgery last June that prematurely ended his 2023 campaign and might threaten all of his 2024 season, depending on the exact nature of the procedure or whether or not he might hit any setbacks.

Since making his big league debut in 2022, Murfee posted a 2.70 ERA over 83 1/3 relief innings for Seattle, along with a 27.9% strikeout rate and 8.5% walk rate.  That latter statistic is rather heavily skewed to 2022, as Murfee had a very impressive 6.6% walk rate last season before his control spiked to a 17.2% walk rate this year.  Of course, this could also be a sample size variant, as Murfee only pitched 14 innings in 2023 before hitting the injured list.

Murfee was a bit of a late bloomer, as he didn’t make his MLB debut until he was just shy of his 28th birthday.  While a little older than most second-year players, Murfee is also controlled through the 2028 season, giving the Braves an interesting longer-term reliever to monitor if Murfee returns healthy and keeps his past form.

Chirinos also arrived in Atlanta via waiver claim, as the Braves plucked him off waivers from the Rays last July.  He made five starts and posted a 9.27 ERA over 22 1/3 innings before a bout of elbow inflammation ultimately ended his season in August.  For the 2023 season as a whole, Chirinos had a 5.40 ERA over 85 combined innings with Tampa Bay and Atlanta, with a 14.4% strikeout rate that was a career low even by Chirinos’ usual standard of not missing many bats.

Chirinos is no stranger to UCL injuries himself, as a Tommy John surgery led to over two full years between Major League appearances for the righty between the 2020 and 2022 seasons.  This year marked Chirinos’ first full season back in action, and he didn’t have the form he showed in posting a 3.65 ERA for the Rays over 234 1/3 innings from 2018-20.

Given Chirinos’ past solid numbers and his utility as a pitcher who can work in a variety of different roles as a starter, reliever, or swingman, it seems reasonable that he might get claimed off waivers.  Chirinos has enough service time to reject an outright assignment to Triple-A, though it seems likely that the Braves will just release him in the event that he clears waivers, thus handling one bit of arbitration-related business.  Chirinos is projected to earn $2MM via arbitration this winter, and today’s transaction is essentially an early non-tender in advance of Friday’s deadline.

Braves Notes: Grissom, Rotation, Payroll

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The Braves’ decision to decline their $9MM club option on Eddie Rosario created a vacancy in left field, and the team is still deciding how to go about patching that need. Among internal options, former top infield prospect Vaughn Grissom appears to be the leading candidate. Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos acknowledged that playing Grissom in left field is a possibility “because he’s a tremendous athlete” (link via David O’Brien of The Athletic). Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that Anthopoulos also said at last week’s GM Meetings that Grissom has already expressed an openness to play anywhere on the field.

Grissom, 23 in January, broke into the Majors on a blistering hot streak in 2022, hitting .347/.398/.558 in his first 103 plate appearances. His bat went cold to close out that season, however, and he didn’t provide much offense in scattershot looks throughout the 2023 campaign. In all, he’s followed those 103 torrid trips to the plate with 133 plate appearances of .240/.293/.289 output. However, Grissom looked like he little to prove in Triple-A this past season, mashing at a .330/.419/.501 rate in a much larger sample of 468 plate appearances.

Though the organization is clearly open to the idea of testing Grissom’s natural athleticism in the outfield, it should be noted that he’s yet to log a single professional inning on the grass. He’s played exclusively shortstop (2140 innings), second base (792 innings) and third base (235 innings) between the big leagues and the minors, playing the two middle infield spots exclusively in the big leagues.

Of course, regular playing time at any of those spots will be hard to come by in 2024. Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley have second base and third base locked down, respectively. Former utilityman Orlando Arcia seized the everyday shortstop job after Dansby Swanson departed in free agency, hitting .264/.321/.420 with 17 home runs in 139 games. It’s fair to point out that Arcia has a limited track record and also faded in the season’s final month (.200/.260/.316 from Sept. 1 onward), but the strength of his season overall should earn him another look in 2024. Besides, one of the very reasons Arcia was given an everyday look at shortstop was due to the organization’s concerns with Grissom’s defensive abilities at the position.

External options abound, with the free-agent market including the likes of Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Michael Brantley and Tommy Pham, among others (to say nothing of a potential lower-cost reunion with Rosario). Trade options include Alex Verdugo, Max Kepler and Dylan Carlson, to name just a few. Going with Grissom would allow the Braves to get a longer look at a top homegrown talent while also saving some payroll to allocate to the team’s expected pursuit of a starting pitcher. At the same time, bringing in an external option could free the possibility of including Grissom as part of a trade package to add a starter who might be more cost effective than a free agent.

The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal writes that the Braves expect to pursue at least one arm this offseason, listing longtime division rival Aaron Nola as potential fit (albeit in somewhat speculative fashion) due to his southern roots and his relationship with current Braves pitching coach Rick Kranitz (Nola’s former bullpen/pitching coach in Philly).

Despite their bevy of long-term contract extensions, the Braves have thus far resisted going beyond a $22MM average annual value for any player on their roster. Anthopoulos has spoken in the past as to how that’s not a limitation that’s written in stone, however; the Braves paid Josh Donaldson $23MM on his one-year deal, for instance, and they’re surely held interest in free agents who’d command a larger AAV than that. Rosenthal reports that for “the right pitcher,” the Braves would be willing to extend beyond a $22MM AAV.

Whether that’s Nola, NL Cy Young frontrunner Blake Snell, NPB ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto, AL Cy Young finalist Sonny Gray, a trade candidate or an extension candidate (i.e. Max Fried) remains to be seen. Rosenthal points out that the Braves don’t have a Scott Boras client on the current roster — Snell and Yamamoto are repped by Boras — though I’d add that like the $22MM AAV, that’s not a hard-and-fast rule. The Braves have had Boras clients on the roster in recent seasons, Touki Toussaint and Dallas Keuchel among them.

Anthopoulos and Braves CEO Terry McGuirk have both publicly spoken about the expectation that payroll will increase for a third straight season, though much of that uptick in spending will come from the roster that’s already in place. Many players who were signed to long-term contract extensions will see their salaries increase under the terms of those deals. That’s true of Austin Riley (a $5MM increase), Matt Olson ($1MM) and Sean Murphy ($5MM). Re-signed relievers Joe Jimenez ($8MM) and Pierce Johnson ($7MM) will also see increases over last year’s respective salaries of $2.765MM and $5MM. Meanwhile, Fried and A.J. Minter are in line for raises on last year’s respective salaries of $13.5MM and $4.2875MM.

The Braves finished the 2023 season with a payroll just shy of $205MM and more than $245MM of luxury-tax commitments, per Roster Resource. They’re already at $207MM and $236MM per those same projections, though non-tenders and potential trades will impact the bottom line.

Braves Planning To Increase Payroll

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The Braves anticipate increasing their player payroll, president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos told reporters (including David O’Brien of the Athletic). Chairman Terry McGuirk echoed those sentiments, telling Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that “that ‘glideslope’ that we’re on, we will stay on” in reference to the organization raising payroll in three straight seasons.

Atlanta opened the 2023 campaign with a player payroll in the $203MM range, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. Their luxury tax figure — which is based on the combined average annual values of a team’s deals — was well higher, estimated around $250MM. The Braves clearly surpassed the $233MM base tax threshold and seem likely to do so again next year, when the first threshold rises to $237MM.

The Braves have around $165MM in guaranteed salaries for next season. Their arbitration class should add between $25MM and $30MM. That could put them within $15-20MM of last year’s season-opening mark before making further additions. Roster Resource projects their CBT number a hair below $237MM.

Even with some kind of uptick in spending, it seems unlikely the Braves would play near the top of the free agent market. That hasn’t been Anthopoulos’ preferred course of action anyhow. Atlanta has been far more aggressive on the trade and extension fronts than in adding free agents from other clubs.

With some measure of flexibility, however, they could be more active than in recent offseasons in sifting through the middle tier. Starting pitching could be the biggest priority. Atlanta has Spencer Strider, Max Fried and Charlie Morton to occupy the top three spots. The final two positions are less settled. Bryce Elder likely has the inside track on the #4 job but struggled down the stretch after an All-Star first half. Kyle Wright will miss the entire season after undergoing shoulder surgery.

AJ Smith-Shawver and prospect Hurston Waldrep are high-upside options who could compete for an early-season job. Anthopoulos said today that Huascar Ynoa is expected to be a full go for Spring Training after missing last season to Tommy John rehab (via Toscano). Jared Shuster, Dylan Dodd and Michael Soroka are depth options — although Soroka could be non-tendered — but it’d behoove the Braves to add another source of innings. Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha and Jack Flaherty are speculative free agent possibilities.

The lineup is a lot more established. Left field is the lone vacancy after the team declined its option on Eddie Rosario. While a free agent pursuit of someone like Lourdes Gurriel Jr. or old friend Joc Pederson could be on the table, the Braves have a potential internal upside play. Atlanta has kept Vaughn Grissom in the middle infield, hoping the reps will allow his glove to catch up to his advanced bat. With Ozzie Albies and Orlando Arcia on the roster, there may not be a path to at-bats for Grissom on the infield.

Anthopoulos told reporters that the organization has given thought to getting Grissom experience in left field. If they put that into action during Spring Training, it’d give the right-handed hitter a clearer path to MLB work. Grissom spent most of this year in Triple-A, hitting .330/.419/.501 as a 22-year-old.

Angels Hire Ron Washington As Manager

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The Angels have hired Braves third base coach Ron Washington to fill their managerial vacancy, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. He has signed a two-year contract with the club, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. The Angels have now announced the hiring of Washington.

The Angels parted ways with manager Phil Nevin as the 2023 regular season was winding down and recent reporting suggested they were leaning towards an experienced manager to take the gig. Washington, 72 in April, surely fits the bill there. After his playing career ended, he quickly transitioned into a coaching role in the early ’90s, working for the Mets and Athletics.

He got his first managerial gig with the Rangers going into 2007. After a few middling seasons, the club broke out in 2010 and 2011. They won 90 and 96 games in those two seasons, respectively, going to the World Series both times. Though they didn’t win the title in either of those trips, those remained the only two World Series appearances in franchise history until the club finally won it all here in 2023.

The Rangers won 93 games in 2012 but lost the Wild Card game to the Orioles. Another 91 wins followed in 2013 but that left them just a single game out of the playoffs. Things took a sour turn in 2014, with the club falling in the standings. They would eventually finish 67-95 and in last place in the American League West, but Washington was already gone by then. He resigned in early September, citing an off-the-field matter, which he later admitted was an extramarital affair.

He has been in various coaching roles since that time, having joined the Athletics in May of 2015 and then Atlanta going into 2017. He has received interest from clubs with managerial vacancies over those years but this will now be his first gig as a bench boss since that eight-year stretch with the Rangers. His hiring appears to be part of a trend among some clubs who have opted for experienced managers of late. The Astros hired Dusty Baker going into 2020 when he was 70. The Rangers hired 67-year-old Bruce Bochy a year ago, just one season after the Mets hired 65-year-old Buck Showalter.

The latter was considered a candidate for this job with the Halos but it appears he lost out to Washington. The club seemed to cast a wide net, reportedly considering options like Benji Gil, Darin Erstad, Torii Hunter, Tim Salmon, Ron Roenicke, Gary DiSarcina, Ray Montgomery and perhaps others.

Washington will now take over a team that hasn’t had much success and it’s hard to tell what their path forward is at the moment. Despite having superstars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout on the club for the past six years, the Halos haven’t found any real on-field success in that time. Their last winning season was 2015, last playoff appearance was 2014 and last postseason victory was 2009. Now Ohtani is a free agent while Trout is 32 years old and has dealt with significant injury issues in recent years.

That makes it hard to gauge where they will go over the two years of this deal. Re-signing Ohtani is still on the table but it’s also possible he winds up somewhere else. Some have suggested the club should consider a rebuild in that scenario but it’s unclear if the club’s decision makers would agree with that assessment.

There should be more clarity in the months to come, but the Angels now have a skipper and can move on to figuring out those other unknowns. This hiring leaves three open manager positions around the league, with the Astros, Padres and Brewers still looking for a new bench boss for 2024. Meanwhile, Atlanta will have to find a new third base coach.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Angels To Interview Ron Washington

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The Angels are interviewing Braves third base coach Ron Washington tonight as they continue their managerial search, reports Sam Blum of the Athletic (X link). Jon Heyman of the New York Post indicated yesterday that Washington was on the Halos’ radar.

Washington continues to search for his first lead job since he resigned from the Rangers late in the 2014 season. The former infielder had led the dugout in Arlington for parts of eight years, rattling off four straight 90-win campaigns along the way. Washington’s Rangers won consecutive American League pennants in 2010-11 before falling short in the World Series.

The 71-year-old has spent the last seven years in Atlanta, where he has drawn particular praise for his work with the club’s infield. The early portion of Washington’s time on Brian Snitker’s staff overlapped with Perry Minasian’s time as an assistant general manager in Atlanta. Minasian is going into his fourth offseason at the helm of the Angels front office, with his next hire representing the third managerial hire of that time.

Heyman suggested yesterday that owner Arte Moreno was prioritizing previous managerial experience in this hiring search. Minasian told reporters this afternoon that the Halos were seeking a skipper who can “command a room” but left open the possibility of a first-time hire (link via Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register).

Braves Claim Angel Perdomo, Outright Jackson Stephens

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The Braves have claimed lefty reliever Angel Perdomo off waivers from the Pirates, according to an announcement from Pittsburgh. Atlanta reliever Jackson Stephens was outrighted from the 40-man roster and elected free agency in a corresponding move. Pittsburgh also announced that Yerry De Los Santos — previously reported as on waivers — went unclaimed and was outrighted from the roster.

Perdomo, 29, has pitched in parts of three big league seasons. He logged a personal-high 29 innings with the Pirates in 2023 after signing an offseason minor league deal. The 6’8″ southpaw showed promise, working to a 3.72 ERA while striking out an elite 37.6% of batters faced. He generated swinging strikes at a solid 13% clip and held opposing lefties to a .125/.205/.225 line in a small sample.

Were he healthy, that likely would have been enough to hold a spot in the Pittsburgh relief corps. Unfortunately, Perdomo landed on the injured list with a season-ending elbow problem in August. Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported over the weekend that Perdomo underwent a Tommy John procedure a month ago. He’s likely to miss all of 2024. With no injured list during the offseason, the Bucs felt it best to let him go.

Atlanta will carry him on the 40-man roster, at least for the moment. Should he stick on the roster all winter, they could place him on the 60-day IL during Spring Training. He’ll step into the spot vacated by Stephens, who made five appearances late in the season. The 29-year-old righty posted a 3.28 ERA over 24 2/3 innings with Triple-A Gwinnett. He’s likely to find another minor league deal this offseason.

Braves Exercise Club Option On Charlie Morton, Decline Options On Kirby Yates, Collin McHugh

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The Braves are bringing back veteran right-hander Charlie Morton for another season in 2024, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan, as the club will exercise their $20MM team option on his services. Meanwhile, Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution relays that the club is expected to decline their club option on veteran reliever Kirby Yates, opting to pay him a $1.25MM buyout rather than a $5.75MM salary for 2024. Atlanta also announced they’ve bought out right-hander Collin McHugh for $1MM instead of a $6MM option.

Charlie Morton | Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

Morton at one point publicly indicated uncertainty as to whether he’d pitched beyond his mid-30s, but he’s remained a high-quality starter who’ll now return to Atlanta for a fourth year in what will be his age-40 campaign. The veteran righty started 30 games with the Braves this past season, pitching to a 3.64 ERA with a 25.6% strikeout rate, 11.6% walk rate and 43.3% ground-ball rate over the life of 163 1/3 innings. That walk rate was abnormally high for Morton, who’d issued a free pass to just 8% of his opponents in the past six seasons combined, but his fastball velocity held strong at 95 mph.

While Morton isn’t necessarily the top-tier starter he was during his first season in Atlanta, he remains a quality mid-rotation arm. Given the strength of Atlanta’s pitching, he needn’t be any more than that, either. Lefty Max Fried and young righty Spencer Strider rank among the National League’s best starters, and Morton gives manager Brian Snitker and the organization a playoff-tested veteran to slot into the rotation behind that excellent pairing.

Righty Bryce Elder’s breakout 2023 campaign likely secured him a 2024 rotation spot as well, and the Braves currently have righties AJ Smith-Shawver, Michael Soroka, Ian Anderson (returning from Tommy John surgery) and lefties Dylan Dodd, Jared Shuster and Kolby Allard as depth options beyond that group. Kyle Wright will miss the 2024 season after undergoing October shoulder surgery, making Morton’s return and the steadiness that he brings to the table all the more pivotal.

The $20MM price point at which Morton returns has become the going rate for mid-rotation help — particularly given the short term of the deal. Fellow righties like Jameson Taillon (four years, $68MM) and Taijuan Walker (four years, $72MM) secured $17-18MM annual salaries on longer-term deals elsewhere in the league with the general expectation of functioning as third/fourth starters. With that salary now locked in, Atlanta’s payroll pushes north of $202MM, per Roster Resource — though trades, potential non-tenders and future free agent dealings will surely alter that number in the weeks and months to come.

As for Yates, he’ll head back to the open market after spending the past two seasons in Atlanta. The Braves inked him to a two-year, $8.25MM contract in the 2021-22 offseason, knowing he’d miss the majority of the ’22 campaign while recovering from Tommy John surgery. The former All-Star closer and 2019 NL saves leader (41) was one of the game’s best relievers during a brief two-year peak, but he pitched just seven innings in 2022 and battled considerable command issues this past season.

While Yates’ 3.28 ERA during his second Braves campaign was plenty solid, he also walked 14.6% of his opponents. At his best, Yates anchored the Padres’ bullpen with a 1.67 ERA, 38.7% strikeout rate and 6.1% walk rate, but that form wasn’t on display in Atlanta this year. The Braves were discouraged enough — and possess enough pitching depth — to turn down a net $4.5MM call on Yates, who’ll now head back to the open market in search for a new opportunity in advance of his age-37 season.

McHugh also spent two years as a Brave after signing as a free agent. He had a strong first season but struggled to a 4.30 ERA with a modest 17.5% strikeout rate in 2023. His season ended in early September when he landed on the injured list with inflammation in his throwing shoulder.

Meanwhile, Atlanta will rely on a relief corps headlined by Raisel Iglesias, A.J. Minter and recent re-signees Joe Jimenez (three years, $26MM) and Pierce Johnson (two years, $14.25MM). Both trade acquisitions were set to be free agents before putting pen to paper on new contracts within the past five weeks.

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