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Braves Select Carlos Carrasco

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The Braves announced this morning that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Carlos Carrasco. The move comes just days after Carrasco was acquired from the Yankees. Additionally, recently-acquired Tyler Kinley has reported to the club and is now active. A corresponding roster move wasn’t necessary to accommodate Carrasco after Atlanta traded right-hander Rafael Montero to the Tigers last night.

Carrasco, a 16-year MLB veteran, was brought in to help the Braves’ beleaguered rotation.  The 38-year-old was picking up Cy Young votes for Cleveland a decade ago, but now he’ll serve as a placeholder for a Braves club that has been decimated by injuries.  Carrasco’s bat-missing days are gone, but he has gone seven innings in each of his last three starts for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.

Carrasco joined the Yankees in a minor league deal in February, making the team’s Opening Day roster given injuries to Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil, and Clarke Schmidt.  He made six starts and two relief appearances and was designated for assignment by the first week of May.  The Yankees re-added him to the 40-man in June, but bumped him back off before he could make an appearance.  Three days ago, Carrasco was flipped to the Braves for cash considerations.

Carrasco is set to start for the Braves tonight in Cincinnati, one of only three MLB games on the docket for trade deadline day.  That Carrasco and other recent pickups Erick Fedde and Joey Wentz make up 60% of the Braves’ rotation speaks to the injuries the club has accumulated in a disastrous season.  The Braves have a full rotation on the shelf: Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, Grant Holmes, Reynaldo Lopez, and AJ Smith-Shawver.  Smith-Shawver is out for the season with Tommy John surgery, and it’s unclear what the team will get this year from the others.

Tigers Acquire Rafael Montero From Braves

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The Tigers announced the acquisition of right-handed reliever Rafael Montero from the Braves, in exchange for minor league infielder Jim Jarvis.  Detroit designated Tyler Owens for assignment in a corresponding 40-man roster move, and the Tigers will also need to clear 26-man roster space at some point before their next game.

Montero is on the move for the second time in less than four months, as Atlanta picked up the reliever in an early-April trade with Houston.  That deal was mostly a matter of salary relief for the Astros, who are covering roughly $8.5MM of Montero’s $11.5MM salary for the 2025 season.  Montero is still owed roughly $3.83MM for the remainder of the campaign, so while it depends on how exactly the money is being split up, he’ll still be a relatively inexpensive rental add for the Tigers during the pennant race.

Detroit has thus far added Chris Paddack to the rotation, free agent Luke Jackson to the bullpen, and now Montero its relief corps, as the Tigers have yet to pull the trigger on any headline moves.  Merrill Kelly is known to be on the team’s radar and third base targets Eugenio Suarez and Ke’Bryan Hayes have both been dealt already, but since the Tigers’ focus is reportedly on bullpen upgrades, they could be looking to add some arms first before turning to other matters.

How much help Montero can provide is up for debate, as he has a 5.40 ERA over 38 1/3 combined innings for the Braves and Astros, with an untenable 13.9% walk rate that stands out as one of the worst in baseball.  This lack of control has overshadowed some other decent metrics (and an excellent chase rate), and it should be noted that Montero’s numbers were looking a lot better even 10 days ago.  However, he has allowed eight earned runs over his last four games and 3 1/3 innings of work, sending his ERA through the roof.

It could be that the Tigers view these recent struggles as just a blip, and that Montero can right the ship and at least slightly cut back on the walks.  The Tigers surely view Montero more as a middle relief option than a candidate for higher-leverage innings, and even his okay-ish strikeout numbers are a boost to a Detroit bullpen that doesn’t miss many bats.

Montero was an obvious trade chip for a Braves team looking ahead to 2026.  The trade brings back Jarvis, a multi-positional infielder who was an 11th-round pick for Detroit in the 2023 draft.  The University of Alabama product has spent the whole season with Double-A Erie, hitting .242/.316/.336 over 310 plate appearances while playing mostly shortstop, with a good chunk of time at second and third base.

Braves Designate Enyel De Los Santos For Assignment

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The Braves announced this afternoon that they’ve designated right-hander Enyel De Los Santos for assignment. His departure opens up a 40-man roster spot for right-hander Tyler Kinley, who they acquired from the Rockies in a deal earlier today.

De Los Santos, 29, signed with Atlanta on a minor league deal over the winter. He made the club’s roster out of camp in Spring Training and since then has served as a decent but unspectacular middle reliever. In 43 appearances, he’s posted a below-average 4.53 ERA (92 ERA+) but has offered some solid peripherals, including a 3.32 FIP. His 20.1% strikeout rate and 9.5% walk rate are both fairly pedestrian, however, and while a 60.5% strand rate suggests some poor sequencing luck his 4.15 SIERA suggests he’s little been more than average overall this year.

Joining the Braves marked De Los Santos’s seventh season in the big leagues and seventh team for whom he’s played at the big league level. The right-hander debuted with the Phillies all the way back in 2018 but got his first substantial look at the big league level in 2021 when he made 33 appearances for Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. He posted an ugly 6.37 ERA in 35 1/3 innings back then but since then has generally looked decent in stints with the Guardians, Padres, Yankees, and White Sox in addition to the Braves. Since the start of the 2022 campaign, De Los Santos has posted a 4.01 ERA with a 3.95 FIP and a 24.0% strikeout rate. That’s on top of solid career numbers at the Triple-A level, where he’s posted a 3.37 ERA in parts of four seasons with the Phillies and Guardians.

Going forward, Atlanta will have until tomorrow’s trade deadline to try and work out a trade involving De Los Santos. Should that not come to pass, he’ll be placed on outright waivers where he can be claimed by any club. If he goes unclaimed on waivers, De Los Santos will have the opportunity to either accept an outright assignment from the Braves and serve as non-roster depth in the minor leagues for the remainder of the year, or reject the assignment in favor of free agency, at which point he would be free to sign with any of the league’s 30 clubs.

Rockies Trade Tyler Kinley To Braves

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The Braves and Rockies have agreed to a deal sending right-handed reliever Tyler Kinley from Colorado to Atlanta in exchange for Double-A righty Austin Smith. Both teams have announced the deal. Kinley, who’s earning $3MM in the final year of his contract, has an affordable $5MM club option for the 2026 season.

The 34-year-old Kinley has an unappealing 5.66 ERA on the season but has fanned 23.8% of his opponents on the season. Metrics like FIP (4.14) and SIERA (4.15) feel he’s been far better than that earned run average should indicate. He’s been on an excellent run of late, pitching to a 2.37 ERA with a 31.1% strikeout rate and 6.7% walk rate in 19 innings since mid-June.

Kinley’s overall 12.6% walk rate this season is an eyesore, but he’s also been plagued by a fluky 59.4% strand rate that’s well shy of his 68% career mark and the 72% league average. The 6’4″ righty sits 95.2 mph on his heater and boasts a terrific 14% swinging-strike rate, which could give Atlanta some optimism that Kinley’s strikeout rate has room to improve. He’s also among the league leaders in terms of limiting hard contact.

It’s a surprise to see the Braves add a veteran player, given the team’s 45-61 record in an increasingly injury-decimated season. Kinley deepens the current relief corps and brings a hint of upside which, if unlocked, would make him a bargain option for next season. His ’26 club option has a $750K buyout, so Atlanta will be making a net $4.25MM decision in the offseason after Kinley has had a 2025 audition.

In that sense, the Braves — who fully intend to compete in 2026 — are getting a proactive jump start on some offseason shopping. Braves relievers Raisel Iglesias and Rafael Montero are free agents at season’s end. Pierce Johnson is also in the final guaranteed season of his deal, though like Kinley, he has a 2026 club option. Each of Iglesias, Montero and Johnson has been a reported trade candidate as Atlanta begrudgingly concedes to listening on short-term veterans at this year’s deadline.

Going back to the Rockies is the 26-year-old Smith, Atlanta’s 18th-round pick back in 2021. He posted decent numbers in the low minors in 2021-22 after being drafted out of Arizona, but he missed nearly all of the 2023-24 seasons recovering from Tommy John surgery. Smith tossed 26 innings last year across three minor league levels and posted a 6.92 ERA with nearly as many walks as strikeouts.

He’s been far better this year between High-A and Double-A but still has pedestrian numbers against far younger competition. He’s logged a combined 4.31 ERA with a 26.2% strikeout rate and much improved (but still higher than average) 11.5% walk rate. Smith has yet to climb to the Triple-A level in the minors.

Mark Feinsand of MLB.com first reported that Kinley was headed to the Braves in exchange for a prospect. David O’Brien of The Athletic reported Smith’s inclusion in the deal.

Braves Place Ronald Acuna On Injured List

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July 30: The Braves announced this morning that Acuña has been placed on the injured list and that Kelenic has been recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett.

July 29: The Braves are losing another star to the injured list. Ronald Acuña Jr. is headed to the 10-day IL after making an early exit from tonight’s loss in Kansas City, the team told reporters (including David O’Brien of The Athletic). The club announced the injury as right Achilles tightness. Mark Bowman of MLB.com observed that the former MVP was in a walking boot postgame.

It’s the latest hit in an utter disaster of a season. The Braves are 16 games under .500. They’re almost certainly going to trade Raisel Iglesias and Marcell Ozuna in the next two days. Acuña had been one of the few bright spots. The superstar outfielder is hitting .306/.429/.577 with 14 homers in 55 games since returning from his second ACL tear. He’s now headed back to the IL, where he joins Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, Reynaldo López, Grant Holmes and AJ Smith-Shawver.

This shouldn’t have any impact on the team’s deadline plans. The Braves are long buried in the playoff race, so their impending free agents were getting dealt regardless. They obviously weren’t going to entertain offers on Acuña. The team will provide a timeline after he goes for further testing in the next few days. There’s no reason to take any chances with another lower body injury for the face of the franchise in a lost season.

Eli White finished tonight’s game in right field. He’ll probably get the majority of the playing time. The Braves have Jarred Kelenic and Carlos Rodríguez as depth outfielders on the 40-man roster. Kelenic is batting .217 in Triple-A and trending towards a non-tender. The 24-year-old Rodríguez, who signed a split deal as a minor league free agent last offseason, carries a .276/.348/.347 line over 82 Triple-A contests. He has never appeared in the big leagues.

Braves Acquire Carlos Carrasco

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6:15pm: The Braves announced today that Carrasco was acquired for cash. Manager Brian Snitker said tonight that Carrasco will start for the team Thursday (link via The Athletic’s David O’Brien). Atlanta will need to open a 40-man spot to create space within the next few days — which should be easy with the looming deadline.

12:48pm: The Braves and Yankees have agreed to a trade that’ll send righty Carlos Carrasco to Atlanta in exchange for a player to be named later or cash, reports Jack Curry of the YES Network. The veteran Carrasco is not on the Yankees’ 40-man roster after being designated for assignment and accepting an outright to Triple-A earlier this season.

Carrasco, 38, started six games and made a pair of relief appearances for the Yankees after signing a minor league deal over the winter. That contract came with a $1.5MM base salary, which will carry over to the Braves. He’s made 10 starts and a relief appearance with New York’s top affiliate in Scranton, pitching to a 3.27 ERA overall. That includes a particularly strong run since mid-June, during which Carrasco has logged 44 innings with a 2.45 ERA — albeit with a middling 16.6% strikeout rate. He’s limited walks at a strong 5.7% clip in that span and has a ground-ball rate north of 51.6% in Triple-A this year.

This is the second deal for a previously DFA’ed starter that the injury-ravaged Atlanta front office has drummed up in the past 24 hours. The Braves also added Erick Fedde last night and plugged him directly onto the 40-man roster. In doing so, they also announced that righty Grant Holmes was headed to the 60-day injured list due to an elbow injury.

Holmes became the latest injury casualty in a snakebit Braves season. Atlanta currently has Holmes, Chris Sale (fractured ribs), Reynaldo Lopez (shoulder surgery), Spencer Schwellenbach (fractured elbow) and AJ Smith-Shawver (Tommy John surgery) all on the 60-day injured list.

Presumably, Carrasco will be added to Atlanta’s 40-man roster if not immediately then in the near future. The Braves need all the help they can get simply navigating the rest of the season. Spencer Strider is still healthy atop the rotation, but the depth chart after him includes Bryce Elder, the just-acquired Fedde and recent waiver claim Joey Wentz.

The Braves gave young right-hander Didier Fuentes a look earlier in the summer before turning to external acquisitions, but he was rocked in four starts — as one might expect for a 20-year-old who was fast-tracked to the majors for injury purposes. Former first-rounder Hurston Waldrep has pitched well over his past six Triple-A starts and could get a look in the final couple months, though he’s walked nearly 13% of his Triple-A opponents this season. Righties Davis Daniel and Nathan Wiles give Atlanta a pair of depth arms in their late 20s — and both are already on the 40-man roster.

Waldrep and prospects JR Ritchie and Blake Burkhalter could all be options at some point down the stretch. Ritchie, in particular, has posted big minor league numbers. At the same time, with the season spiraling out of hand and the team’s playoff hopes dashed, the Braves may not want to rush potential key pieces of the future to the majors before they’re ready.

In that sense, some veteran stopgaps like Fedde, Wentz and Carrasco are fairly logical, even if they’re unexciting. Neither Ritchie nor Burkhalter is on the 40-man roster yet, though the latter will need to be added between now and November if he’s to be protected from this year’s Rule 5 Draft, which could give the team some extra incentive to take a look over the final eight weeks of the season if he can replicate his strong Double-A numbers following a recent promotion to Triple-A.

Braves Acquire Erick Fedde, Place Grant Holmes On 60-Day IL

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The Braves have acquired right-hander Erick Fedde in a trade with the Cardinals, FanSided’s Robert Murray reports.  Some money is also headed to Atlanta in the deal, with ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez reporting the Cards will be covering the approximately $2.7MM remaining on Fedde’s $7.5MM salary for the 2025 season.  The deal has been officially announced by the Braves, including the detail that the Cards will receive cash considerations or a player to be named later in return.

The corresponding move to fit Fedde into Atlanta’s roster is also noteworthy, as the Braves announced that right-hander Grant Holmes was shifted to the 60-day injured list.  Holmes was placed on the 15-day IL just earlier today due to right elbow inflammation, and the move to the 60-day will effectively end Holmes’ season.

This news adds context to the trade, as while the Braves are well out of contention, Fedde provides Atlanta with a healthy arm in the wake of a multitude of pitching injuries.  Chris Sale, Reynaldo Lopez, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver, and now Holmes are all on the IL for the foreseeable future, leaving the Braves with a skeleton crew rotation and plenty of innings to fill over the two remaining months on the schedule.

St. Louis designated Fedde for assignment earlier this week, and the trade allows the Cardinals to get at least some modicum of a return rather than just eating Fedde’s salary anyway if he’d cleared waivers.  Still, swapping Fedde for this bare-bones return has to be a disappointment for the Cards given how they could’ve landed a much higher trade package by moving Fedde last winter, or even earlier in the 2025 campaign.

It was almost exactly a year ago that the Cards themselves landed Fedde as part of a three-team trade involving the White Sox (Fedde’s previous club) and the Dodgers.  The intent was to add starting help both for the remainder of the 2024 season and into this year, as Fedde is playing on a two-year, $15MM contract signed with Chicago in December 2023.  Fedde posted a 3.30 ERA over 177 1/3 combined innings with the Sox and Cards in 2024, and drew plenty of speculation as a trade candidate during the offseason since the Cardinals were ostensibly looking to get younger.

While the Cards at least considered moving Fedde, they ultimately held onto the righty in order to preserve rotation depth.  It was one non-move of many in a curiously quiet St. Louis offseason, yet the team’s decision to perhaps give it one more go with most of its veteran core has kept the team on the outskirts of contention.  However, the Cards have lost seven of their last 10 games, and with only a 54-53 record, the Fedde DFA was the first clear signal that the team will be looking to sell moreso than buy at the deadline.

Fedde has a 5.22 ERA and a host of dismal advanced metrics over his 101 2/3 innings for St. Louis this season.  The righty was at least delivering solid bottom-line results as recently as mid-June, but his production has fallen off a cliff in the form of a 13.25 ERA over his last five starts and 17 2/3 innings.  Fedde is allowing far more walks and hard contact than he did in 2024, hence the significant dropoff from his solid performance a year ago.

There hasn’t been much to like about the righty’s performance this year, but the trade allows Fedde a change of scenery and perhaps a chance to salvage something from a lost season.  A better showing over the final two months would help Fedde’s case for his next contract on the open market this offseason, and even eating some innings for Atlanta’s rotation could get him on the Braves’ radar for a return visit in 2026, depending on the long-term health of the club’s other starters.

Cubs Interested In Raisel Iglesias, MacKenzie Gore

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The Cubs are known to be looking far and wide for pitching upgrades at the deadline, with both long-term and short-term arms on the team’s radar.  Two more names can be added to Chicago’s pitching search, as The Athletic’s Patrick Mooney writes that Braves closer Raisel Iglesias “is one of several options under consideration” for bullpen help, and the Cubs are also “very interested in” the possibility of trading for Nationals southpaw MacKenzie Gore.

Iglesias is the much more clear-cut trade candidate of the two, as Iglesias is a free agent at season’s end and the struggling Braves are nowhere near the playoff race.  While Iglesias has a 5.09 ERA over 40 2/3 innings, his 3.00 SIERA is over two runs lower, and his strikeout/walk/hard-hit ball rates range from strongly above-average to elite.  The veteran righty’s ERA reflects Iglesias’ tendency to get hit particularly hard when he does get hit, as 10 of his 23 earned runs allowed this season were contained within just three outings (April 21 against the Giants, June 5 against the Diamondbacks, and July 19 against the Yankees).

It is clear that Iglesias still has plenty left in the tank at age 35, and could be a big help to a team in need of high-leverage relievers.  The bullpen isn’t quite as glaring a need as it seemed for the Cubs earlier in the season, yet the relief corps has been shaky over the last month, and adding Iglesias to the mix is an obvious improvement.  Daniel Palencia has been a revelation as the Cubs’ closer, but given his lack of a proven track record, Chicago could prefer to have an established closer like Iglesias on hand.

Gore seems like a much more speculative pitcher on the wishlist.  Nationals interim GM Mike DeBartolo recently said that his team was planning to retain its young core at the deadline, and made of point of including Gore in that cornerstone group, saying it is “not a focus of mine to move him.”  There is seemingly no rush for DeBartolo or the organization to consider trading a pitcher who is arbitration-controlled through the 2027 season, and Mooney notes that an interim general manager like DeBartolo might not get the green light from ownership to pull the trigger on “a monumental decision” like moving a pitcher who has emerged as the ace of Washington’s rotation.

Even if the door may not be completely closed on the possibility of Gore being traded, the Nats’ asking price is unsurprisingly “viewed as sky-high,” Mooney writes.  For two-plus years of a frontline starter, it is easy to picture Washington demanding multiple high-level prospects and at least one young player who is close to MLB-ready.  As hefty as this ask might be, the Cubs are perhaps one of the few teams that has enough blue-chip minor league depth to make the Nationals at least consider dealing the 26-year-old All-Star.

Owen Caissie, for instance, is the type of elite prospect that would surely be a priority for the Nats in any Gore trade package.  The outfielder is crushing Triple-A pitching for the second consecutive season and seems to have little left to prove in the minors, except Chicago’s outfield (and overall lineup) is deep enough that there’s no current place for Caissie to break into the Show.  That could change quickly if Kyle Tucker departs in free agency this winter, higlighting Caissie’s importance as a long-term asset in Wrigleyville.

Mooney writes that the Cubs are very likely not going to offer Caissie in a trade for a rental player, and would only be inspired to move him at all if a controllable talent (like Gore) is on the table.  In a particularly interesting detail, Mooney reports that Caissie would have been part of a proposed trade between the Cubs and Marlins for Jesus Luzardo this past offseason that was eventually scuttled when Chicago had concerns over Luzardo’s medicals.  This provides some context for what it would take for the Cubs to move Caissie, yet his big Triple-A numbers in 2025 have probably made the team even more loath to part with the outfielder.

Braves Place Grant Holmes On Injured List With Elbow Inflammation

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July 27: The Braves announced this morning that they’ve placed Holmes on the injured list with right elbow inflammation. Right-hander Daysbel Hernandez was recalled to take his spot on the MLB roster.

July 26: Braves manager Brian Snitker told reporters (including David O’Brien of The Athletic) that right-hander Grant Holmes is suffering from elbow tightness after exiting his start against the Rangers today after just four innings. Holmes will get his elbow looked at to determine the severity of the issue, but Snitker noted that he’s expected to go on the injured list.

That’s a major blow to an Atlanta rotation that is already struggling to piece together starts. Holmes will join Chris Sale, Reynaldo Lopez, Spencer Schwellenbach, and AJ Smith-Shawver on the injured list, giving the club a full rotation of injured hurlers. None of that quartet is expected back any time soon, meaning that Snitker will need to make do with the trio of Spencer Strider, Joey Wentz, and Bryce Elder as the only capable starters on his active roster. Long reliever Dane Dunning has at least some starting experience and could be called upon to make a spot start or serve as the bulk arm in a bullpen game.

Outside of the active roster, options are relatively slim at this point. 40-man pitchers like Didier Fuentes, Hurston Waldrep, and Davis Daniel could be called upon to make starts if needed, and if the Braves are willing to create room on the 40-man they could also turn to a non-roster veteran like Ian Anderson or Jose Suarez. Perhaps the Braves could look to add a pitcher to help eat innings down the stretch (such as recently-DFA’d right-hander Erick Fedde), as they did when they acquired Dunning in a swap with the Rangers earlier this month. Such a move is unlikely to land an arm of any real quality, however, as contenders around the league are hungry for pitching help of their own and the Braves aren’t likely to pay a significant price for talent in a season where they’re ten games out of a playoff spot and are buried in the NL East by 15 games.

It’s a bleak outlook overall, and none of those potential replacement figure to offer anything close to the production the Braves have been able to rely on from Holmes this year. A first-round pick by the Dodgers all the way back in 2014, Holmes didn’t make his MLB debut until last year when he joined Atlanta. Since then, he’s been one of the most reliable pieces of the club’s pitching staff with a 3.71 ERA and 3.91 FIP across 179 1/3 innings of work both in the rotation and out of the bullpen. That includes a 3.81 ERA and 4.35 FIP in 111 innings of work as a starter for the club this year.

The 29-year-old Holmes seems very likely to remain firmly in the team’s plans for quite some time after his work the past two years, though those plans could be thrown into question depending on the severity of Holmes’s injury. It’s not uncommon for a bout of elbow tightness to result in little more than a precautionary 15-day stint on the injured list, but given the long recovery times associated with more significant elbow injuries, any issue in that area is cause for concern. It’s impossible to know what sort of timetable for return Holmes might have until the Braves offer an update on his status in the coming days, so until then fans in Atlanta will have to simply hope for the best.

Jesse Chavez Announces Retirement

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Right-hander Jesse Chavez announced his retirement on Foul Territory today. He was on the Braves’ roster until recently but was designated for assignment a week ago when that club acquired Dane Dunning. Chavez elected free agency after clearing waivers and has apparently decided to hang up his spikes in recent days.

“I don’t think we’re gonna keep going,” Chavez said. “I think this is it, time to turn the page, focus on the next chapter in life and go help all the young kids, all the stuff that I did so they don’t have to take two steps backwards and take those three steps forward.”

Chavez wraps up his career just shy of his 42nd birthday, which is less than a month away. He had an incredibly unique career in terms of the miles he traveled and jerseys he wore over the years. As detailed by Matt Monagan of MLB.com in 2022, Chavez is the most traded player in history, having been flipped ten times.

He was initially drafted by the Cubs in the 39th round of the 2001 draft but decided to go to college. Then the Rangers took him in the 42nd round the year after and got him to sign. The draft is now only 20 rounds in length but was obviously longer back then.

Prior to making it to the majors, he was traded for the first time, getting sent to the Pirates for Kip Wells in 2006. He made his major league debut with that club in 2008, tossing 15 innings with a 6.60 earned run average. He stuck with the Bucs through 2009 but then before the 2010 season was flipped to the Rays for Akinori Iwamura and then to the Braves for Rafael Soriano. His first stint with Atlanta lasted just a few months, as he was traded to the Royals at the deadline alongside Gregor Blanco and Tim Collins for Rick Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth.

He stuck with the Royals through the 2011 season before being put on waivers, when the Blue Jays claimed him. In August of 2012, he was traded to the Athletics in exchange for cash considerations.

At the end of the 2012 season, Chavez still hadn’t had a lot of major league success. He had a 5.99 ERA in 177 1/3 innings. The move to Oakland seemed to work out well for him. In 2013, he tossed 57 1/3 relief innings with a 3.92 ERA. He got stretched out for a rotation role and performed well. He logged 303 innings over the 2014 and 2015 seasons with a 3.83 ERA.

Going into 2016, he was traded back to the Blue Jays, with Liam Hendriks sent the other way. That second stint with the Jays lasted just a few months, as he was flipped to the Dodgers for Mike Bolsinger ahead of the 2016 deadline. Both of those clubs kept in him relief and he had a 4.43 ERA that year.

He reached free agency for the first time ahead of the 2017 season and signed a one-year, $5.8MM deal with the Angels. The Halos stretched him back out but the results weren’t great, with a 5.43 ERA through July. He was moved back to the bullpen and had a slightly better 4.94 ERA the rest of the way.

"<strongGoing into 2018, he signed a one-year, $1MM deal to return to the Rangers, the first organization he signed with. That turned out to be one of his best seasons. He was traded the Cubs for Tyler Thomas at the deadline and finished that year with a 2.55 ERA. He got to make his first postseason appearance with the Cubs, tossing a scoreless inning in the Wild Card game against the Rockies, but the Cubs ultimately lost in 13 innings.

He returned to free agency and signed with the Rangers yet again, this time on a two-year deal worth $8MM. That deal didn’t work out quite as well, as he posted a 5.21 ERA over those two seasons.

He had to settle for a minor league deal with Atlanta going into 2021, but he showed he still had something left in the tank. He was able to to throw 33 2/3 innings in the majors that year with a 2.14 ERA. He cracked the postseason roster and tossed 6 1/3 scoreless innings as Atlanta won it all, getting Chavez a World Series ring.

He signed a minor league deal with the Cubs going into 2022 and got a brief stint on their roster before getting flipped back to Atlanta for Sean Newcomb. A few months later, he and Tucker Davidson were flipped to the Angels for Raisel Iglesias.

In the latter years of his career, he always seemed to wind up back in Atlanta. Even after being traded away in August of 2022, he was back in Atlanta via waivers a few weeks later. Via further minor league deals, he ended up tossing 34 2/3 innings in 2023 with a 1.56 ERA and then 63 1/3 innings last year with a 3.13 ERA. This year, his time on the roster has been more limited, with eight innings and eight earned runs allowed.

In the end, Chavez played in 18 seasons for nine different teams, getting traded ten times. He got into 657 games and tossed 1,142 innings with a 4.27 ERA. He had a 51-66 win-loss record, nine saves and 76 holds. Baseball Reference lists his career earnings above $25MM. We at MLB Trade Rumors salute him on his incredibly long and winding career and wish him the best with the next phase of his life. Based on his comments above, it sounds like maybe he’ll turn up in a coaching role in the future.

Photos courtesy of Kelley L Cox, Tim Heitman and Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images

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