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Braves Rumors

Braves Activate Ozzie Albies

By Steve Adams | April 26, 2024 at 10:55am CDT

The Braves announced Friday morning that they’ve reinstated Ozzie Albies from the 10-day injured list. The star second baseman is expected to be back in the lineup for today’s game. It’s a rather remarkable recovery for a player who spent just the 10-day minimum on the injured list after suffering a fractured big toe when he was hit by a pitch on April 15. Albies is returning to the club without a rehab assignment, though he took batting practice throughout the week.

Whether there’ll be any lingering effects remains to be seen, but Albies has gotten out to an excellent start in 2024. Through 15 games and 70 trips to the plate, he’s slashing .317/.386/.492 with a pair of homers, a pair of steals and just a 12.9% strikeout rate. If the foot injury doesn’t provide any more problems for him, he’s laid the foundation for an excellent follow-up effort to a career year at the plate in 2023, which saw Albies pop a personal-best 33 home runs and bat .280/.336/.513 in 660 plate appearances.

Atlanta won’t need to make any corresponding moves to get Albies back onto the roster. The Braves announced yesterday that infielder David Fletcher passed through waivers unclaimed and had been assigned outright to Triple-A Gwinnett. He’d been on the big league roster, so that paved the way for Albies’ reinstatement.

In 787 games since debuting with the Braves as a 20-year-old back in 2017, Albies is a .273/.326/.479 hitter with 133 home runs and 78 stolen bases. The three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger winner is in the sixth season of a seven-year, $35MM contract extension he signed back in April of 2019. He’s earning $7MM this year and next, and the Braves hold a pair of $7MM club options on him for the 2026-27 campaigns.

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Atlanta Braves Ozzie Albies

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Braves Outright David Fletcher

By Steve Adams | April 25, 2024 at 6:09pm CDT

6:09pm: Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports (on X) that Fletcher’s deal contains an advance consent form that allows Atlanta to send him to the minors. Even though he has surpassed the five-year service threshold, he would forfeit what remains of his salary if he elects free agency. He’ll therefore report to Gwinnett and try to play his way back to the majors.

1:50pm: The Braves announced Thursday that veteran infielder David Fletcher went unclaimed on waivers and has been assigned outright to Triple-A. Fletcher entered the season with 4.168 years of service time, meaning he needed only four days to reach the five-year mark. He accomplished that during his eight-day stretch on the 40-man roster, meaning he now has the five years of service needed to reject an outright assignment and retain his salary. He’s being paid a guaranteed $6MM this season and is still owed $6.5MM in 2025 and at least a $1.5MM buyout on a 2026 club option.

Fletcher, 29, appeared in five games with the Braves and tallied nine plate appearances, going 2-for-8 with a pair of singles. His subtraction from the 40-man roster likely signals the looming return of second baseman Ozzie Albies, who’s been on the injured list with a fractured toe but is expected to return to the active roster for this weekend’s series.

Fletcher came to the Braves amid a series of convoluted offseason trades that saw them effectively purchase Jarred Kelenic from the Mariners. Atlanta took on the underwater contracts of both Evan White and Marco Gonzales to get Kelenic, sending back righty Jackson Kowar (on whom they’d taken a flier in a trade with the Royals) and former second-round pick Cole Phillips, who’s yet to pitch since being drafted due to injury. Gonzales was traded to the Pirates, with the Braves absorbing three quarters of his $12MM salary. White was traded to the Halos for Fletcher and Max Stassi (on an underwater contract himself) in another financially-motivated swap; Stassi was then quickly flipped to the White Sox for a player to be named later. Atlanta covered all but the league minimum on Stassi’s remaining salary (a net of about $6.26MM for the Braves).

After all that, it’s possible Fletcher will now simply move on. The Braves initially appeared set to use the versatile, defensive-minded veteran as their primary utility infielder. However, Atlanta wound up instead signing Luis Guillorme to fill that role later in the offseason. Guillorme will now slide back into a bench role after filling in for Albies at second base, leaving Fletcher without a clear path to playing time. If he does reject the assignment, other teams in need of infield help could take a look at Fletcher and would only owe him the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster. That sum would be subtracted from what the Braves owe him.

Fletcher signed a five-year, $26MM extension with the Angels on the heels of a .298/.356/.395 showing from 2019-20 — a productive stretch at the plate during which he fanned at a tiny 10.1% clip and played superb defense between three infield spots (second base, third base, shortstop). He’s since floundered at the dish, however, batting just .259/.295/.326 in 999 plate appearances. Fletcher’s bat-to-ball skills have actually improved (8.6% strikeout rate), but his quality of contact has plummeted and rendered him an unimpactful player in the batter’s box.

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Atlanta Braves Transactions David Fletcher

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MLBTR Podcast Mailbag: Cardinals’ Troubles, Jazz Chisholm, Bad Umpiring And More

By Darragh McDonald | April 24, 2024 at 11:59pm CDT

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 Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors for a mailbag episode. We spent the entire show answering questions from listeners, including…

  • Which of the division leaders have the most or least staying power? (3:10)
  • What does it look like if the Cardinals are selling at the deadline? (11:20)
  • Do the Cardinals have a problem with coaching or player development? (18:50)
  • When the Braves traded Marco Gonzales and Max Stassi, why did they trade for a player to be named later or cash when they were paying most of the salaries for both players? (22:35)
  • Will the Marlins trade Jazz Chisholm Jr. if they are out of contention in July? (24:45)
  • You’re designing a pitcher in a lab to succeed in today’s game and mitigate the likelihood of an injury. What is their profile and what pitches do they throw? (28:35)
  • Why isn’t there more umpire accountability? (33:30)
  • Why are the Pirates committed to hitting coach Andy Haines? (35:45)
  • Compare the cost of a Falcon 9 launch to the Javier Báez contract. How much could the Tigers save? (38:55)
  • Should the Tigers send Parker Meadows down and should the Giants release Mike Yastrzemski? (40:05)

Check out our past episodes!

  • Free Agent Power Rankings, Shohei Ohtani’s Stolen Money And The A’s Moving To Sacramento – listen here
  • Reviewing Our Free Agent Predictions And Future CBA Issues – listen here
  • Baseball Is Back, Will Smith’s Extension, Mike Clevinger And Jon Berti – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

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NL East Notes: Martinez, Ruiz, Strider

By Nick Deeds | April 21, 2024 at 1:57pm CDT

The Mets are hoping that veteran slugger J.D. Martinez can join the big league club to make his debut on Friday, manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters (including Anthony DiComo of MLB.com). In the meantime, DiComo adds that Martinez will move his rehab assignment up to Triple-A Syracuse while he works toward being ready to return to the big leagues. Martinez, 36, signed with the Mets on a one-year deal just before Opening Day. Thanks to the slugger missing the entirety of Spring Training, he began the season in the minor leagues in order to build up for his debut with the big league Mets.

That process hit almost an immediate snag after Martinez found himself sidelined by “general body soreness” just two games into his rehab process. It was initially expected that Martinez would only need a few days off, but he hasn’t appeared in any games during the two weeks since then. That’s now set to change, however, with Martinez scheduled to get his final reps in at the Triple-A level before finally making his debut in Queens against the Cardinals, assuming things go smoothly from here. Should Martinez indeed be ready to come up on Friday, it would provide a boost to a Mets club that has already won six straight and ten of their last twelve to place themselves just 2.5 games back of Atlanta for the lead in the NL East.

The addition of Martinez, a six-time All Star and three-time Silver Slugger award winner, to the club’s lineup should help to further bolster a lineup that has already delivered a solid 109 wRC+ that ranks ninth among all MLB clubs this season. He’ll be particularly valuable for his power output; while the Mets currently rank middle of the pack with an ISO of just .141 and 22 home runs as a team, Martinez sports an incredible .237 ISO for his career and crushed 33 homers in just 113 games with the Dodgers last year.

More from around the NL East…

  • When Nationals backstop Keibert Ruiz was placed on the 10-day injured list because of the flu last week, it was a bit of an unusual diagnosis as illnesses rarely keep players out for more than a couple of days. Spencer Nusbaum of the Washington Post reported this afternoon that Ruiz’s case was severe enough that he’s lost between 18 and 20 pounds due to the illness, which has sidelined him since April 9. Fortunately, the young catcher seems to be doing better at this point, as Nusbaum adds that Ruiz is expected to head out for a rehab assignment in the coming days. Ruiz got off to a tough start at the plate with a slash line of just .194/.265/.290 in 34 plate appearances this year but nonetheless figures to take over regular catching duties for the Nats upon his return, where Riley Adams and Drew Millas have split time in Ruiz’s absence.
  • Braves right-hander Spencer Strider won’t pitch again this season after undergoing an internal brace procedure on his UCL earlier this month, but he told reporters (including Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution) earlier this week that he hadn’t actually torn his UCL. Instead, Strider noted that imaging revealed that a bone fragment had formed inside his UCL in the years since he first underwent surgery on the elbow back in 2019. Strider also revealed that he had been nursing discomfort in his elbow dating back to Spring Training, though at the time he attempted to pitch through it as it hadn’t impacted his velocity. The 25-year-old has emerged as one of the league’s most talented starters in recent years, posting a 3.36 ERA and 2.43 FIP in 318 1/3 innings of work between the 2022 and ’23 seasons. Atlanta has turned to right-hander Darius Vines to fill Strider’s spot in the rotation for the time being, though it’s possible another arm such as Bryce Elder or AJ Smith-Shawver could enter the mix for Strider’s starts at some point this season.
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Atlanta Braves New York Mets Notes Washington Nationals J.D. Martinez Keibert Ruiz Spencer Strider

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Braves Select Luke Williams

By Darragh McDonald | April 19, 2024 at 9:40am CDT

The Braves announced that they have selected the contract of infielder/outfielder Luke Williams, with outfielder Forrest Wall optioned in a corresponding move. The club had an open spot on the 40-man roster.

Williams, 27, is a versatile player who has bounced around the league in recent years. He was drafted by the Phillies and made his debut with that club in 2021. But in 2022, he went to the Giants, Marlins and Dodgers via small trades or waiver claims. The Dodgers non-tendered him after that season and re-signed him to a minor league deal. He made their roster during the 2023 campaign but then went to Atlanta via waivers. For a second straight year, he was non-tendered and then re-signed a minor league deal with the club that cut him.

While collecting all those jerseys, he also found time to play all four infield positions and all three outfield slots. He even threw one inning on the mound for the Dodgers last year. His 263 major league plate appearances have led to a batting line of .225/.281/.295, wRC+ of 60. That’s obviously subpar offense but he’s also stolen 17 bases in 23 tries and provides the aforementioned defensive versatility.

His offense has naturally been better in the minors. Going back to the start of 2022, he has hit .267/.356/.435 for a wRC+ of 97. That’s still a bit below average but it’s not bad for a guy who can swipe a bag from time to time while also wearing multiple different gloves. The combination is clearly appealing to teams, based on how many of them have acquired him in the past few years.

Atlanta recently lost Ozzie Albies to the injured list due to a broken toe, so their needs on the infield are a little higher than in the outfield. They have Luis Guillorme and David Fletcher on hand to cover second base but Williams can give them some extra cover there, while also potentially moving to the outfield.

Wall has been with the club all year but has barely played, as he’s been put into two games as a late substitution, only taking one plate appearance. The club has Ronald Acuña Jr., Michael Harris II, Jarred Kelenic and Adam Duvall taking regular playing time on the grass, with Marcell Ozuna as the designated hitter.

Rather than have Wall sit on the bench, it seems the club will send him to Triple-A for regular playing time down there. Williams can take over as the occasional pinch runner or defensive replacement while also giving the club a bit more infield depth. Williams still has an option so the club can decide to send him back down to the minors later without being exposed to waivers.

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Atlanta Braves Transactions Forrest Wall Luke Williams

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MLBTR Podcast: Free Agent Power Rankings, Ohtani’s Stolen Money And The A’s Moving To Sacramento

By Darragh McDonald | April 17, 2024 at 11:59pm CDT

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…

  • MLBTR’s 2024-25 Free Agent Power Rankings (1:30)
  • Gerrit Cole didn’t crack the rankings due to his specific opt-out situation with the Yankees (6:30)
  • The upcoming free agencies of Alex Bregman of the Astros and Pete Alonso of the Mets (9:20)
  • Is there any scenario where Juan Soto of the Yankees is not the top free agent? (15:15)
  • Ippei Mizuhara, former interpreter for Shohei Ohtani, charged with bank fraud (19:40)
  • Athletics to play in Sacramento before moving to Las Vegas (32:40)

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • How can a pitcher blow a save in the seventh inning? How early can a save be blown? (38:25)
  • Do you think the Tigers will release Javier Báez? It is painful to watch him. (41:15)
  • Who could the Braves target inside or outside the organization to replace Spencer Strider? (45:15)

Check out our past episodes!

  • Reviewing Our Free Agent Predictions And Future CBA Issues – listen here
  • Baseball Is Back, Will Smith’s Extension, Mike Clevinger And Jon Berti – listen here
  • A Live Reaction To The Jordan Montgomery Signing, Shohei Ohtani’s Interpreter, And J.D. Martinez Joins The Mets – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

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Atlanta Braves Detroit Tigers Houston Astros Los Angeles Dodgers MLB Trade Rumors Podcast New York Mets New York Yankees Oakland Athletics Alex Bregman Gerrit Cole Javier Baez Juan Soto Pete Alonso Shohei Ohtani Spencer Strider

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Injury Notes: Albies, Suzuki, Basabe, Gipson-Long

By Anthony Franco | April 17, 2024 at 8:38pm CDT

The Braves placed Ozzie Albies on the injured list yesterday after the star second baseman fractured a toe on a hit-by-pitch. The Athletic’s David O’Brien writes that the Braves expect Albies’ absence to be closer to one month as opposed to the three months he lost when he broke his foot during the 2022 season. While that’d be well beyond the 10-day minimum, it’s far from a worst case scenario.

Atlanta’s typically excellent offense has been the best in MLB over the season’s first few weeks. The Braves lead the majors in all three triple-slash stats and entered Wednesday third in runs (behind the Padres and Dodgers, each of whom have played more games). Albies has been a big part of that, hitting .317/.386/.492 with a pair of longballs over his first 70 plate appearances. The Braves selected David Fletcher’s contract after Albies’ injury to add a glove-first utility option. Luis Guillorme has gotten the start at the keystone in each of the last two days.

A few more health situations of note:

  • An approximate month-long absence also seems to be on the table for Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki, who went on the shelf on Monday with an oblique strain. Manager Craig Counsell told reporters last night that the injury is in the “four-week range,” although the team will have a clearer timetable once Suzuki’s symptoms subside (X link via Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune). One of Chicago’s hottest hitters, Suzuki was off to a .305/.368/.525 start to his third MLB campaign. Mike Tauchman has been pushed into right field action against right-handed pitching, with Alexander Canario recalled as a righty complement in the corner opposite Ian Happ.
  • The Rays were dealt a hit to their infield depth this afternoon. Osleivis Basabe landed on the minor league injured list. Patrick Kinas, broadcaster for the team’s Triple-A affiliate, tweets that Basabe fractured his right wrist when he was by a pitch from Naoyuki Uwasawa in yesterday’s game. It’s not clear how long he’ll be out of action, although it stands to reason it’ll be a significant absence. Basabe has spent this year in Triple-A after being optioned during Spring Training. The righty-hitting shortstop got to the majors late last season, appearing in his first 31 MLB contests. He’s on the 40-man roster as a depth option for a middle infield that is already without Brandon Lowe and Taylor Walls.
  • Sawyer Gipson-Long continues to weigh multiple opinions after experiencing forearm tightness, the Tigers informed reporters (including The Athletic’s Cody Stavenhagen). Detroit hasn’t specified whether surgery is on the table, yet it’s nevertheless worrisome any time a pitcher is dealing with somewhat nebulous forearm soreness. Gipson-Long began the season on the 15-day injured list after suffering a Spring Training groin strain. He had an impressive four-start MLB debut last September, fanning nearly 32% of opponents with a 2.70 ERA in 20 innings. Gipson-Long wasn’t likely to be in contention for an Opening Day rotation spot but projects as one of Detroit’s better depth starters if healthy.
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Atlanta Braves Chicago Cubs Detroit Tigers Notes Tampa Bay Rays Osleivis Basabe Ozzie Albies Sawyer Gipson-Long Seiya Suzuki

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Braves Place Ozzie Albies On Injured List With Toe Fracture

By Darragh McDonald | April 16, 2024 at 4:00pm CDT

The Braves announced that infielder Ozzie Albies has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a right great toe fracture. Infielder David Fletcher has been selected to take his place on the roster. Atlanta had a couple of vacancies on its 40-man roster and won’t need to make a corresponding move in that regard.

Albies was hit on the toe by a pitch in the second inning of last night’s game against the Astros. He stayed in the game and played the rest of it, but it appears that some post-game testing revealed a fracture. The fact that he didn’t immediately leave the contest perhaps suggests it will be a brief stint on the IL, but the club hasn’t yet provided any estimates of that nature.

For however long he’s out, it will be a blow the club. Albies has been a consistently strong hitter and was out to a hot start this year. He’s hit .273/.326/.479 in his career but currently sits on a robust slash of .317/.386/.492 in 2024.

Losing that kind of production would be unwelcome at any time but it’s compounded by the fact that Atlanta is also without right-hander Spencer Strider and catcher Sean Murphy. Strider required season-ending elbow surgery recently while Murphy still has an uncertain timeline as he works his way back from an oblique strain. Even if Albies is slated for a short stint on the IL, having three key contributors all out at the same time isn’t ideal.

In the meantime, the club has Luis Guillorme on the roster and has now added Fletcher as well, with those two the likeliest to cover the keystone while Albies is out. Fletcher was acquired from the Angels in December in a move that was largely motivated by financial concerns. Atlanta took on the contracts of Fletcher and Max Stassi while shipping out Evan White and Tyler Thomas. Stassi was quickly traded to the White Sox and Fletcher was outrighted off the roster.

Atlanta took on some extra money here in 2024 by making that deal but will be paying slightly less in 2025 and 2026, while it also allowed them to retain some non-roster infield depth in the form of Fletcher. They knew this would be the case thanks to the peculiar specificity of Fletcher’s situation.

Fletcher has long been a strong defender at multiple positions but with a contact-oriented approach at the plate that generally leads to subpar offense. He had a strong performance in the shortened 2020 season, hitting .319/.376/.425 for a wRC+ of 121. The Halos decided to bank on that as a breakout by signing Fletcher to a five-year, $26MM extension going into 2021.

Unfortunately, his production dipped back down and he got nudged out of playing time for the Angels, with that 2020 season looking like a clear outlier. Though his 9.5% career strikeout rate is much stronger than league average, he’s also only walked at a 6.2% clip and hit just 16 home runs in 2,180 plate appearances. He’s hit .277/.323/.359 in his career and just .259/.296/.327 since the 2020 season.

Twice last year, the Angels passed Fletcher through waivers unclaimed, hardly a surprising outcome since any claiming club would have to take on the remainder of the contract. Since Fletcher had over three years of service time, he had the right to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency. However, since he has less than five years of service time, exercising that right would mean forfeiting what’s left of his deal. He obviously waived that right and stayed with the club, getting added back to the roster at a later date both times.

As mentioned, Atlanta also outrighted him off the roster after acquiring him, since they were undoubtedly aware of Fletcher’s position. But now the injury to Albies has opened the door for him to get back to the majors. His service time count currently sits at four years and 168 days. Since a new year rolls over at 172 days, Fletcher is just four days away from reaching the five-year plateau.

Assuming he sticks on the roster while Albies is out, that will change his status significantly. If he’s bumped off the roster again in a few weeks and clears waivers, then he could elect free agency without sacrificing any of the money on his contract. That would allow him to seek out the best situation for himself while a signing club would only have to pay him the prorated league minimum, with Atlanta staying on the hook for the remainder. He’s making $6MM this year and $6.5MM next year with an $8MM club option for 2026 that comes with a $1.5MM buyout.

For now, Fletcher will provide Atlanta with some depth all over the diamond, as he has played the three infield positions to the left of first base as well as the outfield corners, getting strong marks wherever he’s lined up.

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Atlanta Braves Transactions David Fletcher Ozzie Albies

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Spencer Strider Undergoes Season-Ending Internal Brace Surgery

By Mark Polishuk | April 13, 2024 at 10:59pm CDT

Spencer Strider’s season is over, as the Braves announced that the right-hander underwent an internal brace surgery on Friday.  It was revealed last week that Strider has suffered some UCL damage, and while a brace surgery is somewhat less serious than the worst-case scenario of another Tommy John surgery, the 25-year-old ace will still miss the remainder of the 2024 campaign.

This marks the second major injury absence of Strider’s career, as he already had a TJ procedure in 2019 when he was still pitching at Clemson.  Returning to pitch only 12 innings during the 2020 NCAA season that was interrupted by the pandemic, Strider still got selected in the abbreviated five-round 2020 draft, as Atlanta’s decision to take the righty in the fourth round quickly looked like a steal.

Strider performed so well in his first taste of pro ball that he rocketed through the Braves’ farm system and made his MLB debut in October 2021.  Strider hasn’t been back to the minors since, as he moved into Atlanta’s rotation in 2022 and quickly established himself as a frontline arm.  Over 318 1/3 innings in 2022-23, Strider posted a 3.36 ERA, an eight percent walk rate, and a whopping 37.4% strikeout rate.  This performance earned him runner-up in NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2022, an All-Star selection and a fourth-place finish in NL Cy Young Award voting in 2023, and a six-year, $75MM contract extension in October 2022 that cemented Strider as one of Atlanta’s cornerstones.

Unfortunately, Strider’s career will now be put on hold for the next year.  Exactly when he’ll return in 2025 is somewhat fluid, as internal brace surgeries are still relatively new enough that the recovery timeline isn’t quite as established as the 13-15 months normally associated to Tommy John rehabs.  In general, the shorter timeline for brace surgeries means that Strider could be back in Atlanta’s rotation by Opening Day 2025.  (For more on the topic, The Athletic’s Cody Stavenhagen recently wrote a piece detailing the differences between brace procedures, Tommy John surgeries, and UCL revision surgeries.)

Every pitcher’s arm is different, of course, and it is possible Strider’s timeline could be extended because this is already his second UCL-related surgery.  The fact that his current UCL damage wasn’t so severe that a full Tommy John surgery was necessary is at least some kind of silver lining, so if all goes well, Strider should be able to cut several months off his rehab.

That fact doesn’t much help a Braves team that is aiming to win the 2024 World Series, and losing Strider is naturally a big hit to these championship aspirations.  The remaining starting four of Max Fried, Charlie Morton, Chris Sale, and Reynaldo Lopez is still pretty strong, as Lopez has in particular looked great in his return to a starter’s role.  If Lopez can keep up anything close to this form and Sale can remain healthy and effective, the Braves have enough starting pitching depth on paper to perhaps cover for Strider’s absence.

Allan Winans got the start in Strider’s place on Thursday with very shaky (six ER in five innings) results, and Darius Vines has since been called up for what will probably be a longer look in the rotation.  Vines made his MLB debut in 2023 with a 3.98 ERA over 20 1/3 innings, and even if Vines isn’t quite ready for prime time, the Braves can turn to Bryce Elder, Dylan Dodd, Huascar Ynoa, AJ Smith-Shawver, Winans, and others down at Triple-A.

Since all of this group are on the 40-man roster and have minor league options remaining, Atlanta could run something of a revolving door through the fifth spot in the rotation, unless someone pitches well enough to seize the job entirely.  Given all of these starter candidates on hand, president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos might not feel the need to pursue pitching at the deadline, though obviously much can change between now and the end of July.  The Braves’ mighty lineup carried the team to 104 wins in 2023 despite several rotation injuries, even if the hope this season was that a healthier pitching staff would be the final piece to carry the team to its second World Series title in four years.

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Atlanta Braves Newsstand Spencer Strider

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Braves Sign Yuli Gurriel To Minor League Contract

By Mark Polishuk | April 13, 2024 at 2:06pm CDT

The Braves have signed first baseman Yuli Gurriel to a minor league deal, according to reporter Francys Romero (links via X).  After recently changing agencies, Gurriel is now represented by Gene Mato.

Atlanta saw plenty of Gurriel when he played with the Marlins last season, and the veteran hit .323/.382/.581 over 34 plate appearances against Braves pitching.  Unfortunately for Gurriel, he didn’t come close to this production on the whole, as he batted .245/.304/.359 with four homers over 329 PA.  It marks the second straight season of subpar offense for the 39-year-old, and his third in four years when considering his lackluster .658 OPS in 230 PA during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.

Even with these recent results, Gurriel has still been an above-average (108 wRC+) hitter over his eight Major League seasons.  The first seven of those years were spent in Houston, where Gurriel was part of the Astros core that won World Series titles in 2017 and 2022.  Gurriel was also a huge part of the AL championship squad that lost to the Braves in the 2021 World Series, as he posted 15 homers and .319/.383/.462 slash line while also winning the AL batting title and a Gold Glove.

2021 now seems rather far in the rearview mirror given Gurriel’s struggles in the last two seasons, and it remains to be seen what he has left in the tank as he approaches his 40th birthday in June.  Gurriel had already played 15 seasons in Cuba’s Serie Nacional (plus a brief stint in Japan with the Yokohama BayStars in 2014) before he even came to the big leagues on a five-year, $47.5MM contract with the Astros midway through the 2016 season.

There isn’t any risk for the Braves in giving Gurriel a minor league deal to see what he can still offer, though even if he does hit well at Triple-A, playing time figures to be scarce in Atlanta since Matt Olson and Marcell Ozuna have the first base and DH positions on lockdown.  Gurriel played some second and third base earlier in his career, but again, Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley have those positions covered.  With all these established starters and the Braves’ penchant for keeping those regulars on the field, Gurriel might be okay with being a little-used bench bat if it means being part of another contending team.  Or, Gurriel’s time at Triple-A Gwinnett could essentially be an audition for another team, whether via a potential trade or maybe if Gurriel has an opt-out clause in his deal.

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Atlanta Braves Transactions Yuli Gurriel

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