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Jesse Chavez

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

Jesse Chavez Elects Free Agency

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Right-hander Jesse Chavez has elected free agency after being outrighted to Triple-A Gwinnett, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week.

Chavez, 41, has been on and off Atlanta’s roster this year. Three separate times, they have signed him to a minor league deal, selected him to the roster and then bumped him off after a brief stint. His most recent selection was on July 6th. A little over a week later, he was designated for assignment when Atlanta acquired Dane Dunning from the Rangers.

Around those transactions, Chavez has tossed eight innings over four appearances. He has allowed eight earned runs on 14 hits and five walks while striking out eight opponents. He has also logged 30 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level with a 2.05 earned run average, 28.8% strikeout rate, 9.6% walk rate and 37.3% ground ball rate.

Chavez will now have a chance to speak with all 30 clubs, though he always seems to find his way back to Atlanta. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the two sides reunite on a fresh minor league deal in the coming days. The club is lined up to be a deadline seller in the rest of the month. Closer Raisel Iglesias seems likely to move while guys like Rafael Montero, Pierce Johnson or Aaron Bummer could be on the move as well. That could open up some more major league opportunities for Chavez or other pitchers down the stretch.

Photo courtesy of D. Ross Cameron, Imagn Images

Rangers Trade Dane Dunning To Braves

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The Rangers announced they’ve traded Dane Dunning to the Braves for minor league reliever José Ruiz and cash. Atlanta designated Jesse Chavez for assignment to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. Ruiz was outrighted last month. Texas’ roster count technically drops to 38 but will climb back to 39 tomorrow when they select the contract of first baseman Rowdy Tellez.

It’s a salary dump for the Rangers. Dunning has fallen out of favor over the past two seasons. The former first-round pick tossed 172 2/3 innings of 3.70 ERA ball during the World Series season two years ago. He only managed a 5.31 mark in 95 frames last season. While Texas tendered him a contract, Dunning had to take a very rare arbitration pay cut to ensure the Rangers didn’t move on.

That didn’t get him a spot on the Opening Day roster. The 30-year-old Dunning gave up 10 runs in 11 innings during Spring Training. Texas waived him at the end of camp in the hope that another team would take his $2.66MM salary. No one bit, and he has spent most of the year in Triple-A.

Dunning was called up in April, again cleared waivers in May, and was selected back onto the roster last month. He has been limited to five MLB appearances, all out of the bullpen, and has allowed four runs across 10 2/3 innings. He has worked as a starter in the minors, pitching to a 4.47 ERA over 46 1/3 frames in the Pacific Coast League. Dunning has punched out 24% of Triple-A opponents against a 9% walk rate.

The Rangers were unlikely to give Dunning anything more than mop-up work. He had fallen behind Patrick Corbin, Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker at the back of the rotation. Texas expects to get Jon Gray back from a wrist fracture in the next week or two. Dunning has a much better path to a rotation spot on an Atlanta team that has been decimated by injuries.

They’re without Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, Reynaldo López and AJ Smith-Shawver. They’ve given 15 starts to Bryce Elder, who has a near-6.00 ERA. Davis Daniel made his first start of the season just before the All-Star Break. He’s the nominal fourth starter behind Spencer Strider, Grant Holmes and Elder. They pressed 20-year-old Didier Fuentes into MLB work for which he was clearly not ready. He’s now back in Triple-A.

Dunning has been a capable back-end starter in the past. It seems he’ll work in long relief initially, as the Braves tabbed swingman Joey Wentz to start on Saturday against the Yankees. Dunning still has an option remaining. He’ll be eligible for arbitration at least once more. There’s a decent chance the Braves will non-tender him regardless, but they didn’t give up anything of note to acquire him.

Ruiz, 30, is a journeyman reliever. He managed a 3.71 ERA while striking out 24% of opponents over 52 appearances for the Phillies last season. Things went off the rails this year, as he has allowed 17 runs in 16 1/3 MLB innings. Atlanta claimed him off waivers from Philadelphia but waived him themselves after he gave up three runs in one inning during his second appearance with the club. He has since tossed 7 2/3 innings of four-run ball in Triple-A. The Rangers assigned him to their top affiliate in Round Rock.

The Phillies and Ruiz agreed to a $1.225MM arbitration salary. The Braves assumed that when they claimed him. Atlanta is paying down an unspecified portion of that sum. Dunning is owed roughly $1MM for the rest of the season, while Ruiz is owed about $450K. A direct swap without cash considerations would’ve knocked about $550K off the Rangers’ books. They’ll save a bit more than that depending on the amount of money that the Braves are covering.

It’s a small amount by MLB standards. However, as MLBTR pointed out in tonight’s preview of the Rangers deadline for Front Office subscribers, Texas should be motivated to cut spending around the fringe of the roster. Ownership clearly wants the front office to remain below the $241MM base luxury tax threshold. RosterResource calculated their CBT number a little above $234MM before tonight’s deal. That’s an unofficial estimate that doesn’t account for incentives that’ll add to the team’s tax number as they’re unlocked down the stretch.

The Rangers need to add at least one impact bat if they’re going to make a playoff push. They should probably acquire multiple hitters and would benefit from bringing in a power arm at the back of the bullpen. Dunning was the most obvious player for a pure salary dump as deadline season approaches. Gray, Adolis García and Jonah Heim could be candidates for a payroll-cutting trade as well, though they have (or will have, in Gray’s case) a bigger role than Dunning was playing.

As for Chavez, he’ll go back on waivers for the third time this year. There’s a good chance he’ll clear, elect free agency, then re-sign with Atlanta on a minor league contract. The 41-year-old righty has given up eight runs in as many innings over four MLB appearances this season. He has a 2.05 ERA across 30 2/3 innings in the minors.

Image courtesy of Kirby Lee, Imagn Images.

Braves Select Jesse Chavez

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The Braves announced this morning that they’ve selected right-hander Jesse Chavez to the big league roster. Left-hander Dylan Dodd was optioned to Triple-A to make room for Chavez on the big league roster, while Spencer Schwellenbach was transferred to the 60-day injured list to create 40-man roster spot for Chavez.

Chavez, 41, has made two appearances for the Braves already this year that saw him surrender two runs in three innings of work. He’s been something of an up-and-down depth arm for Atlanta this year, signing minor league deals with the Braves and getting called up to the roster for a day or two before being designated for assignment, electing free agency, and re-signing with Atlanta on a fresh minor league deal. It seems to be a situation both sides are comfortable with, and it’s fairly easy to see why. Chavez has spent more time with the Braves than any other organization in his 18-year MLB career, and he’s had great success with a 3.13 ERA in 224 1/3 innings of work during his time in Atlanta.

Now in his early forties, it’s hard to imagine Chavez being quite as dominant as he was for Atlanta earlier in his mid-thirties. With that being said, he’s remained excellent at Triple-A this year with a 2.05 ERA in 30 2/3 innings of work. It’s certainly possible he still has something left in the tank and can be successful in the majors. With that being said, it could be difficult for Chavez to hold onto a roster spot over the longer term given how dominant the few optionable relievers like Dylan Lee and Daysbel Hernandez have been this season.

Making room for Chavez on the active roster is Dodd, who made his big league debut as a starter back in 2023. He struggled mightily in that role across seven starts, but has reconfigured himself into a reliever this season to solid results. In the majors, Dodd sports a 3.75 ERA across 12 innings of work with a 20% strikeout rate against a walk rate of just 4.4%. His work at Triple-A has been less impressive, as he’s pitched to a 5.40 ERA in 19 appearances at the level, but if Dodd can maintain even league average production his ability to pitch multiple innings and status as a lefty pitcher should make him a very useful depth arm for the Atlanta bullpen going forward.

As for Schwellenbach, the news of his placement on the 60-day injured list is hardly a surprise. The right-hander was shelved with an elbow fracture this past week. Now that he’s been transferred, Schwellenbach is officially ineligible to return until August 31, though that’s very unlikely to be a meaningful obstacle given that even the most optimistic expectations have him returning at some point in September. The righty has been a phenomenal asset for the Braves since he was promoted to the majors last year, with a 3.23 ERA and 3.25 FIP in 38 career starts.

Braves Re-Sign Jesse Chavez, Zach Thompson

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The Braves re-signed righties Jesse Chavez and Zach Thompson to new minor league contracts, per their transaction log at MLB.com. Both players were recently designated for assignment and passed through outright waivers unclaimed. Both elected free agency, and both had short stays on the market.

It seems that with regard to Chavez in particular, this cycle will play out in perpetuity. He can’t simply be optioned to the minors, but he’s clearly content to continue functioning as what’s effectively the 41st man on Atlanta’s 40-man roster. The team will likely continue to summon Chavez to the majors when a fresh arm is needed, then run him through the DFA/waiver process and re-sign him.

The 41-year-old Chavez has now pitched with Atlanta in each of the past five seasons. He’s departed on minor league deals with several other clubs but always found his way back to Truist Park. Chavez has pitched three big league innings this year, allowing a pair of runs on four hits and three walks with three strikeouts. He’s been outstanding in 8 1/3 Triple-A innings (one run, five hits, one walk, 13 strikeouts) and has a terrific 2.96 ERA in 204 MLB innings over the past five years, nearly all of which have come with Atlanta.

Thompson, 31, pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings with Atlanta this season but was roughed up a bit in 4 1/3 minor league innings. The right-hander had a nice showing as a rookie with the Marlins in 2021 but struggled following a trade to the Pirates in the 2021-22 offseason. He’s totaled 200 1/3 innings at the MLB level and carries a 4.36 ERA, 18.3% strikeout rate and 8.6% walk rate. Thompson sits in the low 90s with his heater and doesn’t miss many bats, but he’s a nice spot start option to have stashed in Gwinnett — particularly with both Reynaldo Lopez and Spencer Strider on the injured list at the moment.

Jesse Chavez Elects Free Agency

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April 29: Chavez cleared waivers and elected free agency yet again, as relayed by David O’Brien of The Athletic. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he signs a new minor league deal in the next day or two.

April 27: The Braves announced this morning that they’ve designated right-hander Jesse Chavez for assignment. The move makes room on the active roster for right-hander Davis Daniel, who has been recalled to the majors.

Chavez, 41, made just one appearance in his latest stint with the Braves when he surrendered one run on two hits and a walk while striking out two in an inning of work against the Diamondbacks. He’s so far posted a 6.00 ERA in three innings at the big league level for Atlanta this year, his sixth season in a Braves uniform. The veteran journeyman has pitched to a 4.24 ERA (99 ERA+) and 4.22 FIP in his 18 seasons as a big leaguer but has enjoyed something of a resurgence in recent years.

In 2018, Chavez posted a 2.55 ERA and 3.54 FIP for the Rangers and Cubs across 95 1/3 innings of work. It would’ve been easy to think of that performance as a flash in the pan after he returned to Texas and struggled in both 2019 and the shortened 2020 season, but he signed with Atlanta in 2021 and has looked quite good ever since with a 2.96 ERA and 3.50 FIP in 204 innings of work since then. That ERA drops to an even more impressive 2.59 when looking just at the time he’s spent in Atlanta over the past five seasons, and a strong relationship between the organization and player has seen him return to the club repeatedly in recent years after brief stints elsewhere.

It seems likely that relationship will continue even after today’s DFA. The Braves now have one week to either trade Chavez or pass him through waivers going forward, but if he does clear waivers it would hardly be a shock to see Chavez reject an outright assignment before re-signing in Atlanta on a minor league deal, as he did the last time he was DFA’d by the Braves earlier this month. Should he accept an outright assignment return to the Braves organization on a fresh deal, he’ll remain available to Atlanta as a non-roster depth option who can be called upon to provide length out of the bullpen as needed.

Chavez’s departure from the roster makes room for Daniel, who Atlanta acquired from the Angels back in December. The righty was a seventh-round pick by Anaheim in the 2019 draft and made his big league debut in 2023. In total, he’s pitched 42 2/3 innings of work across nine appearances (six starts) with a 5.06 ERA and 4.41 FIP during that time. Last season, Daniel struck out 20.9% of batters faced at the big league level while walking just 4.5%, but was held back by the long ball as he surrendered five in just 30 1/3 innings of work. For a Braves club that doesn’t have a clear starter for Monday’s game against the Rockies after losing Spencer Strider to the injured list, Daniel could be an option for a spot start if he’s not needed out of the bullpen against the Diamondbacks this evening.

Braves Select Jesse Chavez

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The Braves announced this morning that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Jesse Chavez from Triple-A Gwinnett. He’ll head to the big league roster in place of righty Nathan Wiles, who’s been optioned back to Triple-A after making his MLB debut last night. In order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Chavez, Atlanta transferred infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr. to the 60-day injured list. Alvarez has been out all season due to a wrist injury.

The 41-year-old Chavez keeps finding his way back to the Braves. He’s pitched for Atlanta in each of the past five seasons despite signing contracts with the Angels, Cubs, Rangers and White Sox along the way. Most of those were minor league pacts — including his 2025 deal with Texas — and each time Chavez has opted out of a non-roster contract he’s wound up back with Atlanta.

It’s been a successful pairing. Chavez has a 2.56 ERA with the Braves dating back to 2021. He’s pitched in a variety of roles, ranging from long relief to opener to setup man. This is his second stint of the ’25 campaign with Atlanta. He was selected to the roster on March 31, designated for assignment after a two-inning appearance, and quickly re-signed a new minor league deal after electing free agency.

Chavez allowed one run on a pair of hits and a pair of walks in his lone Braves appearance of the season. He’s been outstanding in Gwinnett, firing 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball while setting down 12 of his 25 opponents on strikes (48%). He’s yet to issue a walk. It’s possible he’ll stick around a bit longer with the Braves in this latest stint, particularly given the struggles of veterans Enyel De Los Santos and Rafael Montero through the season’s first month. If the Braves do opt to shuffle him out for a fresh arm, he’d have to again be designated for assignment, at which point a similar process — clear waivers, elect free agency, re-sign — could play out again.

Alvarez, 22, made his big league debut last year but only got into eight games. He’s considered one of the organization’s better prospects after a strong three-year run in the minors that saw him produce a .284/.400/.396 batting line as he climbed the ladder toward MLB. Alvarez exited a game early in spring training after an awkward swing and opened the year on the 10-day IL due to wrist inflammation. The move to the 60-day does not reset his IL clock; he’ll need to be on the injured list for at least 60 days dating back to his original placement. He’ll be out until at least late May.

Braves Re-Sign Jesse Chavez To Minor League Deal

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The Braves have re-signed right-hander Jesse Chavez to a fresh minor league deal, as reflected in his transaction tracker at MLB.com. The Apex Baseball client has been assigned to Triple-A Gwinnett.

The news is not surprising in the least. Chavez is a 41-year-old veteran who has bounced around to various teams in the league, but in recent years, he always seems to wind up back in Atlanta. Going into the 2021 season, he signed a minor league deal with the Angels. When he didn’t make that club’s Opening Day roster, he was released and signed with Atlanta. Going into 2022, he signed with the Cubs but was traded to Atlanta before the end of April. He was flipped to the Angels in early August as part of the Raisel Iglesias trade but was released and back in Atlanta before September. He re-signed with Atlanta for 2023. Going into 2024, he signed a minors deal with the White Sox but didn’t make the Opening Day roster and was with Atlanta before the end of March. The same thing happened this spring, only with the Rangers instead of the White Sox.

Chavez was added to Atlanta’s roster earlier this week and tossed two mop-up innings in Monday’s game. With the pitching staff fairly taxed and Chavez likely unavailable for a day or two, they designated him for assignment. He cleared waivers and elected free agency but is now back with the club on a new deal.

Despite his age, he has managed to stay very effective in recent years. Dating back to the start of the 2021 season, he has thrown 203 major league innings with a 2.93 earned run average, 24.3% strikeout rate, 7.6% walk rate and 42.4% ground ball rate.

He got squeezed off Atlanta’s roster but is now back to provide them with some non-roster depth. Given recent patterns, he should be back in the big leagues as soon as the bullpen is gassed again and they need a fresh arm.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images.

Jesse Chavez Elects Free Agency

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The Braves announced that reliever Jesse Chavez elected free agency after being designated for assignment on Tuesday. He cleared outright waivers and retested the market rather than accept the assignment to Triple-A.

This was the expected outcome, though there’s a decent chance Atlanta will look to bring the 41-year-old righty back on a new minor league contract. He signed his most recent minor league deal with the Braves on March 23, two days after he was released by the Rangers. Atlanta called him up on Monday but squeezed him off the roster after one game. Chavez tossed 41 pitches to get through two innings of mop-up work. He would not have been available for at least a day or two, so Atlanta swapped him out for Zach Thompson to add some length to the bullpen.

Over the past four years, the Braves signed Chavez to four separate contracts, claimed him off waivers once, and traded for him once. He has provided Atlanta 186 2/3 innings of 2.56 ERA ball while striking out a quarter of batters faced between those various stints. Chavez hasn’t had anywhere near that level of success anywhere else. He has also spent time in the Angels, Cubs, White Sox and Rangers organizations (at least during Spring Training) in recent years, but he has continually circled back to the Braves.

It would not be a surprise if that continued. It’s common for players to decline an outright assignment before re-signing with that team. (Phillies infielder Buddy Kennedy took that approach on Tuesday.) That allows the player to renegotiate opt-out or upward mobility provisions that may not have been in the previous deal.

Braves Designate Jesse Chavez For Assignment, Select Zach Thompson

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The Braves announced that they have selected right-hander Zach Thompson to the major league roster. Fellow righty Jesse Chavez has been designated for assignment as the corresponding move.

The moves are seemingly a response to the club’s pitching staff getting heavily used early on. Atlanta is starting the year with seven straight games and lost the first five. On Sunday, AJ Smith-Shawver started and only lasted four innings. The club lost on the road, meaning the bullpen only had to cover four additional frames, but swingman José Suarez tossed three of them. Reliever Héctor Neris also tossed an inning and was designated for assignment afterwards.

Ahead of yesterday’s game, the club selected Chavez to take the place of Neris. Yesterday’s starter Grant Holmes also lasted just four innings. Losing on the road again, the bullpen needed to cover another four frames. Raisel Iglesias and Enyel De Los Santos each covered one. Chavez took two, throwing 41 pitches in the process.

The club didn’t use any of Aaron Bummer, Dylan Lee, Pierce Johnson or Daysbel Hernández in the past two days but the rest of the group got a lot of work, particularly the multi-inning options. They also had to recall Bryce Elder to start tomorrow’s game when Reynaldo López landed on the injured list with shoulder inflammation.

Surely, the club will be hoping for a good outing from Chris Sale tonight, but he’ll be facing a tough Dodger lineup. Whether it’s after Sale tonight or after Elder tomorrow, Thompson might be needed to cover some long relief innings before the club’s much-needed off-day on Thursday.

Thompson, 31, has some major league experience under his belt. He debuted with the Marlins in 2021 and posted a 3.24 earned run average, working both in the rotation and the bullpen. Prior to 2022, he was traded to the Pirates for Jacob Stallings but his ERA jumped to 5.18 with Pittsburgh that year.

He hasn’t been in the majors since then. The Bucs designated him for assignment and flipped him to the Blue Jays ahead of the 2023 season. The latter club kept him in the minors that year, where Thompson posted a 4.61 ERA in 24 Triple-A starts. He was outrighted off Toronto’s 40-man during that season and elected free agency at season’s end. He required flexor tendon surgery in October of that year and missed all of 2024 while recovering.

That led to a minor league deal with Atlanta a few months ago. He tossed nine innings over two spring appearances, allowing one earned run with five strikeouts and three walks. He’ll give the club another multi-inning arm for now, though the need for such a player could dissipate fairly quickly. As mentioned, they have an off-day on Thursday. They will have another on Monday, giving them some more breathing room. Spencer Strider could be reinstated from the IL in the next week or two and López could potentially be back in the mix if his issue proves to be minor. Thompson still has options and could potentially be sent to the minors while hanging onto his 40-man spot.

As for Chavez, he always seems to find his way back to Atlanta, even he gets pulled away from time to time. He signed a minor league deal with the Rangers this winter but was released when he wasn’t going to crack the Opening Day roster. That led to a minor league deal with Atlanta. Their tough start to the season meant they needed to quickly call him up. But after he tossed those two frames and 41 pitches last night, he was probably going to be unavailable for a day or two, so he’s been hastily bumped off as well.

Though he’s now 41 years old, Chavez has remained effective. From the start of 2021 to the present, he has a 2.93 ERA in 203 innings pitched. That includes a 24.3% strikeout rate, 7.6% walk rate and 42.4% ground ball rate. He’ll now be in DFA limbo for a maximum of one week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so any potential trade talks would have to happen in the next five days.

He has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment, so he’d likely end up in free agency if he goes unclaimed on waivers. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him back with Atlanta after that but he’s also been with the Pirates, Royals, Blue Jays, Athletics, Dodgers, Angels, Rangers and Cubs in his career.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, USA TODAY Sports

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