The Braves signed minor league free agent Juan Abreu to a big league contract, tweets Ed Price of AOL FanHouse. The righty reliever, 25 in April, was previously in the Royals organization. This year he tossed 41.6 innings between High A and Double A, posting 53 strikeouts and 36 walks. Given Abreu's huge strikeout rates and fastball, you have to wonder how the Royals let him go.
Heading into the 2009 season, Baseball America ranked Abreu as the Royals' #25 prospect. Their take: "Abreu has shown a great arm, iffy command and rotten luck during his time with the Royals." The luck note refers to Abreu twisting his ankle in August of last year by stepping on a baseball and missing the rest of that season.
