The Braves have agreed to a minor-league deal with lefty Rex Brothers, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America (via Twitter). Brothers will not receive an invitation to MLB camp.
Brothers, 29, was picked up by the Cubs last winter. But he didn’t even make it through Spring Training before he was cut loose. Brothers struggled badly with his control while with the Chicago club, culminating with four wild pitches in a single spring frame. The veteran southpaw never ended up joining another organization, which rated as a surprise given his rather lengthy MLB track record.
Now, Brothers will seek to earn his way back to the majors in Atlanta after a full season of rest. The big question is whether he can stay in the zone. He has declined in that regard in each successive season, landing at just 40.5% in 2015. Reflecting that difficulty, Brothers owns a 5.00 ERA in 66 2/3 innings since the start of the 2014 season, with 8.1 K/9 against 6.3 BB/9.
Before 2014, though, Brothers had been remarkably effective. Despite calling Coors Field home, he carried a 2.82 ERA with 11.2 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9 in his 175 2/3 innings from 2011 through 2013. Beyond that history, there are some more recent markers that afford some degree of hope. Brothers sat at 93 mph with his average heater in his last MLB action, and still posted double-digit swinging-strike rates even in his two rough campaigns.
Did they feel sorry for the guy?
Worth a shot
Every time I hear this name I imagine two guys named Rex who wear the same jersey number and take turns pitching
Solid visualization.
To me, he sounds like a furniture store.
“I got 0% financing for 24 months with my good credit at Rex Brothers!”
Oh, brother…
….s
If he pitches like he did before 2015 this could be a steal
It’s so funny how people always say, “if he plays like he did before (certain year) then this is a steal.” Yeah it would be good if Barry Bonds came back and played like 2001 but that doesn’t mean it’s gonna happen lol I get it’s a zero risk move but why does someone always have to state the obvious when it’s highly unlikely to happen!?
If you think about it, this is really a low risk post with no downside. But…. It could pay off in a big way of it comes through!
Hey lobretto go sit on a plunger
Zero-risk signing, and potentially high reward if he regains his form. Not expecting too much from him, though, but at least worth a minor league spot to see what he’s now got.
This is a great gamble. I love moves like this. If it works then great. if it doesn’t then no big deal.
I mean if you pitch decent in Colorado you pretty good lol
I feel like he might have been so adjusted to the thin air that once he came back down to earth he lost the ability to pitch.
Are there rules as to how many players a team can invite to spring training?
I thought it was 40 or 60 or something
I don’t believe so. But too many people will clog things up and hamper their ability to get ready for the season.
Brothers didn’t get an invitation so I imagine he will go to extended spring training to try to work out whatever made him lose all control
I googled it, and it doesn’t look like there’s a hard limit as to how many players can get an invite. I found one article that was informative and talked about the many ways a ST invite can be used, and how different teams approach ST with different needs and philosophies. Might be good fodder for something here at MLBTR.
This signing very well could make bringing Eric O’Flaherty back worth that money they gave him. EOF might be able to help squeeze some more quality innings out of Brothers, but I highly doubt it at this point.
Although, this type of signing was precisely Roger McDowell’s cup of tea!! He used to be able to work wonders with relievers that had good “stuff,” but that also lacked control. McDowell’s resume is full of reclamation success stories, the list goes on and on!! As we all know though, he’s no longer in Atlanta, but it was more or less because he couldn’t use that same “magic” when working with the younger pitchers.
This year should be a fairly decent test for Hernandez, Perez, Snitker, and co. Although, their new staff was mostly put in place, because of their abilities to work with younger pitchers; even so, it will be interesting to see what they might be able to do with some of the bounce back candidates the Braves have signed that are ticketed for the ML squad or AAA.
I think Brothers like Danks, another lefty reclamation project, they both are more than likely completely finished and cooked for their respective careers. Either way though, this is still an interesting, zero-risk signing, and on the bright side, I mean, crazier things have happened…that’s for sure!!
thats a huge glove