- Braves righty Mauricio Cabrera has been cleared to begin throwing, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets. The high-octane youngster has been dealing with arm fatigue, relegating him to the DL to open the year. It’s still unclear how long it’ll take to get him back to the majors, but it seems there’s continued optimism that the layoff isn’t anything to worry about in the long run. Still, the Braves will likely continue to take a cautious course before adding Cabrera back to the late-inning mix.
Braves Rumors
Coppolella On Braves’ Rotation, Albies, Rodriguez
Braves GM John Coppolella discussed the Braves’ recent offseason and long-term plans in a Q+A with David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Here are some of the highlights.
- The Braves’ trades of Melvin Upton Jr. (prior to the 2015 season) and Chris Johnson (during that same season) were done with this month’s opening of Sun Trust Park in mind. Upton and Johnson would have still been under contract at this point and would have affected the Braves’ 2017 payroll had they not been dealt. The Braves offloaded Upton’s entire contract in the Craig Kimbrel deal. The Braves took on salary in the deal that sent Johnson to Cleveland for Nick Swisher and Michael Bourn, although they saved money in 2017, since Johnson was the only player in the deal under contract for that season.
- Coppolella’s reasoning for the Braves’ acquisitions of Bartolo Colon, R.A. Dickey and Jaime Garcia this winter isn’t surprising — he says the Braves needed innings eaters, and notes that the Braves aren’t obligated to pay any of the three beyond this season. “Ideally they will provide us 550-600 innings of quality and certainty,” Coppolella says. “There were so many times last year where our pitcher would be knocked out before the fourth inning and you absolutely decimate your bullpen and end up having to make three or four roster moves each day. We rushed some pitchers up here who weren’t ready and, candidly, some who were just not good.”
- The loss of another recent addition, Sean Rodriguez, stings, Coppolella says. “It wasn’t only our starting second baseman, but like you said a high-level backup at several positions. For us he was a lot like Ben Zobrist for the Chicago Cubs where he would play a lot and play a lot of different positions,” Coppolella argues. Rodriguez, of course, is likely to miss the entire 2017 season to shoulder surgery following an offseason car crash in Miami.
- Yet another offseason acquisition, Brandon Phillips, won’t block top prospect Ozzie Albies when Albies is ready. Albies figures to eventually join Dansby Swanson in the Braves’ middle infield. “Ozzie is a special kid with a really bright future, and when he is ready to help us in the Major Leagues, nobody is going to stand in his way,” says Coppolella. “It’s a great problem to have too many good players and too few spots. Young players with talent and versatility can merge with veteran players on a team looking to win. Ask the Cubs about Javier Baez.”
- Coppolella adds that the Braves were open to trading highly rated prospects this offseason, but never found a trade offer that made them want to do so.
Minor MLB Transactions: 3/31/17
Here are the latest minor moves from around the game:
- Utilityman Munenori Kawasaki is heading back to Japan after inking a deal with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, his former NPB club, as Nikkan Sports reports (Japanese language link). The 35-year-old has enjoyed an interesting stint in North America, drawing plenty of attention for his clown prince role in the dugout. But he hasn’t played all that much, particularly over the past two seasons. If this is it for Kawasaki stateside, he’ll stand on a .237/.320/.289 slash line with one single dinger over 738 plate appearances.
- Righty Mark Montgomery has landed a minor-league deal with the Cardinals after being released by the Yankees, Josh Norris of Baseball America reports (Twitter links). The 26-year-old has battled control problems at times, but has also shown his share of promise. Last year, over 45 2/3 innings in the upper minors, he worked to a 2.56 ERA with 12.4 /9 against 4.3 BB/9 while allowing only 31 hits.
- The Indians released slugger Wily Mo Pena, the team announced. The 35-year-old hasn’t played in the majors since 2011, but had been quite productive during a stint in Japan. Over four years with three different NPB clubs, he slashed .264/.355/.460 with 71 long balls. Pena did not play last year and didn’t get much of a look this spring; it’s not clear at this point what his future intentions are.
- Plenty of other players have also been set free by organizations that do not have anywhere to put them. Among them, the Braves have released first baseman Balbino Fuenmayor, MLBTR’s Steve Adams tweets. He has put up big numbers at times, most recently in the Venezuelan winter league, but has yet to receive a shot at the majors. Also hitting the open market, after spending camp with the Rangers, is righty Anthony Carter. (Also per Steve, via Twitter.) The 30-year-old, who’s also looking to stamp a ticket to the majors for the first time, did at least show that he’s back to health. And seven-year MLB veteran southpaw James Russell followed Pena out the door. He was cut loose today by the Indians, per a club announcement.
Braves Outright Kevin Chapman
The Braves have outrighted lefty Kevin Chapman off the 40-man roster, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman was among those to report on Twitter. He had been fighting for a pen spot after being claimed recently off waivers.
With Chapman’s departure from the roster picture, it seems that the final call comes down to out-of-options Chaz Roe and just-signed veteran David Hernandez. Atlanta could carry either or both of those righties to open the season.
Though he’s obviously seen as an intriguing talent, Chapman has long struggled with his control, having never finished a season as a pro with less than four walks per nine innings. And though he has compensated for that with a healthy strikeout rate in the upper minors, that hasn’t carried through in his 55 total MLB frames. Chapman also struggled last year at Triple-A, compiling a 4.87 ERA in 61 innings.
Braves Notes: Pagan, Cabrera, Offseason, Albies, Prospects
The Braves are still interested in free agent outfielder Angel Pagan, reports Jim Bowedn of ESPN and MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM, citing a club source (Twitter link). Atlanta has been tied to Pagan at various points this offseason. The 35-year-old Pagan has reportedly been holding out for a Major League deal that’ll pay him in the neighborhood of $5MM, however, which seems unlikely at this juncture. Fleet-footed Emilio Bonifacio has won a spot on the Atlanta roster as a backup outfielder, but Pagan has quite a bit more experience and could serve as a backup at all three positions, deepening the Atlanta bench, if the two sides are ultimately able to agree to a deal. Pagan hit .277/.331/.418 in 453 plate appearances with the Giants last year — a solid effort, especially when considering the pitcher-friendly nature of AT&T Park.
More on the Braves…
- Flamethrowing setup man Mauricio Cabrera will begin the season on the 10-day disabled list, reports MLB.com’s Mark Bowman (via Twitter). While that’s an unfortunate blow to the Atlanta relief corps — Cabrera posted a 2.82 ERA and averaged 100.1 mph on his fastball in 38 1/3 innings as a rookie in 2016 — the good news is that there’s no indication of any structural damage in the 23-year-old’s elbow. Bowman suggests that Cabrera is simply dealing with some arm fatigue that requires some additional rest. Bowman first noted last week that Cabrera was in jeopardy of opening the year on the shelf.
- David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution conducted an excellent Q&A with always-candid Braves general manager John Coppolella. Within, Coppolella discusses his team’s offseason moves at length, as well as his team’s top-ranked farm system and the impact of SunTrust Park on the timeline of his team’s rebuild. Coppolella notes that the decision to add R.A. Dickey, Bartolo Colon and Jaime Garcia on one-year commitments was made in an effort to spare the ’pen and avoid the same cavalcade of roster shuffling the Braves had to go through in 2016 just to get through the season. “There were so many times last year where our pitcher would be knocked out before the fourth inning and you absolutely decimate your bullpen and end up having to make three or four roster moves each day,” Coppolella explains. “We rushed some pitchers up here who weren’t ready and, candidly, some who were just not good.”
- Also in the Q&A, Coppolella touches on the late acquisition of Brandon Phillips and how that will (or won’t) impact the timeline for top-rated infield prospect Ozzie Albies to crack the Majors. “We expect a big year for Brandon and also expect it will have very little impact on when we call up Ozzie,” says the GM. “Ozzie is going to tell us when he is ready, and he needs to play, be completely healthy, and dominate Triple-A.” Coppolella also suggests that Albies doesn’t immediately need to be locked into one position upon arriving in the Majors due to his athleticism and versatility. “Ask the Cubs about Javier Baez,” says Coppolella when explaining how a versatile young talent can mesh with veteran pieces.
- Coppolella also discusses Atlanta’s wealth of top-tier pitching prospects. While he neglects to single out specific arms on which he’s especially bullish, Coppolella assertively states that in terms of potential top-of-the-rotation arms, the Braves stand alone: “…with all due respect, we can confidently say we have more than any other team — and it’s not even close.” Those who have yet to read O’Brien’s Q&A in its entirety — even if you’re not a Braves fan — are highly encouraged to do so.
Emilio Bonifacio, Eric O'Flaherty Will Be On Braves' Opening Day Roster
- Utilityman Emilio Bonifacio and lefty Eric O’Flaherty have been informed they’ll be on the Braves’ Opening Day roster, Mark Bowman of MLB.com was among those to report (Twitter link). The 31-year-old Bonifacio has struggled badly in his limited big league time over the past two seasons, though he had been a regular contributor before that. Never much with the bat, Bonifacio has long earned his keep through defensive versatility and excellence on the bases. Meanwhile, O’Flaherty has struggled to rediscover his form from his first stint in Atlanta. But he’ll receive another shot after a strong showing this spring; over 10 2/3 innings, O’Flaherty racked up 14 strikeouts and allowed just two earned runs on eight hits and three walks.
Braves Release Paco Rodriguez
The Braves have released lefty Paco Rodriguez, Mark Bowman of MLB.com was among those to report on Twitter. He had been competing with Eric O’Flaherty and Kevin Chapman for a spot in the Opening Day pen.
Rodriguez, 25, has been working back from a Tommy John procedure he underwent in October of 2015. He did manage to make it into four spring games, but failed to win the organization’s confidence after agreeing to a $637,500 arbitration salary earlier in the offseason. Atlanta will owe him about a sixth of that sum.
The Braves had picked up Rodriguez in the three-team, thirteen-player swap the organization struck back at the 2015 trade deadline. That deal has not turned out well for Atlanta thus far; all they have to show for the loss of lefty Alex Wood and MLB-ready prospect Jose Peraza, at this point, are young lefty Joey Wentz (chosen with the competitive-balance pick acquired in that deal) and minor-league righty Zachary Bird. (And that’s before getting into the money still effectively owed to Hector Olivera, though his contract was sent to the Padres as part of the salary maneuvering in the deal that brought Matt Kemp to the Braves.)
Braves Making Final Roster Decisions
- Much of the Braves’ Opening Day roster is set, but there are still jobs available on the bench and in the bullpen, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes. Chaz Roe, who is out of of options, has the inside track on one of the remaining bullpen jobs, although fellow righty David Hernandez (who the Braves recently added on a minor-league deal) is another possibility. Paco Rodriguez and Kevin Chapman are competing to join the ’pen as lefties, while veteran hitters Matt Tuiasosopo and Mel Rojas Jr. could also have shots at making the team, particularly, it would seem, if the Braves opt to go with five bench players instead of four. The Braves will also keep an eye on the trade and free-agent markets.
Braves Sign David Hernandez To Minor League Deal
The Braves have signed reliever David Hernandez to a minor league contract, the team announced. The right-hander hit the market when the Giants released him Friday.
[RELATED: Updated Braves Depth Chart]
The 31-year-old Hernandez would provide another experienced bullpen option if he were to make the Braves, who have fellow 30-something relievers on hand in Jim Johnson, Eric O’Flaherty and Josh Collmenter. Hernandez might have a legitimate shot to crack Atlanta’s roster, too, as Mark Bowman of MLB.com reported Saturday that righties Mauricio Cabrera and Armando Rivero are likely to open the season on the disabled list.
The Braves are the fifth major league organization for Hernandez, who debuted with the Orioles in 2009 and has registered a 4.10 ERA, 9.13 K/9, 3.83 BB/9 and a low ground-ball rate (31.6 percent) over 487 innings. He posted similar numbers to his career totals last year in Philadelphia, where he logged a 3.84 ERA with 9.91 K/9 against 3.96 BB/9 and a 37.3 percent grounder rate in 72 2/3 frames. Hernandez has typically helped offset his paltry ground-ball totals by inducing plenty of infield pop-ups (13.5 percent career rate), and he features a 94 mph fastball.
Braves Notes: Hart, Quintana, Markakis
- The Braves have had some interest in trading for White Sox lefty Jose Quintana, though Atlanta president of baseball operations John Hart says his rebuilding team isn’t quite ready to make that kind of major deal. “We’re still growing this team. Our whole mantra has been young players,” Hart said. “It’s worked. We like where we’ve gone. Our farm system has gone from worst to first. At this point we’re probably likely not going to move these [prospects].”
- More from Hart, who said that the Braves “haven’t really entertained anything” in regards to trade offers for veterans, including Nick Markakis. “Nick is a good piece. He’s a super pro player….We’ll look at what happens this year, but he’s an affordable guy,” Hart said. Markakis is owed $10.5MM in both 2017 and 2018. The Braves somewhat surprisingly signed Markakis to a four-year, $44MM deal in the 2014-15 offseason just as the team was beginning its rebuild, and the veteran has hit .282/.358/.386 over 1370 PA since coming to Atlanta.
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