Atlanta Braves Offseason Tracker: Hottest Free-Agency News, Trade Rumors
The Atlanta Braves are coming off a disappointing finish to the 2014 season, so the front office will be looking for a way to improve the club enough this winter to get to the postseason next year.
There may be some rumors flying around the club in terms of trade talks this winter. The team has some players that it may want to unload in order to improve its chances for next season.
Before the 2014 season, the Braves made a few sneaky moves that turned out to pay huge dividends for them. Signing Ervin Santana and Aaron Harang may not have been earth-shattering moves, but those signings kept the team in contention all year.
Atlanta needs to find a way to improve its roster in order to keep up with the Washington Nationals in the National League East next season. Whether that's through trade or free agency, the team will be looking to make some moves this offseason.
Stay tuned throughout November to see what is going on with the Braves.
*All stats are via MLB.com
Done Deals
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Done Deals
Nov. 10: Signed RHP Chien-Ming Wang to a minor-league deal
Nov. 10: Signed OF Zoilo Almonte to a one-year deal
Nov. 16: Traded 2B Tommy La Stella to the Chicago Cubs
Nov. 17: Traded OF Jason Heyward and RHP Jordan Walden to St. Louis in exchange for RHP Shelby Miller and RHP Tyrell Jenkins
Nov. 21: Released LHP Jonny Venters
Dec. 3: Signed RHP Jim Johnson to a one-year, $1.6 million deal
Dec. 3: Signed OF Nick Markakis to a four-year, $44 million deal
Dec. 9: Signed INF Alberto Callaspo to one-year, $3 million deal
Dec. 15: Signed OF Dian Toscano (Cuba) to a four-year, $6 million deal, with a $1.5 million option for a fifth season
Dec. 17: Traded RHP Anthony Varvaro to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for RHP Aaron Kurcz and cash considerations
Dec. 19: Acquired OF Justin Upton from the Atlanta Braves in exchange for LHP Max Fried, SS Jace Peterson, 3B Dustin Peterson and OF Mallex Smith
Dec. 23: Signed RHP Jason Grilli to a two-year deal, with a club option for a third season
Dec. 24: Reached an agreement for one-year deal with C A.J. Pierzynski
Braves Free Agents
Dec. 11: Minnesota Twins signed RHP Ervin Santana to a four-year, $55 million deal with a $14 million vesting option for a fifth season
Dec. 18: Kansas City Royals signed RHP Kris Medlen to a two-year deal, with a mutual option for a third season
Rule 5 Draft
Dec. 11: Selected RHP Daniel Winkler from the Colorado Rockies
Dec. 24: Reached a 1-Year Deal with A.J. Pierzynski
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The Braves have reached an agreement on a one-year deal with veteran catcher A.J. Pierzynski, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman.
Pierzynski hit .251 with five home runs and 12 doubles in 102 games between the Boston Red Sox and the St. Louis Cardinals. The 37-year-old has a career slash line of .281/.320/.424.
Dec. 19: Braves Trade Justin Upton to Padres
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The Atlanta Braves have traded outfielder Justin Upton to the San Diego Padres in exchange for left-hander Max Fried, infielder Jace Peterson, third baseman Dustin Peterson and outfielder Mallex Smith, per CBS Sports' Jon Heyman.
Upton had 29 home runs, 34 doubles and 102 RBI in 2014. He has 162 home runs in the last seven seasons. As productive as he had been, he had just one year on his contract remaining. The Braves have made it clear that they are trying to build for the future this offseason, and trading Upton was just the latest reminder of that.
In return, Atlanta received a group of players.
Fried, 20, was drafted by the Padres in the first round of the 2012 draft. Per MLB.com, he was ranked No. 3 in San Diego's farm system.
The southpaw has a 3.61 ERA in 38 career games (37 starts) through his first three seasons of professional baseball. He went 0-1 with a 5.06 ERA in five starts between two levels of the minor leagues this season. He was limited this season because of arm troubles, which resulted in Tommy John surgery in August. Now, he will likely miss much of the 2015 season.
If he can rebound from the arm surgery, there is a lot of promise in his arm. Fried has a fastball that can hit 95 mph, a strong curveball and a decent changeup.
Fried was certainly the biggest return in the deal, but the Braves did get more players.
Jace Peterson, 24, can play second, third and shortstop. The former first-round pick got his feet wet in the majors this season, recording six hits in 53 at-bats. In four seasons in the minors, he has a slash line of .287/.381/.411 and has 148 stolen bases. He looks like he will be a player who can put the bat on the ball and then make things happen with his speed.
Dustin Peterson, 20, was ranked 10th in San Diego's system. Although there is a lot of potential, he did struggle adjusting to Single-A pitching this year. He hit just .233 with 10 home runs and 31 doubles in 126 games this season. The third baseman should have develop quite a bit of pop in his bat as he adjusts to professional pitching.
Smith, 21, was No. 20 in San Diego's system. He's a contact hitter with incredible speed. In 2014, he hit .310 and stole 88 bases between two levels of Single-A. He has been thrown out 46 times in 215 career attempts, so that could part of his game could use a little bit of improvement. The young outfielder has a career .290/.383/.388 slash line through three seasons of professional baseball, and if he continues to get on base at that clip, he is going to be an extremely dangerous player.
Trading a player like Upton is never easy for a club. He is a tremendous player and could help any team win. However, the Braves were looking to build for the future, so they did their best to get what they could for him. The suitors were dwindling, so the Braves had to pull the trigger on this deal.
Atlanta got some solid position players in the deal, and if Fried is able to reach his potential even after Tommy John surgery, this could be a great move for the Braves.
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Dec. 11: Ervin Santana Signs 4-Year Deal with Twins
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Ervin Santana has signed a four-year, $55 million with the Minnesota Twins, according to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal. Rosenthal also reported that the deal include a $14 million vesting option, or a $1 million buyout. Yahoo Sports' Jeff Passan was the first to report the deal.
The Braves were able to respond to injuries to their starting rotation in spring training by signing Ervin Santana to a one-year deal. That move worked out pretty well.
Atlanta announced on Twitter that it has extended a $15.3 million qualifying offer to Santana. By doing so, the Braves will now receive a draft pick after he signed with Minnesota.
Santana went 14-10 with a 3.95 ERA this past season. He was 13-7 with a 3.53 ERA through August but faltered when the team needed him most. He lost three of his final four starts and recorded only one quality start in his final five outings.
Now, Atlanta will have to fill the hole that Santana leaves in the rotation.
Dec. 9: Signed INF Alberto Callaspo to a 1-Year Deal
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The Braves have signed veteran infielder Alberto Callaspo to a one-year, $3 million deal, according to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal.
Callaspo hit .223 with four home runs and 15 doubles for the Oakland A's in 2014. He has a slash line of .267/.330/.370 in his nine-year career. He doesn't strike out much, so that's a big plus for Atlanta.
The 31-year-old has played just about everywhere on the field in his career. He has played every infield position and both outfield corner spots. He played at least 19 games at first, second and third in 2014.
Callaspo has spent the last seven seasons in the American League.
Evan Gattis: Potential Trade Candidate
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Update: Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 3:25 p.m. ET
The Braves reportedly told one American League team that if they want Gattis they will have to take B.J. Upton as well, per USA Today Sports' Bob Nightengale.
--End of Update--
Update: Monday, Dec. 8 at 6 p.m. ET
The Texas Rangers are interested in Gattis, according to Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News.
--End of Update--
Update: Saturday, Nov. 29 at 12:42 a.m. ET
The Oakland A's are interested in Evan Gattis, according to John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group.
--End of Update--
Update: Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 12:30 p.m. ET
Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal tweeted that the Braves could be trying to get rid of B.J. Upton's contract by packaging Gattis with the veteran outfielder.
--End of Update--
Update: Monday, Nov. 10 at 11 p.m. ET
Braves president of baseball operations John Hart, per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's David O'Brien, has denied the report that the team is aggressively trying to trade Evan Gattis.
Gattis is under club control for four more years, so the Braves are reportedly more likely to trade an outfielder whose contract expires sooner.
--End of Update--
Update: Monday, Nov. 10 at 11:50 a.m. ET
The Braves are pushing to trade Evan Gattis, according to the New York Post's Joel Sherman. Gattis is reportedly drawing interest from American League teams because he'd be able to DH and not be a liability in the field.
--End of Update--
Evan Gattis has been a solid contributor for the Braves the past two seasons, but the team may look to deal him this winter.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's David O'Brien wrote near the end of the season that the Braves may look at trading Gattis because Christian Bethancourt is the long-term answer at catcher. If Atlanta doesn't trade Gattis, it may consider moving him to left field.
Gattis' average jumped from .243 in 2013 to .263 to this year, and his home run total increased from 21 to 22. The 28-year-old is making steady improvements at the plate, but he isn't the team's future at catcher.
In 2013, Gattis played 48 games in left field. However, he isn't the greatest defensive player. The Braves need to decide if his power and cheap salary are worth dealing with him being a liability on defense.
Chris Johnson: Potential Trade Candidate
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Update: Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 10:15 p.m. ET
The Braves had trade talks with the San Francisco Giants involving Johnson and Justin Upton, according to USA Today Sports' Bob Nightengale. The Giants are interested in Upton, but the Braves would like to throw in Johnson and the money remaining on his contract.
--End of Update--
Chris Johnson may be on the move this winter.
According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports, the Braves are packaging Johnson in trade talks involving Justin Upton.
A year after hitting .321 with 34 doubles, Johnson hit .263 with 10 home runs and 27 doubles. He has a career .283 average.
Johnson will make $6 million in 2015 and is owed a minimum of $23.5 million throughout the remainder of his contract. His contract includes a $10 million team option or $1 million buyout for the 2018 season.
Dec. 3: Nick Markakis Reportedly Agrees to 4-Year Deal with Braves
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Nick Markakis has agreed to a four-year deal with the Atlanta Braves, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. Markakis' deal is worth $44 million, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.
Markakis slashed .276/.342/.386 and hit 14 home runs and 27 doubles in 2014. The 31-year-old has a career slash line of .290/.358/.435. The left-handed hitting outfielder has spent the majority of his career in the top third of the lineup, hitting .294 in the leadoff spot, .313 batting second and .278 while hitting third.
Atlanta has had any issue with strikeouts; its new outfielder will help with that problem. Markakis struck out just 84 times in 710 plate appearances this year. In fact, he has averaged 86 strikeouts and 61 walks in his career. He is going to grind out at-bats and make the pitcher work.
Markakis had spent his entire nine-year career with the Baltimore Orioles.
The Braves have reportedly looked at trading Evan Gattis and each of the Upton brothers. Now that the team has signed Markakis, it will likely be more aggressive in trying to trade one of its current outfielders.
Dec. 3: Signed RHP Jim Johnson to a 1-Year Deal
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The Braves have signed veteran reliever Jim Johnson to a one-year deal. CBS Sports' Jon Heyman tweeted that the deal is worth $1.6 million, with $900,000 in incentives.
At one point, Johnson was one of the best closers in baseball. He recorded back-to-back 50-save seasons in 2012 and 2013 with the Baltimore Orioles. He appeared in at least 69 games in each season from 2011-13.
However, the 2014 season was rough for him. The 31-year-old did manage to go 5-2 but posted a 7.09 ERA in 53.1 innings. He appeared in 54 games between the Oakland A's and the Detroit Tigers. The right-handed pitcher had a tough time getting right-handed hitters (.302 average against) and left-handed hitters (.333) out this past season.
Johnson has never been a strikeout pitcher, but he has shown that he knows how to pitch in the majors. If he can return to form in 2015, the Braves will be getting a bargain.
Nov. 17: Traded Jason Heyward to the Cardinals in Exchange for Shelby Miller
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The Atlanta Braves have traded outfielder Jason Heyward and pitcher Jordan Walden to the the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for right-handed starting pitcher Shelby Miller and right-hander Tyrell Jenkins.
Atlanta needed starting pitching, so it addressed that need by trading a player whose contract was up after next season. David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweeted that Braves president John Hart does not believe an extension with Heyward would have been reached this winter.
Heyward was obviously a big part of the Braves' team. He provided a solid bat and a great glove. However, pitching was a bigger need for the club.
Miller, a first-round pick in the 2009 draft, has shown some promise early in his career. He is 26-18 with a 3.33 ERA in 69 career games (63 starts). He went 15-9 with a 3.06 ERA in his first full season in 2013 and followed that up by going 10-9 with a 3.74 ERA this year.
The 24-year-old is under club control through the 2018 season. This was obviously a move that gave the Braves the best chance of winning in the future.
Atlanta also acquired minor-leaguer Jenks in the trade. The 22-year-old has a 4.23 ERA in 58 career starts in the minor leagues. He pitched in Single-A the past three seasons, and given his age, there is still plenty of time for him to develop.
The 2014 season was easily his best season to date. Although he went just 6-5, he did post a 3.28 ERA in 13 starts.
Jenkins still has six years of club control.
The Braves may have suffered a short-term setback by dealing Heyward, but with Miller's promise, this could be a move that helps the team a lot down the road.
B.J. Upton: Potential Trade Candidate
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Update: Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 12:30 p.m. ET
Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal tweeted that the Braves could be trying to get rid of B.J. Upton's contract by packaging Gattis with the veteran outfielder.
--End of Update--
The B.J. Upton signing has not gone the way Atlanta had hoped, so the team may try to deal him this winter.
The 30-year-old did "rebound" from an extremely poor season in 2013. A year after hitting .184 with nine home runs, Upton hit .208 with 12 home runs this past season.
Upton still has three years and $46.35 million remaining on his deal. Considering how poor his performance has been at the plate since he signed the big contract, he won't be easy to trade.
Aaron Harang: Free Agent
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When the Braves signed Aaron Harang in late March, it looked like a move that would just give the team depth. The veteran gave the team much more than expected.
Harang went 12-12 with a 3.57 ERA in 2014. He threw 204.1 innings in 33 starts and was one of the most consistent pitchers in the league. Only Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw made more quality starts than Harang (25) did this year.
The 36-year-old looked like the pitcher he was with the Cincinnati Reds early in his career, not the guy who had bounced around the league the past few years.
Harang's good season will likely draw some interest from around the league. He isn't going to get a massive contract, but he will likely make more than the $1 million he made this year.
Emilio Bonifacio: Free Agent
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Emilio Bonifacio played extremely well with the Chicago Cubs at the start of the 2014 season, but he struggled at the plate after coming to the Atlanta in a midseason trade.
The veteran utility man hit .279 with two home runs, 14 doubles and three triples in 69 games for the Cubs. He hit only .212 and notched just one home run, three doubles and one triple in 41 games with the Braves. In 170 fewer bats, he struck out just 10 fewer times with Atlanta than he did with Chicago.
Bonifacio clearly didn't play the way the Braves had hoped when they acquired him. Now, he will get a chance to see what kind of interest the league has in him.
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