Braves Sign Alex Verdug Braves Sign Alex Verdug

The Braves announced Thursday that theyve signed veteran outfielder to a one-year, $1.5MM contract. With Opening Day just a week away, he consented to be optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett to ramp up. (Players gain the right to refuse an optional a signment once they accrue five years of MLB service.) Verdugo is represented by MVP Sports Group. Just days ago, The Athletics Brendan Kuty reported that Verdugo in free agency. That turned quickly. Hell head straight to minor league camp and spend a bit of time in Gwinnett while he makes up for mi sing most of spring training, but hell be an option for Atlanta at some point in April. The 28-year-old Verdugo (29 in May) is coming off the worst season of his big league career but was a steady regular with the Dodgers and Red Sox from 2019-23. Over that five-year period, he slashed a combined .283/.338/.432 with quality corner outfield defense. He may not have developed into the star some had hoped when the former second-round pick was widely regarded as a top-100 prospect, but Verdugo was a clear contributor on generally competitive clubs. The 2024 season started out with more of the same. Traded to the Yankees last offseason, Verdugo came out of the gate hot Billy Wagner Jersey , batting .275/.362/.450 in his first 141 plate appearances. He fell into a deep slump from that point forth and never recovered, however. From mid-May through seasons end, Verdugos .221/.270/.330 line was one of the least-productive in all of baseball among qualified hitters. Last years prolonged struggles surely hindered Verdugos market. He was connected to teams like the Pirates, Angels and Astros throughout the winter, but all of those clubs either went another direction in the outfield or didnt end up making an outfield addition at all. The Pirates instead decided it better to spread out their limited remaining resources acro s multiple players; they signed ($4.05MM) and ($5.25MM) to one-year deals not long after being linked to Verdugo. Verdugo heads to Atlanta on a lighter deal than most wouldve predicted back at the onset of free agency, providing some outfield depth at a time when is still rehabbing last years ACL tear while continues to struggle. Offseason signee has also been banged up in camp, as its now been nearly two weeks since he was in an official game. Profar injured his wrist on a diving attempt in left field; he was diagnosed with a bone bruise, not a fracture, and is expected to be ready for Opening Day. Bone bruises are tricky injuries, the effects of which can sometimes linger longer than expected. If the Braves can get everyone healthy, theyll have some decisions to make. At full strength, the outfield would clearly be Profar in left, in center and Acua in right. Kelenic would fill a fourth outfield role in that setup, while also on the 40-man roster would likely reside in Triple-A as a depth piece. Verdugos addition to the mix most directly threatens Kelenics role. Both are left-handed hitters who can handle center field but are probably better suited for corner work. (Verdugo certainly is.) Kelenic is a former top-10 pick and once ranked as one of the games 10 best prospects, but hes never hit his stride in the majors after decimating minor league pitching. The Braves acquired Kelenic from the Mariners in the 2023-24 offseason via a series of convoluted salary-dump trades that wound up seeing Atlanta take on around $25MM in dead money (plus nearly $7MM in luxury taxes) to purchase the former top prospect. They said from the jump that hed receive regular playing time and would not be platooned, but by the end of camp hed struggled enough against lefties that the Braves re-signed to platoon with him. Kelenics first season with Atlanta resulted in a disappointing .231/.286/.393 slash. Hes followed that up with a .200/.282/.457 slash in 39 spring plate appearances. Kelenic has a minor league option remaining. If he struggles, its feasible that Atlanta will try to get him on track in Gwinnett and switch him out for Verdugo, using the veteran Verdugo in that aforementioned fourth outfield role. Its a low-cost depth gamble made po sible by Verdugos lack of market to this point. Theres little harm in opportunistically adding to the depth at this price point; the Braves are now up to about $231MM of luxury obligations, , leaving them $10MM shy of the tax threshold. Jon Heyman of the New York Post that Verdugo and the Braves had agreed to a deal worth $1.5MM. Brendan Kuty of The Athletic that it was a one-year, major league contract. Jose Altuve Jersey