Transaction Tuesday - Braves Finish Busy Week With Waiver Claim

I skipped last week's Transaction Tuesday recap because I only had a couple of items to cover (David Hale reappearing, Christian Walker's brief run with the Braves concluding). This week, I have quite a lot more to analyze, including a waiver pickup last night. Let's dive deep into a busy week.

Atlanta Braves

Claimed: LHP Kevin Chapman (Astros)...A fourth-round pick by the Royals back in 2010 out of the University of Florida, Chapman moved to the Astros in a trade before the 2012 season. He took off in the Astros' system, earning a promotion in 2013. Since then, he's been a regular on the Fresno-to-Houston flight. Despite parts of four seasons in the bigs, he's only appeared in 58 games and logged 55 innings. The results aren't too exciting. Capable of excellent strikeout numbers in the minors, (23%-to-25%), Chapman's K numbers are down under 20% in the majors while his walk totals remain pretty substandard (12.5%). He's prone to leaving the ball high or over the plate and has a 0.82 HR/9 rate in the bigs. All of those numbers lead to a FIP/xFIP/SIERA split of 4.29/4.60/4.35. Basically, he's not horrid, but he's not too good, either. As a left-hand specialist, he's difficult to square up against (zero HR allowed) and he strikes out a quarter of all lefties, but his control is still problematic. Against righties, he's been pretty abysmal (6.34 FIP in a limited sample). Chapman is a rare breed in that he throws five different pitches out of the pen, though his 92-93 mph sinker will be, by far, his most common choice. That said, it's more of a hard fastball with some sink to it and that's why Chapman doesn't get a huge amount of grounders. Chapman will also throw a slider and changeup along with a four-seam fastball and curve that he's added the last two seasons to the mix. None of his pitches look to be more than average. My impression is that Chapman is depth for the time being and a guy the Braves might try to sneak off their 40-man roster as he's out of options. Such a move led to Christian Walker's exit from the organization, but the Braves were able to move Adam Walker off the roster that way.

Disabled: RHP Daniel Winkler (60-day)...No timetable has been set on Winkler as he returns from a fractured elbow while throwing a pitch last April. However, the 60-days gives us an idea of where the Braves see Winkler right now. At the very least, we won't see Winkler throw a meaningful pitch until possibly May as he begins a rehab assignment and tries to get back to the bigs. If successful, Atlanta will have to keep him on the roster for at least 57 days (hat tip to Braves Options Guy).

Gwinnett
Optioned: RHP Jason Hursh (2nd option)...Despite making it to the majors last year for the first time, there was little chance that Hursh would make the opening day roster. The former starter and 2013 first-round selection didn't have much success this spring in his very limited showings and continues to serve as an example of bad high-floor drafting from the Frank Wren years.

Mississippi

Optioned: LHP Jesse Biddle (2nd option)...This surprised no one. A former top prospect in the Phillies' system, Biddle missed last season with Tommy John surgery and will return to Double-A, where he's already logged 31 starts between 2014-15. However, it's a good spot for Biddle as it allows him to work on his game without the pressures of jockeying for position on what remains a talented Gwinnett rotation. Biddle made his return to live ball last week with an inning against his former Phillie mates. For more on Biddle, check out my scouting report.

Released: LHP Matt Marksberry...Though this is not official, Marksberry himself tweeted last week about his release as he thanked the Braves organization for an opportunity and changed his Twitter description to "Free Agent Believer." Marksberry appeared in 35 games for the Braves the last two years and despite little success, was a fan favorite due to his approachable nature on Twitter. Early in the offseason, Marksberry suffered from a seizure and dehydration after suffering some side effects from medicine he was taking. He was placed in an induced coma for a few days as doctors worked to bring up his shockingly low sodium levels. Marksberry was in the minor league camp after being removed from the 40-man roster last year.

Reassigned to Minor League Camp (Team To Be Determined)
LHP Sam Freeman...With 142 games already in the major leagues, Freeman looked like a strong contender for a bullpen spot after being one of the earliest free agents signed by the Braves this offseason. However, subsequent moves and Freeman's limitations on the mound - notably his failure to dominate lefties - put Freeman as a distant option heading into camp. He did little to impress, allowing six hits and six runs over one inning of work with a pair of walks. Freeman is still may find it hard to make Gwinnett or Mississippi's roster so don't be surprised if you see him cut later in camp.

LHP Adam Kolarek...A former long-time Mets product, Kolarek has struggled to stick in Triple-A and has logged just 36 games there since 2013. Kolarek has looked good in a specialist role, but most left-hand specialists rarely don't start that way. Typically, they hold their own against righties in the minors, which Kolarek rarely has done. Like Freeman, he'll compete for a spot at Gwinnett or possibly Mississippi.

By Sports Crazy on Flickr (Original version) UCinternational (Crop)
[CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

RHP Rhiner Cruz...Signed out of the Mexican League, Cruz has tossed three scoreless innings this spring for the Braves. A Rule 5 selection in 2012, Cruz struggled tremendously while spending the year in the majors. He saw action in the bigs again in 2013, but soon pitched himself out of the Astros' plans as they cut him in 2014 so that he could head to Japan. He works off a funky delivery with good velocity and a hit-or-miss slurve. Like many of the minor league free agents the Braves signed, he was added to compete for a spot with Mississippi or Gwinnett, but his solid work with the big league club will only help him find a job come opening day.

C Joseph Odom...In 52 games with Carolina last year, Odom came into his own with a .292/.349/.500 slash that included a .379 wOBA. A callup to Mississippi, however, took away most of Odom's power and hurt his chances of pushing his way up the prospect charts. A good defender, Odom is likely ticketed for a return trip to Mississippi with...

C Kade Scivicque...Acquired from the Tigers late during the 2016 season for Erick Aybar, Scivicque had a strong - and limited - showing in the Arizona Fall League and some solid numbers with the Tigers' top A-ball team before the trade (.282/.324/.379). Scivicque made my Top 50 rankings at #45 based on his potential plus his progression along with some defensive skills as a pitch framer and caller. While I doubt he'll ever hit enough to earn a full-time starting nod in the majors, Scivicque has the look of a decent backup catcher at some point.

OF Dustin Peterson...Being reassigned is more of a procedural move for Peterson, who broke his hamate bone in his left hand facing the Yankees on March 1. Peterson is coming off a year where he won the organization's Player of the Year award and set new personal-highs in a number of offensive categories. Just as important was his progression as a fielder in his second year after being moved away from third base. Peterson's breakout campaign still masked how young he is as this is his Age-22 season. Once healthy and after proving his timing is back, Peterson will head to Gwinnett where he will try to keep his name firmly in place as the first outfielder called up if an injury opens a spot. For more on Peterson, here is a small report on him from my offseason Top 50 prospects.

The 2017 Braves Bullpen Could be Something Special

By Keith Allison on Flickr (Original version) UCinternational
(Crop) [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

In the early months of the 2016 season, the Atlanta Braves had a big problem. Their bullpen was one of the worst in baseball. InApril, the pen combined for a 5.10 ERA and -0.1 fWAR. This was largely due to walks, something that no other team was worse at than the Braves before May. They weren't being aided in any way by a .326 BABIP, third worst in the majors. Atlanta used 14 different guys in a relief role during the month, including Matt Wisler, which is less than ideal when you consider the team was a month into the season.

But things would begin to change. In May, they finished with a monthly ERA of 3.91 (next to a 3.26 FIP) and dropped to the middle of the pack in walks as a percentage. Meanwhile, they continued to strike out a ton of guys. Even more, they were starting to find a group of guys to rely on. Arodys Vizcaino was deadly during the first few months and after early season issues, Jim Johnson would return after an injury and flourish. The unsung hero, though, was Ian Krol. After being cut in camp, Krol came back to the majors with a vengeance and developed into the best full-inning lefthander the Braves have had in a few years.

The pen would continue to move guys in-and-out, but by August, they had found a few new arms to rely on. Mauricio Cabrera surprised many by throwing strikes while the Braves were getting big lifts from Chaz Roe and Jose Ramirez. By the final month, the Braves' pen was reaching elite status.

Let's look forward to 2017. While the Braves have been busy adding depth to the starting rotation, the pen hasn't been reshaped much at all. The team re-upped with Johnson, who had a 2.29 FIP and 3.09 xFIP after returning from the DL in June. They added a number of arms to compete for innings, but left the pen to be decided later.

Turns out that may have been a good idea.

In Johnson, Krol, Vizcaino, and Cabrera, the Braves have a quartet of pitchers who combined for a 25% strikeout rate, a 9% walk rate, 3.1 fWAR, and a FIP of about 3.10 (take with a grain of salt as I used an average). That's including Vizcaino's late struggles after he fought oblique and shoulder issues.

Of course, one might and maybe should rain on my parade. Of the four I mention, only Johnson has a real history of success (and a recent history of great failure). It's important to remember that, but anytime you can realistically head into the season with a core of four arms that put up the kind of success this quartet did last season, you have to feel good about the future.

Those four can't do it alone, though. How good the Atlanta Braves bullpen in 2017 depends on who fills out the other slots. Braves fans remember just how badly the Braves struggled down the stretch in 2011 as the trio of Craig Kimbrel, Jonny Venters, and Eric O'Flaherty began to struggle with the workload because Bobby Cox lacked competent options to fill in. Brian Snitker may not have to worry about that, though, because there are a number of exciting arms to jump from J.V. to Varsity.

I mentioned Ramirez and Roe before. Neither has had much success in the majors, but both pitched exceptionally well down the stretch. Ramirez has some issues - his 5.03 xFIP suggests he may struggle moving forward. Roe, on the other hand, had an even better FIP (1.75) and xFIP (2.75) than his ERA of 3.60. A groundball pitcher who K'd well over a batter an inning with good control? More of that, please.

Daniel Winkler and Shae Simmons have one thing in common. If healthy, each can be x-factors in anyone's pen. Add Luke Jackson to the discussion and even if only one of that trio becomes a trusted asset in 2017, it'll bring the core four some depth to allow them to have nights off without the Brave manager getting a bit antsy about their replacements.

By Keith Allison from Owings Mills, USA (P. Rodriguez)
[CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Left-hander Paco Rodriguez hasn't pitched in the majors since May 29, 2015, but don't sleep on him being a big part of the 2017 pen. In 85.1 innings in the majors, Rodriguez has a 2.98 FIP/3.00 xFIP built on solid control and an excellent strikeout rate. He's been deadly in high leverage (opposing .202 wOBA) and righties have only been moderately more successful than lefties (.271 wOBA versus .220).

I can go on. Rule 5 pick Armando Rivero has upside, veterans Eric O'Flaherty and Jordan Walden could be salvageable, John Danks has left-hand reliever potential, and Josh Collmenter has value in long relief. Young arms like Bradley Roney, Evan Phillips, Steve Janas, Akeel Morris, Chad Sobotka, Caleb Dirks, and Kyle Kinman need only to take that next step like Mauricio Cabrera.

And then, there is a guy like A.J. Minter. If you look up the word "dominance" in the dictionary, there is a picture of Minter. In nearly 35 innings last year over three stops, Minter K'd 47 next to just 11 walks. We knew he was a first round talent when the Braves drafted him in 2015 and once finally healthy, he put on a show. What can he do over a full season?

A hidden weapon might have been those veteran starters the Braves picked up. Only four more teams had bullpens that logged more innings than the Braves (567.1 innings) and only one made more calls to the pen. That's in no small part of a cause of a starting rotation that averaged 5.5 innings per game, 19th best in the majors. Of the ten playoff teams, only the Dodgers and Orioles were worse. Aaron Blair (15 starts) and Williams Perez (11 starts) each failed to average 5 innings a start. Bartolo Colon averaged 5.8 innings per start despite being 43 years old. R.A. Dickey also averaged 5.8 while Jaime Garcia averaged 5.5 innings per start. If you add that to Julio Teheran's workhorse 6.3 innings per start and Mike Foltynewicz's 5.6 innings per start, you get an average of roughly 5.8 innings per start. That would have have been right in tune with the Washington Nationals, Cleveland Indians, and New York Mets - all playoff teams in 2016. While the difference of .3 innings per start may not wow you, it's like having your starting staff throw 40 to 60 more innings. Not only will the extra innings likely be quality frames, they will put less of a strain on your bullpen.

Listen, I know there are nearly as many questions about this bullpen as there are reasons to be excited. But despite the fact that the Braves have refused to significantly alter a bullpen that finished 2016 14th in fWAR and 24th in xFIP, I believe that the pen is destined for very big things next year and beyond. Sure, not all things will go the Braves' way and relievers have a tendency to just "lose it." Nevertheless, this pen has a chance to be pretty special.

2016 Player Reviews: Matt Marksberry, Andrew McKirahan, Eric O'Flaherty

It's Southpaw central today here at Walk-Off Walk as three lefties are up next in the 2016 Player Review series. Amazingly, there are still six sets of players left to review. Jeez, the Braves used too many players in 2016.

Did you miss the last edition? I got your back. Want to catch up on all of the series? I have you covered as well.

*Ages reflect the player's age on opening day, 2017

Matt Marksberry, LHP, 26 years-old

2016 Review: First off, it's great to know that Marksberry seems out of the woods as far as his health scare goes. Just over a week ago, a story broke in which Marksberry was on life support with a collapsed lung. Twitter can be a very useful social media tool, but it can quickly muddle the facts in a developing situation. Marksberry did have a health emergency as he was critically dehydrated with a sodium level that plummeted so low that Marksberry had a seizure. He is much improved now so we can look more at the baseball side of things. A year after appearing in 31 games for the Braves bullpen, Marksberry failed to impress last spring and actually opened the year with Mississippi. After a quick promotion, he received his longest run with any team in 2016 after joining Gwinnett, appearing in 28 games. Marksberry's ERA was nice and tidy, but he was a bit too prone to work his way into trouble via the walk. Before his season came to a close in late July with shoulder issues, Marksberry appeared in four games with the big league club and had little success.

2017 Projection: Marksberry has a nice following on Twitter and is very approachable as a genuine and likable guy. But results are what keep players in the majors and the results really aren't there to this point for the now 26 year-old. He could have a future as a left-hand specialist as a major league split of .172/.273/.310 indicates when he has the platoon advantage. That includes a nearly 23% strikeout rate, but I should also mention that this includes  a short-sample size (66 total batters faced) and .214 BABIP. That's not to say that it's all flukish - only that it should give one pause when it comes to projecting continued success for Marksberry. The shoulder concerns in 2016 certainly are worrisome as well. For their part, the Braves designated Marksberry for assignment and outrighted him to Mississippi following the season. He'll be in the mix come spring provided he's able and with everything he went through, he'll certainly be a fan favorite. With Ian Krol and Paco Rodriguez potentially in the fold, for the first time in awhile, the bullpen doesn't look like a revolving door of arms especially from the lefthand side. That said, after the last couple of weeks Marksberry has had, it's hard not to root for him to be on the roster when the 2017 season kicks off.

Andrew McKirahan, LHP, 27 years-old

2016 Review: Not much to speak of after the lefty was removed after one appearance and just five pitches this spring and later diagnosed with a torn UCL. It was the second time the lefty underwent Tommy John surgery after missing most of the 2012 season because of the same operation. After spending the year on the 60-day DL, McKirahan was, like Marksberry, outrighted to Mississippi after the season ended.

2017 Projection: I was a big fan of McKirahan before the 2014 Rule 5 draft, where the Marlins selected him from the Cubs' organization. After he failed to stick with Miami, the Braves got him off waivers as the 2015 season was beginning. A PED suspension limited McKirahan to just 27 games in 2015 and the results were pretty ugly. When healthy, McKirahan flashes some extreme groundball ability with a fourseam fastball and sinker combo (though he rarely throws the sinker) along with a slider that drops down. His big issue, though, is that he has only one pitch that he can induce some whiffs on - the slider. However, for it to be effective, he has to pitch ahead and his hard stuff gets smacked around pretty good. He has some impressive numbers in the minors and unlike Marksberry, McKirahan has good control. But does he have the stuff to pitch at this level? We'll get a shot to find out in 2017 if he's healthy.

By Keith Allison on Flickr (Originally posted to Flickr as "Eric
O'Flaherty") [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Eric O'Flaherty, LHP, 32 years-old

2016 Review: Ugly. That's how one might describe O'Flaherty's season. Picked up right before the season after he failed to impress the Pirates, O'Flaherty returned to the team where he became a tremendous asset for five seasons. However, he wasn't that guy anymore. His sinker has lost bite, his slider is too straight, and he's lost a tick or two with his heater. As the season progressed, it became clear that what we were watching wasn't the O'Flaherty we remembered so fondly. In August, he hit the DL with an elbow injury and later underwent surgery to fix the issue.

2017 Projection: While O'Flaherty is likely moving forward in his rehab and should be ready, provided there are no setbacks, to pitch this spring, it seems unlikely it will be for the Braves. While the depth at left-hand relief is one reason, O'Flaherty has a 5.49 ERA in 120 games since the start of 2013. Even if O'Flaherty has a clean bill of health, it would be a surprise to see him succeed in the majors again.

Worst 5 Braves Drafts Since 2000 - #3

Continuing with my alternating Best/Worst Drafts since 2000 series. This year's draft probably should be one of the worst drafts since 2000 for any other organization. It ranks just third for the Braves.

Best/Worst Drafts since 2000
Worst: #5, 2009 | #4, 2004 | #3, 2013 | #2, 2011 | #1, 2001
Best: #5, 2010 | #4, 2015 | #3, 2007 | #2, 2002 | #1, 2000

By Tate Nations (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0],
via Wikimedia Commons

3rd Worst Draft Since 2000...The 2013 Draft 

Easily the most frustrating thing about the Atlanta Braves under Frank Wren and Tony DeMacio was the draft. Tabbed as Wren's choice to head up scouting at the end of 2009 and a long-time scout who scouted, among others, Tom Glavine and Chipper Jones, DeMacio either had his hands tied by financial limitations or was given an edict to bring in college-age talent with a chance to climb quickly to the bigs. Whatever the case, 2013 continued a string of mostly bad drafts under their leadership until both were relieved of their duties after the disappointing 2014 season.

The Braves gave up their first round pick to sign Melvin Upton, but would receive a compensation pick after the Indians signed Michael Bourn. Atlanta would select 31st, 65th, 102nd, and after the third round, their pick was frozen as the 27th of each round.

When their first pick came around, players like Aaron Judge (30th), Ian Clarkin (18th), Sean Manaea (10th), and Aaron Blair (41st) were still on the board. Those numbers I included reflect their ranking in Baseball America's Pre-Draft Top 250. Instead of taking any of those players, Atlanta settled on righty Jason Hursh out of Oklahoma State and ranked 50th by BA. Two of the four not taken have already made it to the majors with a third likely to get a callup sometime this season. Hursh...not so likely.

Thirty-four picks later, Atlanta went with Miami-Dade Junior College C/3B Victor Caratini, ranked 123rd, with the 65th overall pick. Unlike some other Wren/DeMacio drafts, the Braves did sprinkle in some high school selections like third rounder Carlos Salazar and fourth round selection Tanner Murphy. The former was a good value pick at 102nd overall while Murphy was considered a reach. Mikey Reynolds and Steve Janas, along with Ian Stiffler, were decent show-me players, but hardly big time value selections. In fact, possibly their biggest value pick after Salazar was 8th rounder Kyle Wren. While the Braves had done this before with Jon Schuerholz, it's worth mentioning that Frank's son was ranked as high as 210th by BA before the draft and was selected with the 253rd overall selection.

After Wren, Atlanta took a trio of high schoolers in Dylan Manwaring, Ian Hagenmiller, and Alec Grosser, before again focusing on college kids like Joseph Odom and Matt Marksberry. The latter would become the first and, so far, only major leaguer out of the 2013 draft. Other notable names from the draft include Tyler Brosius (21st round), Andrew Waszak (22nd round), Reed Harper (25th round), Dakota Dill (26th round), and Jake Schrader (27th round). Players drafted, but who did not sign, include Stephen Wrenn and Jacob Heyward, Jason Heyward's baby brother. Both would head to big-time college programs.

The key to the 2013 draft was supposed to be the hard-throwing California, Salazar. However, now in his fourth year, he was moved to the bullpen after starting failed and his control has not been aided. He has the strange distinction this year of walking one per inning, yet his ERA is under 1.00 (21 BB in 21 ING). He's also struck out 26 and only allowed five hits.

Also moved to the bullpen was Hursh, who was pushed to the pen last summer. Not exactly what the Braves were hoping for when they drafted him. Murphy's bat has been non-existent over the last nearly 130 games, but at least he's still in the organization. Reynolds was cut a month into his first full season of professional ball. Three other Top 10 picks have been cut by the organization in Stiffler, Manwaring, and Hagenmiller. Janas is still around and probably the most likely player to play for the Braves who was drafted in 2013 aside from Marksberry, though Janas is a long way away from being a shoe-in. Two others are more likely to get to the majors before  Janas, but are no longer with the Braves. Caratini was traded to the Cubs for James Russell. Wren was sent packing to cut ties with his family.

The 2013 draft was an utter failure from the first pick until the last, though I suppose there remains some hope the Braves will salvage a decent player out of this draft. Salazar could, theoretically, harness his electric stuff and a player like Grosser, has shown both promise and crushing failure. On the plus side, Atlanta has added to their 2013 draft with the additions of Blair (#36th), Andrew Thurman (#40th), Dustin Peterson (#50th), and - briefly - Jordan Paroubeck, who was selected #69th overall. I guess the 2013 draft could be beneficial for the Braves after all.

Transaction Tuesday: Sims, Marksberry, Kinman

I'm going to try something new this season and that's keeping up with minor league transactions. Every Tuesday, I'll take a look at each level to go over some of the moves and provide analysis. If this is the kind of thing that interest you, let me know. Apologies that this was released so late today. Planning for a 5 year-old birthday's party takes a lot out of you. I will not include any of today's transactions and instead push them off to next week's version.

Review last week's transactions.

Gwinnett
Activated: Jose Ramirez...He was placed on the DL after he was outrighted, but didn't stay on it for long. The righty has been active with three games already and has flashed the strikeout potential that led to him making the roster out of spring training (7 K's in 4 ING). He's also surrendered a solo homerun.

Promoted: Lucas Sims...I was a bit surprised to see him get a callup so quickly, but you have to remember that Sims had a dozen starts at Double-A and five starts last fall in Arizona. His first go-around with Gwinnett continued his season-long control issues, but also continued his strong strikeout numbers. It'll be interesting to see how Sims reacts over the next month or so. Hitters in Triple-A are often guys who have seen major league-quality pitches and will make a young pitcher work if he doesn't throw strikes.

Optioned: Casey Kelly...Talk about doing little to hurt your case to return. Kelly worked three innings in his Braves debut and kept a game from becoming a blowout after Bud Norris struggled. It was a good follow-up for Kelly, who worked seven scoreless in his second start with Gwinnett. It wouldn't surprise me any to see Kelly still turn into a capable major league option. After all, there was a time where he ranked in the Baseball America Top 100 in four consecutive seasons.

Optioned: Matt Marksberry...It's a bit surprising that the Braves choose to keep Eric O'Flaherty over the younger lefty. Say what you will about Marksberry's limitations, but he has been studly against lefties in the majors (.164/.270/.255). He handled Mississippi hitters with ease before his short promotion to Atlanta. He'll be the next lefty called up when the Braves want one.

Optioned: Williams Perez...The biggest problem for Perez in the majors is that he really doesn't have the stuff to be a big league starter. He can stick around and even might have a nice run where he holds down the fort for a few starts, but he relies on deception and control in the minors - things that don't get him far enough with major league hitters. He struggled in his return to Triple-A, giving up three runs on three walks over five innings. He also struck out five.

Demoted and Promoted: Braeden Schlehuber...It's been a slow start to the season for Schlehuber, who began things on the DL. After being activated the week before last, he was "demoted" to Danville to get the roster numbers under control before being "brought" back. The career .218 hitter is 1-for-6 in two games this year.

Outrighted, Demoted, and Promoted: Joel De La Cruz...What a quick major league experience for De La Cruz. He didn't appear in a game when he was called up with Hunter Cervenka before being not just demoted, but outrighted off the 40-man. He's been pretty decent in the early going for Gwinnett and will look to continue that.

Mississippi
Activated: Kyle Kinman...Good to see Kinman's stay on the DL was short-lived. A lefty with a lot of believers, Kinman struggled a bit out of the gate after making a late run in camp with the big league club. In his first appearance since being activated, he threw a quiet inning with a walk, but induced a double play to face the minimum.

Demoted: Danny Burawa...The former Yankees product opened camp with a chance to make the major league roster. He's not back down in Double-A, marking the fourth consecutive season he's spent time at the level. Part of his demotion was related to the numbers game, but he did little to earn more opportunities with the G-Braves. Of particular concern was the 11 walks in 7 innings.

Demoted: Madison Younginer...Signed this offseason on a minor league deal out of the BoSox organization, Younginer has not had the kind of start a player likes to have with a new team. He maintained a nearly 2 WHIP with Gwinnett before being demoted and got roughed up for three runs with Mississippi in his debut there.

Carolina
Activated: Bryton Trepagnier...A 41st rounder by the Pirates in 2010, Trepagnier signed with the Braves last year and appeared in 42 forgetful games for Mississippi last year in which he walked 44 and struck out 30. He must have a believer or two because statistically, the results simply have never really been there.

DL'd: Raymar Navarro...Signed this offseason after defecting from Cuba, Navarro's early-season numbers haven't been much to write home about (6.2 ING, 6 K, 3 BB, 4 ER).

Demoted and Promoted: Sean McLaughlin...A 19th rounder out of Georgia last June, McLaughlin briefly was taken off the roster last week. The undersized righty has had a pretty good start to his professional career with 52 K's in 49 innings to go with his 2.39 ERA. That includes stops last year with Danville and Rome and this season with the Mudcats.

Rome
Promoted: Oriel Caicedo...Caicedo has been up-and-down a few times between Rome and "Danville" since the season began. He's struck out 8 in 8.1 innings for Rome when he's been around to pick up game action. Included in his four appearances was his first professional save.

Danville
Promoted and Demoted: Michael O'Neal...Signed out of the independent leagues after he was undrafted coming out of Auburn, O'Neal briefly was on the Carolina roster last week. He appeared in two games and gave up a homerun over three innings. He walked two and struck out a pair. O'Neal throws in the low-90's with a two-seam fastball according to this article.

Demoted: Victor Mateo...A repeat name on this list, Mateo was just activated and had appeared in four games before being moved down to Danville as a procedural move. He probably is still with the Mississippi Braves, but is simply not "active."

Demoted: Joe Kennedy...I mentioned him last week as well. Kennedy spent three seasons in Australia getting very little work before an eight start run with Melbourne last year. The lefty appeared in four games with Rome with pretty poor results.

Demoted: Rob Wooten...Yep, Danville's pretty much a place the Braves stash arms until they need them. Wooten is a veteran of 71 major league games before this season and had appeared in five games with Gwinnett before being "demoted."

GCL Braves
No moves.

DSL Braves
No moves.

Braves Cut Three More Relievers

I went over this a little in today's 5 for Monday post at my other site. Give it a read as it also touches on the rotation (especially Jhoulys Chacin), spring training stats, the 2016 draft, the road back for Jason Grilli and Mike Foltynewicz, and others odds and ends.

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Rob Carr/Getty Images

The Braves continued their quick and decisive series of cuts on Monday morning, adding Matt Marksberry and Chris Withrow to the list of arms that were previously in the running, but now have "just died and went back down to the minors." Southpaw Hunter Cervenka joined the duo, though he was "reassigned" rather than optioned because he wasn't on the 40-man roster.

Marksberry and Withrow were both surprising cuts, especially at this point. As a favorite in the battle to join the Braves coming out of camp, Marksberry had moments of glory before a recent bad game. Marksberry has some qualities that make him an attractive member of any bullpen, but he's hurt by one thing right now - he has options. The Braves want to maintain a high level of depth and keeping a LOOGY at AAA rather than losing a player without options was an easier sell for the Braves.

Withrow was even more shocking because many, including me, had him pegged as a key member of the 2016 bullpen. Over 56 innings in the majors, Withrow has a 3.44 xFIP, 3.08 SIERA, and 93 cFIP - which all give the impression that he's a capable major league option when healthy. The Braves may have not seen the level of control they want  from the righty, though to option him this quickly is still curious. Again, much like Marksberry, Withrow has options (actually just one) whereas players like Jose Ramirez don't.

Speaking of Ramirez, his chances of making this roster only improve. The same can be said for Rule 5 additions like Evan Rutckyj and Daniel Winkler, along with non-roster invitees Alex Torres, Carlos Torres, and Alexi Ogando. However, there is still much that is left to be done because we only know that Arodys Vizcaino and Jim Johnson will be in the mix. If he suffers no setbacks, Jason Grilli will be there as well. That doesn't even take into account Ian Krol, who was expected to be a player in the bullpen, but might go the way of Withrow and head to Gwinnett to start 2016. Oh, and we should also mention the possibility of a long-relief arm such as Williams Perez or Ryan Weber being shifted to the bullpen to provide insurance for the rotation, though I'd think Winkler could be included in that mix as well.

The Braves are being proactive here, which puts the pressure on those players remaining in the picture to produce. We've seen what happens when they don't.

Guys You Don't Know, vol. 1

With spring training games beginning, random names will pop up in boxscores that might confuse you. Here's a list of some of them from yesterday.

Freiman, 1B, 0-for-1, 2 BB, 1 RS

Who is he? Nate Freiman...I touched on Freiman back in January, though he signed a month before that. Freiman is a absolute hulk of a man (6'8") and was originally drafted out of Duke by the Padres in the 8th round of 2009. A Rule 5 pick by the Astros in December of 2012, Freiman was picked off waivers by the A's in spring training and spent and the A's used him in 80 games during 2013. He didn't show much power (.116), which is surprising for his frame, and didn't do much to retain his position in 2014. Last year, he bottomed out with an atrocious .101 ISO and .279 OBP at AAA, prompting the A's to cut him at the end of the season. Overall, Freiman has posted decent numbers in the minors, but may not have the bat to hang in the majors. He'll get an extended look this spring considering the Braves are limiting Freddie Freeman's time, but Freiman's ticketed for a trip down to Gwinnett where he'll be the primary first baseman.

d'Arnaud, C, LF, 0-for-2

Who is he? Chase D'Arnaud...When I first saw his line, I thought he had moved from catcher to left, but that was not the case. D'Arnaud looked like a decent hitting prospect when the Pirates picked him in the 4th round of the 2008 draft, but he basically plateaued in A-ball with the bat. Since then, he's posted pedestrian numbers offensively and even worse figures in the majors. Last year was his first season outside of Pittsburgh (he made the long trip to Philly) and he remained consistent with the bat at AAA. By consistent, I mean a career .255/.316/.366 run at AAA. He spent a little time in the majors and has picked up 75 games in the bigs over the last four seasons. Overall, again, he's AAA depth.

Tuiasosopo, DH, 1-for-4, 1 BB, 1 K

Who is he? Matt Tuiasosopo...The Braves have cobbled together a who's who among AAAA types. Matt's been at this since 2004 and has nearly a full season in the majors (career 152 games) to show for it. He gives you a little bit of power, some walks, a mediocre batting average, and can move around a bit. Over the last two years, he has played three infield positions and both corner outfield positions, but it's more-or-less shocking to see him play anywhere but 1B/LF/RF. He was a minor surprise in 2013 as a platoon option against lefties for the Tigers. He slashed .244/.351/.415 with 7 HR, but it wasn't enough to warrant continued employment by the Tigers as he spent the last two seasons with Buffalo and Charlotte of the International League. Now, he seems likely to remain in the IL as a member of the Gwinnett Braves.

Brignac, 2B, 0-for-1, RBI

Who is he? Reid Brignac...A long, long time ago, Brignac was a bit of a prospect. In 2010, he was a decent bench option for Tampa Bay with a 1.4 fWAR, but his bat completely fell off the following year and he hasn't posted a positive fWAR since, nor has he been in the bigs for very long. Since 2013, he has made cameos with the Rockies, Yankees, Phillies, and Marlins while playing bigger roles for their AAA teams. He might be a little higher on the depth chart than D'Arnaud, but he's still behind Daniel Castro as far as "next man in" goes.

Schlehuber, C, no plate appearance

Who is he? Braeden Schlehuber...You really should know Schlehuber by now considering he's been a fixture of each spring training for a number of years. He's been in the system since 2008 and was even a Carolina League All-Star during 2012, but that's about the extent of his offensive highlights (.270/.328/.439 with 8 HR). 2012 was the only year since 2011 that he didn't spend at least some of the year with Mississippi, by the way, which should be grounds for naming him mayor. Where he lands after spring training is not really that important. He's an organizational guy who fills out a roster.

Cervenka, 1 ING

Who is he? Hunter Cervenka...You'd be excused if you missed the Cervenka signing last summer. After all, he was just some lefty with a weird name who was added to the Mississippi Braves roster from Sugar Land in the Atlantic League. He hadn't been with the Skeeters long, though. He began the year with the Iowa Cubs, which was the first time during his seven year career he had been above AA. He stunk over a dozen games out of the pen and was demoted to AA before being released. Once the Braves got him, he made a three-game cameo with Mississippi before getting a second run at Gwinnett. He turned it on there and the southpaw K'd 23 in 16.2 ING. He did walk 8, continuing a career-long issue with control. He's an interesting lefty reliever arm, though at 26, his control issues will likely limit his effectiveness. That said, he has owned lefties in the minors so if you're going to be a one-trick pony, it's good to have a great trick to fall back on. The Braves have a lot of lefty arms, though, and might be more inclined to see how Ian Krol, Matt Marksberry, Andrew McKirahan, and some of the veteran non-roster invitees do before going with Cervenka. Still, he likely begins 2016 with Gwinnett with a chance to get a foot in the door.

Texeira, 1 ING, 1 K

Who is he? Kanekoa Texeira....No, he's not related to the Mark Teixeira (the names aren't even spelled the same).  K-Tex has been around since 2006 nearly exclusively as a reliever until recent years. He even logged 43 games of action with the Mariners and Royals in 2010 (and six more with the Royals the following season) though the results were pretty abysmal. He first hooked up with the Braves in 2014 after they signed him out of the Atlantic League. Since then, he's been a swingman for Gwinnett and did hit the 100 inning mark last year for just the second time of his career (again, mostly a reliever). As my friends at Outfield Fly Rule often say, K-Tex is "just a guy." Nothing particularly impressive or noteworthy about his career, not his recent numbers. He's depth at Gwinnett and that's about it, though it's quite possible with so many pitchers in camp fighting for a major league spot, K-Tex could be also fighting to keep his job in AAA. He was added to the major league camp yesterday specifically to give them a tenth inning arm. He heads back to the minor league camp now.

That's it for now. Is this helpful for you? Let me know in the comment section or tweet me.