Andrew McKirahan To Miss 2016

Well, the relievers are just dropping like flies today.

Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Shortly after news dropped that David Carpenter and Ryan Kelly had been cut, we found out that southpaw Andrew McKirahan will miss 2016 after he was diagnosed with a torn UCL. He will see Dr. James Andrews next and will soon go under the knife, which would be his second after undergoing his first Tommy John surgery in 2012.

McKirahan was picked up by the Braves on waivers last March after the Marlins selected him in the previous winter's Rule 5 draft. The Braves were one of many teams interested in the lefty, who opened the year with the Braves before being suspended for PED use two weeks into the season. The test had been conducted the previous month while he was in Miami's camp, but it was a blow to McKirahan's placement with the Braves. It ultimately turned into a convenient thing for Atlanta because it allowed them to remove him from the roster for half of the year without losing him. After a brief minor league run (theoretically, a rehab assignment), McKirahan returned in late July and spent the remainder of 2015 with the Braves.

Overall, he had very poor results with a 3.82 FIP and 106 cFIP to go with an ERA of nearly 6, but it should be noted that anyone's ERA will take a hit when your BABIP is .409. Expected to be a suitable option against lefties, McKirahan was definitely better against them than he was vs. righties but was hardly a shutdown option. Almost exclusively a fastball/slider pitcher, McKirahan also has a rarely used sinker that he utilized more as the season progressed. The fastball has enough sinking movement to help induce a good number of groundballs and with his decent control, he certainly had a shot to surprise some people this spring before the news that he was injured.

His injury likely doesn't change the prospects of any other pitcher as McKirahan had a long road to make this roster. One thing that could have helped him would have been the need to roster him to start the year to fulfil the Rule 5 requirements. As you might know, players that are picked in the Rule 5 (even when they are acquired via waivers) must spend the season after being selected on a major league roster. There is a loophole and we saw that with Daniel Winkler* as the Braves punted the Rule 5 decision a season by selecting a player who would spend most of 2015 on the DL. In McKirahan's case, the suspension threw an added wrench into the mess, but the injury exception also applies here. In order to fulfil the requirements of a Rule 5 player, the team needs to either needs to keep the player on the roster the enter season (without a demotion) or keep him on the active roster AT LEAST 90 days. The remainder of the season can be spent on the disabled list or, as in McKirahan's case, the restricted list.

So, let's do the math. The season began on April 6, 2015 and the suspension was announced on April 20. That gives us 14 days. He was reinstated from the restricted list on July 20 and remained on the roster through the final day of the regular season, October 4. That's 76 days. Add the two time periods together and you get exactly 90 days, which seems pretty damn fishy when you think about it.

Because he reached 90 days, the Braves were free to demote him to the minors and begin using his full compliment of options. Instead, his injury will open a spot on the 40-man roster.

*Winkler's case is different and I wanted to go over that. Winkler was activated off the disabled list on September 10, 2015. The time frame between that date and the end of the season is 24 days. To keep Winkler, the Braves will have to keep him on the active roster for the first 66 days of the season (which takes us to June 9).

Spring Training Moves & Guys You Don't Know, vol. 4

First thing's first, I published some instant analysis on today's spring training moves that included the releases of David Carpenter and Ryan Kelly along with reassigning Braxton Davidson to the minor league camp.

Another game and a few more names that might have surprised Braves fans in Atlanta's 12-11 loss to the Phillies on Friday. This is the fourth edition of this column and you can read about other random names that have shown up in boxscores by clicking here.

M. Kennelly, C, 1-for-2, R, 3 RBI, BB

Who is he? Matt Kennelly...It was almost appropriate that Kennelly replaced Braeden Schlehuber behind the plate on Friday as the two have been in the system for some time and are essentially the same player. Kennelly got his start after being signed out of Australia about a decade ago. He appeared in his first game in 2007 and spent the next six years plus years in the Braves system with an odd three-game turn in the Arizona Fall League. He reached Gwinnett in 2011 and started there in 2013 before being pushed out by a number crunch. After spending the rest of 2013 in the Reds organization, he returned to the Braves in 2014 and has been a fixture ever since (along with a yearly run in the Australia Baseball League). In nearly 600 games, he has hit just 19 homeruns and OPS'd .630 so you can imagine that his job is dependent on handling a pitching staff well. Kennelly can play a little first and has played the outfield in Australia as well. He even got into a game on the mound last year for Mississippi, pitching a quiet inning in relief. Overall, he's respected by the organization, but that's about it. Kennelly was among the five players reassigned to the minor league camp early this morning.

V. Mateo, P, 0.1 ING, H, 2 R, 2 ER, BB, K, HR

Who is he? Victor Mateo...After spending eight years in the Devil Rays organization, Mateo joined the Braves last offseason and was great at Mississippi before spending a rough month or so with Gwinnett. A durable righty who has has logged between 147.2 ING and 166 ING in each of the last three seasons, Mateo gets a decent amount of groundballs and largely avoids homeruns, but routinely has FIPs over 4. Even when his ERA was 2.68 as a Mississippi Brave over 107.1 ING last year, his FIP was 4.09. This is largely due to weak strikeout numbers and good, but not great, control which results in a career 1.8 K/BB ratio.

Hursh, P, 0.2 ING, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, K, HR

Who is he? Jason Hursh...You really ought to know who Hursh is at this point, but just in case you didn't, here's the book on Hursh. You get a lot of grounders and that's about it. Basically, he's a slightly more impressive Mateo as he keeps the ball on the ground (usually) and avoids homeruns (again, usually). At this point, Hursh seems to be transitioning into a bullpen role, which seems like a weird fit for a sinker baller. Ultimately, Atlanta is trying to get anything from their former first rounder, but it seems unlikely that Hursh will be in the major league picture at any point in 2016.

Guys You Don't Know, vol. 3

Only a couple of interesting names you might not know from yesterday's loss to the Tigers. As I have done twice this spring already (here and here), this series focuses on names that show up in boxscores that are neither big prospects, nor established veterans.

Lalli, C, 0-for-2, 2 K

Who is he? Blake Lalli...So far, this is the fourth catcher I've mentioned as part of this series and we are just three games in. Lalli was a late signing this offseason (1/26 to be exact) and is a left-hand hitting catcher originally signed as undrafted free agent by the Cubs in 2006. Before that, he played at Gardner-Webb (go Runnin' Bulldogs!). Lalli had a big 2008 as he climbed from A-ball to AA (with a stop at A+ in between). His triple slash that year was .326/.367/.504. Subsequent campaigns failed to live up to those numbers, but Lalli did play in the majors during 2012 as a Cub, getting a pair of singles in 15 AB. He was traded to the A's later that year and left the organization as a free agent at the end of 2012. He would spend most of 2013 with Nashville, the AAA affiliate of the Brewers, though he did receive a brief cameo in the majors (where he went just 3-for-24). The last two seasons were spent with Arizona's AAA squad in Reno. His overall minor league numbers have been fairly solid, though he won't give you much power. He's also played a good deal of first base and...amazingly...he's pitched a lot. Since 2007, he has appeared in 20 games as a pitcher. Between Lalli, Willians Astudillo's penchant for playing all over the field, and Jeff Francoeur's pitching pedigree, the Braves have some interesting baseball guys to keep track of in the minors who aren't even prospects.

Wooten, P, ING, BB

Who is he? Rob Wooten...Over the last three seasons, Wooten appeared in 71 games for the Brewers with much better peripherals than you might expect at first glance. During his 68 innings in the majors, Wooten has a 3.22 FIP, 3.90 xFIP, 3.62 SIERA, and a 98 cFIP. Now, none of those metrics paint the picture of an overly impressive right-hander, but all give the impression of Wooten being serviceable. He was signed without a spring training invite, but as you can tell by him pitching yesterday, that won't keep him from getting a shot to play with the big league club. He has solid minor league numbers and it's not impossible to see Wooten become the latest David Carpenter (3.0?), but it's a long road and he's going to have a tough time getting noticed in this camp. His time to shine will likely be at Gwinnett where he can get regular innings.

That's it for today as the Braves prepare to play the Phillies today.

Thursday Throwback - Ryan Langerhans

I've mentioned before that I love to play Out of the Park on the PC. It's a baseball simulator that gives you loads of customization and all of the stats that you could ever wish for. I just pre-ordered OOTP 17, which comes out later this month, and will probably order OOTP 18. It's the only game that comes out every year in which I purchase each version. Part of that reason is that you grow attached to teams and players inside a mini universe you build. Several years ago, today's Thursday Throwback was one of those players for me. While his career wasn't too significant, Ryan Langerhans developed into an All-Star and study player for nearly ten years for me. As the real version became AAAA filler, my version was hitting second and helping me get to the playoffs. It's enough to cloud your memory of a player because now when I look at Langer's career, I'm a little shocked that it was so...uneventful. Oh, well.

Elsa/Getty Images

A third round pick out of the 1998 draft, Langerhans went straight from Round Rock High School (TX) into a professional career with the Braves. As a prospect, Langerhans was never a high-ranking guy, but outside of a terrible season with the Pelicans in 2000, he was pretty sturdy and developed some decent power and on-base skills along the way. He first made his debut on April 28, 2002 as an emergency injury fill-in. He received just an at-bat and spent the rest of the season in Greenville. He got a bigger look in 2003 with 16 games and 15 PA, but he managed just four singles.

At this point, Langerhans was "just a guy" (h/t Outfield Fly Rule), but in 2004, the 24-year old had a bit of a breakthrough campaign. He spent all of the season with Richmond and hit a stout .298/.397/.518 with 20 HR. It was the perfect time for Langerhans to start to put it all together. In the majors, the Braves still had Andruw Jones in center field, but things weren't nearly as set around him. J.D. Drew was leaving after an MVP-quality one-and-done year with the Braves and in left field, the Braves had moved Chipper Jones back to third base. That gave us a platoon of Charles Thomas and Eli Marrero in 2004, which was very productive. Thomas, of course, would be dealt to the A's while Marrero, who had slashed .320/.374/.4520 over nearly 300 PA, was surprisingly traded to the Royals for Jorge Vazquez. That was probably a salary dump.

John Schuerholz knew he had options on the way. Kelly Johnson would be shifted to left and Jeff Francoeur was closing in on a promotion. With a declining payroll, Schuerholz rolled the dice on a few veterans holding down the fort with Raul Mondesi in right and Brian Jordan in left. Both veterans had sucked the previous year, but the Braves were hoping for a little magic for a year. Behind those two and Andruw was Langerhans, a perfect fourth outfielder. He could sneak at-bats against right-handed pitching and play all three outfield spots. Plus, he was out of options so that helped the Braves make a decision on him.

Langer had a bad first month as he learned to be a backup, but seemed to turn it around from there and after April, Langer hit .275/.353/.435 with 7 HR. He picked up 80 starts as Jordan and Mondesi failed nightly with the latter getting released and the former eventually DL'd just to hide him. The eventual promotions of KJ and Francoeur cut into Langerhans' time, but he remained a key part of the outfield mix well into the summer. He struck out a little too much, but he showed an understanding of the strikezone and walked at a solid rate. While others wore the Baby Braves banner with more fanfare, Langer was a very important part of the 2005 Braves.

Which is part of why it was so surprising that Jordan, who didn't even on-base .300 during 2005, got a Game 1 start in the NLDS over Langer and KJ. We were told that the lefty Andy Pettitte was the reason, but it seemed ridiculous for someone who had hit so poorly playing over the clearer better options. Jordan went 0-for-3 and his rally-killing double play in the 4th when the Braves had fought back to make it 4-3. By the time Langer hit for Jordan in the 9th, it was 10-4 Astros.

Langerhans got the Game 2 start and contributed a pair of singles in Atlanta's 7-1 win over Roger Clemens. He would go hitless in Game 3, but did walk and score a run in Atlanta's 7-3 loss. In Game 4, Langerhans would play all 18 innings and had a single, a double, two walks (one intentional), a HBP, and - amazingly - his first successfully stolen base as a major league player. In the 18th, Langer was the one at the base of the left field wall praying that a miracle would happen as Chris Burke's series-ending homerun reached the fans.

That was a lot written about Langer's 2005, I know. There's a reason for that. In 2006, Langer was still good, but his power numbers fell and his strikeouts went up. A 50 point drop in OPS is not the worst sophomore slump, but it would be the last year he reached the 250 PA plateau as a major leaguer.

2007 got off to a rotten start for Langerhans. It was absolutely woeful. His batting average fell under .100 with a pinch-hit strikeout on April 16. It bottomed out at .049 a dozen days later and he was traded a few days after that. Overall, in 20 games, Langerhans went 3-for-44 with a double, 6 walks, and 16 strikeouts. He was literally that guy from Little Big League who couldn't hack it anymore. When he would get a hit, his manager, the prepubescent Billy Heywood, went crazy until his pitching coach said something to the effect of "don't you think it says something when you get this happy over a seeing-eye single?" Perhaps if the Braves had an option left, they would have kept Langerhans on, but attempting to get something for him, they trade him on a conditional deal to the A's.

I'm not sure what the conditions of that deal were, but when he was traded a couple of days later to the Nats for Chris Snelling, I'm sure the Braves didn't receive much for dealing Langerhans away. Langerhans really didn't bounce back, but a bad Nationals club kept him on. In 103 games with Washington, he slashed just .198/.296/.370. He would continue on with the Nationals in 2008, but he would be banished to the minors in '09 before becoming the answer to "what did the Mariners get for trading Mike Morse to the Nats in 2009?"

After the trade, Langerhans spent a good portion of the last two months with the Mariners, but continued to struggle. Still, he became a bit of a fixture as a guy going up-and-down between Tacoma and Seattle through 2011. Two brief cameos with the Angels and Blue Jays in '12 and '13 respectively put a close to his major league career. He kept his career alive for one year with Sugar Land of the independent Atlantic League in 2014, but the writing was on the wall and Langerhans hung up his cleats. After his sophomore follow-up of 2006, Langerhans had hit just .196/.318/.341 over 716 PA in the majors over seven years and with six different teams.

Since retiring, Langerhans has been part of the Buck Commander tv series with former teammate Adam LaRoche among others. Not really my thing, but hey, I'm sure Chipper and him have a lot to talk about. Me? I just remember how I couldn't have won a couple of World Series in OOTP without Langer being a constant in the #2 spot.

Other Thursday Throwbacks...
Special - Rafael Furcal's Near-Signing (2008)
Marquis Grissom (1995-96)
Terrell Wade (1995-97)
...or view ALL of them.

Guys You Don't Know, vol. 2

Huge game yesterday for the offense led by Mallex Smith's 4-for-6 game and Ozhaino Albies going 3-for-5. Both players homered while Smith finished a single short of the cycle with two triples, each of which occurred in the same inning. If only every game was like that.

Still, there may have been some unknown names in the lineup so here's a primer on the names that may have been strange. You can check yesterday's similar post here.

Odom, C, 1-for-2, 2B, RBI

Who is he? Joseph Odom...Originally a 13th rounder in 2013 out of Huntingdon College (go Hawks!), Odom has been an unimpressive catcher so far with the bat, hitting .215/.300/.356 over 550 PA. He seems pretty decent behind the plate and I usually give a pass on caught stealing rates in the minors because pitchers are rarely adept at holding runners on the farm. All in all, Odom's a body who turns 24 and could be ticketed for a return trip to Carolina in 2016.

Astudillo, PH-DH, 0-for-2

Who is he? Willians Astudillo...As far as interesting players, Astudillo kind of takes the cake. He began his career back in 2009 and from the beginning, was shifted around often. By the time his third season was in the books, he had played all four infield positions, both corner outfield positions, and logged over 200 innings behind the plate. He spent those three years in the Venezuelan Summer League and put up strange numbers toward the end of his run there, including walking 15 times in 52 games during 2011 compared to just TWO strikeouts. After missing 2013, Astudillo has slashes of .333/.366/.433 and .314/.348/.384 in a pair of single-A stops before becoming a minor league free agent this winter and signing with the Braves. He's intriguing because his story is unique, but that's about it. Check out a deeper profile of him.

Gant, P, 2 ING, H, K

Who is he? John Gant...One of the biggest late summer surprises was how Gant jumped into the Mississippi rotation after being acquired in the Juan Uribe/Kelly Johnson trade with the Mets. He was considered the lesser of the two pitchers picked up in the deal and had made eleven fairly pedestrian starts for Binghamton, the Double-A affiliate for the Mets. His last start with the organization came on July 23 and he surrendered seven runs (six earned) over 5.1 innings. He would give up just 11 runs (nine earned) over seven starts with Mississippi. The great run prompted the Braves to promote Gant to the 40-man roster to protect him from other teams in last December's Rule 5 draft. Gant is considered a good arm, though he lacks much flair or a plus pitch at this point. If things fall just right, Gant could get into the majors and be tenacious, but short of continuing his success from late summer last year, he's going to have a tough time getting noticed in a system with several great pitching prospects. He could open this season with Mississippi or get aggressively promoted to Gwinnett.

Rutckyj, P, ING, K

Who is he? Evan Rutckyj...Call the presses - the Braves have a former Yankee on their roster. I kid, of course, as Atlanta has picked up former Yankee prospects at a rate that competes with the Royals' penchant for grabbing ex-Braves pitchers. Rutckyj was selected in the Rule 5 draft despite just 17.2 innings above A-ball. The Canadian lefty has struggled with his control over his six-year career, though he did set a new low with a 3.1 BB/9 last season (it was cut more than half from 2013). He'll need that to continue and show he can handle lefties to remain with this team. His velocity runs from the low-to-mid 90's with a slide that flashes swing-and-miss ability from time-to-time.

Thurman, P, ING

Who is he? Andrew Thurman...Similar to Gant in that when he was acquired, he seemed like the final piece of a deal rather than a focal point for the Braves. Thurman was picked up in the Evan Gattis trade and jumped into the Carolina League season with solid numbers before the unfortunate bus wreck took two months of action from him. After a rehab stint in rookie ball, Thurman made it back to the Mudcats in mid-July, though he struggled often with control. That didn't stop the Braves from promoting him to finish the season with Gant in Mississippi. His control was again a problem and an Arizona Fall League run was fairly forgetful. He was particularly vulnerable against lefties (.768 OPS vs. .651) and older hitters (.843 OPS vs. .584). I don't expect much from him and he should return to Mississippi to open 2016.

The Braves will be action today against the Tigers with Sean Newcomb among those set for action.

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.

First Game Analysis & Let's Talk About Who Has Options

First, I uploaded some quick analysis on the first game of spring training at atlantabraves.about.com. Highlights included Freddie Freeman's wrist, Hector Olivera's left field adventures, the rising status of Mauricio Cabrera and Rio Ruiz, and the future may be now (for a day) if both Dansby Swanson and Ozhaino Albies start tomorrow up the middle as expected.

Moving on, a particular tweet caught my attention.

Jose Ramirez hit 95 mph with a couple pitches during a scoreless fourth. He's the only player in Braves camp who is out of options.

— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) March 1, 2016

Now, first off, Bowman almost certainly misspoke here. "Only player in Braves camp who is out of options" is ridiculous and I'm sure it's not what Bowman meant. Clearly, several players - specifically most of the veterans who are in camp on minor league deals - are out of options. What Bowman probably meant to say is that Jose Ramirez is the only player on the 40-man roster who is part of a competition AND out of options.

Jose Ramirez - Rob Carr/Getty

But is he?

EDIT.......He was correct on the Ramirez front and the rest of my response was wrong. I am leaving it up so that you may mock me. Special thanks to Braves Options Guy on Twitter for providing me some clarification on some particulars that I missed. I should have investigated my claims further. I will be looking deeper into my Options list to see if I'm wrong on anymore players. You SHOULD absolutely follow Braves Options Guy on Twitter by visiting @BravesOptions. Sorry for any confusion that my post created. Again, feel free to mock me.

Maybe. Probably not, but maybe.

You may have noticed that I keep a fairly updated list of who has options above. You can compare my list with RosterResource.com and only one name is different if you remove, like I do, the non-roster invitees. Either way, we both arrive at a number higher than one. Both RosterResource.com and me agree that Ian Krol and Chris Withrow are out of options while I also add Manny Banuelos to my list. We, including Bowman, all concur on Ramirez. I do my research largely through looking at transaction lists (specifically searching for the word "(Team) option (Player) to (Wherever)"). With that in mind, let me go over how I arrive at my decision for each of the four players I had.

Manny Banuelos
1st Option: 3/11/13, Yanks Option Banuelos
2nd Option: 3/16/14, Yanks Option Banuelos
3rd Option: 3/27/15, Braves Option Banuelos

Ian Krol
1st: 8/21/13, Nats Option Krol
2nd: 7/31/14, Tigers Option Krol
3rd: 4/23/15, Tigers Option Krol

Jose Ramirez
1st: 3/11/13, Yanks Option Ramirez
2nd: 3/9/14, Yanks Option Ramirez
3rd: 3/21/15, Yanks Option Ramirez

Chris Withrow
1st: 3/15/12, Dodgers Option Withrow
2nd: 3/20/13, Dodgers Option Withrow
3rd: 5/21/14: Dodgers Option Withrow

So, theoretically, all four players are out of options. However...there is the mythical 4th option year for players who do not have at least five "full seasons" of professional experience. Here's a primer on this ultra-confusing addition and options in general...

"For the purpose of determining eligibility for a 4th minor league option, a player accrues a "full season" when he spends at least 90 days on the Active List of an MLB and/or minor league club or clubs in a given season, or (in seasons prior to 2012) spends at least 60 days but less than 90 days on the Active List of an MLB and/or minor league club or clubs followed by a Disabled List assignment where the combined time spent on the Active List and Disabled List equals at least 90 days or (beginning with the 2012 season) spends at least 30 days but less than 90 days on the Active List of an MLB and/or minor league club or clubs followed by a Disabled List assignment where the combined time spent on the Active List and Disabled List equals at least 90 days."

So, does any of the four I listed fit this description? First, let's look at Banuelos. He's been hurt. A lot. He missed all of 2013 and the little 90 day rule takes out his 2008 season, giving him six total years. 2012 could be a non-full season, though it appears to apply because he spent over a month on the Active Roster before going down for the rest of the year. Even without it, 2015 gave him five total full seasons and again, it's likely six. That eliminates any claim to a fourth option year. (this section edited for clarity/corrections)

As for the rest, Krol is much easier. He has spent the last six years largely healthy and above rookie ball (thus logging full seasons). It would be shocking to me to think Krol had an option left. We all agree on Ramirez and his case is simple as he has been above rookie ball since 2010 and healthy. He's out of options. In Withrow's case, he logged enough time above rookie ball since the 2009 season and I would say even though he missed half of 2014 with an injury, his options are gone as well.

Now...maybe I'm misreading this and Bowman's right, but it would appear to me that all four pitchers are out of options. Banuelos is the only one I'm on the fence over, but I'm almost 100% sure the other three are out of options.