The Braves are going to have to bolster the bullpen with A.J. Minter potentially leaving in free agency and Joe Jimenez out for a significant portion of the 2025 season, potentially even all of it.
Even if Minter returns to Atlanta, which is a distinct possibility, the Braves still need to add another high-leverage arm, and a reunion with veteran hurler Kirby Yates could be just what the doctor ordered.
The former dominant closer has had an extraordinary climb back to dominance. A few offseasons ago, the Braves took a gamble on him as he was coming off Tommy John surgery. He sat on the shelf for most of the 2022 campaign and came back in 2023.
He finished that 2023 season with a more than respectable 3.28 ERA and 11.9 K/9, but the Braves ended up declining to pick up his $5.75 million club option this past offseason, opting to pay him a $1.25 million buyout, in part because of his peripherals.
Yates had a 4.63 FIP and an unsightly 5.8 batters walked per nine innings. He also struggled in high-leverage situations. In hindsight, the Braves were right to invest that multi-year deal when he was coming off the Tommy John surgery, but they didn’t follow through in 2024.
Yates ended up signing a one-year deal with the Rangers for $4.5 million, and he returned to being one of the best relievers in baseball. The two-time All-Star collected 33 saves with a 1.17 ERA, ranking in the 100th percentile in xERA, the 98th percentile in K%, and the 95th percentile in Barrel%.
If the Braves feel Yates still has some left in the tank and can replicate that level of dominance, they’d be fools not to at least reach out to his agent and inquire what kind of contract he’s looking for.
MLB Trade Rumors projects a one-year, $14 million deal for Yates. Would you do that deal?
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Photographer: Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire
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