Braves News: Non-Tender Deadline Decisions, Final Day Before Potential Lockout Arrives

Tuesday was another busy and active day across baseball. While no truly significant or major signings were completed other than Javy Baez on Tuesday morning, the futures of numerous players across the game were impacted with the non-tender deadline arriving Tuesday evening.

Like many teams, that included some tough decisions for the Braves.

While the names mentioned above are not all that surprising, it still is eye opening to see both Johan Camargo and Richard Rodriguez not tendered a contract. In the case of Camargo, it is more the idea that the time has actually arrived where he will likely no longer be a Brave. In the case of Rodriguez, it is how quickly the Braves determined he simply was not worth keeping despite trading Bryse Wilson for him and Rodriguez’s track record.

Yet, at the end of the day, the contributions of players are simply more critical as they begin to cost more money. In the case of Rodriguez and Camargo, it would have likely cost $5M or so dollars to keep both talents around without the Braves truly having a place for either of them to regularly contribute. As a result, both players will hopefully find new homes before a potential lockout starts on Thursday.

Braves News

• The full list of Braves that were tendered contracts is here. This list includes Adam Duvall, Sean Newcomb, and Mike Soroka, a few well known names who did not seem were clear guarantees until Tuesday night.
• The Braves did make a few official commitments on Tuesday. They resigned infielder Orlando Arcia to a two-year deal to serve as a reserve and utility player option in 2022 and beyond.
• Another fun development was Atlanta making sure Guillermo Hereida could potentially be back with the team in 2022.
• Despite all of Tuesday’s activity, the big source of interest remains with whether or not Freddie Freeman will stay in Atlanta. While it still is more likely than not he will, the Braves reportedly did their due diligence on Matt Olson as a fall back plan.
• Another significant development was Atlanta picking up Brian Snitker’s managing option for 2024. After leading the Braves to a World Series Title, Snitker has certainly earned the right to have as secure a future as possible with Atlanta.
• Along with Rodriguez and Camargo, long time Braves prospect Jasseel De La Cruz was also not tendered a contract. However, there is probably a better likelihood De La Cruz can return to the Braves than Camargo or Rodriguez.

MLB News

• The most significant move of the day money wise was Javier Baez signing a six-year deal worth $140M with the Tigers. Many anticipated the Tigers to make a major move or two, and Carlos Correa had seemed like a logical target. Instead, the Tigers locked up Baez for the foreseeable future.
• One of a few late night developments. the Angels re-signed closer Rasiel Iglesias to a four year deal. Iglesias was one of the best relievers in baseball in 2021.
• The Red Sox made a move to strengthen their rotation, signing veteran James Paxton to a one year deal. Paxton will likely miss the start of the season recovering from Tommy John Surgery.
• The Cubs were active, signing outfielder Clint Frazier and catcher Yan Gomes. With Gomes signed for two years, it becomes a bit more interesting to see what future may hold for Cubs catcher Willson Contreras.
• As for catcher trades, the Marlins made two of them over the past 24 hours. The Marlins acquired Gold Glove catcher Jacob Stallings from the Pirates, the traded former catcher Jorge Alfaro to the Padres. The Marlins also acquired infielder Joey Wendle from the Rays.
• The Pirates replaced Stallings with Roberto Perez on a one year deal.
• Starting pitcher Alex Cobb officially signed with the Giants.
• With all the roster decisions on Tuesday, MLB.com provides insight on some of the bigger names not tendered a contract.
• Outside of all the signings and trades, the MLBPA met with MLB officials multiple times on Tuesday to try and reach an agreement to avoid a lockout. It seems little progress was made, and a lockout remains highly likely once Thursday arrives.
• It appears that two different baseballs were used during games last season.