Sent 2B Micah Johnson to GCL Braves on rehab assignment.
Activated 3B Freddie Freeman from the 10-day DL.
Sent UT Sean Rodriguez to Rome on rehab assignment.
Optioned UT Jace Peterson to AAA Gwinnett.
Released RHP Bartolo Colon.
Promoted LHP A.J. Minter from AA Mississippi to AAA Gwinnett.
Demoted 2B Emerson Landoni from AAA Gwinnett to AA Mississippi.
Placed AA Mississippi 2B Omar Obregon on the 7-day DL.
Placed AA Mississippi C Joe Odom on the 7-day DL.
Activated AA Mississippi OF Joey Meneses from the 7-day DL.
Promoted RHP Guillermo Zuniga from R GCL Braves to AA Mississippi.
Released R Danville OF Sanders Commings.
Sent 2B Micah Johnson to GCL Braves on rehab assignment
It’s rehab season for the Braves, and with Sean Rodriguez and Chaz Roe on the comeback trail, and Freddie Freeman wrapping his up, Micah Johnson gets in on the action. Picked up in January for a PTBNL (a trade, as far as I know, that has still not been completed), a healthy Johnson would provide 2B/CF depth at the AAA or MLB level. The defense probably won’t be good enough to start regularly and keep the team happy, but he could be a helpful bench player. There’s reason to think his bat could be pretty decent, but he’ll need some ABs for that to happen. A successful rehab is step one.
Activated 3B Freddie Freeman from the 10-day DL
And so it begins. It’s exciting to have a healthy Freeman in the batting order, and that’s more important than his defensive position. That’s a good thing, because he’s probably playing the wrong defensive position.
Sent UT Sean Rodriguez to A- Rome on rehab assignment
The next rung up the rehab ladder for Rodriguez, the man of many positions inches closer to Atlanta.
Optioned UT Jace Peterson to AAA Gwinnett
The corresponding move with Freeman coming off the DL, Peterson’s disaster season heads back to the International League. Hopefully he can right the ship, because Peterson is normally a helpful bench player, providing versatility, solid defense, and enough offense to justify owning a bat. The walk rate has declined, the K rate has spiked, his power has been cut in half, and when he’s making contact, he’s rarely hitting the ball with authority (10% LD).
The issue is with the swing, because Peterson has actually improved his pitch selection this year. He’s chasing fewer pitches than ever, and swinging at more strikes than ever. That’s a good trend, but the problem is that he’s making less contact than ever before. Knowing what pitches to swing at is great, but if you can’t hit them at all or with any degree of hard contact, it’s a problem. That’s what Peterson should focus on in Buford.
Released RHP Bartolo Colon
We already said our goodbyes when the team DFA’d Colon, so we won’t delve back into it. Unsurprisingly, no other team claimed him or sought a trade, leading to his release.
Promoted LHP A.J. Minter from AA Mississippi to AAA Gwinnett
The team clearly thinks Minter’s talent could potentially be put to use in Atlanta, because he earned his first trip to AAA with just 3 somewhat shaky innings in AA. He pitched some in Mississippi last year, where he dominated, so it’s not an outlandish promotion by any means. The 75th overall pick of the 2015 draft is now on the doorstep of the major leagues, which is exciting for both Minter and the Braves. He has a good chance to become the first player drafted in the Hart/Coppy era to make his MLB debut.
Demoted 2B Emerson Landoni from AAA Gwinnett to AA Mississippi
The 28-year old MiLB vet was struggling badly at AAA (slashing .174/.220/.174 this year after OPS-ing .584 in 2016), and now he’ll head back to AA, which is where his talent level seems to have topped out.
Placed AA Mississippi 2B Omar Obregon on the 7-day DL
Obregon only had 8 games prior to this setback, but they were successful, as he hit .320/.393/.400 to start his AA career. A much larger sample is needed, naturally, but it’s a nice start.
Placed AA Mississippi C Joe Odom on the 7-day DL
5 for 10 with 2 doubles. That’s what Odom got to do between DL stints. He just came off the DL a week or so ago, so it’s sad to see him return, especially after blistering the ball the way he did in between. Hopefully this stay is a much shorter one.
Activated AA Mississippi OF Joey Meneses from the 7-day DL
There’s a little bit of good injury-related news from Mississippi, and that news is that Joey Meneses (.311/.362/.443) can resume his breakout season. If he’s to have a MLB career, this offensive surge is going to have to be real, because he’ll probably always be trying to overcome his defensive limitations.
Promoted RHP Guillermo Zuniga from R GCL Braves to AA Mississippi
I’m covering this, because I try to cover all transactions from A-ball up, but this certainly seems like short-term roster cleverness. Don’t get me wrong, Zuniga is an intriguing prospect. The 18-year old has an emerging fastball and the potential for a killer hook, but 18 year olds don’t really skip all of A-ball with just 13.1 rookie ball innings under their belt, and pretty ‘meh’ innings at that. He’ll be returned soon, I would imagine, unless there’s something unusually exciting with his development.
Released R Danville OF Sanders Commings
In 15 plate appearances, the former Chiefs safety slashed .154/.267/.231 with 9 strikeouts. There’s a very good chance the Braves informed Commings he might make better use of this summer by getting ready for an NFL tryout. It seems unlikely he’ll ever have more MLB hits than he did NFL tackles – he has one.
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