The Atlanta Braves did not have any big-time arbitration names ahead of the non-tender deadline, but there were several support players of varying importance that they would have to make decisions on.
The Braves didn’t waste much time as they gave Vidal Brujan a split contract and then went ahead and agreed to terms with Eli White, Joey Wentz, and Mauricio Dubon on contracts for the 2026 season.
When the dust settled and with just hours until the non-tender deadline, all that they had left was Jose Suarez, Alek Manoah, Carson Ragsdale, and Dylan Lee to sort out.
It didn’t take long for the Braves to sign Suarez to a one-year deal and avoid arbitration which was a bit of a surprise as he felt like a prime non-tender candidate, but he isn’t expensive and Atlanta needs reliever so…sure.
Manoah was an odd case as the Braves only just claimed him off waivers at the end of September, he hasn’t thrown a pitch for the Braves yet, and he has fell on hard times after a very encouraging start to his pro career.
As for Lee, it is kind of surprising that he didn’t get locked up pretty early as he has been a mainstay in the bullpen, but there could have been disagreement between the two sides on his actual value which held things up.
In the end, the Braves decided to non-tender Manoah and Ragsdale. As far as everyone can tell, Lee will be sticking around for 2026.
The #Braves today declined to tender contracts for the 2026 season to RHP Alek Manoah and RHP Carson Ragsdale.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) November 21, 2025
Braves ultimately decide to let Alek Manoah and Carson Ragsdale go at non-tender deadline
When the Braves claimed Manoah, the hope was that he could give Atlanta some cheap rotation depth in 2026 and beyond.
However, he came with risk as Manoah is coming off Tommy John surgery and Toronto felt he was far enough away to DFA him. Ultimately, the decided that he wasn’t worth the risk and sent him on his way.
As for Lee, being as inconsistent as he has been made his case a lot more interesting than it needed to be. In 2022 and 2024, Lee was one of the Braves’ better relievers period and a godsend from the left side when Atlanta needed it most.
However, 2023 and 2025 were decidedly more mediocre and it did feel as though he wasn’t being trusted in high leverage situations as much towards the end of last season.
With that, the non-tender deadline is over and done with and that is the last major roster paperwork deadline of the offseason.
We now have a good sense of where the roster will stand until trades and additions happen in free agency and it is clear that the Braves have quite a lot of work to do.
