Veteran outfielder Jake Marisnick signed a minor league contract with the Atlanta Braves on Thursday with an invitation to the team’s major league spring training camp. Marisnick, 33, is looking to return to the big leagues for the first time since finishing the 2023 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
#Braves added OF Jake Marisnick, 33, as an NRI. Last played in MLB w/ 3 teams in 2023, and in 2024 hit .283 with 12 HRs and .919 OPS in 231 PAs for Angels’ Triple-A Salt Lake affiliate in extremely hitter-friendly PCL. He has a .228 avg/.666 OPS in 877 MLB games over 11 seasons.
— David O’Brien (@DOBrienATL) February 13, 2025
Last year, Marisnick spent the season with the Salt Lake Bees, the Los Angeles Angels’ Triple-A affiliate. He slashed .283/.368/.551 in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League but did not earn a major league call-up.
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The Southern California native is a career .228/.281/.385 hitter over parts of 11 seasons with the Houston Astros, Miami Marlins, Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, Detroit Tigers, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets, Chicago White Sox and Dodgers.
Marisnick had his best seasons with the Astros as a fourth outfielder. From 2015-19, he saw time at all three outfield positions in Houston and averaged 2 bWAR per season despite never logging more than 400 plate appearances.
In 2017, Marisnick won the only World Series championship of his career as the Astros defeated the Dodgers.
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The Braves signed free agent Bryan De La Cruz, a right-handed hitting outfielder, in December. Marisnick figures to compete with De La Cruz for a reserve outfield job off the bench in camp.
Atlanta also added free agent Jurickson Profar on a three-year, $42 million contract this offseason. The veteran switch-hitter figures to get the bulk of the at-bats in left field. Left-handed hitter Jarred Kelenic figures to see the bulk of the action in right field.
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Other non-roster invitees in the Braves’ camp include Conner Capel, a left-handed hitting outfielder, and infielders Luke Waddell, Charles LeBlanc, José Devers, Garrett Cooper, and Eddy Alvarez — a former Olympic speed skater who has experience both on the infield and in the outfield.
As Darragh McDonald of MLB Trade Rumors notes, it’s not a distinguished group, leaving Marisnick some wiggle room to make the Braves’ major league roster out of camp if the team wants to emphasize versatility and defense from the backup outfield spot:
“Profar is coming off a monster season at the plate but has been wildly inconsistent and isn’t a great fielder. Kelenic’s production has been up-and-down, both offensively and defensively. De La Cruz is a poor defender and is coming off the worst offensive showing of his career thus far.”
Marisnick has 80 Defensive Runs Saved and 52 Outs Above Average in his career as an outfielder since his 2013 debut.
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