The Atlanta Braves are expected to add their former legendary closer Craig Kimbrel to the active roster any day now. The 36-year-old reliever has slowly been ramping his way up through the minor leagues, having now appeared in five scoreless outings.
While the Braves bullpen has struggled throughout the first month of the season, there’s not an obvious choice to get moved off the 26-man roster, and the player who eventually does lose their spot may be off the Braves for good.
4 Braves bullpen arms who could be removed from the roster soon
The Braves already made two bullpen related transactions on Sunday, first adding Davis Daniel to the active roster while designating fan favorite Jesse Chavez for assignment, and secondly claiming former starter Ian Anderson off waivers.
According to Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Ian Anderson will join the Braves in Colorado on Monday and is likely just additional depth. The most obvious corresponding move for Atlanta would simply be to option Daniel.
Ian Anderson will meet the Braves in Denver tomorrow. He’ll be available out of the pen when Elder starts tomorrow. They haven’t announced whether Smith-Shawver will start Tuesday. My guess is he will and Anderson would just provide depth during the series at Coors Field.
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) April 27, 2025
Unless the Braves also plan to recall Kimbrel on Monday, Ian Anderson would make sense to be the odd man out for Kimbrel. However, as Bowman notes, the Braves still need a starting pitcher for Tuesday. This would require another move, unless the Braves designate Anderson for assignment on Tuesday and then option Tuesday’s starter for Kimbrel the following day.
Aside from Anderson, there are three other relievers who could get the axe.
Enyel De Los Santos
De Los Santos was one of the many, many relievers the Braves signed to MiLB deals before spring training hoping they could catch lightening in a bottle. The 29-year-old righty has likely been a little better than his 5.40 ERA would indicate, but his 4.32 FIP isn’t necessarily exciting either.
De Los Santos would be a more surprising option if Anderson and others are still on the roster, but at the same time, he’s been more or less a replacement level reliever. If the Braves believe in Kimbrel to cover the middle leverage situations, he’d simply swap spots with De Los Santos anyway.
Scott Blewett
Blewett has already been on the waiver wire twice this season. The righty started the season with the Minnesota Twins, pitching in two games before being designated for assignment and catching on with the Baltimore Orioles. He only pitched two games for the O’s, before hitting the waiver wire again and getting traded to the Braves.
Blewett has pitched incredibly well this season, despite already being on his third team. The 29-year-old has a 2.03 ERA and 2.66 FIP in 13.1 innings. He can also cover multiple innings, so it’s likely the Braves would try and keep the righty to see if this breakout is for real.
On the other hand, if two other clubs have viewed him as expendable, the Braves might also see him that way.
Rafael Montero
The Braves made the curious early season trade to add Montero for next to nothing, and the results have been mixed. He’s come away with a few huge outs, but he also has a 5.40 ERA and a 5.43 FIP in 5 innings with Atlanta. His walk-rate has been astronomical at 28.6% with the Braves, and his track record over the last few seasons doesn’t indicate he’ll turn things around.
If Alex Anthopoulos and the front office feel extra attachment to Montero because they had to part with a prospect to get him, it might make since to wait him out a little longer, but it’s hard to imagine the Braves being extremely committed to one of the worst relievers over the last few seasons.
Considering that the Braves need to make roster space for Anderson, Kimbrel, and the next starter, it’s plausible that more than two of these names are out of the organization in the next week.
