The Atlanta Braves front office has been on the receiving end of some, well, let’s just call them unkind words the past few weeks.
Alex Anthopoulos rules with an iron fist, apparently, as he let Craig Kimbrel walk just one day after making his season debut with the Braves. Kimbrel is a team legend by most accounts, so it was odd that he was treated like a castoff.
In fact, one former Brave – James McCann – spoke out against the Braves choice to string Kimbrel along in the minors, only to punt on his MLB chances after one outing.
“It was strange to call him up for a day and DFA him. He’s not just a run-of-the-mill reliever who became a journeyman after two or three years in the big leagues. He’s a future Hall of Famer,” McCann said. The veteran catcher is in Gwinnett himself, hoping for a promotion at some point this season. However, it’s clear that the way Kimbrel was treated frustrated him.
Braves should bring in former World Series winner to make up for Craig Kimbrel mess
Anthopoulos has a golden opportunity to earn back a little bit of that trust by signing a familiar former World Series champion who is on the free-agent market.
Yes, that would be Eddie Rosario, who spent some time in the Milwaukee Brewers minor-league system and found his stroke.
However, Rosario wasn’t called up to the majors by June 15, so he enacted his opt-out.
There is no obvious spot for Rosario on the Braves roster. The outfield is occupied by the likes of Ronald Acuña Jr., Michael Harris II and Alex Verdugo.
Eli White takes many of the backup reps in center and right, while Marcell Ozuna can technically play the outfield as well were he not so busy at DH.
Eddie Rosario still has a lot left to give
That being said, the Braves have put Rosario through the wringer, signing him on multiple occasions over the last few seasons, only to let him walk at the first sign of weakness.
Rosario has proven he can be an MLB hitter, and has played in the bigs for a decade. Surely he can earn a roster spot over Stuart Fairchild, Luke Williams and Jose Azocar long term.
Anthopoulos and the Braves are facing a crisis of their own this season.
While a recent report by Bob Nightengale suggests Atlanta won’t sell any proven assets, they’re also 13 games out of first place in the NL East. The Braves aren’t going anywhere fast.
Bringing in a proven commodity like Rosario, even if only for the vibes and some mop-up duty, cannot make matters any worse.
