Atlanta Braves Make Roster Updates Ahead of Rule 5 Protection Deadline

Dec 12, 2013; Orlando, FL, USA; Roy Krasik, senior director of baseball operations for MLB holds the Rule 5 Draft during the MLB Winter Meetings at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort. Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports

As of tonight there are now thirty-eight names appearing on the 40-man roster of the Atlanta Braves.  Two more were added this afternoon, as tomorrow is the deadline for setting the roster for the sake of protecting minor-league players who might otherwise be subject to being exposed to the Rule 5 draft.

Mallex Smith, John Gant Placed on 40-man Roster

The addition of Smith and Gant are not a surprise. Mallex Smith is expected to soon become the Braves’ full-time Center Fielder.  His lightning speed and able OBP make him an excellent top-of-the-lineup candidate, and it is quite reasonable to expect him in Atlanta by roughly June.

John Gant, who was obtained from the Mets as part of the trade for Kelly Johnson and Jose Uribe is a right-handed starting pitcher who had shown excellent results at the AA level since coming to the Braves.  His strikeout rate increased along with his velocity while his walk rate has receded vs. his results with the Mets.  A 1.99 Southern League ERA is a very good thing.

There was some speculation about that SS Johan Camargo would be added to the list as well.  That did not happen, and MLB’s Mark Bowman tells us that it will not happen at this time, either:

..and if some club decides to steal his from the Braves, then that’s fine.  No real harm done.  Camargo has just finished up an Arizona Fall League season, and it was a rough one for him (and the other hitters Atlanta sent out to the desert.  he hit .206 in 16 game appearances with 4 errors in the field.  It was a stiff test for him since the competition was significantly stiffer than what he’d faced in the Carolina league this season (hitting .258/.315/.335/.650 there).

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