Atlanta Braves News: Tender Anthony Recker, Paco Rodriguez, Non-Tender Chris Withdrow

MLB

Braves agree to deals with Recker, Rodriguez

Tomahawk Take Editor’s Note: The deadline to reach an agreement to sign or tender a players contract was 8pm ET on Friday night.  Heading into the day the Braves had seven players that their fate still swung in the wind — Ender Inciarte, Chris Withrow, Paco Rodriguez, Anthony Recker, Arodys Vizcaino, Tuffy Gosewisch and Ian Krol.  

Inciarte, Vizzy and Krol were all expected to be signed…those three weren’t and we’ll have to wait and see what happens.  They can either agree to terms at a later day or go to an arbitration hearing prior to Spring Training.  If they get that far (Braves usually don’t like to take it this far), their respective 2017 salaries will be determined by an agreement at the hearing.  

Withrow will now be a free agent, but has the option to re-sign with the Braves.  Rodriguez signed for $637,500 after MLBTR projected $900K if went to arbitration.  Gosewisch signed for one-year, $625,000 if he plays for the Atlanta Braves (pro-rated to how many games he plays) — $100,000 when he’s with the Gwinnett Braves.  Recker signed for $800,000.

So the fate of four we know…the three are still up in the air.  Hopefully the Braves are working on an extraction for Ender Inciarte and they just couldn’t finalize the deal.

Chris Withrow entered this past season hoping to distance himself from Tommy John surgery while establishing himself as a reliable late-innings threat in Atlanta’s bullpen. But the right-handed reliever is now looking for a job.

The Braves agreed to terms on one-year deals with catcher Anthony Recker and left-handed reliever Paco Rodriguez shortly before Friday’s 8 p.m. ET deadline for all Major League clubs to either sign or tender a contract to each of their unsigned arbitration-eligible players.

Withrow posted a 3.56 ERA in 48 appearances for Atlanta this past season. The 27-year-old reliever allowed just one earned run during a 19 1/3-inning stretch that spanned from June 14 to July 27. But he missed most of August with right elbow inflammation, then made just six September appearances, none of which occurred after Sept. 17.

CBS Sports

MLB Hot Stove Rumors: Braves remain interested in aces, prefer Sale to Archer

Tomahawk Take Editor’s Note: All right, let’s count…1) Julio Teheran, 2) Bartolo Colon, 3) R.A. Dickey 4) Jaime Garcia 5) Mike Foltynewicz 6) Matt Wisler, Josh Collmenter, Aaron Blair 7) a pitcher they’re still searching for.  Haha, we’re running out of spaces for starting pitching.  Which means to me if the Braves are still looking to trade for Chris Sale or Chris Archer, Teheran or Folty will be including in a deal.  

It’s a shame we didn’t do these signings prior to 2016 because the Braves definitely rushed Wisler and Blair and could have slowed down their progression.  With these veteran pitchers, Wisler and Blair can go to Triple-A Gwinnett and reestablish themselves.  If a starter goes down, these guys should be ready to step in.

"The Atlanta Braves have thus far been among the winter’s most aggressive teams, already lassoing three veteran starters — signing Bartolo Colon and R.A. Dickey, and also trading for Jaime Garcia. Yet the Braves’ hunt for starting pitching is raging on — and they’re aiming high.How high? The Braves are reportedly interested in a pair of aces: Chris Sale of the Chicago White Sox and Chris Archer of the Tampa Bay Rays — with Sale as the preferred target, according to Jerry Crasnick.The Braves are seemingly committed to improving their present-day roster as they move into a new ballpark. Of course, there’s a difference between trading for Garcia — an injury-prone mid-rotation starter with one year remaining on his contract — and trading for a front-of-the-rotation pitcher with multiple years remaining on a team-friendly contract — a description that fits both Sale and Archer."