Atlanta Braves’ Donnie Veal DFA’d Once Again
San Francisco, CA, USA; Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Donnie Veal (32) pitches against the San Francisco Giants. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports
As pretty well expected, the Atlanta Braves made the following announcement a short time ago:
Braves designated LHP Donnie Veal for assignment. RHP Cody Martin has been recalled from @GwinnettBraves and will join the team tonight.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) June 1, 2015
Donnie Veal has been the dictionary definition of the AAAA player this season: in 16 innings at Gwinnett, he owns a 0.00 ERA in 17 appearances. In the majors, however: 14.54 ERA in 4.1 innings (5 appearances).
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The 30-year-old jouneyman left-hander has been with the Cubs, Pirates, White Sox, and Braves since his professional career began in 2006. He has enjoyed various cups of coffee with the latter three clubs, beginning in 2009.
In five appearances with the Braves this season – on two occasions – he has not been able to pitch any clean outings: at least one earned run has been charged to him in every case (though in fairness, one run charged to his account was actually caused by Trevor Cahill).
We give a hat tip to Paul (@BravesStats) for this tidbit:
On May 4, #Braves Donnie Veal got four straight outs before being removed after a HBP. His line for the day: 1⅓ IP: 0 H, 0 BB, 1 ER.
— Paul (@BravesStats) June 1, 2015
Donnie Veal is only #Braves pitcher since 1914 (ever?) to pitch more than an inning in a game and allow an earned run without a hit or walk.
— Paul (@BravesStats) June 1, 2015
A humorous footnote to an otherwise ignominious body of work.
In yesterday’s game, Veal faced 3 batters and was charged with 2 runs – including a home run. He retired one batter. That served to improve the drama of the subsequent 4-run outburst that followed, but clearly did little else.
Cody Martin Recalled
This will be Martin’s second stint with the big club this year. In 9+ innings at Gwinnett, he has posted a 0.96 ERA with no walks and a baker’s dozen strikeouts.
In the majors? Not as good, but that also seemed dependent on the role. Start him with a clean inning, and things go better… after all, Martin has normally been a starter. Overall, he has a 4.12 ERA in nearly 20 innings in the majors.
Donnie Veal’s best major league performance came in 2012 with the White Sox: 24 appearances and 13 innings (think “LOOGY”) with a 1.38 ERA. Sadly, he has not been able to reclaim that success at the same level since.
The designation removes Veal’s name from the 40-man roster and exposes him to the waiver wire. However, this occurred after that May 4 contest, and he was not claimed by another club at that time, so odds are that he will once again return to Gwinnett.
The Braves’ 40-man roster now stands at 38 names counting active and 15-day Disabled List players. They open a 3-game set in Arizona against the Diamondbacks tonight.