Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers Battling for Kimbrel?
It appears that two suitors have emerged for free agent reliever Craig Kimbrel, and the Atlanta Braves are believed to be one of those teams.
It’s been no secret for some time now that the Atlanta Braves and Craig Kimbrel have different levels of interest in each other.
Kimbrel is looking for a long-term deal, but the Braves are only willing to consider a short term deal for the closer.
According to David O’Brien of The Athletic, the top two teams in on Kimbrel are the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers.
#Braves are still in on Kimbrel. From what I hear, it's between Milwaukee and Atlanta barring a late entry. If Braves could get him, their bullpen would from major question mark to solid in a hurry.
— David O'Brien (@DOBrienATL) March 22, 2019
We’re less than a week away from Opening Day, so if Kimbrel plans on starting the season with a team, he’ll likely make a decision this week.
Earlier this week we wrote about the possibility of Kimbrel waiting until after the MLB Draft in June to get rid of the draft pick that is attached to him after he turned down the qualifying offer from the Boston Red Sox.
I still think that’s a very likely scenario if Kimbrel doesn’t like the offers he’s receiving.
He could wait until June and have a lot more suitors as teams are desperate for a closer during the season.
If he doesn’t sign by Opening Day then I think the chances of this happening skyrocket.
But it sounds like the market for Kimbrel might be starting to pick up as the season draws closer. The only question is who will cave first — the team or Kimbrel.
If there is a team willing to give Kimbrel a three-year deal, then I think he certainly signs. But the perception in the media is that teams are only looking at one or two-year deals.
According to Mark Bowman, there is no news to report on Kimbrel and the Braves, and their level of interest is the same as it’s been for months.
Really nothing has changed. The Braves are still open to the possibility of a short-term deal and Kimbrel has continued to indicate he is only interested in talking about a long-term deal https://t.co/mIp56xLtyn
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) March 22, 2019
If it is between the Brewers and Braves right now, that would make a lot of sense as both teams need a healthy closer.