{"id":379195,"date":"2025-12-29T23:24:07","date_gmt":"2025-12-29T23:24:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/379195\/"},"modified":"2025-12-29T23:24:07","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T23:24:07","slug":"braves-offseason-signings-graded-by-mlb-writer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/379195\/","title":{"rendered":"Braves&#8217; Offseason Signings Graded by MLB Writer"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t\t\t<img width=\"780\" height=\"437\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/GettyImages-2238341524-e1763664819804.jpg\" class=\"attachment-featured-image size-featured-image wp-post-image\" alt=\"Raisel Iglesias\"   decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>If the Blue Jays passed on Raisel Iglesias, who are they after?<\/p>\n<p>The <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/atlanta-braves\/\" title=\"Atlanta Braves\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132516\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Atlanta Braves<\/a> have had a productive offseason thus far, especially in a division like the NL East, which is sure to be competitive throughout the 2026 season. Atlanta kicked off their offseason spending by bringing back closer <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/mlb\/player\/raisel-iglesias\/\" title=\"Raisel Iglesias\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132535\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Raisel Iglesias<\/a> on a one-year, $16 million contract.<\/p>\n<p>After that, the Braves made a big splash by landing reliever <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/mlb\/player\/robert-suarez\/\" title=\"Robert Suarez\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132534\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Robert Suarez<\/a> on a three-year, $45 million deal, which should help with the back-end of the bullpen problems the Braves had last season. Atlanta then reached an agreement on a two-year contract with outfielder <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/mlb\/player\/michael-yastrzemski\/\" title=\"Mike Yastrzemski\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132536\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Mike Yastrzemski<\/a>. Finally, the Braves signed shortstop <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/mlb\/player\/ha-seong-kim\/\" title=\"Ha-Seong Kim\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132533\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Ha-Seong Kim<\/a> to a one-year, $20 million. While they could certainly do more, this is a great start to the offseason for the Braves.<\/p>\n<p>More <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/\" title=\"MLB\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132517\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">MLB<\/a> on Heavy: <a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/new-york-yankees\/yankees-dodgers-pitcher-andrew-heaney-announces-retirement-from-mlb\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Former Yankees, <\/a><a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/los-angeles-dodgers\/\" title=\"Dodgers\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132541\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Dodgers<\/a> Pitcher Announces Retirement from MLB<\/p>\n<p>Braves Offseason Signings Grades Revealed<\/p>\n<p>In a recent article by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/mlb\/braves\/onsi\/news\/grading-atlanta-braves-offseason-moves-new-year\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Sports Illustrated\u2019s Harrison Smajovits,<\/a> the Braves writer grades out each move made by Atlanta this offseason.<\/p>\n<p>Focusing on the biggest signing, Robert Suarez, Smajovits believes this is an A+ signing:<\/p>\n<p id=\"inline-text-8\" class=\"my-[18px] [&amp;_a]:text-primary my-f-1.5\">\u201cSince Iglesias is on a one-year contract, if he retires, Suarez just becomes the closer in 2027. For now, they will have elite-level arms coming into shut the door in the eighth and ninth innings. It doesn\u2019t get better than this for a move.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5618338\" class=\"size-inline wp-image-5618338\" data-lazy-load=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1767050647_157_GettyImages-2238341524-e1763664819804.jpg\" alt=\"Raisel Iglesias\" width=\"782\" height=\"438\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-5618338\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">GettyIf the <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/toronto-blue-jays\/\" title=\"Blue Jays\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132515\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Blue Jays<\/a> passed on Raisel Iglesias, who are they after?<\/p>\n<p>As for some of the other contracts Atlanta has handed out this offseason, Raisel Iglesias gets an A-, Mike Yastrzemski gets a \u2018B\u2019, and Kim received an A-.<\/p>\n<p>Smajovits also included some of the other small signings the Braves have made, like <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/mlb\/player\/joel-payamps\/\" title=\"Joel Payamps\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132538\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Joel Payamps<\/a>, which received a \u2018C\u2019 grade.<\/p>\n<p>All-in-all, it\u2019s been a good offseason thus far for the Braves, but they might remain aggressive and think about adding more value on smaller deals. Atlanta is also awaiting the decision of free agent <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/mlb\/player\/marcell-ozuna\/\" title=\"Marcell Ozuna\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132537\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Marcell Ozuna<\/a>, which will also have an impact on how the Braves\u2019 offseason turns out.<\/p>\n<p>More MLB on Heavy: <a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/atlanta-braves\/braves-news-bleak-ozzie-albies-outlook-2026-free-agency-marcell-ozuna\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Braves Get Bleak Outlook on 3-Time All-Star in 2026 Free Agency<\/a><\/p>\n<p>What Else Should Atlanta Do This Offseason?<\/p>\n<p>The Atlanta Braves could go a variety of ways this offseason in terms of making their roster better. Signing a guy like <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/mlb\/player\/zachary-gallen\/\" title=\"Zac Gallen\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132540\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Zac Gallen<\/a> would get the Braves an inning-eater starter, which is what GM Alex Anthopoulos is shopping for.<\/p>\n<p>However, they could also trade for an arm like <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/mlb\/player\/mitch-keller\/\" title=\"Mitch Keller\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132539\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Mitch Keller<\/a> or Pablo Lopez to achieve that. The bottom line is the Braves should consider adding another formidable starter, and if they miss out on Ozuna, another impact bat may also be needed.<\/p>\n<p>With the <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/new-york-mets\/\" title=\"Mets\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"132518\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Mets<\/a> and Phillies certainly going to continue their aggression, it\u2019s important for the Braves to match that energy. Anthopoulos and the rest of the front office have shown a strong likeness to certain players, so it\u2019ll be interesting to see how linked the Braves will be with other top free agents.<\/p>\n<p>More MLB on Heavy: <a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/atlanta-braves\/braves-news-marcell-ozuna-predicted-sign-cleveland-guardians-mlb-free-agency\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Braves All-Star Slugger Predicted to Land with AL Contender in Free Agency<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Braves\n\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty If the Blue Jays passed on Raisel Iglesias, who are they after? The Atlanta Braves have had&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":379196,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[558],"tags":[64,63,591,85],"class_list":{"0":"post-379195","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mlb","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-mlb","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379195","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=379195"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379195\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/379196"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379195"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379195"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379195"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}