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3 Braves free agents Alex Anthopoulos should let go, 1 to re-sign

By Cody Williams

Jul 31, 2023; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Charlie Morton (50) pitches against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 31, 2023; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Charlie Morton (50) pitches against the Los Angeles Angels during the first inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports /
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Braves Rumors, Kirby Yates, Braves free agents, Atlanta Braves
Aug 15, 2023; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Kirby Yates (22) pitches against the New York Yankees during the ninth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports /

The Atlanta Braves could be heading into the offseason off a second World Series in three years, but which free agents should Alex Anthopoulos let leave?

Anything can happen when it comes to October baseball, but all signs currently point to the Atlanta Braves capturing the franchise’s second World Series victory in the last three years. They’ve been the best team in baseball all season long, even with being forced to endure a litany of injuries to crucial players.

Whether or not they come out on top of the Fall Classic again or not, though, Alex Anthopoulos has built this team to last. The Braves core is locked up for several seasons — on team-friendly contracts, no less — and they should continue to dominate as long as the group headlined by Ronald Acuña Jr., Matt Olson, Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies, and so on remains intact.

Anthopoulos will have some work to do in the 2023-24 offseason working in the margins of the roster in free agency. Yes, that could include making a big splash to sign players like Josh Hader, Cody Bellinger, or — gulp — Shohei Ohtani. But it also means making the right decisions with the Braves’ pending free agents.

Looking at the class of players who could leave in free agency offseason, though, three players stand out as prime candidates to be allowed to walk, but one Brave should definitely be re-signed as well.

Braves free agent to let walk for 2024, No. 3: Kirby Yates, RP

This one was a bit tough to come around on, but in the long run, I think it makes sense for the Braves to not pick up the $5.8 million club option that they have with veteran right-handed reliever Kirby Yates.

On the whole, the numbers have been quite good for the 36-year-old pitcher. In 46 appearances on the season, Yates has posted a 2.93 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP, both of which look solid. And there’s no denying that, when the veteran has been locked in on the mound, he’s continued to deliver for the Braves.

But the underlying numbers are far less kind.

Yates’ FIP sits at 4.64 this season with an xERA of 4.69, per Fangraphs. Put simply, he’s been getting lucky — and we’ve also seen the flashes of what happens when he’s not getting fortunate on the mound. In nine April appearances, Yates had an ERA at 4.15. It was even worse over 10 appearances in July when he had a 5.19 ERA.

Given his age and that lack of overall reliable performance, it’s difficult to think that the Braves can’t find a similarly-priced upgrade on the free agency market and that Anthopoulos should be happy to let him walk.

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