Atlanta Braves sign Wandy Rodriguez to minor league deal
According to several different sources, the Atlanta Braves have recently agreed to a minor league deal with free agent left-handed pitcher Wandy Rodriguez.
MLB.com’s Mark Bowman confirmed this deal on his twitter account:
A source confirmed the #Braves have signed Wandy Rodriguez to a Minor League deal w/ a ST invite.
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) January 13, 2015
While Rodriguez’s career seems to have taken a huge nosedive last season, this deal doesn’t seem like anything but a low-risk type of move for the Braves. And if history means anything, Roger McDowel has proven multiple times now that he’s somehow capable of reviving a pitcher’s career (see Harang, Aaron).
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The Braves were linked to Rodriguez a few years ago when the Houston Astros were dangling him during the trade deadline, and now after a 26.2 inning season with the Pittsburgh Pirates and the worst FIP/xFIP numbers of his career–the Braves have him.
Here’s what David O’Brien writes about the contract details and the competition that is likely to unfold for the No. 5 spot in the rotation come spring training:
"The contract has a $2 million base salary on a prorated basis for time spent on the major league roster. He’ll likely compete with David Hale, former Yankees prospect Manny Banuelos, lefty reliever James Russell and perhaps Chien-Ming Wang, a former Cy Young Award runner-up who signed a minor league contract two months ago."
The 35-year-old Rodriguez apparently agreed to a contract with the Philadelphia Phillies back in December, but a failed physical ended that for both parties. His deal with the Braves will still be contingent on a passed physical with Atlanta according to Bowman:
Rodriguez's deal with the Braves is obviously pending a physical.
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) January 13, 2015
Before dealing with injuries the past few seasons, Rodriguez was seen as a reliable workhorse in the middle or back of the rotation. His best seasons came during 2008-2010 with the Astros, but he threw 205.2 innings of 3.76 ERA baseball for the Astros and Pirates during 2012. If he’s able to get healthy and simply eat up a lot of innings for Atlanta, this deal will turn out to be like Aaron Harang‘s–a huge success.