The MLB regular season is a marathon, not a sprint, so when the opportunity arises to stick it to your division rivals, it makes sense to strike while the iron is hot. That is exactly what the Atlanta Braves appear to have done on Sunday afternoon.
Just hours after the Philadelphia Phillies bullpen was dealt a major blow with the suspension of closer Jose Alvarado, the Braves made a roster move to help bolster theirs by claiming relief pitcher Kevin Herget off of waivers from another division mate, the New York Mets.
With Alvarado sidelined for the next 80 games and the entire postseason, Philadelphia is now hurting in an area they thought could be a position of strength. While Herget is not a well-known veteran, the journeyman pitcher has played in the big leagues over the last four seasons and made two appearances with the Mets before being placed on waivers.
For his career, Herget has made 25 total appearances for the Tampa Bay Rays, Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers and New York Mets. The righty has a win-loss record of 1-2 and also recorded a pair of saves. While those numbers don't jump off the page, what does is that Herget has 27 career strikeouts to just nine walks issued.
Whether or not Herget becomes a piece of the puzzle for Atlanta in their bullpen is just the cherry on top of what looks to be a move that limits Philadelphia's options. If Herget can play his way up to the big leagues, this addition will be even sweeter.
The Braves currently sit six games behind the Mets for the NL East lead and five games behind the Phillies for second place. Every little thing helps when you play 162 games, and this move could have been made in hopes of chipping away at Philadelphia's lead in the standings.