Braves Manage to Re-Sign Key Outfield Depth Piece

The Atlanta Braves maintain some notable depth, who helped fill the gap while Eli White and Ronald Acuña Jr. were out with injuries

Azocar is sticking around the Braves organization | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Braves were able to lock back down a key piece of their outfield this week. According to his transaction log, they re-signed José Azócar to a minor league contract on Monday. He was assigned to Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday.

He was designated for assignment on May 20 when Eli White was activated off the 7-day concussion injured list. He refused his outright assignment to Gwinnett and elected free agency. There was an expectation that he would likely re-sign. But electing free agency gives him the chance to see if there are at least other offers to assess first.

Azócar had done a solid job filling in for both an injured White and Ronald Acuña Jr., who dealt with a hamstring injury for much of this month. He mainly came in as a late-game defensive substitution, but he got to start in two games during his most recent stint in the major leagues.

During his final six games, he batted .417 with a 1.045 OPS, a pair of doubles and a run scored. He also flexed his defense with diving catch during the previous series against Boston in Atlanta.

Keeping that depth around is likely a bit of a relief for this team. They've relied on the bench pretty heavily this year for production, and Azócar is no exception.

"He’s gotten some, you know, some big hits for us - giving us good at-bats," manager Walt Weiss said earlier this month.

For now, he'll see action with the Stripers. He started in left field for them on Tuesday night, going 0-for-4 in his return. The Stripers lost 5-4 to the Nashville Sounds.

Meanwhile, the Braves held off the Boston Red Sox to win 7-6. They resume action Wednesday night with first pitch set for 6:45 p.m.

Add us as a preferred source on Google