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Atlanta Braves decide to release 9-year veteran after 73 appearances
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- Atlanta Braves decide to release 9-year veteran after 73 appearances
The Atlanta Braves have decided to move on from a familiar face in their bullpen. Atlanta recalled right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver to start this past Wednesday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers and temporarily give the team a six-man rotation. However, in bringing Smith-Shawver up, Atlanta had to make a tough call on their 40-man roster.
The team decided the roster casualty had to be right-hander Tyler Kinley , who was designated for assignment. The decision came just days after Kinley tossed a scoreless outing against the Twins on Monday.
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Kinley had a chance to pass through waivers and no teams picked him up, giving the Braves a choice to release him or send him on an outright assignment to Triple-A. The Braves decided to release him, according to Chad Bishop of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Atlanta will still have an opportunity to re-sign him to a minor league deal if they choose, or Kinley can search for another opportunity elsewhere. This marks his ninth season in the big leagues, with the past two years spent in Atlanta.
Kinley has made 73 appearances for the Braves and has been a reliable option, posting a 2.79 ERA with 64 strikeouts across 67 2/3 innings of work. That makes it somewhat surprising that he not only was released but also cleared waivers without a claim.
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However, Kinley has given up nine home runs across 49 games this year, which contributed to the decision. The fact that the Braves are going with a six-man rotation also limited available roster space.
Atlanta is additionally expecting right-handed setup man Robert Suarez back from the injured list soon, giving them another elite option to fill the same void Kinley occupied, which ultimately made parting ways with him the most logical path forward.
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