The Braves have added another catcher to the mix, agreeing to a minor league deal with Eric Haase last week, according to the MLB.com transaction tracker. Haase has already been assigned to Atlanta’s Florida complex, and the log shows the deal was finalized on September 1.
That date could matter. If the paperwork reached the league office by noon, Haase would be eligible for the Braves’ postseason roster.
Even then, it would probably take an injury for Atlanta to seriously consider that route. Drake Baldwin and Sean Murphy are lined up as the catching pair in October, while Kyle Farmer is on the MLB roster as a depth infielder and emergency third catcher.
Farmer hasn’t appeared behind the plate in a big league game in seven years, though he did catch five games in Double-A this season.
For Haase, this is his third organization of the year. He began the season on a minor league deal with the Giants, then worked his way onto San Francisco’s big league roster in April and stayed there for a few months. In 84 plate appearances, he hit .162/.235/.365 with four home runs, and he struck out in a third of those trips.
San Francisco let him go shortly after the All-Star Break. Haase then landed with the White Sox on a minor league deal and spent a couple weeks in Triple-A before being granted his release in mid-August.
He did show some power in that brief stretch, and his big league résumé still includes a 22-homer season in 2021 with Detroit. But the overall profile remains narrow: he’s a below-average receiving catcher who strikes out a lot.
Atlanta’s 40-man roster currently has only Baldwin and Murphy at catcher. Behind them, Chuckie Robinson and Maverick Handley are healthy options in non-roster roles with Triple-A Gwinnett, while Jair Camargo is also in the organization but injured. León is on the 60-day injured list and almost certainly finished for the season.
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Braves Outfield Uncertainty May Not Last As New Internal Options Emerge
The Braves outfield picture has been murky enough that it has become one of the easier roster questions to circle on the calendar. Between the players already under contract and the free agents in the mix, the short-term answer is still hazy, but the organization is not short on internal candidates who could eventually help smooth it out. Eric Hartman, AJ Gracia, Carter Beck and Owen Carey all stand out as names worth tracking, and each brings a different kind of fit for the outfield or designated hitter picture.
What makes the situation more interesting is the timeline. Atlanta may not need all of those answers right away, but the next year and a half could be enough for one or more of these prospects to push into real consideration. If even a couple of them keep trending upward, the Braves current uncertainty in the grass could look a lot less like a long-term problem and more like a temporary bridge to the next wave of homegrown depth. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Just Took Another Hit To Their Pitching Depth
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For a club trying to stay geared toward October, every piece of depth matters, and Davitt had at least given the Braves another option to keep on hand. The move comes as Atlanta continues shuffling arms to cover the present while keeping an eye on the postseason, leaving the organization with one fewer fallback as the stretch run tightens. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Just Sent A Troubling Signal About Spencer Strider
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Texas, though, did not show initial interest, and Striders elbow history may have been part of the reason. For Atlanta, that creates an uncomfortable backdrop around one of its most important arms, because any hesitation from another front office speaks to the lingering uncertainty that follows a pitcher who has already missed significant time with arm issues. [Read more 🡒]