The Braves have already made one notable bullpen move this offseason, and they may not be done. After committing $35 million to Evan Phillips over the next three seasons on Thursday, Atlanta is now being linked to another familiar late-inning arm: Raisel Iglesias.
According to Francys Romero, the Braves are interested in bringing back Iglesias, though they are not the only team in the mix. Romero reported that the 36-year-old right-hander has drawn interest from multiple clubs, including Atlanta and the Detroit Tigers.
Raisel Iglesias has drawn interest from multiple teams, including the Atlanta Braves and Detroit Tigers, per sources.
The 36-year-old right-hander is coming off a season in which he posted a 2.55 ERA with 34 saves.
- Francys Romero (@FrancysRomero) November 13, 2026
Iglesias was as steady as ever in the ninth inning last season. He earned his first All-Star selection after a strong first half and finished with a 2.55 ERA across 60 innings. He also logged a 3.48 xERA, 3.17 FIP, 3.45 xFIP and 1.4 bWAR, numbers that suggest he was still a quality reliever even if the underlying indicators were a touch less flattering than the surface results.
That production is why Iglesias should still command a respectable contract, even if the expectation is that he lands on a shorter-term deal. Atlanta signed him last offseason to a one-year, $16 million agreement, and projections point to that price tag coming down this winter.
Detroit makes sense as a suitor too. The Tigers took the veteran-closer route last offseason with 38-year-old Kenley Jansen, and they could be looking to follow a similar path again.
Their bullpen needs more help than Atlanta’s does, with Detroit finishing 21st in bullpen fWAR last season. The front office has also made it clear it wants more swing-and-miss stuff in that group.
Still, there are reasons for the Braves to be careful here. Iglesias averaged 94.3 mph on his four-seam fastball in 2026, and his velocity has trended down enough to raise questions about how long he can keep doing this at the same level. His whiff rate has also declined in each of the last five seasons, even though he still ranked in the 82nd percentile last year.
For Atlanta, the bigger issue may be how much money it wants to keep pouring into the bullpen. If Anthopoulos pushes hard for Iglesias, that debate is only going to get louder in Braves Country.
Iglesias has been excellent for the Braves since arriving in 2022, but there’s a real case for moving on a year early rather than a year late. If Atlanta lets him walk, it may simply be accepting that another team gets to find out what he looks like in 2027.
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